DIY Lay Hardwood Flooring

I have remodeled many homes and lived with the process. I'm 65 days into this mess. Demolition is completed. Well I've gotten all the carpet, pad, wood strip and scraped the glue.  Next step is to remove the floor molding and scrub the concrete. It's a dusty project. Wet  mop twice a day...

Here towards the end you can see my progress. 

After shopping on State College at seven stores, Home Depot, Lumber Liquidators, and two local flooring showrooms I decided on six inch wide plank with a matte finish. A number of Realtors told me dark is "out." I opted for a conservative tone that is in between gunstock, red oak and medium warm. I purchased from Floorstoyourhome.com online. I am not certain this method is for everyone. after educating myself about all the brands, how they are made and prices I was careful to shop on their website waiting for a deal on the type of specs that I desired. It took me a couple weeks to actually execute the purchase as they have small lots and they come and go. Small company in Indiana that shipped for free. Price was vital as my budget for a 1100 square foot downstairs was $ 7000. I had bids for $12000 to $21000 including labor and all the parts.

I planned to order t-molding, transition strips and stair molding from them, but found they wanted to charge shipping and material was available at Ganahl Lumber.  

One problem about picking up the long strips of t-molding (one was 17 feet) I'm not certain I would

choose to do that again with my BMW X5 and the goofy flags hanging out the back. Might have been worthwhile to pay $33 in shipping to floors to your home as I worried about getting a ticket.

Here's the very first piece being "laid." Floor is clean enough to eat dinner off and wood is glued to my nice level floor. All my belongings are upstairs in boxes, and antiques scattered as best I could. My son Carson has been pretty ill, and I thought I was going to have my second pair of hands but all things you plan seem to go awry. 

Michael Graves Fire Sale!

Shiny new teapot

Some years back I bought several Michael Graves items for my home. If you are unaware Michael Graves is a brilliant architect and designer. Most of the items were not terribly expensive, but I wrongly assumed they were functional. I looked online and found a couple of my items for sale on ebay and they all seem to be like mine - non operational.

The singing teapot was such a cute item when we first bought it. My daughter loved to make tea but unfortunately it lasted about ten heat ups and the bird whistle actually melted. This was the first of the failures. I also bought the egg timer above which never seemed to keep time. Below is a photograph of my toaster- the plastic white front melted from the heating coil ( thank God it didn't burn the house down) and the handle that pops the toast down never seemed to remain intact or engaged. Also below is a garlic press note it is missing half of an arm. The metal used to create the handles was so brittle and soft it snapped off and is broken. We threw away the handle some time ago. Also the little battery powered clock is made of the same metal aggregate material- the hands of the clock fell off.

Target stopped making these cool housewares objects I believe in 2013. All of them were made in China. In retrospect I wonder does Michael Graves ever feel embarrassed that these items that he thought were bringing creative design to American homes were junk and maybe even dangerous? 

In my work I see this with homes. Buyers are still looking for deals in REO's but the danger is they have no idea what condition the home is in. The house might look nice from the curb, might even be polished up and painted over by some flipper but the bones inside are junk. 

I know of a couple people who bought a Flip house without knowing it was:

1. a meth house three years back

2. had leaks and mold

or 3. the plumbing froze and every pipe in the walls was brittle or removed

These houses all ended up needing major repairs to make them inhabitable

Like myself buying a new toaster, tea pot and housewares thinking they all looked

great - and enjoying the fun of the outside appearance- in the end quality is

what really lasts.

Buyer beware I guess.

Anyone want to buy six Micheal Graves things all soon to become museum pieces

that by the by don't work? Only $3.99 for all six. Fire sale!

my graveyard of Michael Graves home appliances

Broken house hold items that seemed nice on the outside

Raise Your FICO Score

Lead a horse to water, take a drink for them?

I am working on a number of refinances. Some are streamline

FHA refinances into lower rate, lower MI premium. Often

Borrowers choose a FHA loan product not just because of

the low down payment, but because their FICO score is

low or they have credit challenges.

For some reason credit habits are like any other habit-

drinking five glasses of water or closing your eyes to bills

when money is tight. Many of the customers who I fixed 

their credit now are back again in the same low score situation.

