May 16, 2025 • 42 mins
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome to the Royal West Show. We have a wonderful
show lined up today, lots of entertainment. We've got some
just great community leaders here. We're going to kick the
show off with the one and only Vincent Colin. He
is the Filipino Association of Beaumont, Texas President. Vincent. Welcome
(00:23):
to the show, Hey, Zach, thank you, Thank you for
having me.
Speaker 2 (00:28):
It's an honor to be here. Man.
Speaker 1 (00:31):
We're excited to have you on, Excited to learn a
little bit more about the Bilkpino Association and just kind
of what y'all do in the community. So Vincent kind
of take it away and just tell us a little
bit about the organization.
Speaker 2 (00:45):
Thank you, Thank you, Zach.
Speaker 3 (00:46):
So, the Philippine Association of Beaumont Texas or the BABT,
is the lead organizer of this exciting festival that we're
going to talk about today, and we are the largest
Philippine ARGA and in the region. We do cultural and
outreach programs, give scholarships to Filippino American students and support
(01:08):
families in schools in the Philippines.
Speaker 2 (01:10):
And now we're dreaming big.
Speaker 3 (01:13):
Our biggest goal is to build our own cultural center
in Southeast Texas invest program name as Hope twenty twenty
six and this festival is part of that dream and
it's a community movement, not just an event.
Speaker 1 (01:30):
Yeah, that's awesome. So right now, you know, what are
some of the things that y'all are doing. How do
you become a member of your organization things like that?
Speaker 2 (01:41):
Yeah, well you can. You can be a member.
Speaker 3 (01:45):
Just give us a call or you can visit our
website with our website is currently on going some construction
and updates, but they can they can access it at
Triple W dot PBTX dot org. The good thing about
is if you will become a member is you can
(02:06):
help the funding the organizations projects for different goals, like
we have different charities supporting in the Philippines as well.
And as I mentioned earlier, yep, as I mentioned earlier,
we're doing some scholarships as well and Filipino American students
(02:28):
here in Southeast Texas.
Speaker 1 (02:31):
So y'all are supporting some charities in the Philippines right now? Yes,
what a kind of charities do those look like?
Speaker 2 (02:39):
Oh? We we are funding.
Speaker 3 (02:42):
Different organizations like Children with Down Syndrome and autism organization,
the Little Brave Hearts this organization charity is catering all
the under funded or under under privilege sorry, under privilege
(03:10):
down syndrome families.
Speaker 1 (03:12):
Wow, and so folks, this is really cool. So you
have an organization here in Southeast Texas that is raising
funds in supporting these charities in the Philippines, specifically for
down syndrome and under privileged kids. Yes, that is awesome.
And not only are y'all doing that over there, but
(03:33):
here you're also you're giving out scholarships to college students
things like that.
Speaker 2 (03:40):
Yes, and we do cultural events.
Speaker 3 (03:44):
We are also of course, we would like to share the.
Speaker 2 (03:49):
Filipino culture to everyone. So we're doing different events.
Speaker 3 (03:55):
Like the Games of Filipinos, you know, like Olympic Filipino Games.
Aside from that is, we're also doing All Filipino American
Basketball Tournament. Aside from that is, we have also Philippine
Independence Day celebration and all. You know, we are doing
(04:16):
what we can to share our culture not only with
Filipino but also to the whole Southeast Texas region.
Speaker 1 (04:26):
Yeah, that's awesome. So really, I mean, the Filipino community
here is so strong. I mean, and I know other
folks that are involved throughout our community in the organization,
and it just seems like there's this growing community around
the Philippines and around the Filipino boats, and it's just
really neat to see right here in Southeast Texas. And
(04:48):
how involved you are. I mean, if you've got young people,
you've got people that have been with the organization for
a while, and y'all are really trying to get back
not only here in Beaumont, but also where you're from.
So that's really cool.
Speaker 2 (05:01):
Yes, yes, Zach.
Speaker 3 (05:03):
Of course, we are a nonprofit that taxis to promote
Filipino culture, build community among Filipino Americans and immigrants, and
give back you know, through education like as I mentioned earlier,
the scholarship program, through outreach. We are also volunteering to
different organizations here in Southeast Texas before we also volunteer
(05:28):
in the Sedex Food Bank and so on. And of
course cultural celebration.
Speaker 1 (05:35):
Yeah, well, and let's talk about talk about culture celebration
and talk about this event that you'll have coming up
on June eighth. Let's talk about it. What's going on?
Speaker 2 (05:46):
Oh, thank you, thank you, Zach.
Speaker 3 (05:48):
What we will be having is the first Southeast Texas
Asian Festival. It will happen on Sunday, June eighth, from
nine am to five am right at the Downtown Events
Center here in Bomont. So it's a huge celebration of
Asian culture, food stalls, traditional dances, cultural exhibits, a live
(06:14):
band and yeah, and of course the Philippine Independent Celebration
and a sculpture exhibit from a well known Filipino artist.
So it's a family friendly exiving and of course it's
(06:34):
a free to enter, so this is a celebration for everyone.
Speaker 1 (06:39):
Yeah, that's awesome. So it's going to be June eighth,
nine am to five pm, family oriented, bring the whole fan.
And you're gonna have are you having food trucks? You
have a catered what does that look like?
Speaker 3 (06:52):
Yes, we will be having different food trucks and of
course it will showcase the Asian cuisines.
Speaker 1 (07:03):
Yeah, so that'll be cool. And you said there's gonna
be a sculpture artist there too.
Speaker 3 (07:09):
Yes, is by well known Filipino artists Nick Scho Australia,
and he'll be showcasing different sculpture for a Filipino perspective artist.
Speaker 1 (07:26):
Wow, that is neat, so folks, Yeah, come on out,
it'll be June eighth. You're gonna want to be out there,
bring your family. It sounds like there's gonna be every
type of entertainment you can imagine, from music to art,
and it sounds like some great food. So is this
gonna be a Filipino band, you know, showcasing Filipino music?
Speaker 2 (07:46):
Yes, yes, Zach, we are.
Speaker 3 (07:49):
We have our own local band and local singer Filipino
singers that's will to showcase their talents this coming Jude eighth.
