DU recently completed a study that looks to State Legislators to improve lending practices to those that have less than perfect credit according to a Denver Post article entitled States urged to aid loan fitness.

Banks should provide small loans to those with no credit or subprime credit – defined as FICO scores below 660, according to the study’s lead author, Rickie Keys, a senior research fellow for the University of Denver Center for African-American Policy.

The repayment of those loans would then be reported by the bank to the three major credit bureaus. That would provide people an “opportunity to get small loans and use those as a springboard to improve their scores,” said Keys, who is based in Shreveport, La.

Ironically, despite emanating from DU (Denver University) the study didn’t include Denver or any Colorado cities:

The University of Denver study, “Financial Empowerment for the Unbanked and Underbanked Consumer: Crossing the Red Line,” analyzed banking and lending services in 14 markets nationwide, including Atlanta, Charlotte, N.C., and Memphis, Tenn.

Denver was not one of the markets studied, although Keys said the Mile High City will be among the next 14 cities analyzed.

Credit scores range from 350 to 850. Credit scores above 720 is considered superior. Credit scores below 660 is considered sub prime. Most consumers fall below 680. Why? Credit is a topic that most consumers truly don’t understand. To learn more about your credit, simply enter your info in the form below and I will send you a credit guide.

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If you’re new to my blog, you’ll notice a definite sarcastic tone. That being said, here are some noteworthy links dealing with real estate and/or Denver:

• Out with the old governor of Colorado (Bill Owens) in with the new governor of Colorado (Bill Ritter). Inauguration day is today, January 9th.
• Metro Brokers here in Colorado has launched a feature laden real estate website called Colorado Home Stop. According to the site, these are the main features:
  • Save & view your favorite listings.
  • Receive RSS search updates via your favorite RSS Reader.
  • Save & view your recent home searches.
  • Schedule automated E-mail updates and more
• If you’ve ever watched the Apprentice, you should be familiar with past winner Kendra Todd. She writes for Yahoo Real Estate. In an article called Best Places in the US to Buy a Home, she lists the following places:
  • Iowa City, Iowa
  • Lewiston, Idaho
  • Olympia, Washington
  • Spokane, Washington
  • Panama City, Florida
• It takes a corporation to buy a village. Albeit a very expensive village.
• Colorado Attorney General John Suthers is in the news (Denver Post) twice: Appraisal Fraud Targeted and Proposed Law Targets Appraisal Fraud
• Caribou is coming to DIA. Now if DIA could only get the security lines straightened out, I might fly more often.

2007 is now upon us. 2006 ended with a blizzard, two blizzards actually. Mother Nature dumped up to 3 feet of snow on us a two weeks ago and then pounded us again with another foot of snow last week. 2006 also saw a blizzard of foreclosures here in Colorado. We ranked either 1st or 2nd in the country.

According to a Denver Post article, they defined the following as ways to circumvent foreclosures:

• Restrict risky loan features
• Clean up deceptive, confusing loan advertisements
• Make appraisers more independent
• Crack down on mortgage fraud, predatory lenders
• License and train mortgage brokers
• Encourage self-policing in the mortgage industry
• Educate consumers
• Assist borrowers before they end up in foreclosure

I really would like to see the Denver Post and Rocky Mountain News investigate the following:

1. Are Real Estate Agencies that OWN mortgage companies part of the problem?
2. Are Home Builders that OWN mortgage companies part of the problem?
3. Aren’t Real Estate Agencies benefiting from listing foreclosed properties and/or short selling properties?
4. Are Colorado Mortgage Companies soley to blame? How many loans were originated from out of state lenders?
5. What will Bill Ritter do about the mortgage mess?

Recent links worth checking out:

• Holden Lewis of Bankrate defines 7 mortgage moves for 2007.
• With refinancing becoming a bi-annual event, paying points on your mortgage doesn’t make sense.
• Although I wasn’t invited, it seems like the real estate blogging community had an interesting party called the Yankee Blog Swap.
• Slate occasionally has an interesting read. This article on Barrack Obama’s middle name is quite good.

