Someone emailed me a few safety tips that I found interesting and useful. I thought I would share them with you over the next few days.
#1. Tip from Tae Kwon Do: The elbow is the strongest point on your body. If you are close enough to use it, do.

#2. Tip from a tourist guide: If a robber asks for your wallet and/or purse, DO NOT HAND IT TO HIM, toss it away from you….chances are that he is more interested in your wallet and/or your purse than you, and he will go for the wallet/purse. RUN LIKE MAD IN THE OTHER DIRECTION.

#3. If you are ever thrown into the trunk of a car, kick out the back tail lights and stick your arm out the hole and start waving like crazy….the driver won’t see you but everyone else will.

#4. Women have a tendency to get into their cars after shopping, eating, working, etc. and just sit (doing their checkbook or making at list, etc.) DON’T DO THIS. The predictor will be watching you, and this is the perfect opportunity for him to get in on the passenger side, put a gun to your head and tell you where to go. AS SOON AS YOU GET INTO YOUR CAR, LOCK THE DOORS AND LEAVE.

#5. If someone is in your car with a gun to your head, DO NOT DRIVE OFF. Instead gun the engine and run into anything, preferably backwards, wrecking the car. Your air bag will save you. If the person is in the back seat they will get the worst of it. As soon as the car crashes bail out and run. It is better than having them find your body in a remote location.

#6. When getting into your car in a parking lot or parking garage look around you. Look into your car on the passenger side and in the back seat before getting into it.

#7. If you are parked next to a big van, enter your car from the opposite side. Most serial killers attack their victims by pulling them into their vans while the person is attempting to get into their cars.

#8. Look at the car parked on the driver’s side of your vehicle and the passenger side….if a male is sitting alone in the seat nearest your car, you may want to walk back into the mall, or work and get a guard/policeman to walk you back out. It is always better to be safe than sorry (and being paranoid than dead).

#9. Always take the elevator instead of the stairs. Stairwells are horrible places to be alone and the perfect crime spot. This is especially true at night.

MORTGAGE TIP OF THE DAY:
In negotiating with a bank owned property. When you find the person who makes the ultimate decision, don’t use threatening or hard tactics. Be as nice and as accommodating as possible. This person holds ALL the cards and usually doesn’t have much to lose.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: (This is the serious part)
“I was born into it and there was nothing I could do about it. It was there, like air or food, or any other element. The only question with wealth is what you do with it.”
John D. Rockefeller, Jr.

TODAY’S FUN FACT:
Coca Cola was introduced in 1896. Pepsi Colas followed ten years later.

Rates: Thursday, February 10, 2011, 11:15am

Loan Program Rate: APR*: Payment Estimates:

30 Year Fixed 5.125% (same) 5.228% $544.49 Interest and Principal
• Purchase or rate and term refinance

30 Year Fixed 5.250% (same) 5.354% $552.20 Interest and Principal
• Cash out refinance***

15 Year Fixed 4.375% (same) 4.553% $758.62 Interest and Principal
• Purchase or rate and term refinance

15 Year Fixed 4.500% (same) 4.679% $764.99 Interest and Principal
• Cash out refinance***

Bond Money 4.250% (same) 5.453% $555.77 Int. & Princ. & Mtg Ins.
• First Time Homebuyer Bond Money + 1% origination fee

FHA Fixed 4.875% (same) 5.583% $601.12 Int. & Princ. & Mtg. Ins.
• Purchase or refinance

Jumbo Fixed 5.625% (same) 5.721% $2,406.26 Interest and Principal
• 30 Year Purchase and Refinance over $417,000

LEGAL STUFF

• *APR – Annual Percentage Rate
• **ARM – Adjustable Rate Mortgage (rate may increase after consummation of the loan)
• ***Cash out refinance – Refinance means pulling out at least $2,000 or more or paying off a non-purchase second mortgage

All payments estimates above do not include amounts for property taxes and homeowner’s insurance premiums and your actual payment obligation will be greater.

Annual Percentage Rates and Payment Estimates quoted are based on a $100,000 loan amount except the 5/1 ARM, and Jumbo fixed loan amount is $418,000 and 20% down payment with the exception to the FHA and OHFA quotes which are based on a 3.5% down payment.

Qualifying Assumptions (unless otherwise noted): 45 day rate lock, $100K-$417K loan amount, credit scores 740+, Owner-occupied Purchase or rate/term refinance, 75% loan to value. Cash-out refinances (including paying off a non-purchase 2nd mortgage) could result in a slightly higher interest rate. The interest rates quoted are to serve as a guide only and may be different based on specific loan features. Please call for a specific quote.

We CANNOT lock in an interest rate on a loan with a voicemail or email. The customer MUST talk to the loan officer over the phone or in person before it can be confirmed. The market changes too frequently.
We recommend calling during business hours to make sure we have all the markets open and available.

LIFE’S LITTLE INSTRUCTIONS:
To explain a romantic break-up, simple say, “It was all my fault”.

