Roseville Loan Guy

Carbon Monoxide Detector Saves Family of 8

Greg Cowart — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 20:23:57 +0000

Carbon Monoxide detectors? Maybe you know all about them, maybe you know little more about them than you have heard from the recent radio commercials trying to sell you one, or maybe this is the first time you heard of them? Well, a newly implemented bill in California is making them requirements in pretty much all of our homes, whether we own or rent (landlords are required to install them in their rental properties), and it’s a good thing…

A Roseville family may have been saved by a carbon monoxide detector they recently installed after the alarm alerted them to the killer gas last week in their home on Vernon Oaks Drive.

When the Roseville Fire Department arrived they found all eight members of the household in their front yard. It was then determined that the detector was doing its job as there were lethal levels of the gas in the house. PG&E determined the cause of the gas leak was a fireplace that was not adequately vented. Luckily no one suffered any symptoms of any kind.

Roseville Police’s press release on carbon monoxide and carbon monoxide detectors here…

http://www.roseville.ca.us/civica/filebank/blobdload.asp?BlobID=19806

Crime down almost 10% in Roseville for 2011

Greg Cowart — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 01:08:06 +0000

Roseville PD recently released data showing property crimes were actually down a full 9% in 2011 (2,945 reported in 2011 compared to 2010). While it would be nice to have an even lower number this is awesome for a city of this size and population (120,000+).

The police department’s spokesperson says property crimes far outweigh every other type of crime committed in the city combined, with theft of property inside vehicles being the most prevalent, and the majority of all crimes are committed by non-Roseville residents. Part of the deal in a higher income area.

Property crimes of this nature are not limited to Roseville. All of the surrounding PD’s report similar trends as far as percentages of crimes go.

While we’re still very safe here, things still do happen. Please make sure not to leave anything of value visible in your car while at places you will be for long periods of time like the movies or at the gym. That is the most likely place for this sort of crime to happen. And always bring your wallet/purse in with you, even if it is annoying or cumbersome (some advice I need to take for myself).

Greg

Fannie & Freddie making important policy changes…

Greg Cowart — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 21:57:39 +0000

If you’re unemployed and in danger of going into default on your mortgage the nation’s Government Sponsored Enterprises (GSE’s), Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac, are making some important changes to their foreclosure and forbearance (when the bank suspends collection of payments for a period of time, kind of like a timeout on making payments) policies.

The new rules will direct mortgage servicers (who you make your payment to) go through a forbearance process when the homeowner has lost their job before moving into foreclosure territory. Under the new rules these services have automatic authority to grant homeowners on unemployment a full six months forbearance and can go to the GSE’s for approval of another six months if the homeowner’s unemployment income lasts for longer than six months.

That’s adding up to a year to get back on track before any sort of foreclosure process begins!

There are some exceptions to the new rules however. The house must be a primary residence, not an investment or second home. And the mortgage must be backed by one of the GSE’s themselves, not FHA or VA, and not a private/portfolio loan held by the bank themselves.

That covers the basics. But, of course, there are some more details that might affect you. If you have any questions, please ask! I’m always here to help…

Greg

My gift to you: The Science Of Getting Rich

Greg Cowart — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 22:55:50 +0000

Happy Friday everyone! I just pulled out one of my favorite books, a century-old manuscript that is both the predecessor and influence for some of the most read books of the last 100 years, such as ‘Think & Grow Rich’ (1937) and ‘The Secret’ (2006), and re-read it. ‘The Science of Getting Rich’ by Wallace D Wattles was written way back in 1910 but the methods inside still hold true today… And I want to share it with you.

It’s a pretty quick read but it can (and probably will if you are like me) change your life. It’s not just about becoming wealthy monitarily, although you certianly will if you totally buy in, but about inner, full personal development; holistically.

Just click on the cover of the book for the FREE e-book download. I have obtained permission to share this with everyone and the license in this version of the book allows you to share it with anyone you would like as well!

