Business Feeds

The current economic crisis has hit Florida as hard as any state in the country. The bankruptcy filings in Florida have reached staggering numbers. If you are considering bankruptcy you are not alone and you should not participate in the process alone.

Bankruptcy laws and procedures are quite complicated. If you place the wrong or incorrect information on your bankruptcy petitions it could have serious consequences. Experienced bankruptcy counsel is necessary to navigate the procedural waters.

Be watchful of so called bankruptcy lawyers who claim to specialize in this complicated area of the law. Because the bankruptcy filings in Florida have dramatically increased over the last year many lawyers are jumping on the band wagon and claiming to be what they are not.

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Mortgage rates are lower again this week thanks to the financial issues going on in Europe. 30 year mortgage rates are down to 4.78 percent for the week ending May 27, 2010 in Freddie Mac’s current Primary Mortgage Market Survey. This is the lowest point 30 year mortgage rates have been since December 3, 2009. Mortgage discount points averaged 0.7 points on 30 year mortgages.

Looking for current mortgage rates and mortgage refinance rates? Use our mortgage rate tables at MortgageRates.MonitorBankRates.com to find the best mortgage rates currently available in your area.

Conforming fixed 15 year mortgage rates were  also lower for the week ending May 27, 2010. Current fixed 15

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We have put together a current list of the best CD rates from banks and credit unions in San Francisco, California. Our best CD rates list includes 3 month CD rates, 6 month CD rates and 12 month CD rates. 

Looking for the best CD rates from credit unions and banks? Use our CD rate tables at CDRates.MonitorBankRates.com to find the best CD rates in your area.

The best 3 month CD rate is from Luther Burbank Savings. The bank’s current 3 month CD interest rate is 0.90 percent with an APY of 0.90 percent. Next on the list of the highest CD rates is EverBank, their 3 month bank CD rate is 0.80 percent with an APY of .80 percent.

Discover Bank has the highest 6 month CD rate in San Francisco. The bank’s curre

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The Senate’s new financial overhaul bill will drastically change mortgages
The new financial overhaul bill passed by the Senate late Thursday night contains a number of changes to the way mortgage lenders and borrowers interact.

According to the New York Times, these changes, designed to protect consumers from costly practices from their lenders, will have a big effect on the way mortgages work. They will change not only the way financial institutions can charge fees, but also to the way in which the mortgages are set up in the first place, and how applicants are considered.

Lenders can no longer charge homeowners a penalty fee for paying off their loan prior to the term of the mortgage agreement. Read more…

Facebook has taken a hit to its public image in the last few weeks. The media hoopla has extended out from announcements the company made at its f8 conference, as well as some less-than-glamorous instant messages founder Mark Zuckerberg wrote back in 2004.

You’ve heard it: Facebook sells people’s personal information to advertisers without their knowledge. It’s impossible to de-activate your account (or nearly so). Their “open graph” foreshadows future moves Facebook will take to capitalize on the wealth of user data they know possess.

And so the story goes.

Forget for a minute about yourself the Facebook user, and instead let’s focus on the business side of Facebook. Namely, what’s working for businesses now using Facebook advertising and Facebook fan pages? Does this bad

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Banks were more careful when it came to granting credit card accounts during the first quarter.
A survey of loan officers by the Federal Reserve Board showed that consumers faced a tighter credit market during the first three months of this year.

According to the Fed, while people faced more restrictive standards regarding credit card products, banks also reduced credit amounts for accounts and further spread interest rates across accounts. However, other loans offered to consumers by financial institutions during the first quarter actually saw their requirements relaxed.

“Moreover, the net fraction of banks that reported an increased willingness to make consumer installment loans increased again,” the central bank said. Read more…

By Brian Madigan LL.B.

(Ontario Real Estate Source)

The Real Estate Council of Ontario released a decision of its Discipline Committee dealing with an agent who dealt directly with the vendor.

While all of the facts are not specified, it is clear that the vendor was in the building business. An agent went directly to the company and negotiated a commission of 3.5% plus GST.

The difficulty was that the property was already listed on the local MLS system. This was unknown and not checked by the agent.

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Just recently I had a client interested in putting an offer in on a REO at Kolea at Waikoloa Beach Resort.  We put together a very attractive cash offer fairly close to the asking price within a day of it coming on the market.  When I contacted the listing agent she said the first seven days it will be on the market it is a “marketing period” where they will not be looking at offers.  The second seven days the bank would only look at offers from non profit organizations and people planning to owner occupy the property.  It being a vacation rental community it was very odd for that policy I felt. 

That being said, someone did put in and offer and is in escrow that will be owner occupying the property.  I was told it was a new HUD regulation.  Have you heard of this?  If so, is there any loopholes?  How do they verify that you will be living there?

Mutual Security Credit Union (MSCU) of Connecticut is advertising their “Living The Dream” 2/1 adjustable mortgage. The current adjustable mortgage rate is 2.99 percent with an annual percentage yield (APR) of 3.12 percent. That rate is one of the lowest mortgage rates currently available right now from any credit union or bank.

The 2/1 adjustable rate mortgage is available for home purchases and for refinances. The mortgage offer has no points and no prepayment penalty. With any adjustable mortgage, this is a variable rate mortgage which means the 2.99 percent rate is fixed for the first 24 months and then adjusts every year after.

The maximum annual increase in rate is only 1.00 percent. There

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