Cliff's Notes…on Real Estate

Mortgage Bonds are currently trading 31 basis points lower this morning, as Stocks rebound a bit after this week’s equity washout. Stocks are higher after news that the Federal Reserve authorized a $180 billion expansion of its swap lines with other world central banks in a bid to ease the credit crunch and restore a sense of calm in the financial markets. The funds, which will be provided by the Federal Reserve, can be injected into money markets through overnight and term loans. Stocks are liking this news so far and this is pressuring Bonds.

There is a lot of panic out there. People are very worried about their life savings. Is money in the bank safe? How about if it is in a life insurance policy? How about in bonds? Unfortunately the answer is no, no, no. Yesterday, the panic reached a level that caused such a demand on Treasuries, that the total return of some short-term paper went negative. That’s right…the premium paid was higher than the return provided by the yield. So keeping your cash under the mattress is better than an investment in some Treasuries, and apparently safer than the financial market. Suddenly, guess what may become the most attractive way to protect your money? Think about it…you can touch it, get a tax break, live in it too. Yes, Real Estate is starting to look pretty good, especially since it has become more reasonable priced.

In other news, the Initial Jobless Claims report met expectations and suggests continued weakness in the labor market.

I’m sure that you have already read and heard about the unfortunate demise of Lehman Brothers and BoA’s purchase of Merill Lynch. Here is a little more detailed information as it pertains to the mortgage industry.

Let’s begin with more fallout in the financial sector. Lehman Brothers is done after 158 years, thanks to their exposure to sub-prime mortgages. And another casualty, that was narrowly avoided was Merrill Lynch, which is being acquired by Bank of America, again this is all due to their greed and exposure in the risky mortgage business. Also on the ropes is insurance giant, AIG, as they try to raise cash quickly to stay afloat.

So what do all these headlines mean to us in the mortgage business? It’s a time to look for opportunities. Pricing will be at its best level in some time, homes are at much more attractive prices, terms to purchase are far more favorable than they have been and the forecast could get even better. Prices should improve nicely today as money flows out of Stocks – but there is another story on the Bond side.

We know that Treasury Bonds offer the lowest yield with the lowest risk. Then Mortgage Bonds offer a higher yield and for an even greater yield, there are Corporate Bonds. But they do carry higher risk. With all the turmoil in the financial sector, the risk on Corporate Bonds has increased significantly. While this will translate to higher yields being offered, the risk on Corporate Bonds may be greater than the appetite or tolerance of investors. In fact, many funds will preclude investments in riskier Bonds.

As fund managers and investors seek alternatives they will notice that Mortgage Bonds offer a much higher yield than Treasuries with the same guarantee. This should help Mortgage Bond pricing down the road…especially, with some potential good news on inflation. The Dollar has made significant gains against other major currencies, which should help import prices. The Job market is weak and that should keep wage based inflation in check. The move in Oil lower has been dramatic. A $52 drop in two months puts Oil at $95…likely on its way to $85. All these positive inflationary factors spell good news for mortgage rates.

In other words, today’s tragic news represents tremendous opportunity for mortgage borrowers in the short term. Therefore, we should carefully float for now, and I will guide you on our timing for locking in possibly the best mortgage rates this year.

Please share this with everyone you know.

Education.com Makes Comprehensive Information About the Nation’s 125,000 K-12 Schools Freely Available Across the Web
Popular website for parents offers SchoolFinder tools to give websites and blogs free access to Education.com’s nationwide public and private school data. Zillow.com(R) launches as a cornerstone partner.