All credit can be repaired. It takes letter writing, juggling some

balances, making sure everything going forward is current and

some tips and tricks. I am again sharing with you tips on how to

get your FICO up:

Opt out - do a consumer credit opt out and stop all the

junk mail and soft credit pulls, also helps prevent fraud

Balances below 69% of available line

Ask me about a letter writing campaign for free

Get everyone current and pay on time.

DON'T close accounts

Do not ever give your social to CarMAx

Don't let people pull your credit file

Open a Bank Account Open a bank account and use it responsibly. This is the first step to establish a financial history. Secured Credit Card Apply for a credit card. Shop around & only apply for a card if you can meet the lender�s requirements. Responsible use will help build a good credit history. Get a Co-Signer A good way to establish credit is to piggy-back onto someone who already has a good credit history established and is willing to co-sign, but be aware that any default of credit on your part affects the credit of the co-signer. http://eaglehomemortgage.com/carolinegerardo C. G. Barbeau (949) 784- 9699 NMLS # 324982 Store & Gas Credit Cards Since some gasoline credit cards are not revolving they are sometimes easier to obtain than regular credit cards. Similarly department stores offer revolving credit for a specific purchase and this is sometimes easier to obtain. It is also a great way to establish credit.

Streamline FHA Spouse' Credit

Just a quick note to let you know we DO NOT have to pull credit on a non-borrowing spouse in a Community Property State on our Non-Credit-Qualifying FHA STREAMLINE REFINANCE loans.

Non borrowing spouse can have bad or weak credit

Mortgage After Short Sale

Conventional Loan after Short Sale

Fannie Mae is unlike FHA, VA, and USDA where they have different mortgage lending guidelines on getting a conventional loan after short sale and deed in lieu of foreclosure. The Federal Housing Administration, FHA, looks at foreclosure and short sale the same as a regular foreclosure and the waiting period after short sale, deed in lieu of foreclosure, foreclosure is all the same. FHA guidelines on waiting period after short sale, deed in lieu of foreclosure, foreclosure is all three years to qualify for a FHA Loan: Three year mandatory waiting period after the recorded date of a foreclosure and deed in lieu of foreclosure and three year waiting period after the date of the short sale. There is a two year waiting period to qualify for a FHA Loan after bankruptcy. The waiting period starts from the discharge date of the bankruptcy.

PRICKLY SUBJECT  - BUY A HOME AFTER THE CRASH

With Fannie Mae, there is a 7 year waiting period after foreclosure to qualify for a conventional loan. However, to qualify for a conventional loan after short sale or deed in lieu of foreclosure, the waiting period drops to a 4 year waiting period and only a 5% down payment is required. Unlike FHA, VA, USDA, short sale and deed in lieu of foreclosure is treated much differently with Fannie Mae and those who have a short sale or deed in lieu of foreclosure are greatly rewarded than those who have a standard foreclosure.

What happened to 2 year waiting period after short sale with 20% down payment to qualify for Conventional Loan?

If you Google ” Waiting Period to qualify for conventional loan after short sale or deed in lieu of foreclosure”, you will get dozens and dozens of articles the first few pages that highlights that there is a 2 year waiting period to qualify for a conventional loan with 20% down payment. Unfortunately, all of those articles are now not accurate because Google has not updated the correct information or updated blogs from mortgage writers and bloggers. Just this past August, 2014, Fannie Mae has eliminated the 2 year waiting period after short sale and/or deed in lieu of foreclosure to qualify for a conventional loan with 20% down. Many home buyers who were nearing the 2 year waiting period mark after short sale or deed in lieu of foreclosure or trying to save the 20% down payment were just absolutely devastated since Fannie Mae came up with new mortgage lending guidelines on waiting periods after short sale and deed in lieu of foreclosure to qualify for a conventional loan.

FANNIE MAE Guidelines on waiting period after short sale, deed in lieu of foreclosure, foreclosure, bankruptcy

2015 FANNIE MAE guidelines with regards to waiting periods after short sale, deed in lieu of foreclosure, foreclosure, and bankruptcy to qualify for a conventional loan.

