January 6th, 2008 9:21 PM

I was thinking about wishes the other night and I thought about the market today and I know there are loads of us wishing right now, if you're not well, then things must be going swimmingly for you :)

   In any case, I obviously don't wish to be a baller (I like to earn a living, thank you!) I don't need to be taller (I'm 6'4") and I would prefer an old 911SC or 3.0 CSI over an Impala, but that's beside the point.

What I was getting at is this: wishing in this market is pretty much that. You might as well apply for the state lottery. I once wished for $1million and needless to say, I haven't got it nor have I earned it, but I'm a young guy still...maybe by 2011-12?

  I was once bitched at for not taking on an 80/20 loan for $1million when I worked @ a different company, the borrower had something like $10-15k in the bank, limited credit and limited time on their current job/field. I wouldn't do it, another lender did; I'm pretty sure they went BankRupt in early 2007. I actually wished that the Loan Officer that had bitched at me was DRE Licensed (I know he wasn't, I also know he's no longer attempting to write loans). Oh far we've come, or is that gone back to? Egh...

  This market isn't about wishes. This market is about work, work, work and understanding what we have left and who we need to be looking for (in terms of borrower's).

Refi's this year may or may not materialize (rates are falling but you need to have equity to take advantage of this). Purchase loans are the only way to go. Those of you reading this have made it your Mission Impossible 2008 to make real estate financing your reality. So, what do we need from our borrower's today? 5% down (minimum), 680 score (preferred), reserves (2-3 months) and time on job, time in home and credit depth. Full-Doc not Stated. It's not the end of the world, your borrower's need $30k in the bank on a conforming purchase price @ 95% LTV. It's not terrible that your borrower's need to earn a combined $9-10k/month to buy a home (it's actually great!). There are actually loads of these folks sitting on the side lines just waiting, waiting for home prices to come down to their price range so that they can buy their first home, or a home again. When prices get out of reach many choose to rent. But remember, you live in California, one of the most desired states in the union (if not THE state). So stop wishing, put on your work gear and get ready for an exhaustive year of not wishing for the market to meet our needs. We need to meet its (the market's) needs and get on with it!

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