The Machines are Taking Over! But In a Good Way: Project Management Software for Realtors

As many of you have heard me say over and again, the real estate transaction process should be viewed as a team effort, with each piece of the transaction working in unison toward the ultimate goal:  The buying or selling of your home and putting you and your things in that house.  I completely understand the realities of that dream in that many things can and do go wrong and the circuits of the team can get crossed and the functionality breaks down.  This is due to various factors, either a missed phone call, a failed fax or just not knowing the next step in the process or where the other person is in their process.

Dogs in casts cause most of the problems, that is fact!

Luckily I know people, and by knowing people, I am able to see their honest to God hard work and great ideas and write a blog and say “Hey, look at this!”  Ucloser   Plus, I love products that reflect the great adage of “Work smarter, not necessarily harder”. 

I came across Ucloser, a new company that operates a project management software for realtors and the real estate transactions, and I was pissed, mostly because I didn’t think of it first, but then amazed and excited as to the potential.  And then I was confused, because why would be pissed, I have no idea how to develop software, so then I was just excited.

 As they stated in their “About” section: 

“Real estate transactions involve many participants: buyers and sellers, agents, brokers, inspectors, appraisers, lenders, title companies, attorneys and others. Historically the communication among these parties is haphazard and de-centralized. Our software platform enables secure, universal sharing of data, documents, messages and milestones among the participants.”

Couldn’t have said it better myself and I for one, as the attorney in the scenario, would appreciate the ability to login to one central location and select documents that are needed for settlement preparation, view where the realtor is in the process and what is left outstanding.  As any realtor or closing attorney will tell you, last-minute changes and running around are the rule, not the exception.  But with this software, maybe we can avoid that and grow everyone’s business, which is the ultimate goal.

Founder John Williamson has a great quote on the site that is one of the sanest things I have heard in a while:

“When you buy a book from Amazon.com, you can track it every step of the way from the warehouse to your doorstep. When you buy or sell a home, shouldn’t you have the same amount of insight?”

Please, check out the website (www.ucloser.com) and if nothing else, enjoy his blogs and learn a thing or two.

Preach on John, preach on!

Apparently 2012 Will Be a Good Year For Refinancing.

From Yahoo! Finance:

Homeowners who have resisted the urge to refinance their mortgages until now could be rewarded for their willpower. Mortgage rates have fallen to new lows—and banks are rolling out incentives to win business.

Economic uncertainty in Europe and slow growth in the U.S. are prompting investors to pile into ultrasafe U.S. Treasurys. That, in turn, is pushing down mortgage rates, which are tied to Treasurys.

The average interest rate on a 30-year mortgage fell to 4.05% for the week ended Dec. 23, the lowest in 60 years, according to HSH Associates, a mortgage-data firm. And rates on jumbo mortgages—private loans that in most parts of the country are larger than $417,000—also have hit new lows, averaging 4.61%.

We all know that this is not going to last.  So, if you are in position financially, it looks like the next couple months will be a great time to start thinking about refinancing.  And as the article points out, since many have already taken advantage of the low rates in 2011, lenders are looking for more business to take advantage of these even lower rates.

What’s more, demand for refinancing is declining, since many homeowners already took advantage of lower mortgage rates. Applications for refinancing are 17% below this year’s peak in September, according to the latest data from the Mortgage Bankers Association.

That and other factors have prompted some lenders to offer incentives to win new business—particularly regional and community banks, which are focusing more on jumbo mortgages, says Stu Feldstein, president at SMR Research, which tracks the mortgage market.

Of course, it’s not always gumdrops and lollipops.  The federal government always has a vote in “Deals Too Good To Be True” and this is no exception. 

PICTURED: The Federal Government

In December, the federal government rolled out a revamped version of the Home Affordable Refinance Program with relaxed home-equity requirements, to allow more borrowers to refinance. To qualify, the current mortgage must be owned or guaranteed by Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae, and borrowers need to be mostly current on payments.

For regular refinancing, applicants need a FICO credit score of at least 740 to get the best rates, says Mr. Gumbinger. And they must provide copious documentation, including at least two years’ worth of tax returns and proof of income as well as recent statements for assets such as retirement and brokerage accounts.

After clearing those hurdles, you might wait about 60 days for refinancing to be completed, says Mr. Gumbinger—longer than the typical 45 days. While some lenders are offering 60-day rate locks for free, others charge a quarter of a percentage point of the total loan amount for the service. On an $800,000 mortgage, that’s $2,000.

Make sure you talk to a professional lender before delving into these sweet deals, but it looks like it may be a good time to try to lower those mortgage payments and change dance partners in 2012!