In observance of Memorial Day, the Benchmark Corporate Office will be closed.
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The Benchmark Way – Buying A Home
With Benchmark, you’re never alone. We know that getting a mortgage can be scary, but it doesn’t have to be that way. Our family is here to walk you through the process of getting you home. In next part, we will give a deeper view into the heart of our approach to long term care of …
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Mother’s Day Tribute To My Mom!
Hello Friends,
Happy Mother’s Day to all mothers!
As I stop and think about what my mom has meant to me, literally from the moment I was born to the conversations we have today, I am overwhelmed by the influence and the impact mother’s can have in their children’s lives.
My Mom taught me how to:
- persevere when I was upset from loosing a competition in grade school,
- ask a girl out on a date,
- treat my wife,
- be a better father to my own children.
My mom was always the one who gave me encouragement, strength, guidance, comfort, LOVE, a shoulder to cry and sometimes just be there to listen to me moan and whine! I’m sure many of you have the same amazing experience and testimony you could share about your mom.
I’d like to wish every one a Happy Mother’s Day and a wonderful Mother’s Day weekend. Make sure the Mother in your life knows how much you love her!
– Tom
Most Patriotic Day in Texas Raises Money to Support Veterans
One Million Dollars Raised at Private Fundraising Events to Support Veterans DALLAS, TEXAS – APRIL 21, 2017 – The sixth annual “Boot’n and Shoot’n” and “Boot’n and Salute’n Benefit Dinner” raised a record $1,000,000 to support military veterans. Both events, sponsored by Benchmark Mortgage, a mortgage banker located in Plano, Texas, support the work of The …
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Happy Easter From All of Us at Benchmark!
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An Easter Message From Tom
An Easter Message From Tom
Will home values continue to rise?
Are you a first time homebuyer and have questions about the rising home values in the Dallas Fort Worth area? You are not alone! Questions keep pouring in from around the metroplex asking how long will this rise go on. Here are 3 key areas to consider.
Interest Rates – Rates have been at an historic low for the past 8-10 years. Everything in the market is indicting that interest rates will go up. While interest rates increase, they still remain below the average of the last 32 years. Even with the slight increase over the last 12 months, rates are still in a great position. Increasing rates will have a slight impact on home purchases but not have an impact on home values.
Home Values – Rising home values will increase the net worth of the home owner. While contributing to 401K, and paying down debt, i.e. your mortgage, your home is still appreciating. This is helping you achieve long term goals. Even with the recent increases the market is indicating that in the next 12-18 months, homes values will increase another 5-6%. In certain markets, DFW we are predicting a 30-31% increase in home values by 2020.
Mortgage Products impacting home values. Mortgage products many years ago were 100% financing and little documentation needed. That has changed! Mortgage products are requiring people to put money down and actually qualify for the mortgage. Products have been designed for first time homebuyers rather than people trying to get into rental markets. All of this indicates that people purchasing homes today are much more sophisticated and qualified borrowers.
The market today of increasing values is much different than the previous market. While we don’t anticipate home values increasing forever, we won’t see a significant decrease of value in the future either.
Feel free to contact me with any additional questions you might have.
Leading With Questions!
Friends,
A few days ago at lunch a good friend of mine, Bob Tiede, asked me three very interesting questions. 1) What are you doing really well? 2) What could you improve upon and 3) Why haven’t you taken the steps necessary to improve? As we bantered back and forth, I realized the VALUE in the order the questions were asked. #1 was asked to set us into a positive mindset. #2, in light of our “positive mindset” resulted in a proactive focus instead of a defensive focus. This lead to a solutions discussion instead of excuses!
After the lunch, I spent some time thinking about how I could introduce these questions into discussions with my clients, our borrowers, and our suppliers. The possibilities actually are endless, and when we can approach any situation with an inquisitive attitude instead of a “know it all” attitude, we will always get to the BEST solution possible!!
After lunch, Bob offered a free download of his book, “Leading with Questions”. You can access it athttp://leadingwithquestions.com/great-leaders-ask-questions/ I would strongly encourage you to download this free book! I would love your feedback!
HUD Mortgage Insurance Premiums Reduction Indefinitely Suspended
[This is an update to our previous blog post here] Merely moments after being sworn in as our nation’s 45th President, President Trump’s HUD indefinitely suspended the MIP reduction of 25basis points, that was scheduled to begin on January 27th.
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HUD Lowers Mortgage Insurance Premiums for Most FHA Loans
The Department of Housing and Urban Development announced on Monday that they plan to reduce the Mortgage Insurance Premium for FHA mortgage loans. Since 2012, the Federal Housing Administration’s(FHA) Mutual Mortgage Insurance(MMI) Fund has gained $44 billion, and is now 32 basis points above the 2 percent threshold level required by Congress. This is ~$13 billion more …
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