Another blizzard is looming in Colorado. Time to get more DVD’s.

The Christmas blizzard of 2006 is now over. According to the National Weather Service, the Denver area was hit with 18 – 28 inches of snow with snow drifts measuring 4 – 8 feet. Over 3000 people were stranded at Denver International Airport. As quickly as it arrived, it left just as quick leaving a massive cleanup effort in it’s quake.

Here are some sites that might come in handy:

• Colorado Department of Transportation
• Road conditions Recorded info: 303-639-1111
• Power outages Phone: 1-800-895-1999
• Denver Water Phone: 303-893-2444
• RTD
• Denver International Airport

As for me, although the blizzard aborted my holiday plans, I am grateful for having the opportunity to spend quality time with my family watching the following movies: Remember the Titans, There’s Something About Mary, Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, and Caddyshack.

source: imdb

I came across Parvez Osman’s Boulder blog a few months ago. Parvez is an articulate real estate agent with some of the best insight and analysis on the Boulder real estate market. Recently Parvez blogged about a MSNBC article listing Boulder, Colorado as America’s smartest cities.

With the only NY Jets friendly bar in Colorado (Lazy Dog) Boulder is definitely the smartest city in Colorado!

When Governor Owens has signed House Bill – 1161 into law, it required all mortgage brokers to get licensed in the State of Colorado. It’s quite easy process that required three simple steps:

1. Get fingerprinted and send in for a background check.

No worries for me, I’m one of the good guys.

2. Get a Surety Bond in the value of $25,000

Again, no worries for me. The bond company I used, Above All Insurance was local and listed on the Colorado Association of Mortgage Broker site.

3. Register with the State of Colorado, Division of Real Estate

It was a snap and my license was sent to my inbox within seconds of hitting submit.

I’d like to think that my blog is unique, I don’t just blog about mortgages cause quite frankly mortgages isn’t the most exiting subject on the planet. Most mortgage brokers don’t blog (do they even know what a blog is?) so I thought blogging would separate me from the pack. Most of my traffic is derived via Google searches. When I started blogging I sent my url to my past clients, friends, etc. and over the past couple of months I’ve received links from other blogs and sites, but I still get more traffic from google than any other medium. It’s not even close.

Here are some of the search terms (in UPPER CASE) that were used to find my site:

• NY PIZZA in DENVER: If there’s something I know, it’s NY Pizza. The site for Original New York Pizza is www.originalpizza.us and it’s located here: 1300 W Midway Blvd in Broomfield, CO 80020 to order a pie call (303) 469-9117. Pantaleone’s is another good NY Pizza joint despite the owners being from Soprano country (NJ) here’s their address: 2120 S Holly St # 6 Denver, CO 80222 and number (303) 757-3456.
• My DENVER BLOG covers Denver real estate, Denver trends, Denver mortgages, and just about anything the gooey substance above my medulla oblongata comes up with.
• TEDY BRUSCHI of the New England Patriots is one of my favorite NFL players because he plays the way the game should be played and yes, he’s HALF-FILIPINO and HALF-ITALIAN. DEAN CAIN and WILL FERRELL are not Filipino.
• You can buy STARBURY SNEAKERS in DENVER, Colorado, you can go to Steve and Barry’s located at 8501 West Bowles Avenue in Littleton, CO 80123 call them at 303-904-7513 for directions.
• FORECLOSURE is a hot topic in COLORADO and DENVER. Fellow Colorado bloggers have tried to minimize the problem. When 90% of the leads that I get from my websites is from Colorado Home Owners facing foreclosure, I’d say foreclosure is a problem. Any way you cut it, people don’t want to lose their homes and saying “sorry, I can’t help you” really sucks!
• KOSI 101 plays CHRISTMAS MUSIC. Tune to 101.1 on your FM dial.
• DENVER is not going through a HOUSING BUBBLE BURST. Denver may have flat lined in terms of property value over the past 4 to 5 years but Denver’s real estate hasn’t popped. Who in their right mind would want to move to a booming city that features 300 days of sunshine a year, skiing in our backyard, hiking, biking, great sports, light rail, international airport, great restaurants, and affordable housing? (sarcasm)
• THE NEXT WASHINGTON PARK could very well be Stapleton, Lowry, Riverfront or anywhere near the Pedestrian Bridge. A realtor would probably be a better person to ask (now there’s an idea for a blog post) so if you need a realtor, just ask. I only work with realtors that won’t waste your time or mine.
• The DIFFERENCE between a MORTGAGE PLANNER and a MORTGAGE BROKER: a mortgage planner actually gives a rats ass about you as a human being and your long term future. For the record, I consider myself a MORTGAGE PLANNER.
• HGTV is scouting for new home buyers in the DENVER metro area for their show, MY FIRST PLACE. However, I think this train came and left.
• REAL WORLD DENVER takes place in LoDo (Lower Downtown) and no I won’t be making any cameos on the show. I believe they filmed the show on Market Street a stone throw away from Coors Field. I’d actually like to see MTV show music videos like they did when I was a kid.
• CASEY SERIN is facing FORECLOSURE and blogging (www.iamfacingforeclosure.com) about it. The guy is going through hell.
• DENVER FIX and FLIP and FLIPPING HOUSES in DENVER, please refer to Casey Serin’s blog before you call me about a loan.
• Yes, there are NY JETS FANS IN DENVER. I’m a die hard NY Jets fan but I don’t know what bar the NY Jets fans congregate. A few years ago it was the Sports Column but when I showed up in my Vinny Testaverde Jersey, there were more Pats fans in the house. Old Chicago on 14th and Market is always a good bet, they show all the games.
• ALTUS HOME LOANS is not the most reputable mortgage company in Colorado. Their DECEIVING ADS are what they are that’s why they’re in trouble. What’s more concerning is that we want politicians to clean up the mortgage mess. What’s the difference between politicians and a mortgage company? They too make just about any promise necessary to get the deal (elected), then fall short of expectations time and time again.
• You really need TITLE INSURANCE in Colorado it’s necessary and not a JUNK FEE.
• WHAT IS WRONG WITH THE DENVER BRONCOS? I don’t have that line anywhere on any of my posts but here’s my answer is “Jake the Snake is not John Elway and neither is Jay Cutler!”

Here’s the latest on what’s going on in Denver:

• TREX is unleashed. Denver’s mass transit system through Southeast Denver Corridor is launched today.
• The Denver Post reports that tax liens are being gobbled up at an unprecedented pace.
• Foreclosure is still a hot topic in Colorado.
• When finding a home improvement contractor, I prefer word of mouth. A href=”http://denver.bizjournals.com/denver/stories/2006/11/13/smallb1.html”>new site is launched to help those that prefer to find the home improvement contractor online.

The past couple of months, I’ve been saving a few dollars here and there for my daughter’s college education. Saving should be a habit and it should never be painful. If saving is painful, chances are you won’t save. So I just go about my daily life and skip some of the daily pleasures. For example, I never hit Starbucks for coffee on the way to the office and instead of going out to lunch, I eat leftovers. The savings isn’t monumental, but over time it adds up. According to Albert Einstein, compound interest is “the greatest mathematical discovery of all time”.

The power of compound interest is simple: save early and let time and interest work for you. If I save $3,000 for my daughter’s college education in the first year and add $3,000 to the account yearly, assuming 6% interest, by the time she’s 18, she should have $98,000.

YR $
1 3,180
2 6,551
3 10,124
4 13,911
5 17,926
6 22,182
7 26,692
8 31,474
9 36,542
10 41,915
11 47,610
12 53,646
13 60,045
14 66,828
15 74,018
16 81,639
17 89,717
18 98,280

To learn more about Colorado’s college savings plan, go to CollegeInvest.org. If you want to skip the fluff, here’s the prospectus. FYI, page 16 has the fund rate of return.