The Yvette Clermont Team • Serving Florida & Wisconsin • FL: (941) 201-5847 • WI: (920) 347-1245 • www.MyTeamClermont.com

REAL ESTATE FINANCE

Reconnect with Lapsed Clients: Try the Personal Touch

As summer ends—along with the peak buying season—this may be a good time to pause and reflect on your database and how you are sustaining the client relationships you’ve worked so hard to cultivate.

Clients have short memories, and you need to be the first person they think of when they either need a real estate agent or know somebody in their sphere of influence who does. End of story.

Small gestures go a long way. Perhaps you can send a handwritten note telling them you’re thinking of them. Is this time-consuming? Of course, but it will stop them in their tracks. Would they ever have imagined they were important enough for you to take time out of your busy day to write to them?

This is still just one part of your overall marketing strategy, which includes newsletters, e-mail, and other ways of keeping in touch. Just remember to keep your information relevant, meaningful, and above all, useful. Boring content can backfire.

For a particularly engaging experience, why not supplement your written material with links to online videos where your audience can see you in action, backing up your written info with charts and examples? Today’s technology is making this easier and easier to do, and you can’t beat the immediacy.

Post your videos on YouTube for free, and add them to your website. Then advertise them via e-mail and/or in your newsletter, and now you have a campaign. Plus a great way of maintaining contact.

SEPTEMBER 2015

News You Can Use

Business Insights Brought to You By Team Clermont

NMLS #: 248437

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It appears there is a connection between the fact TRID is coming out in October, the same month the living dead come out…

But don’t be scared, just stick with a lender you know has the experience and preparedness to handle these changes. Timing of a contract is our livelihood, and ensuring those dates are adhered to is paramount to our success and the success of your clients reaching their home ownership goals. If you haven’t yet bookmarked our Realtor Resources webpage, visit myteamclermont.com/realtor-resources/ and there you will not only find links to useful tools for your everyday business, but also the new Loan Estimate and Closing Disclosure forms. I have been eating, sleeping and breathing these forms since they first arrived 4 years ago, and we are ready. Inlanta Mortgage and our closing team is prepared and taking on the responsibility of the Closing Disclosure, to better ensure on time closings. As you may have experienced with our team over the past 18 years, we are constantly building and rebuilding systems and programs to ensure a safe and proactive process while remaining compliant to the changes we have been given. So relax, trust in a team with nearly two decades of experience and know we will be here to help you and your clients craft the very best mortgage for their needs. Thank you for your continued trust and here’s to a wonderful Fall Home Buying Season!

Don’t Be “SPOOKED” by TRID

The Yvette Clermont Team • Serving Florida & Wisconsin • FL: (941) 201-5847 • WI: (920) 347-1245 • www.MyTeamClermont.com

Leaders establish the vision for the future and set the strategy for getting there.

John P. Kotter

You have to be fast on your feet and adaptive or else a strategy is useless.

Charles de Gaulle

Strategy requires thought, tactics require observation.

Max Euwe

For me, the winning strategy in any start-up business is, “Think big but start small.”

Carmen Busquets

Worth Reading

5 Signs You’re Letting Fear Run Your Company Editors | RIS Media Leaders who live in fear stress out their employees and stifle productivity. Behaviors that characterize fear-driven leadership include clinging to old, familiar ways, avoiding failure rather than courting success, and resisting others’ opinions and recommendations. Fear-driven leadership results in anxious, nonproductive, risk-averse employees. Don’t let it be your leadership style.

More: http://tinyurl.com/BIZ-reads1

Games Aim to Boost Workers’ Efficiency Conor Dougherty and Quentin Hardy | The New Telegraph Keep your employees engaged; encourage play. There’s now a software package with elements of social media, fitness, and video games that keeps employees engaged in their work and with each other. Employees and their bosses set goals and log their progress. But competition abounds: Coworkers can “cheer” or “nudge” each other.

More: http://tinyurl.com/BIZ-reads2

You Will Not Get to Retire: How Old Age Became Unaffordable and Unhealthy, and How We Can Fix It Ben Schiller | Fast Company The days of a financially secure retirement are at an end, and huge numbers of seniors are continuing to work. But there may be positives: Older workers find financial and emotional advantages in working longer, while the company benefits from having age diversity in the workplace.

