Your Questions About Affiliate Broker
Chris asks…
Broker name affiliated in shipping?
Hey guys. Basically I have this guy on eBay who speaks French and I don’t understand his English very well. He keeps telling me to not forget that he has a broker name affiliated with his shipping address. He says to “do the invoice in my company name”. Is having an affiliated broker name in his shipping address the same thing as it being a company address? What’s the difference if there is one and how do I go about telling FedEx this?
Any help would be much appreciated. Thanks!!
Tom answers:
I’m assuming you are referring to a customs broker. There’s a spot on the Int’l Air Bill that asks for broker info, you may have to use the long form. Essentially, you are going to ship the package to the broker who will do the job of clearing customs, as opposed to using Fedex, he will then either give it back to Fedex for the delivery or he might give it to the recipient himself. Fedex has an Int’l helpline who can talk you through the process or take it to the closest Fedex station (not Fedex Office) the station will have seen this before, odds are Office hasn’t.
Ken asks…
What is the advantage of being a real estate AND mortgage agent?
hi there, i have recently gotten my real estate license and the brokerage’s affiliated mortgage broker offers mortgage agent courses, are there any benefits and (other than on-top commission) are there benefits for my potential clients?
Tom answers:
Yes there are a number of benefits. What you do need is to be careful not confuse the client and disclose that you do both and will be compensated by both if they use you for both.
The knowledge that comes with having both licenses it many cases is invaluable to a client. You will know the ins and outs of what it would take a client to purchase a property or even sell one.
Good Luck
JT
John asks…
Which mortgage co. should I use for new home purchase in fl?
I am a 25 year old female looking to purchase my first townhome for $70,000 in south florida. I am putting down 20% and getting a 30 year fixed rate conventional loan. I got preapproved and a GFE today with Guaranteed Rate for 5.3% interest rate. I heard they are a good mortgage company through referrals and they do not charge fees or discount points. I had a quote from a mortgage broker affiliated with Wells Fargo and the closing costs were more but he gave me a 5.1% interest rate. However the monthly payments were only about $13 difference in price. The Wells Fargo guy is not willing to work with me and told me to shop if I want to. Everyone is telling me (family and friends) that since this loan is so small ($56,000) my monthly payment and closing costs will not make much difference in price. Guaranteed Rate is charging me less for appraisal fees and some other fees when I compare to the Wells Fargo rate but who knows. I barely understand this stuff and am not paying an attorney to look at it. I’m not sure what to do. I was going to try getting a quote with Bank of America but I heard they don’t process anything in house so the closings are usually delayed and they charge discount points. I am new to this and don’t really understand any of it so any advice would be much appreciated. Should I use Guaranteed Rate Mortgage Co. or keep shopping? My closing is Feb 28. We are already under contract.
Tom answers:
First, don’t confuse discount points and origination points. Discount points are an option that is available that permits you to “buy” a lower than par interest rate. You get benefit from this and you make the choice whether you want to do it. Origination points are the fee the originator or loan officer is charging to do your loan. Always compare rates at par (which means 0 discount points). Origination fees are like trying to compare a lawyer or doctor’s per hour price, some charge more than they are worth, some do little for what they charge and some are worth every penny they charge; you can’t really put a value on a service because it is very individualistic.
Your family is right, the small loan amount will mean that, unless drastically different, the interest rate is going to have only a small impact on your monthly pmt. Your best tool for comparison shopping are the Truth In Lending with its stated APR and total loan cost over the life of the loan and your Good Faith Estimate which lists the associated costs (as of Jan 1, legal measures have been taken to prevent lenders from overstating or understating loan costs on this form). Page 2 of the GFE will provide the items you are being charged, some will be the same no matter what lender you choose such as transfer taxes, court stamps, recording fees…bu the others are what is negotiable. Only the “optional” fees are used to calculate the APR on the TIL so that is how you can get a true interest rate. Also, the new form for the GFE has a 3rd page which gives more info on comparison shopping. When you look at the Wells Fargo annual percentage rate (APR) it will be higher than the Guaranty one even though they have a lower stated rate because of those higher fees.
