I dont know about you, but applying for a mortgage can be frustrating and time-consuming. From our perspective, we were just another number applying for a bunch of numbers. Insert a great mortgage broker into the equation.

Heres a short (but not inclusive) list of great things a great mortgage broker can do you:

Give you customer focus – Unlike banking representatives, mortgage brokers are not tied to any one bank. Sure, they might have some favourites, but great brokers canvas the full field. Our guy was looking out for the customer (us), our terms, conditions and pre-payment options. He was working to find a product that fit our needs and situation, not his agenda. In brief, our mortgage situation is not ideal, we have a hefty penalty to pay if we break our existing mortgage and go with another lender within the next two years. (This is a reminder to look at the detailed print of your mortgage agreement before you purchase a new home .) In our case, a great opportunity arose and sometimes you simply cant pass those up regardless what the fine print says – life happens, choices need to be made and chances need to be taken. Back to my point, you can certainly make a strong argument that mortgage brokers work for themselves, not you, however without attention to personal detail, they wouldnt be in business. Our broker put our needs and requirements #1. He was always very responsive. He never said he didnt have time for us or needed to take another call.

Give you leverage The way I see it, using a mortgage broker to fund a mortgage, youre going to get more attention because the lender wants that broker to continue sending business their way. As an individual customer, were just a number apply for a bunch of numbers. In talking with our broker, I know if he sensed any run around from a prospective lender hed move on and our mortgage prospects would go with him.

Save you money No doubt mortgage brokers are compensated by the lenders they strike the deal with but a) that means you dont pay them and b) as long as the rate and conditions of the mortgage are better than what you could have obtained youre saving money. Potentially lots. Like I mentioned earlier, our broker worked hard to get us a good deal. He knew his stuff and actively monitored bond yields for us. We more than appreciated that because without our new great rate and its associated terms, we wouldnt be coming out ahead over our hefty mortgage penalty. Weve taken our lumps and learned from them. My advice? Dont take a five-year mortgage term if theres even a chance you might move within that term period. Sure, you can sometimes port your 5-year fixed term to your new home (it doesnt cost anything but the mortgage appraisal and sometimes a small discharge fee) but that wasnt ideal for us. In hindsight, we should have taken a shorter fixed term a few years back or instead, given historical research, a variable rate. Click here to read more about variable mortgage rates and how more often than not, you come out a winner over a fixed rate mortgage.

In closing, mortgage brokers can be a tremendous resource, if you have the right one. Were glad we worked with our guy. Actually, we still are.  He’s still checking in with us to ensure all the rebates we were able to take advantage of are coming our way, including one for the mortgage appraisal.

I know if I have mortgage question going forward, Ill drop him a line. Hell take my call, hell listen, hell provide good customer service and objective feedback. I dont mind sharing who we used because the experience was very positive.

Thanks very much Rob!!

Click here if you want his contact information.

Do you agree or disagree what a great mortgage broker can do for you?
Any positive or “other” experiences youd like to share?

Cheers,
Financial Cents

Although the AMEX is now a division of the NYSE, over 500 stocks are still traded on the exchange, and according to WallStreetNewsNetwork.com, there are over 20 AmEx stocks with yields above 2.5%. Many of these stocks are closed end funds, real estate investment trusts also known as REITs, and oil and natural gas income partnerships. But there are a few gems that are regular corporations.

British American Tobacco (BTI), which produces Dunhill, Kent, Lucky Strike, Pall Mall, Viceroy, Kool, and Benson & Hedges cigarettes, generates a yield of 2.8%. The stock has forward price to earnings ratio of 12.6.

National Healthcare Corp. (NHC) operates health care centers, assisted living centers, and retirement centers. The yield is 2.7% and the forward PE is 15.3.

Park National Corp. (PRK), a bank holding company, has paid quarterly dividends since December 1996 and has raised their dividend every year. The stock yields 5.5%. The company which has a market cap of almost $1 billion, has a forward PE of 13.7.

For a free Excel list of high yielding American Stock Exchange stocks, over ten of which yield more than 7%, go to wsnn.com. The list can be downloaded, sorted, updated, and added to.

Author owns NYX.

By Stockerblog.com

Many of these CEFs have yields of 5% or more, such as the Blackrock Apex Municipal Fund Inc. (APX), which sells at a discount to net asset value, uses almost no leverage, and yields 5.7%. The Nuveen New York Dividend Advantage Municipal Fund 2 (NXK) has a yield of 5.8%, is currently trading at a discount to NAV, and has about 26.5% leverage, much lower than the average leverage of 34.7% for all the CEFs. The Nuveen Investment Quality Municipal Fund Inc. (NQM) yields 6.6%, utilizes about 29% leverage, and trades at a slight discount. WallStreetNewsNetwork.com just updated its list of tax free income closed end funds, which describes almost 200 ETFs,, including yields, discounts/premiums, leverage, management fees, date founded, and other information.