And not only that, it will also have a presentation
from Eye Rule Studio and yeah, and from our friends
(08:10):
from Vietnamese and Indian community. Really, yes, y'all are y'all
are incorporating other organizations and other days dures and that
kind of stuff to come and be a part of it. Yes,
this is a collaborative effort to showcase Asian culture to everyone, right,
(08:32):
like many of US Asian Americans and immigrants have rich
stories and deep roots here.
Speaker 2 (08:36):
It's audist Maxens.
Speaker 3 (08:38):
So this isn't just about fun, it's about representation. So
this festival is a way, it's a way for us
to uh to say we're here, we're proud, and we
want to share our culture.
Speaker 2 (08:52):
With everyone.
Speaker 3 (08:53):
It's about belonging and bridging communities.
Speaker 1 (08:57):
That's incredible. Right here in Southeast Tech Association heavily involved
giving back to our community, uh and giving out giving
back to other communities. So do y'all have meetings that
people if they wanted more and more, if folks like
myself wanted to join the organization, how does that work? Yes,
(09:20):
we have.
Speaker 3 (09:21):
We have events coming up, so just to be update that,
you can visit our Facebook page. We are very updated
on our social media Facebook and Instagram. Just go to
Philippine Association of Beaumont, Texas and you will see our
(09:41):
upcoming events there.
Speaker 1 (09:44):
Awesome, very good. Now there is no cost to this event, correct.
Speaker 3 (09:49):
Yes, no cost, So all you have to do is to,
of course, to support our local food trucks and vendors.
Speaker 1 (10:00):
Gotch it. So I just want to make sure everybody
knows because a lot of times people think, oh, it's
gonna cost me money to get in, you know this,
that and the other. So no cost to get in, folks.
This is a great way to spend a Sunday. Uh.
You know, go check out this Filipino association. There's gonna
be just so much fun. Why wouldn't you want to
go check it out of me? It doesn't cost you
anything to get in, you know, and then support you know,
(10:22):
the artists and the music and the dancing and the food.
I mean, spend all day out there, Spend a couple
of hours out there, come and go. Uh like you know,
like Vincent said, doesn't cost anything. This is our first
annual run at this, so we want to make sure
that we're supporting them as a community, and we are
supporting the Filipino community just like they support us each
and every day. Vincent, We've got about a minute left.
(10:44):
I know, time flies when we're having a fun. Uh. Last, lastly,
give me the date and the time again for this event. Again,
no cost, folks.
Speaker 3 (10:54):
Sure, So if you're listening or watching, mark your calendars,
come and join us on June eighth, from nine am
to five pm at the Downtown Event Center here in Beaumont.
Bring your family, your appetite, and your love for culture.
And if you want to be part of something meaningful,
you can follow us on Facebook at Philippine Association of Beaumont,
(11:18):
Texas or email us if you'd like to volunteer or
sponsor at BABT officers at gmail dot com. Let's make
this festival a symbol of pubity and pride, not just
for Asians, but for all of us Southeast Texans.
Speaker 1 (11:35):
Absolutely, Vincent, thank you so much for being on the show.
Speaker 2 (11:38):
Thank you, Zach, thank you.
Speaker 1 (11:41):
Yeah. Absolutely, it's so great to talk to you. We're
going to have you on again because I want to
learn more and I want the community to learn more
about what the Filipino Association is doing here in Southeast Texas. Folks,
There's more to come on the show. Stay tuned. After
this commercial break, we will be back. Vincent, thanks again
for being on the show. Buddy.
Speaker 2 (12:00):
Thank you, Zach, thank you for having me.
Speaker 1 (12:04):
Welcome back to the Roy West Show. I am your host,
Zach Styles, and we have had a great show so far.
Talk to the Filipino Society about that event coming up.
And we have the one and only April Tolbert with
Farmers Insurance with us today, April. Welcome to the show.
Speaker 4 (12:21):
Hi, Zach, thanks so much for having me. It's great
to be on this side of the microphone today.
Speaker 5 (12:27):
Yeah, you helped host the show as well, so it's
kind of fun being able to interview you and talk
about what you were so passionate about here in Southeast Texas,
and that is.
Speaker 1 (12:38):
Insurance of all shapes, sizes, types, all the things. But April,
we are coming up on hurricane season. I feel like
we just got out of hurricane season. Insurance is always important,
but it's really important to make sure your coverage is
where it needs to be right now. Go ahead and
just give me kind of a high level farmers April
(12:59):
and all the wonderful things that you do to help
folks out.
Speaker 4 (13:02):
I would absolutely love to, and you might just have
to pull out the hook because when I get to
talking about insurance, I can go on and on and on.
First of all, thank you again for having me. Yes,
insurance is our game. It's what we do all day,
every day. I have an amazing team. We have an
office here in Beaumont on Major Drive, we have an
office in Kirbyville, and we're about to open a brand
(13:24):
new office in Jasper. So we are full service insurance
for all of Southeast Texas.
Speaker 6 (13:29):
And I have a little PTSD.
Speaker 4 (13:31):
Whenever you start talking about hurricane season, and you said
it about three times in your inturant to me, so
I get a little PTSD. And yes, we are close
to June first, not far away from that, and June
first is the official start of the Atlantic hurricane season.
But what I would caution anyone in Southeast Texas within
the sound of my voice is that it does not
(13:54):
have to be hurricane season for you need to need
to use your insurance. I had to have a new
roof on my house last year from hail damage. I
actually had three vehicles that had claims from hail damage
and that date was April fifteenth, So you know, it
can happen anytime unexpectedly. If you haven't seen these patterns
(14:15):
of these crazy afternoon thunderstorms and things coming in, you
never know when you're going to need your insurance. So
it is so important. And the reason we use hurricane
season and that Gene first date is a date to
try to remind everybody is because you know, people do
think of, oh, I need to check my windstorm insurance,
I need to make sure my flood insurance is up
(14:38):
to date, and things of that sort of going into
hurricane season. So it's just a good time to remember.
But you should always do a checkup. You know, they
say when you go to the doctor, right you were
supposed to get an annual physical, you know, check that
blood work, do those tests, do those things, just to
make sure that everything is still good.
Speaker 6 (15:00):
It was last year.
