Ellen Adam's Blog

VA APPROVED CONDOS in Lane County, Oregon   If you’re trying to get a VA loan and are looking at condos, please know the condominium needs to be VA approved to obtain a VA loan.  The three condominium complexes that are VA approved in Lane County are: FlintRidge Condos, Hunington Heights, and Isl...

A very informative 4 minute video; a must see for anyone interested in the updates to the Fannie Mae Homepath program, and especially for those interested in updates on the Eugene & Springfield Oregon HAP and SHOP programs. Also, look for information about Eugene & Springfield area VA approved c...

Should the Ducks participate in the “Celebrating Champions Parade?” Some are questioning if the Ducks should participate in the “Celebrating Champions Parade” given that they lost 22-19 to Arizona in the BCS game.  Is a team that comes in second entitled to ‘celebrate’ with champions? You’re darn...

Did you know you can improve your credit score by paying off the balance each month? You can improve your credit score by using your credit card regularly and paying it off entirely each month.  Credit Bureaus view this as a responsible use of credit.  There is a catch however: if the credit card...

My spouse pays me rent – can I use that amount to help qualify for a loan? Question:  I am the sole owner of the home my husband and I share.  When I bought the home years ago I was working full-time and easily qualified for the loan with my income only.  I have since started working part-time an...

Quick credit tip: length of credit does matter to FICO One way to improve your FICO credit score is by having a credit card for a long period of time.  FICO prefers a credit card with a longer history (even though it may be a higher interest rate) as opposed to closing that card if you get a chan...

Recently I heard this story from a friend and thought it was just amazing, so I did some research to verify it.  I found articles on Bloomberg, Huffington Post and CBS News to name a few, all verifying the story. I want to share it with you because it has applications in multiple areas of life - ...

When I first read this in the Oregonian I remembered reading an old blog on ActiveRain talking about what a great meeting place Panera Bread was - I've never been to one; but now with all that I've learned about this organization, I want one in Eugene! With 1,421 cafes in 40 states - maybe they'l...

Talk about paying it forward Today I ran into a former neighbor of mine.  He's a friendly fella, has to be well into his 70's if not 80; I'll call him John.  I remember when John retired - it was a big deal for him - what was he going to do with all his time?  Work had always kept him so busy.  W...

This post by Richard L. Sanderson is worth a re-post.  I've been using his tip for a couple days now and it's really saved me time. Thank you Richard! How to Improve Search Results Using Advanced Google Searches I love ActiveRain but the site has inadequate search capacity.  When I use the standa...