By Jennifer Taylor, Director of Internet Marketing, New American Mortgage
Today, our Virginia Beach, VA sales / loan officers wanted to give a huge “Thank you!” to our operations staff by giving them their first cookout!
Our Lynnhaven loan officers cooked some good grub on the grill! Check out our 2012 Cookout video:
Everything is RED HOT! 
♪ ♫
By Jennifer Taylor, Director of Internet Marketing, New American Mortgage
We’re happy to announce that as of yesterday, May 9, 2012, New American Mortgage is now the preferred lender for the owner and operated offices of ZipRealty. We’ll be opening up 23 new offices nationwide!
ZipRealty was founded in 1999. The company operates in the following 19 owner and operated markets in 12 states and the District of Columbia:
Ignacio Metcalf, Division Manager of New American Mortgage, stated, “We’re extremely excited about our new relationship with Zip Realty and getting to know all of the markets. We believe with our technology and business approach, this will be a mutually beneficial relationship.”
By Jennifer Taylor, Director of Internet Marketing, New American Mortgage
♪ ♫ Ch-ch-ch-ch-Changes ♪ ♫
By the David Bowie song, Changes, I’m sure you already know what I’m about to talk about…
Customer Magnetism wrote an article on March 13, 2012 called Facebook Timeline Layout Cheat Sheet For Band Pages. It included several new Facebook Timeline Dimensions.
Facebook Cover Photo: 851px (width) x 315px (height)
Facebook Business Profile Photo: 125px x 125px
Landing Page Width: 81px
Ad Size: 110px x 80px
On February 18, 2012, Facebook sent an email to all Facebook fan page admins. It stated, “On April 26, we will be updating the size of the profile picture on all Pages. We are letting you know about this small change in advance so that you can update your profile picture on April 26. The new profile picture will be 160 x 160 pixels and will sit at 23 pixels from the left and 210 pixels from the top of the Page.”
The new Facebook Business Profile Photo: will be 160px x 160px. We’re glad to see this change, because it has been difficult to read and identify several Facebook Business Pages’ logo. I actually helped someone yesterday re-size theirs to the current 125px x 125px. I’m looking forward to this change as well as many other people!
By Jennifer Taylor, Director of Internet Marketing, New American Mortgage
I’ve been pondering for a while now if real estate agents and loan officers should use Pinterest to market their business online. After all, it is the fastest growing social network, right? Also, according to Mashable, Pinterest is the No. 3 Social Network in the U.S. Those are some pretty outstanding statements and numbers.
I have spoken on Pinterest a couple of times throughout the U.S. to our REALTOR® partners. I only spoke on the subject, because they requested it. Before my Pinterest presentation, I told them exactly what I thought about it – “I love it, but it’s a waste of your time for business.” A lot of people had questions on what it is and/or how they would grow their business using it. After I fully explained it, they weren’t that interested in it anymore for their business (real estate wise). If you were a retailer, it’s a goldmine driving traffic back to ones’ website. It’s much different real estate/mortgage wise.
For real estate agents and loan officers, I truly believe that Pinterest is not the best use of their time. If you’ve got the time, go for it! The only way they could really utilize it is if they had a graphic designer on hand to do infographs that could virally spread, such as Customer Magnetism’s Facebook Timeline Cheat Sheet Template. I pinned that sucker in a hot second. Houses for sale could potentially virally spread, but they’d have to look fabulous like Stephen Alexander’s Homes & Neighborhoods. However, most houses on the market (let’s be honest) is not up to par to be put on Pinterest, like these ones:
They could share tips with photos in general, but that wouldn’t drive traffic back to their website, because they need to own the image and the image needs to be embedded on their blog and/or website. It’s not impossible to market your real estate or mortgage business on Pinterest, but it would be very challenging and time consuming. One would have to have the time and resources on hand, such as a graphic designer, Photoshop, etc.