Speaker 4 (15:01):
I say, please do an insurance checkup because things change.
And if you haven't seen your rates changing, if you
haven't seen mailers and emails coming from your insurance company
that things are changing, I would be shocked, because most
people are because there are things happening. You may have
had a certain coverage before we Jack and I just
(15:24):
off the year. We're talking about roofs. You know, roofs
are a big issue. So many roofs are now REDA
roofs as we call them, from two thousand and five,
or ike roofs from two thousand and you know seven
eight nine in that area, and those roofs are nearing
REDA roofs this year are twenty years old. So it
(15:44):
is definitely could change some things on your insurance as
your roof ages. So doing that checkup every year is
so extremely important. Have someone local. This is your key
takeaway from April Tool today. Right, remember this, if you
remember nothing else. Please have someone that you can pick
(16:07):
up the phone and call once a year to do
your insurance check up. Someone that will take the time
to visit with you, talk to you about options, offer solutions,
talk to you about different coverages, talk to you about
things you may have that they may ask you. You know,
do you feel like you need this? Or maybe do
(16:28):
you want to go with a little higher deductible it
would save you a little money. I mean just asking
you questions. Have you bought any jewelry? Do you own
any golf carts? Somebody who's going to get to know
you and somebody who is going to try to customize
that insurance to fit your needs and your budget.
Speaker 6 (16:44):
And that's what we love to do. But we're not.
Speaker 4 (16:46):
The only good insurance, local insurance person out there.
Speaker 6 (16:49):
There are a few others, you.
Speaker 7 (16:51):
Know, a few there are a few others, right, So make.
Speaker 4 (16:55):
Sure that you have somebody local that you do trust
that'll answer those questions for you. Don't ever call an
eight hundred number police, and don't ever go online. I say,
I tell people, please don't go to cheap insurance dot
com because you just don't know what you're getting. These
insurance companies put so much insurance jargon and the fine
print that you may think you have one thing and
(17:19):
then you go to file acclaim and you find out
that wasn't what you had, and that's not the time
to find out you don't have the coverage that you wanted.
Speaker 6 (17:27):
So we're paying a lot of money.
Speaker 4 (17:29):
I often say, we pay way too much money for
our insurance in Southeast Texas for you to find out
that you didn't have the coverage you would have wanted
to have.
Speaker 1 (17:39):
Yeah, and you bring up so many you know, great
points there between the hurricane. You know, hurricane, it's always
a good time, like you said, to be looking at
your insurance and do that check out.
Speaker 5 (17:49):
You know.
Speaker 1 (17:50):
One thing being in the mortgage business with the Royal
West home loans, you know, I see it every single
year and once people have their insurance in their escrow
and it's being paid with their monthly No. One thing
that I always tell folks at closing or before closing
is Okay, you've got an insurance premium right now that
(18:12):
is going to change. Every single year. That will change
one way or the other. It's going to change. You
will get information in the mail about said changes. Likely
you will throw that away. It is important that you
talk to your insurance agent and at least once a
year to remind them who you are so they remember
and take a look at your coverage. Because nobody likes surprises, right,
(18:34):
I mean, some people like surprises if they're good things
like a surprise birthday party, like that's fun, But nobody
likes the surprise when it comes to monthly bills going
up and things like that. And one thing that I
really appreciate about April and her team is it really
is white gloves service as far as what they will
talk with you about, how they will address the terms
(18:57):
that you may not know, the coverages. You know, there's
a lot of jargon that goes into that that people
don't understand because I hear about it all the time.
You hear about it all the time. Having somebody be
able to sit down and look at your coverage and
tell you in plain English like this is what this
means is huge, folks. So you know, whether it's hurricane season,
whether it's whatever season, it's always a good time to
(19:19):
pick up the phone and be looking at your insurance.
And I know that April, I know for a fact
she wi look at any insurance that you have currently
and she'll be happy to review it and say what
is this or are you sure you need this, whether
you have your insurance with her or not.
Speaker 2 (19:33):
For sure, I.
Speaker 4 (19:34):
Will give you an example from when I talked to
earlier today, and we have certain insurance for them, but
we don't have this other insurance. They have it with
another big national carrier. And she sent it to me
and she said, I really want to move all my
insurance to you. I love your team, I love the
service we get there. I really want to move all
my insurance. And I looked at her policy. She had
(19:56):
been with this company for probably thirty or more year,
and she had some really great discounts with them, and
the house had an older roof, and you know, it
was older, and you know, I had some things. We
just we just looked at it. We just had a
conversation and I told her keep that right where it is.
(20:17):
And to me, it's about relationships. It's about being honest
and fair, dealing with people, making sure that they have
the coverage that they want to have, not selling them
an insurance policy.
Speaker 6 (20:31):
And my team is that same way too.
Speaker 4 (20:34):
And I know there's people who don't you know, may
not know us or have done business with us. And
so until you've had that experience and the first time
we ask you, you know, would you feel comfortable would
you send us a copy of your current policy, because
we want to really educate you about differences. If you
have coverages that you can't get with any of our cares,
we want to make sure you know that, and we
(20:55):
want to try to give you all sides so you
can make an educated decision and don't forget. I definitely
want to do the shameless self promotion plug by your way,
which is we do not just have Farmers. We are
now a full service insurance agency where we have several
dozen insurance carriers that we write through, so we can
shop you through. Yes, Farmers as our flagship company and
(21:16):
people know me as the farmer's agent, and we love Farmers.
We still have that option, but we've got Travelers in
Safeco and Progressive and so many others that we can
offer too, So we'd love to be your one stop
shop for insurance.
Speaker 1 (21:30):
Well, April, you'll you always do such a good job.
Your team is always just so pleasant to work with
and deal with. So you know, where can people find you?
We got about thirty seconds left. Where can people find you?
Learn more about you and your team?
Speaker 4 (21:43):
So the best way to get US is by phone
our Beaumont office such as our main office number four
oh nine eight six six one two three three. You
can find us on Facebook, Google US. We have offices
on Major Drive in Beaumont, also in Kirbyville and soon
to come in Jasper.
Speaker 1 (21:59):
April, thank you so much of being on the show today.
