John Lemos's (jplemos) Blog

Two Ways to Protect Yourself from Identity TheftMany people are concerned about identity theft in light of the recent Equifax data breach that impacted half the US population.  Here are two ideas you may want to consider in order to protect your credit and identity:1 – You Can Place a “Credit Fre...

If you or anyone you know has been impacted by Hurricanes Harvey or Irma, you may find the following ideas and resources to be useful. Please pass this information along to anyone you know who may benefit!1 - Mortgage Forbearance: you may be eligible to temporarily stop making your monthly mortga...

Is a Debt Consolidation Loan Worth It? There are two debt consolidation scenarios that are gaining popularity in today’s economy:1 – If you already own a home: a debt consolidation loan is typically where you trade in your lower-balance home loan for a higher-balance home loan.  You could then us...

The Mortgage Bankers Association released their Mortgage Application Data for the week ending 6/16, showing that overall application volume increased by 0.6%. Applications to Purchase a home were down 1.0%, but are still up 9.2% year over year.  Refinances increased by 2.0% and are down 30% from ...

Three Great Reasons to Consider a Cash-out Refinance Interest rates on home loans are near their best levels of the year, while home values in many parts of the country have increased.  In this environment, many homeowners are considering a “cash-out” refinance.  This is where you pay off your ol...

Three Ways to Improve Home Buying Power If you or anyone you know is buying a house this summer, chances are you’ll be dealing with competing offers and low inventory issues.  Here are three ways to avoid getting priced out of the house you want: 1 – Consider Your Overall Debt Strategy For exampl...

Here are four options to consider if you’re thinking about making some home improvements: 1 – Pay CashYou could pay cash for the improvements if you have the money in a checking or savings account.  There are two drawbacks to consider before you go this route:•Savings Depletion: a large home impr...

   Party Like It's 1980: Mortgage Debt Ratios at 37-year Lows According to recently released statistics from the Federal Reserve, average mortgage payments as a percentage of disposal income have reached their lowest point since 1980.  (See chart below.) This is great news for homebuyers!  For ex...

According to a recent industry survey, less than 2% of real estate agents have not yet been involved in a bidding war this year.  This means that you will most likely compete with multiple offers if you’re in the market to buy a house this spring or summer.  Here are two strategies you may want ...

The Opportunity Cost of Paying CashWhen you pay cash for a property, you are missing out on the opportunity to earn a rate of return on that cash. In the illustration below, Option 1 is to pay cash for a $200,000 house.  Option 2 is to use $100,000 of cash, and a $100,000 mortgage.  If you go wit...