Kathy Fuhriman

Do Not Burn Candles inside your home

2010-01-08T14:23:00Z

Did you know that candles can destroy a perfectly good paint job in your home. Yes....I have gone into many many homes that have black stripes on the walls and ceiling from the residue from burning candles. Candle soot will attach to the studs behind your sheetrock and appear as black stripes. This soot will not wash off as it is petroleum based. The only way to get rid of it is with a harsh chemical treatment or with primer and paint.

CANDLES: An Unlikely INDOOR AIR QUALITY VILLAIN

This time of year, I had candles burning all the time...until I learned this.

In addition to cigarette smoking, candles provide another indoor pollution mechanism that is hard to replicate.

Most commercially sold candles are made from Paraffin (petroleum based) and emit toxins and carcinogens like benzene, toluene, formaldehyde, acetaldehyde, acrolein and soot into the air.

The ‘bargain' candles produced both here and overseas are even more dangerous.

We would not consider burning a diesel engine in our living room, but Paraffin candles emit many of these same dangerous particulates. Gel candles are also petroleum-based, and therefore just as polluting.

If ambiance is your middle name, then candles are probably your best friends.

However, the only good options are made from either Soy

http://www.soy-wax-candles.com/why-soy.html

...or Beeswax http://www.candlebeefarm.com/

Of course, anything you burn will create smoke, but burning soy and beeswax does not emit those same toxic chemicals.

Real soy and beeswax candles should be clearly marked but exercise caution. Some manufacturers destroy the benefits of beeswax and soy by adding... you guessed it... petroleum-based Paraffin.

It is also important to buy candles with a cotton or paper wick. Shiny wire wicks can contain metals like zinc and lead.

One alternative to burning the high-polluting aromatic and scented candles

... is to create a ‘scented soup'.

Bring a few cups of water in a saucepan to a mild simmer, uncovered.

Add a tablespoon of cinnamon,

...a teaspoon of whole cloves, a teaspoon of vanilla,

...some orange peel

Or any other aromatic spice you particularly like. After an hour or so last night's fish dinner will be nothing more than a memory.

Breathe easy and enjoy life all you can.

Mortgage options in today's lending environment

2008-09-05T13:37:00Z

Mortgage options in today's lending environment

By David Mansell, president of the Utah Association of Realtors

29 March 2008 - The days of lenders bending over backwards to provide subprime borrowers with zero down payment mortgages are gone, but that doesn't mean loans for creditworthy borrowers have dried up - not by a long shot.

In fact, with the government's recent initiatives to stimulate the housing market, there may actually be more lending options than you might originally think.

That doesn't mean banks will lend to anyone. Lending standards are tighter and most borrowers should expect to have high credit scores and down payments of at least 5 percent. Even so, the government has provided a number of incentives that warrant taking a closer look at today's mortgage options.

First, the federal government has extended a tax deduction for private mortgage insurance premiums. This is significant because lenders require either private mortgage insurance or a second "piggy-back" loan when a borrower has a down payment of less than 20 percent.

Before 2006, the interest paid on piggy-back loans was tax deductible while PMI premiums were not. This tax treatment encouraged many borrowers to put together piggy-back loan packages as a way to avoid the cost of PMI. This changed in 2006 when Congress allowed PMI premiums to be deducted from federal income taxes, a provision that Congress extended in 2007 for another three years.

This extension is particularly significant because it makes private mortgage insurance a more affordable option at a time when piggy-back loans are becoming harder to come by.
Another help to the mortgage environment is increased loan limits for government-sponsored enterprises, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The recently signed Economic Stimulus Act of 2008 allows Fannie and Freddie to purchase conforming loans up to 125 percent of an area's median home price, capped at $729,750. That's up from the $417,000 previously allowed.

In Utah, that means lenders in Salt Lake, Summit and Tooele counties will be able to make conforming loans up to $729,750. In Wasatch County, the new limit is $431,250, while the limits in all other counties will remain at $417,000.

This increase means borrowers in high-cost areas, who previously had to either use an expensive nonconforming jumbo loan or put two loans together in a piggy-back package, will have access to a single, more affordable mortgage with more advantageous terms. This is especially helpful since many lenders have shied away from jumbo and piggy-back loans over the past year.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development similarly raised the limits for loans guaranteed by the Federal Housing Administration. In Utah, every county saw increases in their FHA limit, with Salt Lake, Summit and Tooele counties seeing their limits raised to the maximum of $729,750. The lowest FHA limit in the state is now $271,050, up from $200,160.

This is helpful for borrowers with less-than-perfect credit because FHA loans are safer than subprime products. Borrowers receive rates that are 3 percent lower on average than those of a subprime loan, and FHA has programs in place to keep owners out of foreclosure if they become delinquent.

At a time when the financial world is increasingly skittish, the government is providing viable ways for borrowers to continue to enter the home-buying market with affordable and sustainable mortgage products. To learn more about real estate and lending in your community, contact your local Realtor, because nobody knows Utah real estate like a Utah Realtor.