We look forward to having you on the show again
in the future. Folks, there's more to come on the
Roy West Show. Thanks April, Welcome back to the Roy
West Show. I'm your host, Zach Styles. We've had a
great show so far and we're going to keep it going.
We have got Hayley Morrow with the Beaumont p D.
(22:20):
She is with the Police Community Relations Division in public
relations with Baumont.
Speaker 5 (22:25):
Pete.
Speaker 1 (22:26):
I've said that three different ways. I'm so Hayley, welcome
to the show.
Speaker 7 (22:30):
Thanks for having me, happy to be here.
Speaker 1 (22:32):
We always love having you on the show because you
always provide great information, whether it's about safety, whether about
what's going on in the community right now. You know,
I'm just going to jump right into it because I
know it's on people's minds right now. But the recent
shootings and things like that, we've heard it on the
news we've seen it in the papers. You shed some
(22:53):
light kind of what's going on there and what the
police department's doing to mitigate that.
Speaker 7 (22:58):
Sure, well, first and foremost, you know, we absolutely know
that that is something that weighs on the hearts of
our citizens. It definitely is something that they are fearful about.
And our police departments Crimes against Persons Unit, they are
the ones who investigate all crimes against people involving violence,
so terroristic threats, aggravated assaults so shooting, stabbings, severe just
(23:23):
physical assaults, and then of course homicides. So unfortunately they
stay extremely busy, but with that they are very very
good at their jobs. And so you know, from May
first through the seventh, we had about seven shootings, like
eight different people shot across the city, but we connected
(23:44):
that a lot of those were related, and through the
investigation we've learned that, you know, two groups of individuals
kind of been chasing each other essentially around the city
and shooting at each other, and it's been a miracle
that no one has actually been killed. With that, Several
people have been shot, a lot of different vehicles and
nearby residences have received gunfire. So it's absolutely terrifying and
(24:09):
we understand that. But we have made several arrests in
those cases, we've identified the suspects who were involved in that.
I think I can't remember off the top of my head,
but I think we've had an upwards of five arrests already.
And then we have a couple of juveniles who, of course,
due to their age, we can't release their name, but
they have it's called a directive to apprehend, but it's
(24:30):
essentially it's a warrant for someone who's not over the
age of seventeen. So they have been looking for them
as well. So we're on it. We know people are
concerned about it, but the most important thing that we
really need from the community is, you know the old campaign,
See something, say something. In some cases, you know, we
will have a shooting where a victim is struck by
(24:53):
gunfire and then when the police get there to investigate,
they're not cooperative. Well that's a red flag for us.
Somebody who is a victim of a violent crime who
doesn't want to cooperate with an investigation usually leads us
to believe that they're involved in some type of criminal activity,
whether it's drugs or.
Speaker 6 (25:11):
Anything like that.
Speaker 7 (25:11):
So, but with that, there are still innocent people nearby
these apartment complexes or neighborhoods where these individuals are going
back and forth and shooting at each other. So we
need cooperation from those people who may be witnesses who
maybe vehicle was shot or home was shot. Those are
(25:32):
still charges of deadly conduct. And so several of the
people we've arrested we have charged with deadly conduct. And
you know, we just need cooperation from everyone involved so
that we can help put these people behind bars.
Speaker 1 (25:46):
Yeah, well you heard it. You heard it here, folks,
I mean, hey, you can reach out to them right now.
If you know anything about anything that's happened over the
last year with these shootings, you know, reach out to
Bonwot PD. You can also file anonymous through holm Stoppers.
That's one way to be able to do things, to
be proactive to help the police department acture these bad
(26:08):
guys and these folks that are doing this. Just let
the record show if I ever get shot, I will
I will absolutely go along with the police because I
need I need all the help I can get. Right, So,
you would think that if somebody gets shot.
Speaker 7 (26:27):
Right, and on that topic, you know, just so that
people stand well, I think on that topic, so that
people understand when someone says I'm not cooperating with the
investigation and I don't want to file charges, that ends
our involvement if we don't have another victim. So we
you know, the District Attorney's office is only going to
accept cases where victims are cooperating because that's how you
(26:48):
get convictions. And so when somebody says, I don't want
to cooperate, I'm not filing charges, our investigation ends there.
We have way too many cases where we have true
victim who want to cooperate. Our detectives need to use
their resources to work those cases that they're already very
inundated with. So we can't waste our time and resources
(27:10):
on non victim that you are, you know, a victim
that doesn't want to cooperate. So it makes it difficult.
But even though we know these people are going to
continue and that's what we see, especially with the shooting
on Mattock Street that happened and in the same house
on Virginia twice, we know that they don't want to
(27:30):
cooperate because they feel like they're going to continue that violence.
And you know, go try to track the person down
again and shoot them and it becomes a back and forth,
and unfortunately that's how people can get hurt that are
really truly innocent victims.
Speaker 1 (27:43):
Yeah, well, it's good to know that, you know, the
police department is all over it and that y'all are
doing everything and y'all can in your power to get
these guy guys behind bars, and we appreciate that kind
of Moving on to another topic, we know that summer's
right around the corner. Do you have any tips, trips
things like that for safety, being aware, things like that.
Speaker 7 (28:05):
Yeah, well, of course all of these tips should go
year round. You should follow them anytime of you know,
the year. But we know people think that during the
summer maybe juvenile crime increases. I don't know that we
have statistics that are really highlighting that because unfortunately, we
just have juveniles that are involved in crime a lot
these days. But the summertime, people travel, and so important
(28:28):
to know your neighbors. If you are going out of
town for a little while, maybe you don't advertise that
on social media, tell your neighbors to keep an eye
on your house, maybe stop. I don't know, do people
still get newspapers delivered these days, maybe don't let the
newspapers call up at your front door or let your
mailbox become over full, because that's kind of an indication
that no one's home. And then also anytime, but especially
(28:52):
during the summer, if we do see juveniles out and about,
more auto burglary prevention, so making sure that you're removing valuables,
especially firearms. You know, these firearms that are in the
hands of these juveniles that are running around and shooting
at each other, well, they didn't go by that firearm.