I now do independent auditing for mortgage companies, but I know this stuff in and out. If you have more questions or problems, go ahead and email me and I will help you. I have had a couple of nervous firat time buyers do that. Go to my info page and Yahoo will send it through.
Joseph asks…
Help with buying first home please!?
I am a 25 year old female looking to purchase my first townhome for $70,000 in south florida. I am putting down 20% and getting a 30 year fixed rate conventional loan. I got preapproved and a GFE today with Guaranteed Rate for 5.3% interest rate. I heard they are a good mortgage company through referrals and they do not charge fees or discount points. I had a quote from a mortgage broker affiliated with Wells Fargo and the closing costs were more but he gave me a 5.1% interest rate. However the monthly payments were only about $13 difference in price. The Wells Fargo guy is not willing to work with me and told me to shop if I want to. Everyone is telling me (family and friends) that since this loan is so small ($56,000) my monthly payment and closing costs will not make much difference in price. Guaranteed Rate is charging me less for appraisal fees and some other fees when I compare to the Wells Fargo rate but who knows. I barely understand this stuff and am not paying an attorney to look at it. I’m not sure what to do. I was going to try getting a quote with Bank of America but I heard they don’t process anything in house so the closings are usually delayed and they charge discount points. I am new to this and don’t really understand any of it so any advice would be much appreciated. Should I use Guaranteed Rate Mortgage Co. or keep shopping? My closing is Feb 28. We are already under contract.
Tom answers:
Since you have applied for a mortgage loan with two difference companies, the only way you may see which is a better deal and you are paying the less in fees and points is to request from each a Good Faith Estimate (GFE), this document will give you an idea as to all the points, fees and other items that could be charged to you. You should also request a Truth In Lending (TIL) this document will give you the Annual Percentage Rate (APR) the lower the APR the lower the cost of the mortgage loan would cost you.
This would give you a birds eye view of which in the long run would less costly. Even though one mortgage loan application might have a lower interest rate the points and fees would raise the cost of the mortgage loan.
You might consider a FHA mortgage loan. This is a popular mortgage loan where the down payment is approximately 3.5% down. This would allow you to possibly keep some of your money in a financial instrument for emergencies and other possible unforeseen financial difficulties.
While speaking with your mortgage loan officer make sure you get your pre-approval letter.
Because others had difficulties with certain lenders do not mean you will find the or have the same problems, therefore if you feel the need to continue to shop for a mortgage loan the decision should not be based on anothers experience, especially if you do not know them.
I hope this has been of some benefit to you, good luck.
“FIGHT ON”
Michael asks…
Is 19 too young to marry?
I haven’t had any luck getting dates most likely due to my short stature. Further, my marriage broker was not able to get me any willing dates but she did recommend getting a Russian mail order bride. The entire cost for the meet and greet and all of the travel and paperwork is reasonable.
I am almost desperate enough to start looking at single moms but do not really want to go down that route unless I really have to.
With that said my marriage broker was suggesting that I go for a younger than the usual age mail order bride which would be the 19-25 age group as opposed to the usual 29-39 age because the younger might be likelier to grow into a loving relationship.
We were searching through my marriage broker‘s Russian affiliate‘s web site and found a few that are around 19 and 20 years old and also speak a little English.
Would 19 be too young to make them leave their native Russia? Do they mind if you share a house with your brother?
Thanks Peeps 4 yo help!
“considering importing a wife”
Well, I’m 27 and never had a date. I really would like to date women but do not know how to get them to like me.
I get really depressed wanting more than anything to be able to treat a woman like a lady and have not had the chance.
Maybe it seems really sad but for me just getting to eat dinner with and talking to a pretty woman who might like me a little would be a big pleasure for me.
Tom answers:
I cannot recommend strongly enough against a mail order bride. The ones that are not scams, are entering into this entirely for the financial. You might as well go to the poorest neighborhood in any big city in the good old USA and say who between the ages of 19 and 25 and female would marry me if I promised them a car? I estimate you chances at love to be approximately the same with that plan. BTW make them leave Russia? Compared to everything else the brother may actually help things. 19 is not to young to get married. Mail order is great for books, not brides. I am linking to the 10 best places to met women.
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