Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

From all of us at Covenant Mortgage - Have a Merry Christmas and a Blessed and Prosperous New Year -

This has certainly been an interesting year in the mortgage industry. What will 2008 look like? That is an important question and here are a few predictions -

1. Housing prices will begin to stabilize in the fall of 2008.
2. Interest rates will be slightly lower this time next year - good news for those of you with adjustable rate mortgages or Home Equity Lines of Credit.
3. Helpful, Secure mortgage products will move back into the market

Rich

Food for the Poor Pictures

Here are just a few of the families that moved into new homes this year. For more information on the ministries of Food for the Poor, you can visit their website at www.foodforthepoor.com.

The Sutherland Family of Clarendon, Jamaica

The Walker Family of St. Thomas, Jamaica

The Thomas Family of Howell's Clarendon, Jamaica

What joy! Thank you again to all of our customers who make this possible.

Karen

33 Days

Only 33 days left to fulfill that New Years Resolution to be a good steward of your finances or to become a homeowner.

Can you believe that this year is coming to an end. In some ways, that is a good thing - it has been a tough year in the mortgage industry - massive layoffs, product changes and lenders having financial crises. But, and this is interesting - interest rates are still amazingly low and there is still a lot of mortgage product available to help you achieve your financial goals.

The FED is meeting on December 11th with another decision on interest rates due that afternoon at 2:15pm. We will let you know the impact of that meeting.

Talk at you soon.

Rich

Food for the Poor

I thought I had uploaded some pictures of the homes that have been built this year through Covenant Cares in partnership with Food for the Poor, but I must have made some error in the upload... I'll try to get the pictures up today, but I won't wait for that to say thank you to all who have allowed us to be a blessing to others. For each loan that closes at Covenant, a donation is made to an organization like Food for the Poor. They are such an awesome group, and when you see these pictures, perhaps you'll get a sense of the joy that we have in being able to be a small part of helping people all over the world.

This holiday season, Covenant Cares is partnering with local service organizations to provide meals and gifts to needy families right here in our own backyard. The needs are great and it is an honor to be used by God in this humble way.

Thank you again to those who use Covenant for their mortgage needs, or refer your friends and family. This wouldn't be possible without your participation.

Blessings,
Karen

Great Show

Today's radio show was great - thanks to you - the callers and listeners. It's interesting how our radio show has progressed over the last couple of years. I love the uniqueness of each callers needs and yet we can all find something to relate to - so thanks for making the Covenant Mortgage Radio Show a success.

Rich

Great Show

Last Saturday's radio show was great - thanks to you! We really do appreciate all who call the show with your questions. So many times, you are asking the question that others have - so thanks for your calls.

The other thing that sticks out in my mind right now is also how unique each persons situation or mortgage need is - from self-employed borrowers, to people getting down payment assistance from a relative to the missionairy who needs a mortgage - we take it very seriously when you give us the opportunity to serve your mortgage need so thanks.

So much going on in the mortgage market right now - but the best news is that rates are still very low, so if you have a mortgage need give us a call.

Rich

Prime Drops

The prime rate has been lowered another .25%. That's great news for anyone with a balance on their credit cards or who has a home equity line of credit. We'll wait and see for over the next couple of days how this plays out in mortgage rates. As you know from Rich's previous post, the Fed's actions do not always have a beneficial result in terms of mortgages.

We went through some additional reverse mortgage training today. If you are over 62 and have equity in your home or you know someone who does, this is a product that you need to be looking into. The idea is still relatively new so it will be interesting to see what adjustments are made to the program over the next couple of years as millions of baby boomers turn the magic age.

On a non-mortgage related note, as listeners to the show know, I ran the Marine Corp Marathon last Sunday. First, kudos to the Marines for organizing a fabulous race. It was very well managed and fun to be a part - yes, it was actually fun to run 26.2 miles. My knees are still telling a different story, but it felt great to accomplish the goal. I finished in 4:45:01, which is right around what I had targeted. I'll try and add a picture here soon.

We'll be taking your calls live this Saturday, so make sure to tune in at 11:30 on 105.1 FM, WAVA.

Market Conditions

First, thanks to everyone who supports Covenant Mortgage - your partnership with us by allowing us to serve your mortgage needs or by telling friends and family is appreciated.

I recently returned from a missions trip to China and one of the things I realized is how blessed we are in America regarding our housing opportunities. The housing market in our area continues to be mildly volatile but there are still many great opportunities to be a homeowner; so if you are thinking of purchasing a home, now is the time to act.

Rates continue to remain pretty constant with average 30 year fixed rates hovering in the mid six's. One common misconception is that all mortgage rates move in direct correlation to the moves the Federal Reserve make - i.e. if the Fed lowers rates by .50(like they did a few weeks ago), then mortgage rates should be a .5 lower. The Fed controls the discount rate and the federal funds rate which ultimately influences the prime rate so the good news if you have a HELOC(home equity line of credit) is that you should see that rate going down next month. However, most mortgage rates are tied to the broader markets and typically follow the price/rate of the 10 year treasury's - bottom line -mortgage rates will probably hold pretty constant or move slightly lower over the next year; even in spite of what moves the Fed may make.

If you would like more info on rates, send me an email or post a comment.

Rich

On the Don Kroah Show

Thanks to everyone who joined us for the Don Kroah Show last night. It's amazing how quickly an hour goes!

Don Kroah Show Tonight

Don't forget to tune in to the Don Kroah Show tonight on WAVA (105.1 FM). We'll be on during the 6 p.m. hour.

Other Pennington Pictures

Welcome Part 2

Thanks for checking out our blog - weird week in the mortgage market - The Federal Reserve lowers rates by 50 basis points - that's a 1/2 point to most folks - and yet mortgage rates stay the same or in some instances go up by 1/8. Comment if you have questions about this.

Talk at you soon.

Rich

Pictures of Karen's Family

I'm the one in the orange and my husband Jim is standing beside me (not the one in the hat - I don't know what that guy is!) It's not the greatest picture of us, but it's the first one I could find on my computer and it's a pretty cool location - Trevi Fountain in Rome. This was one of the many sights we got to see when we were in Rome for about 5 hours this summer (it was a stop on a cruise).

Here's the rest of our family, Stella & Willow. They are extremely spoiled Italian Greyhounds. Stella is 2 and Willow is 5. This is what they look like when they're waiting for something to happen, like getting fed dinner. Otherwise, they're sprawled out in the sun, or under covers, or tearing through the house full speed as they chase each other. They're very funny dogs - lots of personality but that's still not excuse for how much we let them get away with!

Okay, I found a better picture! This is me again with my husband Jim.

The New Blog

Our half hour show on Saturday goes too quick so we've decided to start blogging as a way to get the rest of our thoughts out and to give our listeners a chance to get to know us a little better. We feel strongly that you should know who you are working with when it comes to getting a mortgage and we're hoping this will give you a little more insight into why Covenant Mortgage exists.

This will be a place where we can share testimonies from our customers as well as share a little bit more about who we are personally. So, welcome to our blog and check back often for updates, info, commentary, etc.