Mike Berrios's (mberrios) Blog

I've received a lot of questions regarding the "New" California Tax Credit for home buyers that was recently passed in to law. Below is a great "snapshot" of the basics of the program. I have also provided you with a link to the official website for a deeper explaination if needed. As always, if...

Did you know if a Veteran has served 90 days of any part in 2009 active overseas they qualify for the extended tax credit?  Their extension is until May 2011 and if they get relocated and have to sell the home, they do not get penalized for selling sooner than 3 years!   Call or email me for more...

"Mortgage Bonds are continuing to hover above the 100-day Moving Average this morning. In the news, Initial Jobless Claims were reported inline with expectations, and Continuing Claims fell slightly. The numbers were so-so at best. Also, Pending Home Sales for January came in much worse than the ...

As if things couldn't get any worst.  Most lenders are now deducting any non-reimbursed employee (2106) expenses.  Just a few months ago I can recall just looking at W2s and pay check stubs, but now they are reducing the qualifications of the buyer by deducting 2106 expenses.      

Short sales accounted for 15.9 percent of home purchases in January, up from 13.7 percent in December, according to a monthly survey by Campbell Surveys and Inside Mortgage Finance. The percentage for last month was the highest since the survey was launched in July, topping the previous peak of ...

 After studying 40,000 home loans in three cities over a period of 30 years, the National Resources Defense Council and the Center for Neighborhood Technology determined that the likelihood of foreclosure grew as neighborhood car ownership levels rose. The research suggests that if homeowners do...

Market Color: Well we have to wish Yahoo today Happy Birthday. They are 15 years old. Economic news today, Ford beat out Government Motors in Monthly Auto Sales for the first time since 1998 and if you want to buy a Toyota, some great deals are coming in the aftermath of the product liability iss...

Market News: The ongoing bid to reduce or eliminate the mortgage tax credit remains status quo, but the White House wants to cut tax liability savings to 28 cents per $1 of mortgage interest from 35 cents for individuals earning more than $200,000 annually and couples earning more than $250,000 p...

In the context of this, let me share with you a conversation I had with a very high level person at Chase Home Mortgage this morning, they run a division there for ‘loan officers’. This is so you have a feel for the competition, here’s some key facts at Chase that are happening now, and will cont...