More: http://tinyurl.com/BIZ-reads3

WISDOM

Quotes on…Strategy

HOT BIZ TRENDS It’s a Mobile World:

Is Your Business Part of It Yet?

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...the only strategy that is guaranteed to fail is not taking risks.

Mark Zuckerberg

However beautiful the strategy, you should occasionally look at the results.

Winston Churchill

A strategy delineates a territory in which a company seeks to be unique.

Michael Porter

What used to be a tail wind is now a head wind—you have to lean into that and figure out what to do because complaining isn’t a strategy.

Jeff Bezos

It’s been a few months since “Mobilegeddon.” So, as a small business owner, how’s that working for you?

Mobilegeddon happened in April when Google launched an algorithm favoring websites that are oriented to customers with mobile devices. Google’s mobile-friendly action (and similar moves by Facebook) required big changes to most websites to make them easy to read on small screens.

According to a pre-Mobilegeddon post in USA Today, techie Jefferson Graham predicted that 40% of major websites could be affected by Google’s new algorithm. And until they accommodate to this new reality, they’ll be virtually unfindable; “unfriendly” sites not only won’t top the rankings, they may not rank at all.

As Homes.com marketer Grant Simmons notes: “Website(s) will cease to exist if they don’t update to a mobile-friendly platform.” But he offers these solutions: Run Google’s mobile-friendly test; check out Google’s webmaster resources and invest in a mobile-friendly platform.

Sounds like an opportunity wrapped in a challenge. But is it too pricey for small businesses?

Not really: There are now several companies offering affordable products to make your site friendly for smartphone and tablet customers as well as other online shoppers. As Igor Faletski of mobile shopping platform Mobify points out: “Responsive web design enables web designers and developers to build and maintain a single website to serve all kinds of devices: smartphones, tablets, laptops, and more.”

If you aren’t there yet, you may want to consider your options. It’s a mobile world, and failure shouldn’t be one of those options.

The Yvette Clermont Team • Serving Florida & Wisconsin • FL: (941) 201-5847 • WI: (920) 347-1245 • www.MyTeamClermont.com

~

FINANCE – GOOD TO KNOW

Steer Clients to the Right Mortgage Program

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With the exception of VA or USDA (Department of Agriculture) mortgages, most buyers in today’s market will have two choices of financing programs when they purchase a home: conventional and FHA mortgages. And each program has its pluses and minuses.

The determination of which program best suits an individual buyer is generally dependent on assets, such as the amount of his or her down payment and savings, as well as the credit score. Conventional mortgages are underwritten using guidelines created by Fannie Mae. FHA mortgages are underwritten using guidelines that come from the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Conventional mortgage consumers will often have better credit scores and more in the way of asset reserves. Conventional lender requirements for credit scores will never go below 620, and the premium programs are normally available with scores that are higher than 720.

FHA credit score requirements are in the 600-620 minimum score range, often requiring increased down payments or other compensating factors. Historical foreclosure data tells lenders that buyers at the low end of this range and below it are very high risk, and many lenders won’t take the risk.

The FHA insures lenders against loss and requires borrowers to pay for mortgage insurance. That’s because the FHA has more liberal credit and asset requirements.

LINKS YOU CAN USE NOW

This Month – Top Business Blogs Business blogs are a tremendous source of information and inspiration. Here’s a top-20 blog site you might try (http://tinyurl.com/Biz-top-blogs), plus a sampling of some others:

The two things any small business owner needs to be up on are trends and branding. These two high-ranked blogs tackle each one. More at: http://smallbiztrends.com and http://tinyurl.com/Brands-for-Biz

The idea of leading a business with heart is more business model than trend. And successful. This blog gets that. More at: http://tinyurl.com/Biz-with-Heart

Blogs should lead with passion. Few have perfected that art better than Bri Emery. Bri’s business model (as you can see through her blog posts) is a top example of the value of learning and sharing with someone else. More at: http://tinyurl.com/Biz-Example

However, many FHA-approved lenders find these requirements somewhat too lax and will put into place what are called “lender overlays”—requirements in addition to what FHA asks for.