I know from experience that REALTORS® and loan officers have very little time to spend on marketing in general. If they going to spend their time online, they should be spending it on core online marketing resources, such as Facebook, Google+, Twitter, YouTube, Blogging, and their website.
In 2005, Google incorporated the nofollow attribute in their algorithm to help with link spamming. Social networks, such as Twitter, was asked by Google to use the nofollow attribute. When sites add “rel=nofollow,” Google and other search engines know not to pass any link juice to the page it is linking to. Pinterest went nofollow last month (March 2012).
Nofollow explained by Google:
Now, if you’re a “Pinterest Pinner,” and you have the time to pin, it wouldn’t hurt to make a board for your real estate or mortgage business. Once you make a board, you can post your information (photos and/or videos) on it. It’s just not going to be the goldmine that you think it’s going to be.
Last note: If you’re going to make a Pinterest account for your business, don’t forget to attach a Pinterest tab to your Facebook Fan Page.
Happy Pinning!
By Sam Chazanow, CMB, AMP, Reverse Mortgage Specialist & Trainer, New American Mortgage
As many home shoppers learn, the best buy in town is often what real estate agents call a “fixer-upper;” a home in need of repair in a nice neighborhood; or an older home with lots of charm, but in need of updating in the kitchen and bathrooms. With limited funds, you may worry about whether you can afford the expense of renovations after you’ve closed your loan. One option to consider is New American Mortgage’s FHA 203(k) loan.
Home improvement loans, such as the FHA 203(k) loan, can make that real estate bargain even more attractive, because it allows you to purchase a home and improve it all with one transaction. The remodeling costs are built into the loan and the loan amount is based on the “after-improved” value of the home. The extent of the rehabilitation may range from relatively minor repairs to adding additional living space.
The types of improvements that are permissible with New American Mortgage’s FHA 203(k) program include the following:
You can purchase your dream home with as little as three and a half percent down using New American Mortgage’s FHA 203(k) loan program. This program is available in a variety of fixed and adjustable rate options. You can also remodel your current home with this program as well.
So, when you see a great deal in the classifieds ads or online for a home requiring a little “TLC,” but wonder how you could afford to make it your dream home, consider New American Mortgage’s FHA 203(k) home improvement loan.
Call your local New American Mortgage loan officer and let them show you how to have the home of your dreams today!
By Sam Chazanow, CMB, AMP, Reverse Mortgage Specialist & Trainer, New American Mortgage
Imagine after weeks of shopping around you finally find the perfect home. You sign the purchase agreement and begin planning for life in your new dream home – only to find out you can’t qualify for the loan. Fortunately, this scenario can be avoided thanks to New American Mortgage‘s pre-approval program.
At New American Mortgage we encourage prospective home buyers to secure financing before they start shopping for a home. Pre-approval saves time for everyone and makes the closing process more efficient. It is also more cost effective for buyers, since they do not pay upfront fees for credit checks and appraisals in the event they don’t qualify.
New American Mortgage’s pre-approval can take the uncertainty and stress out of shopping for the home of your dreams. There are important differences between pre-approvals issued at New American Mortgage and pre-qualification that other lenders may offer. A prequalification is simply a verbal exchange in which lenders tell prospective buyers the maximum mortgage amount they are able to borrow based on their financial status. New American Mortgage’s pre-approval goes a step further by verifying credit, income and asset information at time of application. It is an approval to lend subject to receipt of satisfactory property appraisal, and no changes or omissions in the information on which the pre-approval was granted.
There are several key advantages of pre-approvals:
1. Sellers and real estate agents view homebuyers who are pre-approved as sincere buyers. They can in many cases negotiate a better deal.
2. Once you know how much you can afford, real estate agents can guide you towards properties in the right price range.
3. Since verification of financial information can take place upfront while you are shopping, the total underwriting time and the closing of the loan is faster and more efficient once you find your dream home.
4. Credit problems and credit errors can be resolved earlier so that the loan can move forward without obstacles.
Getting pre-approved for a home loan is a smart step that most homebuyers should consider. Call your local New American Mortgage loan officer today and find out how quick and easy our pre-approval process can be.
