After weeks of meetings between Treasury Department officials, mortgage lenders, and Wall Street firms, the Bush administration today announced that an agreement has been made to "freeze" interest rates for up to five years on certain subprime adjustable rate mortgages.

According to the New York Times, the goal of the President's plan is to convert as many subprime ARMs as possible into "more sustainable loans." However, the freeze applies only to borrowers who:

• Took out their loan between January 2005 and July 2007 and whose rates are set to increase between January of 2008 and July of 2010; and
• Have less than 3% equity in their homes; and
• Are current on their payments (or no more than 60 days behind); and
• Are able to handle their current lower rate, but will not be to handle a higher payment.
  

Analysts estimate that the plan will help between 240,000 to 250,000 borrowers.

The freeze is a voluntary agreement on the part of lenders, so no legislation is required for this plan. Analysts note, however, that congressional approval would be necessary in order to increase current FHA loan limits.

As the mortgage industry returns to traditional models of the past, originating loans will become more and more challenging, especially for newer LOs who have yet to experience a significant downturn in the real estate market. Familiar programs are being pulled, guidelines are tightening further, and REALTOR® referral partners are struggling to unload inventories.

With this in mind, LTB faculty member David Kuiper wanted to "get back to the basics" and deal with this issue head on. For David, making essential knowledge a part of your daily regimen is, and will continue to be, the key to succeeding in the mortgage industry in any market. That's why he invited top-producing branch manager Dan Moralez to LTB's conference calling series.

A 16-year mortgage veteran, Dan has been recognized by Mortgage Originator Magazine as one of the nation's top originators. A walking encyclopedia of knowledge, Dan is an expert in terms of loan products and guidelines – finding loopholes and utilizing simple and creative ways to get deals done. In this essential conference call, Dan will share proven strategies specifically designed to differentiate yourself from the competition and to put a few more deals together that you didn't know how to before.

If you're looking for strategies you can implement right now to help structure and close more deals, do not miss this informative call.

This interview is now available in the Conference Call Archive!

Dial-in Number for Talk to the Experts Changes

If you're planning to participate in this special edition of Talk to the Experts with Maximum Acceleration Coaches Erik Janeczko and Tim Chin, please note that the phone number to access Talk to the Experts calls has permanently changed.

For those of you who have already sent in your RSVP for this call, don't worry. You do not have to do it again. For your own records, however, please note the new phone number and access code below, or visit Talk to the Experts within LoanToolbox for more detailed instructions.

If you haven't submitted your questions yet for Erik and Tim, do it now, and get the answers you've been looking for to take your business to the next level. The theme for this special session of Talk to the Experts is marketing, lead generation, and other specific tactics you can use to succeed in today's challenging market. Don't miss out on the nearly 40 years of business counseling, training, and mentoring these two dynamic professionals represent.

Thursday, December 13th @ 10am PT (1pm ET)
RSVP and submit questions to RSVP@LoanToolbox.com
Deadline for submitting questions is Tuesday, December 11th, @ 3:30PM PST!

Call (916) 233-0566 access code 7983

Add this event to your Outlook Calendar
(Select 'Open', then 'Save and Close')

New Ghost Written Article and Mortgage Rate Update

Bankruptcy can be an uncomfortable subject for many people, but it doesn't have to be. The Administration Office of the US Courts says bankruptcy laws are designed to "help people get a fresh start by liquidating their assets to pay their debts, or by creating a repayment plan." In other words, bankruptcy is a viable option for many people in serious financial trouble.

With this in mind, LoanToolbox has released a new Ghost Written Article and a new Mortgage Rate Update that you can utilize to educate referral partners and consumers about bankruptcy, and to demonstrate your financial expertise to your community through the media.

The new Mortgage Rate Update asks and answers the important question, "When is Bankruptcy the Answer?" And the Ghost Written Article goes much deeper, suggesting homeowners seek the advice of an experienced mortgage professional before making any further financial decisions.

If you are looking to identify potential clients in need of advice or financial assistance, take advantage of these valuable new tools today!

Don't Use Email to Deliver Bad News
An Email Etiquette Tip from Tim Sanders

Face it – we can turn email into our greatest liability instead of our best tool. We fire off nasty grams and duck for cover. We irritate people in our life with emails they don't want to receive from us. As I say in my lectures, being emotionally attractive is mostly about what you DON'T do – not what you do to "get people to like you."

At Yahoo!, I always told my folks, “Email is for saying yes and for exchanging
information. If you want to say no, criticize, or get into an emotionally charged issue, pick up the phone or do it in person." Email fails to communicate your intentions, so it usually looks pretty insensitive. Research says that 93% of our intentions are either seen or heard in voice tone. If you insist on letting email do your dirty work, you are likely to have a lot of unnecessary relationship issues. If you don't have time to talk to people in these conditions, you need better time management skills.

Tim Sanders, author of The Likeability Factor, delivered an amazing presentation at Business Plan 2008, showing everyone why he is so likeable. This email tip comes from his DVD presentation, "The Dirty Dozen Rules of Email Etiquette" which is available at www.dirtydozenrules.com. Stay tuned for more great tips from Tim Sanders in the future. In the meantime, visit Tim's blog www.emailatoz.com to learn more about effective email etiquette.