So it is a new year with new possibilities for everyone. I always get excited for a new year. The reason I get so excited for a new year is that i get to set new goals and review my old ones. As for my old goals, yes I accomplished my old ones, now it is time to set the bar a little higher and go for it.

Oh and I almost forgot, do not be afraid. Do not let fear rob you of your goals in life.

Oh yeah, you read correctly. I am off to Las Vegas and no you can not come with me..well you can come if you really want to, just get your own room.. I am so excited to be going to Vegas and not only am I going, but I am going with Nucee. We will be staying at the MGM Grand. While we are in Vegas my good friend JIM is getting married, to a wonderful woman, Andria. We plan a doing just a bit of gambling, yeah right…all on black…

We will also be going to see Hoover Dam and Grand Canyon. Did i mention how excited i am to be going and that i will be gambling, roll them bones?? Wow is it going to be a great trip..Every time o go to places like this, I am sure I am like everyone else. I would love to hit a big jackpot. I would even settle for a small one. Well I guess we shall have to wait and see how things turn out for us. Wish me luck…

I love these two signs

Lately allot of people have been asking when is the right time to refinance their current mortgage and what type of mortgage should they get. From the conversations I have had recently, most people would love a one line answer. If i did give them a one line answer, I wouldn’t be doing my job. So i begin by asking them a few important questions such as, what kind of mortgage do you currently have now, why do you want to refinance and how long do you plan on staying in your current home? From there it can go a few different ways. If you plan on staying in your home more than 3 years less than 7 you should get what is called an ARM loan Fixed for 5-7 years. If you plan on staying in the home for over 7 years then a 30 year fixed mortgage might be the way to go. You can also get interest only payments to lower your monthly expenses to help keep the housing expenses in line and stress down.

There are allot of factors that need to be laid out on the table to get a better understanding of what is best for everyone. Some of those factors are income, debt, and retirement planning goals. I want to make sure you get the proper mortgage and that you enjoy your home and don’t feel as if it is a burden on your life style or pocket.

For more detailed information on different mortgages or to ask me a question please visit me at Florida Mortgage Financial Group

Many of us start our day making a list of all the things we need to accomplish. I certainly do, well i make a new list at the end of the previous day so i don’t forget anything and then add it in the morning.

There is another list we all have and we usually never write it down remember what every little thing is on it. Well leave that to technology. A friend of mine named Neale introduced me to a website called 43 Things it is a site where you can add things to your list that you want to accomplish. You can add things like read more or exercise more or anything your little heart desires.

It even has a place for you to add places you would like to go and a place for you to add people you would like to meet. I highly recommend you stop by the site and check it out. Be careful though, once you start, you wont be able to stop. Don’t forget to let me know about your list if you decide to make one.

Yes, wipe away those tears the Jetta has been sold and is on its way to its new owner in LA. she was a great car and served me well, unless sand was involved, yes it was the sands fault..She was replaced with a beast of a vehicle, “THE JEEP” never call it a truck either. or i kill u, DED. (yes I know I left out the a..)

I am very pleased to now be in a Jeep that I can not fly around in and can not zip from place to place.. It helps to slow me down and not rush all the time.

Now the only question is, How cool can I make the Jeep or how much money do I want to pour into it??? Well I will post from time to time the new stuff I do to the Jeep and post a picture if possible to show everyone the progress….

Lets not forget, congrats to Jose on his new Purchase, a 1993 Jeep yj, A great looking Jeep….

Monday again and I woke up well-rested and in a great mood, ready to start the day. I slept in for an extra hour, which I guess my body needed and it’s important to listen to your body. Sometimes it’s not easy, but we have to remember to build a healthy routine of getting up early and calling it a night at the right time. You’re doing nobody (especially not yourself) any good by working late into the night and making mistakes… in fact, making mistakes continuously builds bad habits. Mistakes and bad habits are bad, but they’re even worse when you’re dealing with people’s money! You’ve spent a lot of time building trust with your clients, you owe it to them and yourself to have a clear head when you’re ready to work with them.

It’s funny though, how you really don’t notice how important it is to stay on a schedule, until you get off-schedule. If you just go to bed at a decent hour and get up early for one week, including weekends, you really will feel a significant difference, including higher energy levels sustained throughout the day. After that first week of just getting up early, try doing a bit of exercise in the morning. Nothing too serious, I’m not suggesting immediately going to the gym 5 days a week! Start off by going for a walk or a short swim every other day. After 2 weeks you will really begin to feel full of energy and you will even realize your whole attitude on life will be changed for the positive.

What’s this mean? It means more positivity in your day-to-day processes. Being positive, as any salesman can tell you, will lead to better business. Staying positive will enhance your ability to interact with clients. Maintaining that energy and clear head throughout the day will give you the visibility you need to be successful. This isn’t just true for the mortgage industry, this is true in anything at all. A clear head will add up to a better experience, for you and for your clients.

A happy client is a returning client, so you see: the benefits of something as simple as a regular sleep schedule can mean the difference between success and failure. That’s my success tip for today. Next, I’ll begin discussing some of the different types of mortgages people will run into, and what they’ve got to offer. Have a great Monday!

The difficulty for most people in shopping for their own loans is that they don’t know all the right questions to ask and most lenders and banks offer only two or three programs.

A mortgage broker on the other hand, can submit your loan to many different lenders, have access to many different types of loan programs, can shop around for the best and most competitive mortgage rates and terms available tailored to meet your particular needs. Some charge fees or origination fees; some do not.

