GENERAL FAQ    -->  What are your office hours?    -->  What is your phone number?    -->  What is your email address?    -->  When was your company founded?    -->  What exactly does your company do?    GENERAL RESIDENTIAL LOAN FAQ        -->  What mistakes are commonly made when buying or refinancing a home?        (1) Buying a home        (2) Making Verbal Agreements        (3) Choosing a lender because they have the lowest rate.        (4) Not receiving a Good Faith Estimate (GFE)        (5) Not getting a rate lock in writing        (6) Using a dual agent--i.e., an agent who represents the buyer and the seller in the same transaction        (7) Buying a home without professional inspections. If the seller agrees to make repairs, have your inspector verify that they are done prior to close of escrow. Do not assume that everything was done as promised.        (8) Not shopping for home insurance until you are ready to close.        (9) Signing documents without reading them.       (10) Not allowing for delays in the transaction. -REFINANCING YOUR HOME        (1) Refinancing with your existing lender without shopping around.        (2) Not doing a break-even analysis.        (3) Not getting a written Good Faith Estimate of closing costs.        (4) Paying for an appraisal when you think your home value may be too low.        (5) Using the county tax-assessor's value as the market value of your home.        (6) Signing your loan documents without reviewing them.        (7) Not providing documents to your mortgage company in a timely manner.        (8) Not getting a rate lock in writing.        (9) Pulling cash out of your credit line before you refinance your first mortgage.        (10) Getting a second mortgage before you refinance your first mortgage.        (11)Should I refinance?    -GETTING A HOME EQUITY LOAN/LINE        (1) Not knowing if your loan has a prepayment penalty clause.        (2) Getting too large a credit line.        (3) Not understanding the difference between an equity loan and an equity line.        (4) Not checking the life-cap on your equity line.        (5) Getting a home equity loan from your local bank without shopping around.        (6) Not getting a Good Faith Estimate of closing costs.        (7) Assuming that your home equity loan is fully tax-deductible.        (8) Assuming that a home equity loan is always cheaper than a car loan or a credit card.        (9) Getting a home equity line when you plan to refinance your first mortgage in the near future.        (10) Getting a home equity line to pay off your credit cards when your spending is out of control!    -ZERO-POINT/ZERO-FEE LOANS        (1) Should I pay points? Does a zero point loan with no fees really exist?        (2) Whatever happened to the conventional wisdom of waiting for the rates to drop 2 percent before refinancing?        (3) What are the benefits of a zero-point/zero-fee loan?        (4) What are the disadvantages of a zero-point/zero-fee loan?        (5) Whose money is it?    -RATES        (1) What is a rate lock?        (2) What do you do if the rates drop after you lock?        (3) Lock-and-shop programs.        (4) New-construction rate locks.     -RESIDENTIAL MISC.    -->  What is a FICO score?    -->  What is the difference between being pre-qualifed and pre-approved?    -->  Can my loan be sold? What happens if my lender goes out of business?    -->  What is Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI)?    -->  What is an Annual Percentage Rate (APR)?    -SMALL BALANCE COMMERCIAL LOAN FAQ    -->  What is the maximum loan amount for this program?    -->  What is the minimum credit score requirement?    -100% PURCHASE & 90% REHAB LOAN FAQ    -->  What is the minimum required credit score for this program    -REAL ESTATE FAQ -Agents-general inquiry    -->  What is the difference between a real estate agent and a real estate broker?    -->  Why should I use a real estate salesperson?    -->   I have a family friend who is a Realtor. I like her and she is a help but she gives me one price to sell my home for and I think it is too low. So I called another agent who suggested a price more in line with my expectations. Who do I choose? -Agents who work with buyers    -->  I want to buy a house. I know the property and the seller has an agent. Do I need my own agent or can I negotiate a lower fee if I act as my own agent?    -->  What is a buyers agent, what does this specifically do for a buyer and who usually pays this "buyers agent"?    -->  I looked at a property yesterday with a realtor who quite obviously has no clue what he is doing. I really want to purchase that house, but don't want the hassle of working with an agent who doesn't know his business. Can I switch agents and still buy that house?    -->  I want to buy a home and approached two different real estate agents. One was very informative, handed us brochures, especially on the real estate law and the responsibility of the agent. The other was very informal, made a lot of gestures, and presented nothing in writing. -Cancelling a listing    -->  My home has been listed with an agent for over three months and I’m not happy. What options do I have?    -->  If a 6 month listing agreement was signed last month and an argument occurred and I don't want to use that agent, can the listing be cancelled?    -->  I signed a listing agreement, but am having second thoughts about selling. How do I cancel and will it cost me anything?    -->  I just listed with a realtor for 3 months but decided I would like to change to another. Is that allowed or legal?

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