They're not old enough. They got it from somewhere, and
usually they're stolen out of vehicles that are left unlocked,
(29:15):
and so it's so important for our gun owners to
be responsible and remove those firearms. Also very important to
make sure you have your serial number recorded for your
gun because how many times do officers come across a person,
whether it's a juvenile or a young adult, where it's
kind of clear to us that that's not their gun,
but that gun's not reported stolen, we can't trace it
(29:37):
back to the original owner. We recover firearms all the
time that we believe are stolen and have no way
of knowing who the owner is because when the owner
made that police report, they did not have the serial
number so that we could put it in our system
as stolen. So super important to have those serial numbers
recorded and in a safe place. But if you make
(29:57):
sure and remove your firearm from your car, you don't
have to become the victim of a stolen gun. So
locking the doors and then of course cameras we all know,
the Real Time Crime Center has been an absolute game
changer for Beaumont when it comes to swiftly identifying suspects,
tracking them down and taking them into custody. And so
the more people we can get on board with that system,
(30:19):
the better investing in cameras. You know, I often and
for the last nine years, have preached the importance of
having surveillance video at your home, whether you just have
the ring doorbell camera or the state of the art system.
Speaker 3 (30:34):
Uh.
Speaker 7 (30:34):
And then I didn't have one myself at my home
until recently, but I do now, So a little incident
kind of carest sense and making sure that we were
practicing what we preach. So the moros are practicing what
they preach now and it's really inexpensive, you know, whether
but anything is better than nothing if you just have
the ring doorbell camera. We've had We've had homicide solved
(30:57):
off of a neighbor having ring doorbell camera, So anything
like that that you can do to prevent it. And
then of course, just you know, be aware of suspicious activity,
be aware of your surroundings. For the most part, our
violent crime is targeted between individuals who are engaging in
illegal activity, So pay attention to your surroundings, don't get
(31:18):
involved in activity you shouldn't be involved in, and the
chances are that you will very unlikely become a victim
of violent crime.
Speaker 1 (31:26):
Awesome, Hailey, thank you so much for all the information.
You're always a wealth of information. You do such a
great job in your role there with the city and
it's always fun seeing you out at events and thanks
for all you do. Folks. Make sure you are checking
out the crime Stoppers. You can always report your tips there.
Be aware of your surroundings all the time. Make sure
(31:47):
those guns are going at your home each night and
not staying in your car. And lastly, thank you Hailey
for the update on the shootings. That's super helpful for us.
So Haley, if people want to learn a little bit
more about the police community relations. I can go to
police Community Relations and check that out on Google. So, Hayley,
(32:07):
thank you so much for being on the show. I
appreciate you.
Speaker 7 (32:11):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (32:15):
Welcome back to the Royal West Show. I'm your host,
Zach Styles. As we enter this last segment of the show,
we're gonna do something a little bit different today. We're
gonna talk about mortgages. Right So, we talked with April
Tolbert a little bit earlier in the show about insurance
and all the things related to that, and you know,
I figured it might be a good time just to
(32:35):
talk about mortgages, home loans, what rates are doing right now, affordability,
you know, things of that nature. So I'm more or
less going to interview myself. I've got some questions that
often get asked of me throughout the mortgage process, and
I felt like it would be some good information to
hit y'all with as we end the show today. So,
(32:57):
first and foremost, what are interest rates doing?
Speaker 6 (33:00):
Well?
Speaker 1 (33:00):
Not a lot. So they have been pretty stagnant, stagnant
all year. At the beginning of the year, we saw
a little bit of relief after Trump took office. There
was some you know, positivity there in the markets. Things
like that. Well, you know a lot of that has
shifted recently just with the tariff announcements and things like that,
(33:20):
so it's really just made interest rates kind of hangout
where they are. National average right now in conventional rates
is going to be around six point nine. Your average
on FAHA is going to be low sixes, so i'd
see around six point three seven five, that kind of nature.
So you know, rates just in general have been very stagnant.
The Fed met last week or really two weeks ago now,
(33:42):
I guess, and they basically said that they were not
going to be looking at doing a rate cut anytime soon,
that they would look a little bit further into twenty
twenty five before they started really looking at cutting the
federal reserve rate, which you know, the federal reserve rate
is not exactly what mortgage rates are based on. The
Federal reserve rate is just the the rate at which
(34:05):
banks can lend money, you know, really to each other,
not necessarily for mortgages specifically. Okay, it's kind of their rate,
but it does affect the mortgage backed securities market, the
bond market, things like that really because it shows you know,
what's going on with inflation. If inflation was coming down
(34:27):
in the federalserve rate, they would lower that Federal reserve rate.
Things of that nature. They are related, but just from
a broad perspective, rates are very stagnant. I anticipate they
will brain stagnant, stagnant for the rest of the year.
Will probably be used to that kind of high sixes
on those conventional loans and low sixes on those FAHA
(34:50):
government loans. So yeah, I wanted to kind of just
touch base on the whole interest rate thing. Now let's
talk about, you know, the home buying process. You know,
important to work with a local lender. I belove it
if you work with the Roy West team of Guild Mortgage,
but work with a local lender that you can go,
you can talk to, you, you can sit down with have
(35:10):
a discussion a meeting with about buying a home. You know,
buying a home is one of the most important things
that you may do in your life. It's also one
of the most expensive purchases that you will make in
your life. And you may only buy one home, right
maybe two, But anyways, I digress. My point is work
(35:31):
with a local lender. The pre approval process is really
pretty simple, right. We just get some basic information from
you work history for the last two years, residential history
for the last two years. We do a soft pull
on your credit kind of see what we're working with there.
We have specific guidelines that we get to work within
that the government, the federal government necessarily you know sets
(35:54):
forth right. So Fannie Mae, Freddy mack A, FAJA, those
entities put the guide lines together and we have to
play within those guidelines, right, So we look at those things,
and once we get a really good idea of who
you are and what you would like to accomplish, well,
then we start talking about different loan program that might
make the most sense for you. Right. And a lot
(36:15):
of people are renting right now, and that's fine. It's
good to you know, rent and kind of get your
feet wet, get used to paying the Markleino things like that.