Last update: 6:46 p.m. EDT Sept. 11, 2008
REDWOOD CITY, Calif., Sept 11, 2008 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ — Education.com, the leading destination of choice for parents of children in preschool through high school, today announced that it will provide free access to its popular SchoolFinder data to websites and blogs through its newly developed SchoolFinder tools.
Education.com’s SchoolFinder launched in February of this year and is a resource that gives parents free access to comprehensive, up-to-date information on more than 125,000 public, private, and charter K-12 schools. SchoolFinder provides both qualitative and quantitative information — including school profiles, performance metrics, student and teacher statistics, interactive maps, and reviews written by parents. Education.com invested in developing SchoolFinder in order to ensure that parents can easily access accurate information about their current schools or schools they’re considering for the future.
Education.com CEO Dr. Ronald Fortune explained of his company’s decision to offer its SchoolFinder data to other websites, “It’s critical that parents have the opportunity to learn more about the schools they’re considering for their children. We weren’t satisfied with the fact that it was easier to research your family’s new car than it was to research the institution you’re entrusting with your child’s education. Pulling this data together for every public, charter and private school in the nation was a herculean effort and we’re incredibly proud that it’s available to the nearly one million parents who visit Education.com each month. We are committed to getting the information to the parents of all 57 million school aged children in our country so it made sense to develop the SchoolFinder tools and offer them to other sites. We’re delighted that Zillow.com has deployed the Web Service and look forward to working with other high quality websites and bloggers to further increase the visibility of this critical data. We believe anyone writing about education, real estate, or parenting on the web should be giving their readers this information.”
Zillow.com, one of the most-visited real estate Web sites, has become one of the first to incorporate Education.com’s SchoolFinder data into its site using the new Web Service.
“At Zillow, our goal has always been to help people become smarter about real estate and neighborhoods in every stage of the home ownership process. Having accurate, up to date and thorough information about the schools where you currently live, or are thinking about moving, is incredibly valuable,” noted Zillow’s Jorrit Van der Meulen, vice president of partner relations. “We’re excited to provide Zillow.com visitors across the country access to Education.com’s SchoolFinder data through our extensive Neighborhood Pages.”
Education.com’s newly introduced SchoolFinder tools enable approved websites and blogs to easily display SchoolFinder data on their sites at no charge. The SchoolFinder Web Service enables developers to create their own applications by providing free access to the comprehensive SchoolFinder database. Developers can easily request an Application Programming Interface (API) key to access the Web Service on Education.com ( http://www.education.com/webservice/request) and integrate the SchoolFinder data with other information on their sites. The SchoolFinder Widget allows websites to post customized snapshots of local school data with no development investment. Simple instructions for customizing and publishing a SchoolFinder widget can be found at http://www.education.com/schoolfinder/tools/localschools-widget/.
About Education.com
Education.com provides parents of school aged children free access to information and resources to give them answers they need about raising and educating their children — plus activities designed to make learning together more fun for everyone. Often called “The WebMD of education”, the company has teamed up with the leading teachers, psychologists, universities, non-profits, and research organizations to offer highly credible parenting, developmental, and educational information. The site also offers printable activities, discussion boards, access to best of breed educational services, and SchoolFinder — a tool that gives parents comprehensive data on the nation’s 125,000 schools. Education.com was founded in 2006 and is headquartered in Redwood City, CA. The company is backed by leading venture capital firms, Azure Capital Partners, TeleSoft Partners and California Technology Ventures. For more information, please visit http://www.education.com.
SOURCE Education.com
http://www.education.com

Copyright (C) 2008 PR Newswire. All rights reserved

Selling a home today is very different than it was just a few years ago. In many areas it was as easy as putting a sign in the yard and then sitting back and waiting for multiple offers to choose from. But as the market has cooled down substantially you must make your property more exciting.

When a person buys a home it is a big emotional decision. People spend years of their life planning and visualizing their dream home, so when they actually come to view a prospective home they want it to be perfect. In order to make your house stand out from the crowd, there a few things that you can do.

First of all, look at the outside. Remember the term “curb appeal.” When prospective buyers drive up to your home, what does it say? It needs to say “wow!” Make your yard stand out by pruning the trees, pulling out the weeds and keeping it mowed and trimmed. You can also add colorful new plants to give it a fresh look. Make sure the exterior is in tiptop shape. Paint, as needed – especially the front door.

Inside the house make sure to fix any broken window panes, doors and leaky faucets. You should also check and make sure that all the electrical appliances such as the doorbell, fans, lights etc are functioning properly. You must keep in mind that buyers will look at every nook and cranny of the house, so you should take care of all the finer details. Nothing will turn off a potential buyer more than the feeling that the house has not been maintained. Finally, look at the inside of your home through the buyer’s eyes. What will they see? Should you repaint the walls? Should you replace the carpeting? Will the buyer feel at home?

In order to be more accustomed to the buyer’s need all you have to do is to think like a buyer. Try to make a list of all the things you would want in your home if you were to buy it. This will give you a good idea of what you need to do in order to make your home the buyers perfect home.