FHA also has no asset reserve requirements beyond the down payment and closing costs (including property tax escrows), which is a huge plus for buyers who have used their entire savings as a down payment and are getting seller credits to make up the difference. In contrast, conventional mortgage lenders are looking for several months’ reserve of full payments, including taxes and insurance.

Despite the lower barriers to entry, there is a downside to an FHA mortgage—the cost of having one. As mentioned above, FHA borrowers are required to have mortgage insurance, and this has become increasingly costly. To compare, conventional mortgages

require mortgage insurance only if the buyer is putting down less than 20%. As

well, this mortgage insurance can be removed over time as the principal is reduced or the property value increases.

With FHA mortgages, one type—or possibly two types—of mortgage insurance will be required. Depending on the mortgage term and the down payment, there may be what is called an upfront premium that is either paid out of pocket or financed into the mortgage at closing. In addition to the upfront premium, a monthly premium will be assessed. Depending on the term of the mortgage and the down payment, this may last either a minimum of 11 years or as long as the mortgage is in place. Thirty-year borrowers with the minimum down payment of 3.5% will have mortgage insurance until the loan is paid off, while insurance will last only 11 years for 15-year borrowers.

Another option is to use a credit repair agency. If buyers select this option, encourage them to thoroughly research the CRA they plan to use. While this industry is highly regulated, it’s still worth checking with the Better Business Bureau or online. To avoid having to go through the correction process, encourage clients to build and maintain a strong credit profile. They’ll thank you. And remember you when it’s time to buy.

The Yvette Clermont Team • Serving Florida & Wisconsin • FL: (941) 201-5847 • WI: (920) 347-1245 • www.MyTeamClermont.com

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The Yvette Clermont Team 9040 Town Center Parkway Lakewood Ranch, FL 34202 (941) 201-5847 435 N. Broadway Ste B De Pere, WI 54115 (920) 347-1245 YvetteClermont@Inlanta.com www.MyTeamClermont.com NMLS #248437 Inlanta Mortgage, Inc. NMLS#1016. Yvette Clermont, NMLS#248437. WI #4775. FL #LO8183. This newsletter and any information contained herein are intended for general informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal, financial or medical advice. The publisher takes great efforts to ensure the accuracy of information contained in this newsletter. However, we will not be responsible at any time for any errors or omissions or any damages, howsoever caused, that result from its use. Seek competent professional advice and/or legal counsel with respect to any matter discussed or published in this newsletter.

SME’s

Employees’ Personal Issues May Put Your Business at Risk

Prior to the Millennials, workers weren’t expected to give honest feedback. In fact, sometimes they were shown the door. But that was then; this is now. Small businesses, especially start-ups (requiring highly collaborative, engaged employees), depend on staff to help problem-solve.

So how do you get a hybrid team of employees to throw out the old order and begin to really give the kind of feedback a small business needs to grow?

Simply ask the right questions.

Management, generally, is not skilled in the art of questioning, and most employers tend to make the same mistakes when asking for feedback. Many managers and business owners ask closed-ended questions that elicit yes or no answers. This doesn’t help identify problem areas, but identifying those areas is something most employees could do readily. If asked.

You get the best from your employees by gaining their commitment; and that comes when staff feel their opinions—especially critical ones—are valued, listened to, and often acted upon. For the employer, this represents valuable advice from people who work on the front line.

LinkedIn Influencer Jeff Hadden recommends this approach: Rather than asking, “Can anyone think of a good reason not to go forward with this plan?” try the following: “What do you think about this plan?” and “What are some areas of concern we might face when moving forward with this plan?”

Generally, your most critical employees will contribute the best—most honest—feedback. That’s good. You need those critical minds to spot areas of weakness you might not see.

When employees’ personal problems bleed into their work lives, performance and productivity plummet. In a small business or a close-knit working group, the situation can have a ripple effect that destabilizes the entire organization.