But what I'll tell you is that I would urge
you to look towards getting pre approved. Why Why is that, Well,
it is to build your own portfolio, to build your
own wealth, To invest in your home is to invest
(36:38):
in yourself, right. And when you're paying rent to a
rental company or an individual. You are supplementing their income, right,
you are paying their mortgage in some form or fashion.
So while rates are a little bit higher than maybe
what you would like, maybe higher than what they were
in twenty twenty eight, twenty twenty one, still right now
is a great time to purchase a home. Okay, when
(37:02):
you're paying rent, you are paying one hundred percent interest, right,
which is a lot higher than say six point nine percent. Right,
So just keep that in mind. A lot of people think,
oh I can't buy a house, or oh my credit's
too bad. Well, you don't know what you don't know, right,
So I would recommend reaching out to the roy West team,
you know for zero nine eight six six one nine
(37:24):
zero one, and let's find out, let's have a discussion,
let's talry about it, come by the office, have a
cup of coffee, sit down, and let's work towards home ownership. Right.
So I would just urge you today, this beautiful Sunday,
maybe think about it, maybe pray about it, go into
your week, think hey, maybe I can purchase a home.
Maybe that's something that I can do. Right And then hey,
(37:47):
if you can't get qualified right now, we're not just
gonna slam the door in your face and say, oh,
you're not qualified. Right, we're gonna take steps to help
you get there. Okay, So just I know there's a
lot of folks that are listening that may already own
a home, and that's great. Come talk to me about
an equity loane. Talk to me about a cash out refinance. Hey,
you want to put a swimming pool, and we've got
(38:08):
a loan for that.
Speaker 6 (38:09):
Right.
Speaker 1 (38:09):
Hey, you want to put a new roof on your home,
we've got a loan for that. We have loans for
all types of different situations scenarios. If you already own
your home outright and you want to do a reverse
mortgage and you're of age to do so, let's talk
about that. Right. Let's pay off some debt. You know,
right now folks have more debt than they ever had
(38:29):
in history. Right. Inflation hasn't helped that. Credit card debt
is high. Let's get you out from under credit card debt.
Let's do that. Six percent seven percent on a cash
out refinance is a heck of a lot less than
twenty two percent, twenty five percent on a credit card. Okay,
So we have solutions we can use the equity in
(38:50):
your home. Call us today. We really want to help,
right So, my name is x Styles. I'm the sales
manager at the roy West Team. Roy West is the
branch manager. We are a family run and operated organization
here been in business for the last twenty years, so
we are here to help, excited to help. We do
the radio show as a small part of our time.
(39:13):
The rest of the time Will Royceby and Mayor and
I am doing mortgages every day. I so look forward
to assisting you. I hope this segment has been helpful
in getting you an idea of qualified things like that
what you can do to build yourself up, to invest
in yourself. We work with credit scores as low as
five forty. So anyways, enough about mortgages. Four O ninety
(39:36):
six six nineteen oh one. As I finished my little
eight minute segment here, I do want to mention Beaumont
Community Players, Southeast Texas Stages. Charlie in the Chocolate Factory
is going on right now. You can get tickets for
this coming weekend, so check it out Southeast Stages dot com.
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory shameless plug for Beaumont Community
(39:58):
Players and my daughter's a play, so obviously I have
to push it and I'm super excited about that. Folks.
More coming up on the roy West Show. Thank you
for listening and we will talk soon. Be right back
on the roy West Show. Welcome back to the Royal
West Show. It's time for a two minute wrap up.
We kicked off the show with Vincent the Filipino Association,
(40:21):
talking about their event that they're having on June eighth,
from nine o'clock till I think it was five o'clock.
It's gonna be a great time. They're gonna have food
trucks out there, they're gonna have music. Maybe it's just
gonna be great. Get out there, have fun. That's on
June eighth. That is the Southeast Texas Asian Festival. It's
gonna be a great time. And then we got to
(40:42):
move into a conversation with April Tolbert talking about insurance,
hurricane season, the importance of knowing your coverage, folks. I
see it every day in my line of work. Make
sure you know what kind of coverage you have. Make
sure it's the right kind of coverage for you. Nobody
likes surprises when it comes to insurance and coverage. So
reach out to April Tolbert today find out all the
(41:04):
things you need to know about insurance. Then we got
to talk to the one and only Haley with Gomont PD.
Always such a good time, right, I mean, she just
kills it every single time we talk. She's got great information,
great value. Shout out to crime stoppers if you want
to make an out on his tip, check them out. Folks,
don't leave your guns in your car, lock your cars
(41:25):
at night. Do smart things, right. I mean, we're coming
to the summer, there's gonna be more kids out in
the streets and all the fun things that that entails.
But I mean, just be smart and watch your surroundings.
Things like that great interview. Haley always does a wonderful job.
Then you got to listen to me talk about mortgages.
I mean, who doesn't want to talk about mortgages, right,
I mean it's fine, it's great, it's great time to buy.
It always a great time to buy. Use a local lender,
(41:46):
Roy West team and build mortgage. Shout out to them.
You know, if you have any questions about mortgages, just
give them a shout. Today the show is actually brought
to you by the roy West team of Guild Mortgage
always reached them at four zer nine eighty sixty six
zero one. Folks, what a great show, so much fun,
love doing it. Love y'all, stay classy Beaumont. Have a
(42:07):
great week, no, make it a great week. Talk soon.
Welcome to the Royal West Show. We have a wonderful
show lined up today, lots of entertainment. We've got some
just great community leaders here. We're going to kick the
show off with the one and only Vincent Colin. He
is the Filipino Association of Beaumont, Texas President. Vincent. Welcome
(00:23):
to the show, Hey, Zach, thank you, Thank you for
having me.
Speaker 2 (00:28):
It's an honor to be here. Man.
Speaker 1 (00:31):
We're excited to have you on, Excited to learn a
little bit more about the Bilkpino Association and just kind
of what y'all do in the community. So Vincent kind
of take it away and just tell us a little
bit about the organization.
Speaker 2 (00:45):
Thank you, Thank you, Zach.
Speaker 3 (00:46):
So, the Philippine Association of Beaumont Texas or the BABT,
is the lead organizer of this exciting festival that we're
going to talk about today, and we are the largest
Philippine ARGA and in the region. We do cultural and
outreach programs, give scholarships to Filippino American students and support
(01:08):
families in schools in the Philippines.
