When you think of mortgages that enable thousands of people to acquire homes every year, you are thinking of the Benchmark Lending group which has provided much needed finances to get new homes or refinance the existing homes to many families for over ten years. They offer tailor made mortgages to suit the needs of customers ensuring that you can afford it. They make this happen by considering the cash flow of every customer. They also consider the repayment period, investment opportunities and your equity plans. The Benchmark lending group was founded by Barney Aldridge in 1995 as a primary mortgage lending bank and it continues to grow. Customers can expect no hassles and there are no middlemen. The headquarters are located in Northern California and their culture is to provide a good service with dedication and passion.

When you need to apply for a loan, the company assures you that the process is easy and, you do not have to worry about complications. You will have a loan officer guide you through the whole process briefing you on all vital issues on credit until you have a satisfactory end. At Benchmark lending group, the management consists of people who have mastered the industry and proved that they can deliver what it takes to progress the business. It consists of the President who is the Chief Executive officer. His name is Jason Ehrlicher and he began as a loan officer in the company and years have seen him become capable and able to lead owing to his rich experience and dedication to the company since it began.

The others in the management team include the Director of Human Resources, Vice President of Sales and the Sales Manager. The first kind of loan they offer is the Fixed Rate Loan where the rate does not change and one can get a loan to repay in 10, 15, 20 and 30 years. People who go for such a loan must be planning to keep their house for more than 10 years and, for those who do not plan to use their home equity for the period of the loan. The other kind of mortgage the Benchmark Lending group offer is the adjustable rate mortgage. This loan is for people who plan to keep their house for up to 10 years or less. The duration for this kind of mortgage is usually 3, 5, 7 and 10 years.

A freedom loan from Benchmark Lending is the most popular because it is an adjustable loan that enables you to choose from 4 different payment methods according to your convenience every month. The loan is tailor made for people who do not have a regular or stable cash flow and for people who want to make other investments. Another loan suitable for people with fluctuating incomes is the Better Half loan and, it will help people with unstable monthly income realize their dream of owning a home. There are very many other options to choose from and, you can even apply online on their site. There are other resources that you will find very helpful. Before you take any mortgage, it is good to consider your income and your flexibility and ability to repay given the many options of repayments. Get a good system that will help you realize your dream for a good home.

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Predatory lenders promise loans that are “too good to be true” and pressure borrowers to take them on the spot. Here’s a few things you or your family and friends should know about spotting and avoid predatory loans:

How to Spot a Predatory Loan

*Balloon payments.

*High interest rates.

*Monthly payments you can’t afford.

*Penalties for early pay-off of the loan.

*Unauthorized refinancing of your loan.

Abusive Practices: 7 Signs of Predatory Lending

1. Single Premium Credit Insurance

Credit insurance premiums should not be financed into the loan up-front in a lump-sum payment. One type of credit insurance, credit life, is paid by the borrower to repay the lender should the borrower die. The product can be useful when paid for on a monthly basis. When it is paid for up-front, however, it does nothing more than strip equity from homeowners.

2. High Fees

The borrower should not be charged fees greater than 3% of the loan amount (4% for FHA or VA loans). Points and fees (as defined by HOEPA) that exceed this amount (not including third party fees like appraisals or attorney fees) take more equity from borrowers than the cost or risk of subprime lending can justify.

3. Prepayment Penalties

Subprime loans should not include prepayment penalties, for the following reasons:

Prepayment Penalties Haunt Many Refinancers

Prepayment penalties trap borrowers in high-rate loans, which too often leads to foreclosure. The subprime sector should provide borrowers a bridge to conventional financing as soon as the borrower is ready to make the transition, though prepayment penalties are designed to prevent this from happening.

Prepayment penalties are hidden, deferred fees that strip significant equity from over half of subprime borrowers. Prepayment penalties of 5% are common. For a $150,000 loan, this fee is $7,500, more than the total net wealth built up over a lifetime for the median African American family.

Only 2% of borrowers accept prepayment penalties in the competitive conventional market, while, according to Duff and Phelps, 80% in subprime do.

4. Yield-Spread Premiums

Brokers originate over half of all mortgage loans, and a relatively small number of brokers are responsible for a large percentage of predatory loans. Lenders should identify — and avoid — these brokers and refuse to pay yield-spread premiums — fees lenders rebate to brokers in exchange for placing a borrower in a higher interest rate than the borrower qualifies for.

5. Steering

Lenders should make sure that borrowers get the lowest-cost loan they qualify for. As Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have shown, subprime lenders charge prime borrowers who meet conventional underwriting standards higher rates than necessary. HUD found that steering has a racial impact since borrowers in African-American neighborhoods are five times more likely to get a loan from a subprime lender — and therefore pay extra — than borrowers in white neighborhoods.

