Protect Your Family from Carbon Monoxide Poisoning

SAFETY TIPS:

• Have your home heating systems (including chimneys and vents) inspected and serviced annually by a trained service technician.
• Never use portable generators inside homes or garages, even if doors and windows are open. Use generators outside only, far away from the home. 
• Never bring a charcoal grill into the house for heating or cooking. Do not barbeque in the garage.
• Never use a gas range or oven for heating. 
• Open the fireplace damper before lighting a fire and keep it open until the ashes are cool. An open damper may help prevent build-up of poisonous gases inside the home. 
• Install battery-operated CO alarms or CO alarms with battery backup in your home outside separate sleeping areas. 
• Know the symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning: headache, dizziness, weakness, nausea, vomiting, sleepiness, and confusion. If you suspect CO poisoning, get outside to fresh air immediately, and then call 911.

 KNOW THE SYMPTOMS OF CO2 POISONING:

•  Because CO is odorless, colorless, and otherwise undetectable to the human senses, people may not know that they are being exposed. The initial symptoms of low to moderate CO poisoning are similar to the flu (but without the fever). They include:

Headache | Fatigue | Shortness of breath | Nausea | Dizziness

•  High level CO poisoning results in progressively more severe symptoms, including:

Mental confusion | Vomiting | Loss of muscular coordination | Loss of consciousness | Ultimately death

• Symptom severity is related to both the CO level and the duration of exposure. For slowly developing residential CO problems, occupants and/or physicians can mistake mild to moderate CO poisoning symptoms for the flu, which sometimes results in tragic deaths. For rapidly developing, high level CO exposures (e.g., associated with use of generators in residential spaces), victims can rapidly become mentally confused, and can lose muscle control without having first experienced milder symptoms; they will likely die if not rescued.

 

 

 

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What You Need to Know About Upcoming Changes to FHA Loans

As you may know, unless Congress extends the expiration deadline, Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loan limits set in 2008 will drop significantly beginning October 1. Congress raised the loan limit amount in response to the housing crisis to help spur the homebuying market. FHA loans offer borrowers very competitive rates and terms, and they only require a 3.5% down payment. Allowable debt ratios are higher than the typical debt-ratio limits imposed for conventional loans, and there are no income limit qualifications, so more people can qualify for them.

If the loan limit drops on October 1, many California homebuyers will face higher down payments, higher mortgage rates and stricter loan qualification requirements. Borrowers seeking larger mortgages will have to apply for conventional loans or jumbo loans, which may be subject to higher interest rates and down payments. Here are four things you should know now.

1. LOWER LOAN LIMITS.

The conforming loan limit determines the maximum mortgage amount that FHA, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac can buy or guarantee. If you want to stay under the current loan limits, you want to purchase now and close by September 30th.

2. DROPS BY COUNTY.

Under the new FHA loan limits, some counties will see significant drops in their loan limits. San Diego County will experience a $151,250 drop!

3. JUMBO LOANS.

The current FHA loan limit is $729,750. After October 1, that limit may drop to $625,500. Mortgage loans higher than that amount will be considered non-conforming jumbo loans, which typically have rates that are 0.875% to 1.5% higher than conforming rates, depending on the loan product, and require higher down payments.

4. MORE STRINGENT REQUIREMENTS.

FHA loan requirements may allow for lower credit scores. So an applicant with a lower FICO score can still qualify for an FHA loan, even if they can’t for a conventional loan. You may be able to obtain an FHA loan three years after defaulting or having a loan foreclosed.

Mortgage Rates Change Home Affordability

Once you’ve made a budget, be sure to keep tabs on it. Your budget can be victimized by mortgage rates.

Homes are more affordable today than at any time in recorded history, but it’s not because home prices are down. It’s because mortgage rates are. And every time mortgage rates change, your maximum purchase price changes, too.

Did you know : In June 2011, mortgage rates changed every 3 hours, 23 minutes on average.

With mortgage rates changing as rapidly as they are, your home affordability can be short-lived. Consider the budget-busting impact of rising mortgage rates.

For every 1 percent rise in mortgage rates, a buyer’s maximum purchase price falls 10.75%.

For example, if you have 20 percent to put down and see a $300,000 home, today, you can borrow at 4.500% and pay $1,216 monthly. But if you want to wait for a price reduction and, 4 weeks later, you get it — all the way to $285,000, you're ecstatic. Until you talk to your lender and find out mortgage rates are up 1 point.

That same home — selling for $15,000 less — now costs $1,295 to carry. It’s a $79 monthly increase, and $28,440 in extra payments over the life of the loan.

This is why it’s foolish to “time” the housing market. Sure, you may get your “great price”, but rising mortgage rates wipe out the savings (and then some).

Squeezing Extra Dollars From The Budget

So what do you do when you need to squeeze a few extra dollars from your budget? You can’t wait for mortgage rates, after all, because mortgage rates are random; there’s unpredictable day-to-day. But, you can do more with a mortgage.

Specifically, you can avoid ”over-paying” on your mortgage.

The most common example of “doing more with a mortgage” is recommending against the 30-year fixed rate mortgage when a lower-rate adjustable rate mortgage is more suitable. Homeowners planning to sell within 7 years, for example, don’t need a 30-year fixed-rate loan. Many will opt for the 30-year fixed anyway, however, citing “peace of mind”.

That can be an expensive insurance policy.

Example: In July 2011, mortgage rates for the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage were 130 basis points higher than for an otherwise identical 5-year ARM. As a result, buyers financing with a 30-year fixed paid 12% more each month for their mortgage.

It must be said: Although adjustable-rate mortgages are “cheaper”, they should not be used as a means to “afford more home”. They’re most suitable for people with a relocation history and/or with the ability to manage higher housing payments in the future. When appropriate, ARMs can be a huge money-saver.

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