Unsought Input

Here’s my unsought input for you today. I live on a street with a lot of duplexes. It’s a nice neighborhood, the houses are in good shape, and generally speaking it looks like the sort of place you would like to live.

But not all the houses are owner-occupied like ours, and some owners are out-of-state investors who maybe care a little less about upkeep. Some of the residents are elderly and have a hard time with gardening and yard work. And with the huge subprime mortgage problem looming over the country, houses here and there are going into default and sitting neglected.

You’ve probably seen all the dramatic headlines about the Dow decline today, in part because of the weak housing market. Well, I’ve got an idea that will get the market up and running again. Okay, probably not, because I’m not a financial genius and I know relatively little about real estate. Still, I have an idea and thought I would share.

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Apparently what needs two six-hour classes on the first two Saturdays of spring can be summed up within a couple paragraphs (at least in a couple installments) on a slightly successful somewhat humor associated blog. I am, of course, referring to the first time home buyer class my lender has required me to attend in order to obtain a state subsidized mortgage. I’m not knocking the program as it is meant for first time home buyers. But the elementary view and information this class provides these hopeful and somewhat naive homebuyers is almost worthless. At first I assumed the audience was somewhat knowledgeable in regards to personal finance. I mean, this is a class for people ready to make the biggest purchase of their lives. However, I was seriously surprised when more than a few hands raised to notify the teacher that they didn’t know what a “Credit Score� was.

As I sat in the freezing room filled with plastic folding chairs listening to a real estate professional, a home inspector, and a real estate lawyer try to drum up business for themselves instead of educate home buyers, I decided to put down on paper the important lessons and intricacies that may be useful to a somewhat more educated, or simply alive, first time home buyer that I’ve discovered not only during the home buying process but also through my experience as a former loan officer and what I’ve learned while preparing to sit for the Real Estate Licensing exam in Ohio.

Today’s topic – Preparing your financials for a Mortgage
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