By Jennifer Taylor, Director of Internet Marketing, New American Mortgage
Today, I discovered an excellent article called, “5 Ways to Use Facebook to Grow Your Real Estate Business.” At New American Mortgage, we are constantly researching ways to help our loan officers and real estate partners how to grow their business on and offline. I not only run New American Mortgage’s online presence, but I travel all over the United States coaching our loan officers and real estate partners how to market their business online. Facebook is one of the main ways that New American Mortgage has grown its business.
The New Face of New American Mortgage and Crawford Grows Mortgage Business Via Social Media are two articles that Bank Technology News has written about New American Mortgage successfully growing its business by using social media.
In the article, 5 Ways to Use Facebook to Grow Your Real Estate Business, it points out that if one makes interesting and relevant status updates; lets their personality shine through; automates the friend process with Outlook Connector; reaches out to Facebook friends; and tags posts and photos it can help one increase their business. I almost entirely agree with the article and have been coaching our loan officers and real estate partners on almost everything in the article. The only thing that it doesn’t point out and one does have to be careful about is marketing their business on their Facebook profile page. Under Facebook terms and conditions, one is not allowed to market their business on their Facebook profile page. It can get one kicked off of Facebook fast. That’s why Facebook implemented Facebook fan pages. The National Association of REALTORS® also stated the same thing last year to all REALTORS®. I’m sure it was because they were wanting to stay in compliance with Facebook terms and conditions.
If you have been heavily marketing your business on your Facebook profile page or simply thought that a Facebook profile page is a Facebook fan page, don’t fret! Recently, Facebook has incorporated merging Facebook profile pages to Facebook fan pages. To do this, all you need to do is use their migration tool. It’s simple, fast, and easy.
If you love the information that we’ve shared with you in our blogs, then you’ll love our “New American Mortgage Newsletter.” If you would like to receive our newsletter, just click on this link https://bitly.com/NAMnews and fill out the requested information. Our goal is to provide free valuable resources to our loan officers and real estate partners to help them grow their business on and offline. If there’s anything you would like to see from us in the future, please let us know. If you do choose to sign up for our newsletter, we will be sending you one email per month. It will contain marketing highlights from the following month and marketing predictions. As always, we would personally like to thank you for your continuous support in us!
Guest Post By: Erik Braunitzer and courtesy of Douglas Elliman Real Estate Company, agents for NYC Apartments.
Many people are struggling today to find every penny available to meet their financial obligations. If you have a monthly mortgage and are looking for ways to decrease the term of your loan or lower your monthly payments, here are a few tips to think about.
Tip #1 – Refinance
If you have relatively good credit and have not refinanced your home in the past several years, you can take advantage of current low interest rates and lower your monthly payment considerably. If you have a mortgage interest rate higher than 5 percent, you should really consider talking to a financial advisor and mortgage broker to see if you can refinance and lower your monthly payments. Although interest rates are at their lowest rates in decades, there is no guarantee as to how long this trend will continue. In order to lower your payments and take advantage of the current low interest rates, this is something you should do immediately.
Tip #2 – Reevaluate the Length of Your Loan
If you want to pay off your home loan sooner and free up the money you are putting toward monthly payments, consider renegotiating the term of your loan. When you shorten the length of your home loan, you will ultimately pay less interest and you will pay the loan off more quickly. The disadvantage of this approach is that your monthly payments will dramatically increase, particularly if you shift from a 30-year loan to a drastically shorter loan, such as a 15- or 10-year loan.
Tip #3 – Make Double Payments
Another method to shorten the amount of time it takes to pay off your home loan is to make double loan payments on a regular basis. If you have the additional money available to do this, you can significantly decrease the amount of time it takes for your mortgage to be paid off. When you make extra loan payments, make sure you instruct your lender to apply the payment to principal only, otherwise it will automatically be applied to the interest amount due.