6. Mandatory Arbitration

Increasingly, lenders are placing pre-dispute, mandatory binding arbitration clauses in their loan contracts. These clauses insulate unfair and deceptive practices from effective review and relegate consumers to a forum where they cannot obtain injunctive relief against wrongful practices, proceed on behalf of a class, or obtain punitive damages. Arbitration can also involve costly fees, be required to take place at a distant site, or designate a pro-lender arbitrator.

7. Flipping

Flipping of borrowers occurs through repeated fee-loaded refinancings. One of the worst practices is for lenders to refinance subprime loans over and over, taking out home equity wealth in the form of high fees each time, without providing the borrower with a net tangible benefit.

How to Avoid a Predatory Loan

*Always shop around.

*Ask questions.

*If you don’t understand the loan terms, talk to someone you trust to look at the documents for you.

*Don’t trust ads promising “No Credit? No Problem!”

*Ignore high-pressure sales tactics.

*Don’t take the first loan you are offered.

*Remember that a low monthly payment isn’t always a ‘deal.’ Look at the TOTAL cost of the loan.

*Be wary of promises to refinance the loan to a better rate in the future.

*Never sign a blank document or anything the lender promised to fill in later.

To get help, contact one of these national organizations.

National Organizations for Predatory Lending Issues

-ACORN (Association of Community Org’s for Reform Now)

-AARP

-Better Business Bureau

-Consumer Federation of America

-Consumer.gov (US Consumer Gateway)

-Consumers Union

-Credit Union National Association (CUNA)

-Federal Reserve Board Consumer Information

-Federal Trade Commision, Consumer Protection

-Habitat for Humanity International

-National Association of Attorneys General

-National Association of Consumer Advocates

-National Consumer Law Center

-US Public Interest Research Group (PIRG)

http://www.educationcenter2000.com/national_organizations

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Remember when the only way to buy stocks was through a full-service broker? Even if you already knew which stocks and how many shares you would want to buy, you would still need to pay the broker’s hefty commission fee. You may not have needed or even wanted his or her advice, but you had no choice but to pay the full fare anyway.

The Internet changed all of that. You can now do your own investing without having to worry which particular stock the broker is attempting to push that day. He or she may have had little regard for you and your needs, but primarily had the need to fatten his or her own wallet.

An area of investing that could be made far more efficient is mortgage lending.

Everyday in America, thousands of consumers are victims of mortgage loan officer schemes that ultimately cost the borrower thousands of dollars more than they originally were led to believe. This is so common, that “predatory lending” and its impact is a growing concern among consumer interest groups and government regulators.

Wouldn’t it be nice if, like in the ability to purchase your own stocks, you could do your own research and choose your own loan without having to worry about the needs of a greedy, self-serving loan officer (many of whom have been written up, after the fact, in the press)? Their extreme practices have even led some trusting consumers into foreclosure.

Thanks to a mortgage company in Chicago, the Internet and technology, you now have the ability to go online and within about 15 minutes receive a loan approval for their client without having to go through the traditional mortgage process. The system is so sophisticated that it is predatory lending proof. The computer does not have the ability to charge a consumer more because it thinks the borrower does not know any better. It simply evaluates the client and gives him or her the right program at the right price, saving the consumer’s money and time.

Jonathan Cosie, CEO and founder of MortgageTrends & RealEstatePro News, has endorsed this technology as a 2006 Top Industry Technology pick stating that “This is the first, true self-serve online mortgage solution we have ever seen. Other online lenders state that you can do a mortgage online, but the reality is that you either give them information that they sell as a lead to loan officers or they have a loan officer call you. Both of those scenarios often lead to added costs and frustration to the consumer. Our team is very, very impressed with this concept.”

Once your information has been entered, a loan manager works with you to complete the loan package in a low pressure environment. After the financial information has been evaluated, you simply selects the type and term of loan that they are interested in and the system then immediately begins the underwriting process. You can view all actual (not estimated) closing costs for each loan match presented. This leaves little margin for error and no opportunity for predatory lending practices. Once a loan is selected, the loan manager gets the client to closing on time, with no “packing” of fees. No games and no gimmicks.

In the same way that Amazon.com has changed the way consumers buy books, this mortgage company in Chicago will soon change the way that borrowers buy mortgages, forever.

Experienced mortgage broker, creator of one of the most informative home-buying educational seminars in America and author of Kickback: Confessions of a Mortgage Salesman, one of the best-selling mortgage books on Amazon.com, Ted Janusz educates first-time home buyers and seasoned real estate professionals on the Top 10 Mistakes people make when obtaining a mortgage. For more information, please visit his website at http://www.januspresentations.com/. You may also email Ted at tjanusz@gmail.com.

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