Personal problems can distract others. Typical situations that spill over into employees’ work lives include divorce, legal and family problems, financial stress, alcoholism, and drug use. These issues can require people to take excessive time off work. Plus, they are distractions that sap energy and attention, and generally weigh on other people’s physical, financial, psychological, and emotional well-being.

When should you get involved, and just how far should you go in helping your workers deal with their personal problems? Generally speaking, the best policy is to stay out of employees’ personal affairs, but if the situation is putting their job in jeopardy, affecting other employees or customers, or impacting the business in any way, it may be necessary to intervene. Before getting involved, consider whether the issue is temporary and fixable or deep-rooted and complex. Be realistic about the kind of help you are capable of giving. If a worker has chronic financial, substance abuse, or serious psychological problems, your involvement is not likely to change the outcome.

Be supportive but … However, if a person is hurting, you may be able to help him or her by listening sympathetically and connecting him with resources to assist in dealing with the situation he’s experiencing. If one of your employees is having a problem that’s affecting his job performance or otherwise affecting your business, you should have a conversation with him early on before loss of his job adds to his existing woes.

STRATEGY

Ask a Dumb Question; Get an (Even Dumber) Answer

The Real Estate Professional’s Guide for the “Know Before You Owe” Initiative

Clients will have questions about the new mortgage disclosures – so be prepared!

The CFPB has developed a great tool for real estate professions at: http://www.consumerfinance.gov/know-before-you-owe/real-estate-professionals/

Smooth and on-time closings

• Advise your borrowers to think through their mortgage options carefully.

• Remind your clients that once they select the loan option that works best for them, they need to inform the lender of their “intent to proceed” with the loan.

• Be their source for accurate and timely information about the property and the real estate contract.

• Discuss the closing process, such as what may slow down the process, and be sure to provide the lender with what they need to prevent closing delays.

New disclosures streamline the process

• Advise your clients of the consolidation of the previous documents (GFE/HUD-1/TIL) and show them how easy it will be to compare the new LE and CD.

• The on-line Guide provides a great deal of information and links to the Loan Estimator and Closing Disclosure “explainer” tools.

• The new documents are designed to work together and be consistent among lenders for ease of comparison.

Learn what has and hasn’t changed about the mortgage process

• Preapprovals and pre-qualifications are unchanged by the rule! Continue to encourage your clients on the value of getting pre-approved for a home purchase.

"The information provided has been based on rules and regulations issued by Federal Agencies and interpreted for you by MortgageCurrentcy.com. Interpretations are not guaranteed but we attempt to both make them easy to understand and help you

sell more real estate. Check with your local and state authorities to ensure that you meet all requirements and disclosures."

Copyright © 2015 Reprinted with permission MortgageCurrentcy.com

• Remind your client that the application begins with a Loan Estimate, which is preceded only by your client selecting a property.

• Intent to Proceed – remind your clients that if they like a lender’s mortgage loan offer, they have ten days to indicate their intent to proceed, or they risk losing the lender’s offer.

• Once a client gives their intent to proceed with a lender, that lender can now start to charge fees for the loan process, including appraisal fees or processing fees. Prior to that, no fees (other than credit report fees) can be charged.

• Explain that a “changed circumstance” could impact their loan offer from their lender. A changed circumstance could be created by information not previously known about the borrower’s credit, the terms of the loan requested were changed, or property changes due to appraisal information that could impact loan charges and/or interest rates.

• Advise your client that they will have three days to review their Closing Disclosure.

• The Closing Disclosure must contain the buyer’s and the seller’s real estate brokerages’ and agents’ names, addresses, state license ID numbers, email addresses, and phone numbers. If this information is unknown, the form can’t be completed. So get this in early to prevent delays!

Extra three-day reviews are unlikely

• Defuse the concern about the likelihood of multiple or extra three-day reviews. This only happens when:

a. The APR increased by more than 1/8 percent for fixed rate loans, or by a 1/4 percent for adjustable rate loans. Note: A decrease in the APR will not require a new three-day review.

b. A prepayment penalty is added.

c. The basic loan product changes, such as switching from a fixed to an adjustable rate loan.

Consider me a part of your team for making the borrower’s experience a great one!