High income taxpayers love municipal bonds, as they provide income that is tax free from Federal income taxes, and if the bond is issued from the state in which the taxpayer resides or from one of the territories of the US such as Puerto Rico, then the income is also exempt from state taxes. Munis are generally issued by states, counties, cities, and other governmental entities such as school districts, sewer districts, bridges, and water and power departments. Here are the advantages and disadvantages of munis and muni CEFs.

Municipal Bonds

Advantages:

1. You can pick and choose what governmental agency you want to loan money to. Maybe you want to stick with the bonds from the cities and counties near you that you are familiar with.

2. Bonds have a maturity date. This means that no matter how high interest rates go, and no matter how low the bonds drop in value, at maturity, the bonds are paid off at par.

3. What your bond is worth is what your bond is worth; in other words, the trading price of CEFs may be far higher or lower than the net asset value of the fund.

Disadvantages:

1. Higher minimum investment. Although munis are issued in $5,000 denominations, a round lot is generally considered by many firms to be $100,000.

2. Less diversification. Because of the higher minimum, investors can’t own as many diverse bonds as they could with a CEF.

3. Interest payments only twice a year.

4. No professional management or monitoring.

5. Illiquidity. Munis are not traded on an exchange, and estimated prices given on brokerage statements can be way off from what brokers will actually offer you if you want to sell. This actually happened to me; I received an offer of five points less than what the statement showed a couple days before, with no change in interest rates over those couple days.

Municipal Bond Closed End Funds

Advantages:

1. No minimum investment. You could technically buy one share.

2. Monthly income.

3. With the monthly income, you receive you capital back faster, and you can do quicker compounding of your income.

4. Very liquid; traded on major exchanges.

5. Narrow bid and asked spreads compared to municipal bonds.

6. Can sell off small portions if funds are needed. In other words, if you had $10,000 invested and needed to cash in $1,000 worth, you could do it with a CEF but not with municipal bonds.

Disadvantages:

1. You pay a management fee and other administrative fees.

2. Some CEFs use leverage. You should beware that this increases the risks to the investor.

3. Some CEFs may be trading at a premium to net asset value. You want to look for those trading at a discount.

4. No maturity date (other than a few target funds). If rates go up and continue to rise during your lifetime, you may never get your principal back.

As you can see, there are benefits to both municipal bonds and municipal bond closed end funds. Just make sure that you are familiar with the risks and costs of each.

Disclosure: Author does not own any of the above at the time the article was written.

By Stockerblog.com

Municipal bonds have always been a favorite of high income taxpayer, as they provide income that is tax free from Federal income taxes, and if the bond is issued from the state in which the taxpayer resides or from one of the territories of the US such as Puerto Rico, then the income is also exempt from state taxes. Munis are generally issued by states, counties, cities, and other governmental entities such as school districts, sewer districts, and departments of water and power.

Municipal Bonds

Advantages:

1. You can pick and choose what governmental agency you want to loan money to. Maybe you want to stick with the bonds from the cities and counties near you that you are familiar with.

2. Bonds have a maturity date. This means that no matter how high interest rates go, and no matter how low the bonds drop in value, at maturity, the bonds are paid off at par.

3. What your bond is worth is what your bond is worth; in other words, the trading price of CEFs may be far higher or lower than the net asset value of the fund.

Disadvantages:

1. Higher minimum investment. Although munis are issued in $5,000 denominations, a round lot is generally considered by many firms to be $100,000.

2. Less diversification. Because of the higher minimum, investors can’t own as many diverse bonds as they could with a CEF.

3. Interest payments only twice a year.

4. No professional management or monitoring.

5. Illiquidity. Munis are not traded on an exchange, and estimated prices given on brokerage statements can be way off from what brokers will actually offer you if you want to sell (speaking from personal experience).

Municipal Bond Closed End Funds

Advantages:

1. No minimum investment. You could technically buy one share.

2. Monthly income.

3. With the monthly income, you receive you capital back faster, and you can do quicker compounding of your income.

4. Very liquid; traded on major exchanges.

Disadvantages:

1. You pay a management fee and other administrative fees.

2. Some CEFs use leverage. You should beware that this increases the risks to the investor.

3. Some CEFs may be trading at a premium to net asset value. You want to look for those trading at a discount.

4. No maturity date (other than a few target funds). If rates go up and continue to rise during your lifetime, you may never get your principal back.