Speaker 2 (01:10):
And now we're dreaming big.
Speaker 3 (01:13):
Our biggest goal is to build our own cultural center
in Southeast Texas invest program name as Hope twenty twenty
six and this festival is part of that dream and
it's a community movement, not just an event.
Speaker 1 (01:30):
Yeah, that's awesome. So right now, you know, what are
some of the things that y'all are doing. How do
you become a member of your organization things like that?
Speaker 2 (01:41):
Yeah, well you can. You can be a member.
Speaker 3 (01:45):
Just give us a call or you can visit our
website with our website is currently on going some construction
and updates, but they can they can access it at
Triple W dot PBTX dot org. The good thing about
is if you will become a member is you can
(02:06):
help the funding the organizations projects for different goals, like
we have different charities supporting in the Philippines as well.
And as I mentioned earlier, yep, as I mentioned earlier,
we're doing some scholarships as well and Filipino American students
(02:28):
here in Southeast Texas.
Speaker 1 (02:31):
So y'all are supporting some charities in the Philippines right now? Yes,
what a kind of charities do those look like?
Speaker 2 (02:39):
Oh? We we are funding.
Speaker 3 (02:42):
Different organizations like Children with Down Syndrome and autism organization,
the Little Brave Hearts this organization charity is catering all
the under funded or under under privilege sorry, under privilege
(03:10):
down syndrome families.
Speaker 1 (03:12):
Wow, and so folks, this is really cool. So you
have an organization here in Southeast Texas that is raising
funds in supporting these charities in the Philippines, specifically for
down syndrome and under privileged kids. Yes, that is awesome.
And not only are y'all doing that over there, but
(03:33):
here you're also you're giving out scholarships to college students
things like that.
Speaker 2 (03:40):
Yes, and we do cultural events.
Speaker 3 (03:44):
We are also of course, we would like to share the.
Speaker 2 (03:49):
Filipino culture to everyone. So we're doing different events.
Speaker 3 (03:55):
Like the Games of Filipinos, you know, like Olympic Filipino Games.
Aside from that is, we're also doing All Filipino American
Basketball Tournament. Aside from that is, we have also Philippine
Independence Day celebration and all. You know, we are doing
(04:16):
what we can to share our culture not only with
Filipino but also to the whole Southeast Texas region.
Speaker 1 (04:26):
Yeah, that's awesome. So really, I mean, the Filipino community
here is so strong. I mean, and I know other
folks that are involved throughout our community in the organization,
and it just seems like there's this growing community around
the Philippines and around the Filipino boats, and it's just
really neat to see right here in Southeast Texas. And
(04:48):
how involved you are. I mean, if you've got young people,
you've got people that have been with the organization for
a while, and y'all are really trying to get back
not only here in Beaumont, but also where you're from.
So that's really cool.
Speaker 2 (05:01):
Yes, yes, Zach.
Speaker 3 (05:03):
Of course, we are a nonprofit that taxis to promote
Filipino culture, build community among Filipino Americans and immigrants, and
give back you know, through education like as I mentioned earlier,
the scholarship program, through outreach. We are also volunteering to
different organizations here in Southeast Texas before we also volunteer
(05:28):
in the Sedex Food Bank and so on. And of
course cultural celebration.
Speaker 1 (05:35):
Yeah, well, and let's talk about talk about culture celebration
and talk about this event that you'll have coming up
on June eighth. Let's talk about it. What's going on?
Speaker 2 (05:46):
Oh, thank you, thank you, Zach.
Speaker 3 (05:48):
What we will be having is the first Southeast Texas
Asian Festival. It will happen on Sunday, June eighth, from
nine am to five am right at the Downtown Events
Center here in Bomont. So it's a huge celebration of
Asian culture, food stalls, traditional dances, cultural exhibits, a live
(06:14):
band and yeah, and of course the Philippine Independent Celebration
and a sculpture exhibit from a well known Filipino artist.
So it's a family friendly exiving and of course it's
(06:34):
a free to enter, so this is a celebration for everyone.
Speaker 1 (06:39):
Yeah, that's awesome. So it's going to be June eighth,
nine am to five pm, family oriented, bring the whole fan.
And you're gonna have are you having food trucks? You
have a catered what does that look like?
Speaker 3 (06:52):
Yes, we will be having different food trucks and of
course it will showcase the Asian cuisines.
Speaker 1 (07:03):
Yeah, so that'll be cool. And you said there's gonna
be a sculpture artist there too.
Speaker 3 (07:09):
Yes, is by well known Filipino artists Nick Scho Australia,
and he'll be showcasing different sculpture for a Filipino perspective artist.
Speaker 1 (07:26):
Wow, that is neat, so folks, Yeah, come on out,
it'll be June eighth. You're gonna want to be out there,
bring your family. It sounds like there's gonna be every
type of entertainment you can imagine, from music to art,
and it sounds like some great food. So is this
gonna be a Filipino band, you know, showcasing Filipino music?
Speaker 2 (07:46):
Yes, yes, Zach, we are.
Speaker 3 (07:49):
We have our own local band and local singer Filipino
singers that's will to showcase their talents this coming Jude eighth.
And not only that, it will also have a presentation
from Eye Rule Studio and yeah, and from our friends
(08:10):
from Vietnamese and Indian community. Really, yes, y'all are y'all
are incorporating other organizations and other days dures and that
kind of stuff to come and be a part of it. Yes,
this is a collaborative effort to showcase Asian culture to everyone, right,
(08:32):
like many of US Asian Americans and immigrants have rich
stories and deep roots here.
Speaker 2 (08:36):
It's audist Maxens.
Speaker 3 (08:38):
So this isn't just about fun, it's about representation. So
this festival is a way, it's a way for us
to uh to say we're here, we're proud, and we
want to share our culture.
Speaker 2 (08:52):
With everyone.
Speaker 3 (08:53):
It's about belonging and bridging communities.
Speaker 1 (08:57):
That's incredible. Right here in Southeast Tech Association heavily involved
giving back to our community, uh and giving out giving
back to other communities. So do y'all have meetings that
people if they wanted more and more, if folks like
myself wanted to join the organization, how does that work? Yes,
(09:20):
we have.