The real story about real estate

2008-09-05T13:32:00Z

The real story about real estate

25 June 2008 (Appeared in the Box Elder News Journal) - You have certainly heard many stories from the national media regarding real estate, foreclosure rates, declining markets and the inventory of homes available for sale. What you haven't heard is reality. Real estate has and always will be a local and regional issue. What happens on the east or west coast is meaningful to local residents but has only a minor impact on the other regions of the country.

Of course there will always be some national influence such as the fact that lending institutions or the federal government may change their operating rules for the entire country based on what happens in only one or two regions. These actions may affect some borrowers, but the market will go on based primarily on local factors.

One real estate publication, Realty Viewpoint, recently had an article titled "Why Buy Now? Media Is Wrong About Housing Slump" by Blanche Evans. In the article, she quotes Chris Plummer of "Market Watch" who denounces both The Associated Press and the Case-Shiller Index for being "grim reapers." "The Index covers only 20 markets, heavily weighted to the most volatile metros in the nation," he said.

Plummer also notes, "The glaring discrepancy in this case is that 17 of the 20 metro areas posted record annual declines, and yet 78 percent of the 330 metropolitan regions that the NAR (National Association of Realtors) tracks reported price increases."

The best advice to those contemplating buying or selling real estate is to get the facts from your local professionals. You should visit with lenders and Realtorsto get a true picture of the local market and see what opportunities are available. A Realto® will also help you find the property you want, provide negotiation skills and follow through with the details of the transaction.

There are two important factors to consider when buying or selling real estate: How the market has performed in the recent past and, most important, how it is expected to perform in the future. To illustrate past performance, here are some numbers from the Wasatch Front Regional Multiple Listing Service that show Box Elder County has had a healthy growth rate for the last three years:

	2005	2006	2007
Single-Family, Number Sold	497	583	608

	2005	2006	2007
Single-Family, Average Sales Price	$138,654	$151,719	$172,153

To help illustrate the expectations for the future, Susan Thackary, director of Box Elder County Economic Development, provides some interesting information about job growth in the county. In the last few years, Box Elder County has helped to bring some exceptional businesses to the area - West Liberty Foods, Malt-O-Meal, and Proctor and Gamble to name a few. Thackary says her office will continue to look for great companies to locate to Box Elder County and provide exceptional jobs for area residents. In fact, the Box Elder County Economic Development Department receives approximately one to two leads a week from the State Economic Development Department. This is important because job growth is typically a sign of a healthy real estate market in the future.

To summarize, home prices and interest rates are still reasonable, there is a good supply of quality homes available, and the future market looks very good. Whether upgrading or buying for the first time, now is a good time to consider a real estate transaction.

Foreclosure Timeline

2008-09-02T00:14:00Z

When the monthly mortgage payment has been missed the first month, the lender tries to make contact with the borrower to find out the status of the payment. The missed payment DOES NOT show up on your credit until it is a full 30 days late. The second month the payment is not made the lender will likely try to work out a payment plan to help the borrower catch up (they do not want the borrower to move out and they do not want the house back). If the borrower does not communicate with the lender, the lender will likely start the foreclosure process. At this point the lender will hire a foreclosure attorney who will file a notice of default. Once the notice of default (NOD) is recorded at the courthouse, the borrower has a three month period of redemption during which time the borrower can still work out a repayment plan with the lender. Other options include selling the home, refinancing the loan only works in certain circumstances (ask me about the FHA secure loan), and just paying in full the amount past due. After the Period of Redemption is past, the foreclosure attorney sets a sale date for the property to be sold (auctioned) at the courthouse entrance. So the whole process from first missed payment to the sale/auction can last anywhere from 6 months to longer than that if certain events get in the way. So if you know of anyone who is facing foreclosure, tell them to call right away. WHY LET THE BANK STEAL YOUR EQUITY? Beware of scammers who also try to steal your equity. Visit my "Facing Foreclosure" page.

Foreclosure affects all Homeowners

2008-09-01T23:38:00Z

Do you know someone who is affected in someway with a foreclosure? Look in the mirror, yes it is you. If you are a homeowner foreclosure can affect you even if you make all of your payments on time, even if you do not intend to sell. How?
1) Several years ago when I started in the real estate business (1999) the market values of all homes were being driven by the sale of foreclosures which were very prevelant in the Northern Utah market. Many people who wanted to sell their homes were not able to enjoy much if any appreciation of their homes value because the foreclosures were driving the prices down.
2) When homeowners are facing a difficult time financially, routine maintenance of their homes may be the last item on the list behind eating, driving to work and taking care of family needs. The yards and general home appearance may affect the way an entire neighborhood looks, especially to potential buyers of neighboring homes perhaps yours.
3) Neglected homes may become targets for vandalism.

If you know of anyone who is facing a difficult financial period, tell them not to wait until it is time for the bank to reclaim their home. It may be your home that is affected the most. (See blog post about foreclosure timeline).

Have questions about Foreclosure? Kathy has nine years experience in the sale of foreclosed homes for banks. I have been professionally trained in all aspects of foreclosed homes by attending seminars all over the country meeting face to face with mortgage lenders on issues relating to REO's (real estate owned). E-mail or call me anytime. kathy@BRVRhomes.com or 435-730-3583