As you can see, there are benefits to both municipal bonds and municipal bond closed end funds. Just make sure that you are familiar with the risks and costs of each.

By Stockerblog.com

In these tough economic times with jobs in jeopardy, health coverage in doubt, and markets in turmoil, it is difficult to pause and think constructively about investing for retirement. The best time to start is now, particularly if you are young, but for older Americans, the pressure is on due to recent losses sustained when stock and real estate bubbles burst. However, the desire for quicker and bigger gains only sets us up psychologically for the carefully designed plans of a clever scam artist.

How do you protect yourself from investment fraud? You are your first and last line of defense when it comes to fending off con artists. You must know your business partners, become alert to the warning signs, and be aware of the more common pitches that are made from time to time.

Business Partners

Lessons learned in the forex trading industry are illustrative of the issues here. An excellent forex demo account was no indication of financial safety or soundness. Fraudulent brokers made off with millions. The Internet has enabled online trading with business partners we never see face-to-face. Make sure your bank has a strong balance sheet, and that your broker is above board and onshore. Consult your banker or broker for advice on every investment deal.

Warning Signs

Some signs, though obvious, need repeating. Here are a few tell-tell signs:

Unsolicited offers by any medium should be questioned or avoided;
If it sounds too good to be true, it most likely is;
If there is little or no risk, then why isnt everyone doing it;
If there is urgency for action, slow the process down or walk away;
Swindlers love to talk to prevent you from asking questions;
If there is nothing in writing to explain it, then why consider it;
Swindlers love to sell overly complex securities avoid them;
Con Artists try to gain your confidence by looking professional;
Referrals from friends Swindlers thrive on these, so beware.
If asked for a blank check or to wire funds, avoid at all costs.

Actual Scams Often Repeated

The criminal element is very organized and educated in the art of deception. The FBI assesses the annual take by crooks to be $400 billion. It is not the elderly that are the most prone to the scam trade. Department of Justice studies conclude that anyone with a little college or a college degree is more susceptible to scams than anyone else. Three of the most frequent scams that seem to repeat every season with minor refinements to increase their appeal are as follows:

1. The Ponzi Scheme: The swindler pays high returns early to his clients so they will tell their rich friends about his great performance. Referrals pore in. The swindler does not have to solicit anymore. New deposits pay returns, after he transfers his take to an undisclosed account. Bernie Madoff and Kenneth Starr are recent news-makers;
2. The Pump-and-Dump: A crook acquires a large quantity of low-valued shares, and then employees a boiler shop to call people and spread inflated news about the company. New buyers rush to buy, thus driving up the price. The crook sells his stock, pocketing a large profit. The stock price plummets, leaving new investors confused and with large losses.
3. The Tipster: The Tipster calls 100 people, tells them he does not want their money, but passes along a tip to gain confidence. He tells half that the stock will rise, and the other half that it will fall. The next day, he now has 50 marks that believe he has insider knowledge. He may continue with this charade until he asks you for money for a sure thing.

Concluding Remarks

Investment fraud generally happens to those people who are the least prepared or who suspect it the least. Greed is the common theme. Protect yourself by heeding the warning signals and being aware of the most typical approaches that may come your way. Do your due diligence on your banker and your broker, and they will also protect you from the unscrupulous thieves that prey on the unsuspected.

Although the AMEX is now a division of the NYSE, over 500 stocks are still traded on the exchange, and according to WallStreetNewsNetwork.com, there are over 25 AmEx stocks with yields above 2.5%. Many of these stocks are closed end funds, real estate investment trusts also known as REITs, and oil and natural gas income partnerships. But there are a few gems that are regular corporations.

British American Tobacco (BTI), which produces Dunhill, Kent, Lucky Strike, Pall Mall, Viceroy, Kool, and Benson & Hedges cigarettes, generates a yield of 6.8%. The stock has forward price to earnings ratio of 12.

National Healthcare Corp. (NHC) operates health care centers, assisted living centers, and retirement centers. The yield is 3.2% and the forward PE is 13.9.

Park National Corp. (PRK), a bank holding company, has paid quarterly dividends since December 1996 and has raised their dividend every year. The stock yields 5.7%. The company which has a market cap of almost $1 billion, has a forward PE of 12.3.

For a free list of high yielding American Stock Exchange stocks, over ten of which yield more than 7%, go to wsnn.com. The list can be downloaded, sorted, changed, and added to.

Author owns NYX.

