Wednesday, May 26, 2010 3:01pm Written by Jaclyn Doelz

Low mortgage rates have prompted most of us to at least think about refinancing our home. Locking in an interest rate below 6 percent could end up saving you big money if interest rates begin to rise in the future. The following tips should help you get the best deal possible if you do decide to refinance.

• Do talk to your own lender first. You may be able to skip some expenses, like an appraisal, if your mortgage is fairly new.
• Do compare fees and closing costs as carefully as interest rate. These can vary widely.
• Do see whether your lender is able to switch your escrow from the old mortgage to the new one, so you don't have to prepay. This isn't common, but it's very handy.
• Do make sure to get the loan you want. There are numerous accounts of borrowers who sign up for a loan guaranteed to lower their payments, only to learn their payments are lower because they do not include taxes and insurance.
• Don't refinance for small gains. Mortgages cost money. It would be counter productive to pay $4,000 in closing costs to lower your payment by $35.
• Don't believe "no closing costs." If they are advertising no closing costs it is likely that they make their profits with higher interest rates.
• Don't dismiss an adjustable rate if you know you'll move -- for example, a 5/1 ARM. Today with good credit and no points, you could lock in a low interest rate for five years. Your rate will move after that, probably up.

Wednesday, May 26, 2010 1:08pm Written by Jaclyn Doelz

Before deciding on what terms lenders will offer you on a loan (which they base on the "risk" to them), they want to know two things about you: your ability to pay back the loan, and your willingness to pay back the loan. For the first, they look at your income-to-debt obligation ratio. For your willingness to pay back the loan, they consult your credit score.

The most widely used credit scores are FICO scores, which were developed by Fair Isaac & Company, Inc. (and they're named after their inventor!). Your FICO score is between 350 (high risk) and 850 (low risk).

Credit scores only consider the information contained in your credit profile. They do not consider your income, savings, down payment amount, or demographic factors like gender, race, nationality or marital status. In fact, the fact they don't consider demographic factors is why they were invented in the first place. "Profiling" was as dirty a word when FICO scores were invented as it is now. Credit scoring was developed as a way to consider only what was relevant to somebody's willingness to repay a loan.

Wednesday, May 19, 2010 12:26pm Written by Jaclyn Doelz

Here's a bit of history for you.  Carlos Gutierrez as the historic Aztec Warrior was one of the esteemed 50 people to watch in San Diego in 2003.  Keep an eye out 2010 is tracking towards another historic year.

http://www.sandiegomagazine.com/media/San-Diego-Magazine/January-2003/50-People-to-Watch-in-2003/