Stephen Wagner
Mortgage Lender since 1974
The Arlington Bank
4621 Reed Road
Columbus, OH 43220
Office: 614-486-9104
Cell: 614-271-0888
Fax: 614-486-4078

THINK ABOUT THIS!!!
Reading while sunbathing makes you well red.

MORTGAGE TIP OF THE DAY:
Nationwide for the month of September 2010, 31% of all real estate sales were either bank owned or pre-foreclosure (short sales).

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: (This is the serious part)
There are no shortcuts to any place worth going.

TODAY’S FUN FACT:
Ivory soap became a sensation when a worker goofed and let a batch get too much air in it. The company was soon deluged by letters complimenting them on the wonderful new soap that floats. The soap-serendipity has made it a best seller for over 100 years.

Rates: Thursday, December 16, 2010, 11:00am

Loan Program Rate: APR*: Payment Estimates:

30 Year Fixed 5.125% (+.250) 5.218% $544.49 Interest and Principal
• Purchase or rate and term refinance

30 Year Fixed 5.250% (+.250) 5.343% $552.20 Interest and Principal
• Cash out refinance***

15 Year Fixed 4.370% (+.125) 4.531% $758.62 Interest and Principal
• Purchase or rate and term refinance

15 Year Fixed 4.500% (+.125) 4.656% $764.99 Interest and Principal
• Cash out refinance***

Bond Money 4.250% (same) 5.453% $555.77 Int. & Princ. & Mtg Ins.
• First Time Homebuyer Bond Money + 1% origination fee

FHA Fixed 4.750% (same) 5.363% $576.61 Int. & Princ. & Mtg. Ins.
• Purchase or refinance

Jumbo Fixed 5.625% (same) 5.721% $2,406.26 Interest and Principal
• 30 Year Purchase and Refinance over $417,000

LEGAL STUFF

• *APR – Annual Percentage Rate
• **ARM – Adjustable Rate Mortgage (rate may increase after consummation of the loan)
• ***Cash out refinance – Refinance means pulling out at least $2,000 or more or paying off a non-purchase second mortgage

All payments estimates above do not include amounts for property taxes and homeowner’s insurance premiums and your actual payment obligation will be greater.

Annual Percentage Rates and Payment Estimates quoted are based on a $100,000 loan amount except the 5/1 ARM, and Jumbo fixed loan amount is $418,000 and 20% down payment with the exception to the FHA and OHFA quotes which are based on a 3.5% down payment.

Qualifying Assumptions (unless otherwise noted): 45 day rate lock, $100K-$417K loan amount, credit scores 740+, Owner-occupied Purchase or rate/term refinance. Cash-out refinances (including paying off a non-purchase 2nd mortgage) could result in a slightly higher interest rate. The interest rates quoted are to serve as a guide only and may be different based on specific loan features. Please call for a specific quote.

We CANNOT lock in an interest rate on a loan with a voicemail or email. The customer MUST talk to the loan officer over the phone or in person before it can be confirmed. The market changes too frequently.
We recommend calling during business hours to make sure we have all the markets open and available.

Stephen Wagner
Mortgage Lender since 1974
The Arlington Bank
4621 Reed Road
Columbus, OH 43220
Office: 614-486-9104
Cell: 614-271-0888
Fax: 614-486-4078

The home was a bank owned, single family ranch listed for $75,000. This was an “absolute auction”, which means the house would be sold to the highest bidder regardless of the price in its AS-IS condition with no buyer contingencies and the buyer had to close within 30 days plus a 10% buyers premium that would be added to the final bid price. Bidders had to show up with a $5,000 deposit in form of a cashier’s check. The auction was to take place at the house at 5PM.

My client and I arrived at the house at 4:30. There were several people going in and out of the house looking around and scoping out the other bidders. (If you are a people watcher, you would love this event) The auctioneer was set up in the house where we went to register to bid. My client gave the auctioneer the $5,000 check with photo ID and we were assigned a number to bid along with the purchase contract that would be used for the highest bidder. We were told the auctioneer would go over the purchase contract line by line right before the bidding began.

Promptly at 5 the auction began. There was about 50 people standing in the house and there were 20 registered bidders. The auctioneer went over the purchase agreement and disclosed a few defects he knew about the house. Then the bidding began. It started at $50,000 and immediately was bid to $60K, then $70, then $80, then $90 where the bidding paused for a moment and the auctioneer was asking for $100. He looked and called a few times, then a shout of $92.5, followed by $95. Then the auctioneer made some comments to lighten the tension and remind people that this price is much lower than the average sales in the area. The a shout came out at $100K. Then $101K. A pause for a few moments and then $102K. The auctioneer called for $103K, but that is where it stopped. “$102,000 going, once, twice, SOLD”. The event was over at 5:23 and another house was Sold in Worthington, Ohio. Does anyone have an auction experience they would like to share? Please contact me if you are interested in learning more about auctions in Central Ohio.