Tip #4 – Add a Small Amount to Monthly Payments
If you are not able to make double or large extra payments regularly, you can make a small additional payment to your monthly payment and reduce the amount of time it takes to pay off your home loan. Even adding as little as 10 to 15 percent extra to your monthly payments can significantly reduce your loan term. However, again, you should make sure you note the amount extra that you want to be applied to your loan principal.
Before making additional payments, make sure to contact your lender to find out if there are any prepayment or early payment penalties. By making extra payments and applying them to the loan principal, you will shorten the length of the loan and decrease the amount of interest you owe on the loan.
By Jennifer Taylor, Director of Internet Marketing, New American Mortgage
I know we said we were going to be silent today, but have you noticed some of your favorite websites are blacked out today in reverence of the strike against the Protect IP Act (PIPA) and the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA)?
Google has also joined in by blacking out their logo today. They stated yesterday, “So tomorrow we will be joining many other tech companies to highlight this issue on our U.S. home page.”
If you click on their blacked out Google logo or below the logo where it says, “Tell Congress: Please don’t censor the web!” today, you will land on a PIPA / SOPA petition form. To sign the petition form online, all you need to do is fill out your first name, last name, *email address, and *zip code. * denotes required fields. Please take a moment and sign the petition today. Out of respect of the strike, we will remain silent for the remainder of the day.
“Although Congress has currently shelved SOPA, it’s possible that a related version of SOPA could come back at some point down the road — though probably not this year — but for now, the push against the bill has succeeded beautifully.” via Washington Monthly.
If you’re confused on what PIPA / SOPA are, check out this quick vimeo video.
PROTECT IP / SOPA Breaks The Internet from Fight for the Future on Vimeo.
By Jennifer Taylor, Director of Internet Marketing, New American Mortgage
I just recently got back from holiday vacation. And even though I still worked about two hours each day while I was gone I did not blog on January 1st or 2nd like most people. By the way, someone that runs social media for a company can’t really take a “vacation.” Think about it. Our online presence would have been stagnate for x amount of days.
So today, I will quickly give you my suggestion of “MUST DOs For Businesses In 2012.”
1.) If you don’t have a Facebook fan page, WHY? It’s free and literally takes less than 60 seconds to make. Just got to https://www.facebook.com/pages/create. It will take you through all the steps on how to set it up. We coach our loan officers and real estate partners how to properly set it up, meaning where to add license numbers, NMLS numbers, company that you work for, applications, landing pages etc. The same thing goes for all other social networks that I’m about to mention.
2.) Twitter. For some reason there is a disinerest in Twitter for many loan officers and real estate agents and I haven’t really figured out why. Who knows? Maybe Facebook profile and fan pages have them boggled down. I personally think one can get more leads from Twitter. You can connect your Facebook fan page to twitter by going to https://www.facebook.com/twitter/ and clicking “Link to Twitter,” however, don’t ignore twitter if you do connect your Facebook fan page to Twitter. Visit http://fly.twitter.com/ for further information on Twitter.
3.) Blog. I know. It’s painful if you don’t like to write, but it’s a must! It definitely helps with search engine optimization, but that’s not all. It gives your company a voice. Don’t know where to blog? I would highly recommend WordPress.org or WordPress.com. Both are them are free, however, WordPress.org needs hosting which will cost you money. Other than that it’s free.
4.) Google+. I know… you’re JUST now getting adjusted to Facebook Timeline. Google+, let’s just say, is Google’s version of Facebook. They have a regular page for yourself and one for businesses, just like Facebook. To get started with a regular profile page, go to https://plus.google.com. To setup a Google+ page for your business, go to https://www.google.com/+/business.
5.) Pinterest. What the heck is Pinterest? It’s a virtual pinboard. Pinterest lets you organize and share things you find on the web. Trust me on this one. I have something up my sleeve to help loan officers and real estate agents market their business using this social network. I will explain how to do that in another blog post another day. For now, sign up, figure it out, and have fun!