If you feel confident doing the leg-work and navigating the maze that banks put up to find the best rate, get the least points, and minimize fees, then by all means have at it. Calling all the lenders alone will take a ridiculous amount of time while they make you jump through hoops. The question you have to ask yourself is: how much is my time worth? It’s important to ask yourself that at the beginning, so you know how much your efforts will cost you, versus letting a professional that already has those doors opened up handle the situation.

Now, if you do not have the time to do a thorough job (and who does, these days?) or don’t know all the in and outs of a mortgage or loan, then a mortgage broker, either one nearby or one of the variety of online brokers, is an excellent resource to cut down on the amount of work you need to do. That’s not to say that you have to take a completely hands-off approach to finding your perfect loan! A broker can provide a wide variety of services, including calling lenders and getting all the necessary paperwork filed, that will simply cut down on all the legwork and provide you with the finished results to look at. A good, experienced broker will do all the necessary negotiations for you so you go in with a fully armed professional.

It’s in a broker’s interest for you to take the loan, so he’ll work hard to provide you with exactly what you want to see, but only as long as you know what it is you want to see. That’s why it’s important to use a broker that you trust, and have plenty of information and resources on hand to do it right. Our own brokerage, FMFG, can provide you with all these services, and you’ll be going in armed with all the latest information straight from the horse’s mouth! You simply can’t beat that. I’m here to help, so any questions you have, whether from FMFG or any other broker, just ask… I’ll even take a look at your paperwork and see if there’s anything that can be improved on. Any improvement means more money for you, so I expect people to take me up on this offer!

Doing it all yourself is by no means impossible, but it can be very, very difficult. It’s not made any easier by the overcomplicated processes that lenders and banks put forth in order to qualify the potential client, not to mention the negotiations needed in order to attempt to lock in the lowest rates. Remember, too - the people you’ll talk to are professional negotiators. Pitting yourself against them without any background can be disastrous to your efforts and very frustrating. As long as you know what you’re looking for, I recommend that you let a qualified broker handle all the grunt-work for you, and just present you with the options. By tuning into this site, you’ll learn what you need to find to make absolutely sure that you’re getting the best possible loan from a broker, and not getting shafted in the process.

No she is not pregnant, it is a Jeep

1978 CJ 7 Jeep

It has been quite some time since my last entry. And I really need to keep this updated at least once a week, if not more. in case you missed this post on my last blog that got deleted, Well I am now 30 years old and wow you do think a bit differently, well at least I do. You are probably asking yourself now how does he think differently and what does he think differently about? The answer is most things, starting with what you have accomplished so far in life and what you would like to still accomplish and are you on the right track to make it all happen? My thoughts on the above mentioned are quite good. I am in the second year of owning my own business, but I still have lots to learn and goals to meet. Everyday brings the new challenge of finding more business, the next loan.. Which in itself is quite stressful. When your lively hood depends you finding more business, most people crack after a bit of stress of finding the next loan. That’s where this business weeds out the weak. I refuse to quit, I want my business to grow. Soon you shall see the New and improved FMFG website (courtesy of sillysmart)(JOSE). And with this added tool FMFG will grow and become a leader in the mortgage world, of course this will take some time. That’s all for now. I have to leave some for other days, plus I don’t want to bore you with longwinded blah..

FMFG

A question I hear a lot these days is “what kind of mortgage do I get?” It’s right up there with “how do I get a lower rate?” I’m going to address both of these questions over the next few weeks in a multi-part series, and hopefully you’ll be able to determine what you need based on the information alone.

The first part of the series will be in itself multi-part, and each edition, I’ll go over the individual types of loan. I’ll explain what they are, what they require, what kind of needs it fills, and much more. It’s important to understand the different loan types, but not just what they provide so much as who they’re tailored for. Obviously, not every type is good for everyone, and I’ll explain in detail what would best qualify someone for that specific kind of mortgage loan. This guide will be as comprehensive as I can make it, and I hope that it can become a handy reference to the people out there who have mortgage needs but aren’t too sure about how to bring the financial resources out of their assets.

Getting a lower rate will be the second part of the series, where I’ll discuss all the different ways mortgage brokers get the rates they do, how to discover any padding or tricks you may not otherwise see, and how to make absolutely 100% sure that you’re getting the absolute most out of your assets. Many mortgage brokers out there are driving a BMW or a Mercedes because the average person has no idea what they’re paying for when they’re hiring “the experts.” Make no mistake, a mortgage broker will always know how to get you the best possible situation - that’s why they’re professionals in their field. However, there are precious few brokers who are honest enough to give you that perfect scenario, where you get the lowest rate, the best options, the most money. The second part of my guide will help you determine whether you’re dealing with an honest broker or not. Take it from me - I’ve been a broker for over 10 years now - there’s no shortage of shysters out there.

I’ll address many more questions along they way, of course, and explain anything that needs explaining. If you have a specific question, I’ll be happy to help you: just send me an email, or just get in touch with the experts at FMFG and ask the fine people there.

Kicking off yet another blog in this old blogosphere, this time one that will tell you more about mortgages, mortgage tips, and just general financial advice than any other piece of web real estate around.  Jimbo Stout will have you pullin money from the trees with the information and experience he’s got - in fact, if you have a question, or need someone to take a look at your paperwork to see if you’re being taken for a ride (or heck, if you just want a lower rate) you should contact Jimbo right away.  Email jimbo@jamesestout.com for more information.