Posts Tagged ‘banks’

In what could be viewed as a strategic move designed to orchestrate a complete banking takeover, the Bank Stress Test Results were released, showing that an overwhelming majority of our nation’s banks “need” more capital to survive. Nevermind that most of these banks are saying they don’t need the money… that doesn’t seem to matter! Is Obama hell bent on Socialism in America, but without the guts to just straight out admit it? Maybe… it seems he continues his “hope and change” ideas while a majority of America still basks in the afterglow of the promise of a new direction.

However, most Americans could not tell you SPECIFICALLY what that new direction is.. they just wanted something new. Not that I blame them for the feeling or desire for something new… I agree. But did we want this direction? Scared yet? Concerned?

So let’s review… Banks that don’t need money are Forced to take money (BOA is just one example), the Government gets a stake in the banks, tells the banks you “can not pay us back yet” and then creates a new test that most of them fail. Given that most Americans are tired of the “bailout” scenario, the new idea is to convert the TARP money to stock (government owned stock!). So the banks, which don’t want more money from TARP, now get a large portion of their stocks taken over by the government.

“But the government will get out as soon as they can!” Sure about that? Please tell me the last thing the government took over that it decided to give up? Should we go so quietly?

This is a conspiracy theory, right? Maybe… but the one area in which Obama is being blatant is student loans. He wants to cut out any lenders that are in business to provide them and make them direct loans to the government… As some see it, Obama wants college kids indebted directly to Uncle Sam! That could mean major control over someone’s life!

Agree or disagree? Tell me how you see all this….

Wachovia Bank Losses Forces Game Playing

Wachovia today reported losses of over $8 Billion, well beyond any analyst’s expectation. With most of Wachovia’s losses coming from the mortgage market, which I would assume was made even worse by the purchase of Golden West and the Pick A Payment loan program, Wachovia is scrambling to prevent being a lame duck ripe for a takeover.

Right now they need to make their shareholders feel confident that Wachovia can turn this ship around quickly. So what do they announce? Wachovia is withdrawing from the wholesale mortgage business and will no longer do business with mortgage brokers. (Really? Did they really?… we’ll explore that more in second.)

The idea here is that since mortgage brokers have been unfairly held repsonsible for the entire mortgage snapfu that we are in, why not seperate themselves from the “evil mortgage brokers” and show investors that they have made major changes! This will allow them to put on a show to their shareholders to make them feel a little better about the major losses.

But this show is really just smoke and mirrors. Read the rest of this entry »

Banking on Bank of America could Cost You

Charlotte Realtors… If you currently count on Bank of America for majority of your Charlotte mortgage needs, you may want to start looking around a bit. With the aquisition of Countrywide, you should expect to see some changes at Bank of America!

Its no secret that Bank of America is buying trouble. Countrywide is riddled with bad loans, major defaults, negative press and a ton of impending lawsuits. And yet Bank of America is still buying Countrywide. The latest news is that 7,500 jobs will be cut as a result, mostly expected to be on the Countrywide side. But Bank of America will have to make changes too.

Any time a lender in the mortgage business sees major losses and defaults, they have to tighten up their lending practices to help compensate. We in the lending business have seen this time and time again. Mortgage banks that used to offer more flexibility are having to tighten up and offer less in terms of mortgage products and mortgage underwriting. Bank of America, while having made good decisions overall, is buying a major black hole that will force them to have to over-correct.

As a Realtor, if you have been relying heavily on Bank of America as your Charlotte mortgage referral source, you will want to quickly explore other lenders. As a result of this acquisition, you should expect Bank of America to begin raising their internal standards to accept only the cream of the crop home buyers. They will begin to further separate the margin of perfect credit borrowers with major equity from the less than perfect home buyers needing less money down. Very soon, those that fall into the latter circumstances will not see favorable mortgage programs offered.

At the same time, placing all your mortgage business with a major Bank will limit your opportunities. Major banks like Bank of America and Wachovia are having a tough time and will only have a handful of options for your buyers. However, working with a dedicated Charlotte Mortgage Lender will offer many solutions!

For example, the Carolina Mortgage Connection works for a Charlotte mortgage Lender. We offer the same mortgage products that any bank can offer, with mortgage rates and closing fees just as competitive. However, when you have a buyer that does not fit the “traditional bank mold”, we still have the flexibility to broker to other mortgage investors willing to take a risk on your buyers. And as investors come and go, we will always be in position to line your buyers up with the money they need at a price they can afford!

So Charlotte Realtors, arm yourself and your Charlotte real estate business with more options and opportunity. Let Ed Nailor and Residential Mortgage Center help you get more buyers qualified and close more deals! From the credit perfect to the credit challenged, we are uniquely positioned to provide the best in Charlotte mortgage rates, mortgage programs and mortgage solutions to your home buyers!

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Wachovia Bank, Charlotte Makes Changes

Wachovia Bank, based in Charlotte NC, announced that they will be adding new minimum credit scores to many of their mortgage products. This move is not surprising as most of the mortgage industry has imposed higher credit standards in wake of the current credit and mortgage markets.

Wachovia offers a limited range of retail mortgage products (typical big bank offerings) and is also well known for the “Pick a Payment” loan. Wachovia also offers their mortgage products on the wholesale market to lenders and brokers.

As a mortgage lender in Charlotte NC, the Carolina Mortgage Connection has the ability to broker mortgage loans to Wachovia’s wholesale division. The advantages of choosing the wholesale direction is that we can typically obtain lower mortgage rates than the retail side of their business. This is because the retail rates of any bank must account for the marketing and advertising the bank does to get you in the door. Just something to think about.