(There is also a newer, slightly updated, version of the book that I do not have permission to put on my website but I can give it to you, just give me a call or e-mail and I’ll get you a copy right away)

Things I didn’t know about the Roseville Sports Center

Greg Cowart — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 20:47:47 +0000

Check out this great and fun report from the “boys in the hoods”, Brent Gove and Rob Lewis of Keller Williams Roseville. I didn’t know anything about the Roseville Sports Center and I’ve lived in Roseville for almost 25 years… Now I want to go climb that wall!

(click the video to watch)

Roseville Market Data: Dec 2011

Greg Cowart — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 23:54:57 +0000

The median sales price for homes in Roseville CA for the period of Sep 11 to Nov 11, 2011 was $253,000. This represents an increase of 3.3%, or $8,000, compared to the prior quarter, however median sales price simply isn’t as much of a telling statistic as most of the media portrays it to be and in my opinion tells us nothing about the direction of actual property values, only where the most activity in the market is. As you can see from this ever volitle chart.

The average listing price for Roseville homes for sale was $300,389 for the week ending Dec 28 (according to Trulia.com). For what that is worth.

Average price per square foot for a sold home in Roseville has been flat all year at about $133, where it ended the year (but it was close to that all year and hasn’t really changed all that much since the big drop of 2008).

This is my first shot as detailed, hyper-local (Roseville) market data. It should get better over time but let me know how you like it in the meantime.

~Greg

The ALL-TIME, all time lows are here!

Greg Cowart — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 01:32:00 +0000

Interest rates on homes continue their downward trend. GSE Freddie Mac reported that the average 30-year fixed-mortgage rate sank to 3.91% last week, setting an all-time record low. 15-year fixed rates settled in at a historic low at 3.21%.

To put the declines into perspective, today’s homebuyers are paying over $1,200 less per year on a $200,000, 30-year fixed-rate loan than they would have just a year ago today!

Check out this awesome story: Origin Coffee & Tea

Greg Cowart — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 02:10:28 +0000

Please take a minute to check out this video my friends Brent and Rob about one of my favorite places in the Roseville Rocklin area, Origin Coffee & Tea…

Any time is a great time to go see Origin, and spending money there is a GREAT cause, but it would also be awesome to see any local business owners, entrepreneurs, and salespeople active in the Roseville/Rocklin community on Tuesdays at 11:30AM for the Rocklin SUCCESSFUL THINKERS networking group. It’s 100% free to attend and is worth your time (it’s worth mine anyways) and if you buy a lunch, or even a drink, for the meeting it’s another way to support Origin’s great cause!

~Greg

Another month of positive homes sales for the Sacramento region

Greg Cowart — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 18:33:30 +0000

Home sales in the Sacramento region rose yet again last month, beating the rest of the state (which also rose with us, only not as much). Over 2,400 homes sold across the region in November, up just shy of 12% year over year.

It was the fifth month in a row of over 10% gains in sales volume, with sales in Sacramento County up just shy of 13% in November alone. Placer County, less hardly hit by the downturn had been leading the way in previous months saw homes sale increase by only half a percent. A small bump but a continuing trend upward.

Most of the demand across the board was for moderately priced homes with volume being in the $200,000 and under range. Homes in the $200-300,000 range stayed about the same while sales of homes costing over $300,000 actually slowed a bit.

Foreclosure rates are still higher than we want them to be (I’d like it to be at 0) however you’ll remember in previous posts that the number today is not what matters, it’s actually almost meaningless when it comes to predicting future distressed sales, the number we need to look at is actually how many homeowners are defaulting on their mortgage payments, a number that is dropping more and more every month.

The “news” knows that what sells is fear, scary doom and gloom is what gets the most readers and hits to their website. And, while the picture is not the prettiest, it’s a lot prettier than it was in the not to distant past and much prettier still than the pictures the promoters of fear want to sell you.

Roseville PD offers new help for veterans

Greg Cowart — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 20:56:20 +0000

Nothing from me today but check out this article in the Roseville Press Tribune… I don’t know how much they make a difference but little things like this are awesome in my mind and are just another way to support our HEROES after they come home from serving our country!