By Stockerblog.com

Anyone who holds onto a suspicious or declining stock just for the sake of avoiding short-term capital gains taxes is missing the point of successful trading. Hold a declining stock long enough and you won’t have to worry about any profits to pay taxes on! You’ll end up paying the market in the form of a big, fat loss.

A skilled money manager buys or sells stocks based on the behavior and fundamentals of those stocks and even the condition of the overall general market. The level of portfolio turnover, be it high or low, is a byproduct of making the best possible trading decisions. As long as there is evidence a stock has a high probability of producing future gains, I hold it. If a stock shows signs of topping, I sell it and take profits. If a stock falls below my pre-determined sell stop, I immediately sell it to avert a serious loss.

If high portfolio turnover is the result of taking small losses, then the high turnover may actually reduce risk. By selling off suspicious or declining stocks, a trader can reduce risk. Then the question becomes how to deploy the proceeds of the sale. Assuming the market still looks favorable and continues to produce attractive target stocks, the trader probably should reinvest the newly freed cash in another stock. If market prospects darken, the trader might sit tight, snug in the safe haven of cash, until conditions grow more opportune.

Left unmanaged, a basket of high growth stocks would pose great risk. Some of these high-flying stocks would follow parabolic arcs, and once they top and begin the downward leg of the curve, they drop like stones. There are very few stocks that one can salt away and forget under some “buy-and-hold” strategy.

Comparing turnover rates among short-term and long-term traders is like comparing the inventory turnover of a grocery store and a Ferrari dealership. A grocery store works on a very low profit margin. So a grocer must do high-volume sales in order to eke out in a big, cumulative profit. The Ferrari dealer makes far fewer sales, but at much higher margins. At the end of the year, both can produce a big profit.

Forget worrying about turnover. The only question should be; at the end of the day, does your style make money? Traders who impose a tight loss limit on their stocks will turn over their portfolios at a faster rate than managers who allow wider price leeway in stocks. They’ll get stopped out of stocks more often however; their accounts may suffer less volatility. Regardless of his level of trading volume, a skillful trader will act swiftly to sell off declining stocks before they can exact big losses or surrender large paper gains. Meanwhile, he will allow the winners in the account to come to fruition, offsetting the small losses with outsized gains.

The relevant course of action is to buy best-looking merchandise at the most favorable time in terms of your trading style. Then set your sell parameters to determine how to secure profits and guard against losses. If you do that according to youy plan and your portfolio shows only mediocre returns or worse losses, then you know you have a different problem; either you are setting your stop-loss too tight, your stock-selection criteria are flawed, or the general market is not favorable.

It’s not hard to understand why so many people get hung up on the issue of turnover. One problem is account churning. Some unscrupulous brokers take advantage of unsophisticated clients by persuading them to sell and buy stocks just to generate commissions. On the other hand, many well-meaning but wrong-headed pundits recommend that mutual fund investors avoid funds with high portfolio turnover. These “experts” reason that the higher commission costs and capital gains taxes erodes portfolio return.

At least one study suggests that high turnover funds, particularly growth-oriented funds, actually manage to eke out the best net performance among all mutual funds. I make this observation only to dispel the myth that high turnover is inherently bad.

Bad trading hurts performance not portfolio turnover.
-
Mark Minervini

Rick Fernandez, Assistant Vice President and Jeff Bogart, Tax Strategy Specialist, both of Calkain Realty Advisors, the private market division of Calkain Companies, led the marketing and sale of the transactions. Fernandez commented, “The strong market demographics, high profile locations and financial strength of the tenants provided sound and stable investment opportunities for the investors.” The properties commanded a premium price due to the high credit worthiness of the tenants and the above average rent increases during the terms of the lease. Fernandez and Bogart generated multiple offers for the asset and ultimately completed the sale in an obviously challenging market. Jonathan Hipp, President & CEO of Calkain Companies continued, “Calkain proved that quality real estate is highly desirable, no matter what market cycle is occurring.” Bogart commented,” The availability of favorable financing for this transaction and in this market cycle is testament to the strength and stability of the Washington, DC metro market.”

Maple Lawn is an upscale mixed use development outside of the Nation’s Capitol that provides living, working and shopping conveniences. With over 1,340 homes planned for the development, the long term benefits of the investments are greatly achieved.

The transaction is recorded in the public record.

Calkain Companies is a privately held, national real estate brokerage and advisory firm that specializes in single and multi-tenant retail, industrial, and office net leased transactions. Calkain has offices in Reston, VA (Washington, DC), Tampa, FL, and McHenry, MD.