WAITING PERIOD AFTER SHORT SALE AND DEED IN LIEU OF FORECLOSURE TO QUALIFY FOR CONVENTIONAL LOAN: 

There is a 4 year mandatory waiting period after short sale and foreclosure to qualify for a conventional loan with 5% down payment and re-established credit after the short sale or deed in lieu of foreclosure with no late payments in the past 12 months. Most mortgage lenders do not want to see any late payments after the short sale or deed in lieu of foreclosure.

WAITING PERIOD AFTER FORECLOSURE: There is a mandatory waiting period of 7 years after foreclosure to qualify for a conventional loan from the recorded date of foreclosure with re-established credit after foreclosure and no late payments in the past 12 months. Most mortgage lenders have investor overlays that require no late payments after the foreclosure.

WAITING PERIOD AFTER BANKRUPTCY TO QUALIFY FOR CONVENTIONAL LOAN: There is a 4 year mandatory waiting period after bankruptcy to qualify for a conventional loan with re-established credit and no late payments in the past 12 months. Most mortgage lenders will have investor overlays where no late payments after bankruptcy will be necessary.

MORTGAGE PART OF BANKRUPTCY: If you had a mortgage part of your bankruptcy or foreclosure part of bankruptcy, there is a 4 year waiting period to qualify for a conventional loan with re-established credit and no late payments in the past 12 months. Many mortgage lenders will have internal mortgage lender overlays where they will require no late payments after your bankruptcy.

Laguna Niguel Home Market

• Median List Price
  $749,000
  1% ( $10,000) vs Nov 2013
• Median Sales Price
  $710,000
  3% ( $22,000) vs Nov 2013
• Median Foreclosure Sales Price
  $595,000
  5% ( $28,500) vs Nov 2013

• Foreclosures	158
  Homes for Sale	373
  Recently Sold	514

Market Summary Foreclosures for Laguna Niguel

 California

There are currently 158 properties in 92677 that are in some stage of foreclosure 

(default, auction or bank owned) while the number of homes listed for sale is 373.

In December 2014, the number of properties that received a foreclosure filing in 92677 was 31% higher than the previous month and 40% higher than the same time last year.

Home sales for November 2014 were down 61% compared with the previous month, and down 47% compared with a year ago. 

Median sales price of a non-distressed home was $710,000. The median sales price of a foreclosure home was $595,000, or 16% lower than non-distressed home sales.

Numbers of new listings for non foreclosures greatly slowed in December and January with buyers still looking for product, but little on the market. This is typical from Christmas until the Superbowl but we should be seeing increasing new listings in Laguna Niguel, Laguna Beach, Dana Point and the surrounds - but not yet...

Sales Prices - 92677

Mortgage RATES hit historic lows

With rates in the high 3's we should

see the market increase in the spring

I expect the values to increase, sellers

again listing houses high but buyers

getting in where they can

Bath Remodel Loan

Bath remodel ideas

We have a new mortgage that allows a Borrower to 

buy a house and finance the construction improvements

they plan to complete.

Work should be completed in six months

This is a compromise between a 203k loan that only

gives you $30000 and a full new construction loan that

can go up to ten million dollars and take two years.

The remodel amount must be less than fifty percent of

the sale price.

Perfect for a beater house with an ugly bath or outdated

kitchen that needs a face lift

Homestyle Mortgage Loans Universal American Mortgage

Eagle Home mortgage

http://eaglehomemortgage.com/carolinegerardo

Caroline Gerardo Senior Loan Officer NMLS #324982 Cell 949-637-8190 Office 949-784-9699 eFax 855-883-4303 CarolineGerardo@eaglehm.com www.eaglehomemortgage.com/carolinegerardo Committed to Seeing You Home. Eagle Home Mortgage 8105 Irvine Center Drive Suite #500 Irvine CA 92618 NMLS #849059 CA #813I609 Universal American Mortgage Company of California, dba Eagle Home Mortgage of California. Licensed by the Department of Business Oversight under the California Residential Mortgage Lending Act. RMLA #4130383, NMLS #252392. Certain restrictions apply. This is not a commitment to lend. Applicants must qualify.