San Francisco Schtuff

I’ll start out talking about a popular subject of late – Credit Scores – A topic we all love to hate (even me).

All of us have our story about dealing with little annoyances and big deals on our credit reports. A while back I sent a note
about how to obtain a free copy of your credit report at the following website :
https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp, which I still strongly encourage you to do. It is important to do this
at least once a year, as your credit history sticks with you for a number of years.

I’ll pick up where I left off last time – which is what to do if you spot an error. As of late, I am seeing a trend among most credit reports, that being inaccurate information being reported from creditors and for a variety of reasons. Some are just minor errors and others are more egregious, such as not reporting a mortgage as paid off, which can dramatically affect your score.

Even if the errors don’t affect your short-term ability to get financing, over time, these items have a cumulative affect and can end
up coming back to haunt you. Many commodity lending products (car loans and now more frequently, 2nd mortgages) are now ‘FICO driven,’ which mean your score (and nothing else) determines your rate/ability to qualify.

If you discover an error, the first step is to call the creditor in question and figure out what their position is.
Hopefully your quest ends there; they will inform the credit agencies and your report will be corrected over a 1-3 month period.

This can be quite a daunting task, however, if they aren’t willing to assist for whatever reason – and where a bit of patience and creativity come into play.

First off, know that some companies out there have no real interest in helping you. The first line phone staff is often evaluated simply on the number of calls it takes in a shift, with no consideration as to the quality of those calls. This is a strong statement, but one I’ve seen played out hundreds of times over the years.

I’ve tried a number of strategies for clients: guilt, anger, begging – whatever works. I’ve ended a call with one ’support’ representative and gotten right back on the phone and had success. A lot of times the front line support staff will tell you they aren’t ‘authorized’ to write a letter, which may or may not be true. In this case, it makes sense to speak to a manager or supervisor.

Our firm offers quicker solutions for a nominal fee, but those should be approached only as a last-ditch effort. Be patient and be persistent, your credit score is something you should guard carefully.

I’ve included some market insight below – Enjoy your summer and please let me know if I can be of assistance.

***Market Insights****

It appears as if the chances of a Fed Rate hike on August 8th are getting a bit lower, after seventeen consecutive rate hikes. The news showing a potential end in sight was good news for home loans - rates stabilized, or in some cases, improved slightly.

Last week also brought a read on the housing market. The numbers were decent, not far off expectations, and confirmed Fed Chair Ben Bernanke’s recent comments that the housing market appears to be experiencing a slowdown. The week ahead is sure to be tumultuous, as we get closer to the Fed’s next announcement on August 8th.

The week holds an important report that clarify the odds of another Fed Funds Rate hike: the Monthly Jobs Report. Analysts are expecting to see 145,000 new jobs created. If the number misses the mark, it will add to the feeling that the Fed may indeed pause at the next meeting. If the number turns out to be higher, the chance of the Fed raising again may be in question.

 

Best Regards – Jason

_____________________________
Jason Russell, Broker
Rob Wolf and Associates
Residential & Commercial Financing
850 Montgomery Street, Suite 100
San Francisco, CA 94133
1-415-788-1334 – office