Speaker 3 (09:21):
We have events coming up, so just to be update that,
you can visit our Facebook page. We are very updated
on our social media Facebook and Instagram. Just go to
Philippine Association of Beaumont, Texas and you will see our
(09:41):
upcoming events there.
Speaker 1 (09:44):
Awesome, very good. Now there is no cost to this event, correct.
Speaker 3 (09:49):
Yes, no cost, So all you have to do is to,
of course, to support our local food trucks and vendors.
Speaker 1 (10:00):
Gotch it. So I just want to make sure everybody
knows because a lot of times people think, oh, it's
gonna cost me money to get in, you know this,
that and the other. So no cost to get in, folks.
This is a great way to spend a Sunday. Uh.
You know, go check out this Filipino association. There's gonna
be just so much fun. Why wouldn't you want to
go check it out of me? It doesn't cost you
anything to get in, you know, and then support you know,
(10:22):
the artists and the music and the dancing and the food.
I mean, spend all day out there, Spend a couple
of hours out there, come and go. Uh like you know,
like Vincent said, doesn't cost anything. This is our first
annual run at this, so we want to make sure
that we're supporting them as a community, and we are
supporting the Filipino community just like they support us each
and every day. Vincent, We've got about a minute left.
(10:44):
I know, time flies when we're having a fun. Uh. Last, lastly,
give me the date and the time again for this event. Again,
no cost, folks.
Speaker 3 (10:54):
Sure, So if you're listening or watching, mark your calendars,
come and join us on June eighth, from nine am
to five pm at the Downtown Event Center here in Beaumont.
Bring your family, your appetite, and your love for culture.
And if you want to be part of something meaningful,
you can follow us on Facebook at Philippine Association of Beaumont,
(11:18):
Texas or email us if you'd like to volunteer or
sponsor at BABT officers at gmail dot com. Let's make
this festival a symbol of pubity and pride, not just
for Asians, but for all of us Southeast Texans.
Speaker 1 (11:35):
Absolutely, Vincent, thank you so much for being on the show.
Speaker 2 (11:38):
Thank you, Zach, thank you.
Speaker 1 (11:41):
Yeah. Absolutely, it's so great to talk to you. We're
going to have you on again because I want to
learn more and I want the community to learn more
about what the Filipino Association is doing here in Southeast Texas. Folks,
There's more to come on the show. Stay tuned. After
this commercial break, we will be back. Vincent, thanks again
for being on the show. Buddy.
Speaker 2 (12:00):
Thank you, Zach, thank you for having me.
Speaker 1 (12:04):
Welcome back to the Roy West Show. I am your host,
Zach Styles, and we have had a great show so far.
Talk to the Filipino Society about that event coming up.
And we have the one and only April Tolbert with
Farmers Insurance with us today, April. Welcome to the show.
Speaker 4 (12:21):
Hi, Zach, thanks so much for having me. It's great
to be on this side of the microphone today.
Speaker 5 (12:27):
Yeah, you helped host the show as well, so it's
kind of fun being able to interview you and talk
about what you were so passionate about here in Southeast Texas,
and that is.
Speaker 1 (12:38):
Insurance of all shapes, sizes, types, all the things. But April,
we are coming up on hurricane season. I feel like
we just got out of hurricane season. Insurance is always important,
but it's really important to make sure your coverage is
where it needs to be right now. Go ahead and
just give me kind of a high level farmers April
(12:59):
and all the wonderful things that you do to help
folks out.
Speaker 4 (13:02):
I would absolutely love to, and you might just have
to pull out the hook because when I get to
talking about insurance, I can go on and on and on.
First of all, thank you again for having me. Yes,
insurance is our game. It's what we do all day,
every day. I have an amazing team. We have an
office here in Beaumont on Major Drive, we have an
office in Kirbyville, and we're about to open a brand
(13:24):
new office in Jasper. So we are full service insurance
for all of Southeast Texas.
Speaker 6 (13:29):
And I have a little PTSD.
Speaker 4 (13:31):
Whenever you start talking about hurricane season, and you said
it about three times in your inturant to me, so
I get a little PTSD. And yes, we are close
to June first, not far away from that, and June
first is the official start of the Atlantic hurricane season.
But what I would caution anyone in Southeast Texas within
the sound of my voice is that it does not
(13:54):
have to be hurricane season for you need to need
to use your insurance. I had to have a new
roof on my house last year from hail damage. I
actually had three vehicles that had claims from hail damage
and that date was April fifteenth, So you know, it
can happen anytime unexpectedly. If you haven't seen these patterns
(14:15):
of these crazy afternoon thunderstorms and things coming in, you
never know when you're going to need your insurance. So
it is so important. And the reason we use hurricane
season and that Gene first date is a date to
try to remind everybody is because you know, people do
think of, oh, I need to check my windstorm insurance,
I need to make sure my flood insurance is up
(14:38):
to date, and things of that sort of going into
hurricane season. So it's just a good time to remember.
But you should always do a checkup. You know, they
say when you go to the doctor, right you were
supposed to get an annual physical, you know, check that
blood work, do those tests, do those things, just to
make sure that everything is still good.
Speaker 6 (15:00):
It was last year.
Speaker 4 (15:01):
I say, please do an insurance checkup because things change.
And if you haven't seen your rates changing, if you
haven't seen mailers and emails coming from your insurance company
that things are changing, I would be shocked, because most
people are because there are things happening. You may have
had a certain coverage before we Jack and I just
(15:24):
off the year. We're talking about roofs. You know, roofs
are a big issue. So many roofs are now REDA
roofs as we call them, from two thousand and five,
or ike roofs from two thousand and you know seven
eight nine in that area, and those roofs are nearing
REDA roofs this year are twenty years old. So it
(15:44):
is definitely could change some things on your insurance as
your roof ages. So doing that checkup every year is
so extremely important. Have someone local. This is your key
takeaway from April Tool today. Right, remember this, if you
remember nothing else. Please have someone that you can pick
(16:07):
up the phone and call once a year to do
your insurance check up. Someone that will take the time
to visit with you, talk to you about options, offer solutions,
talk to you about different coverages, talk to you about
things you may have that they may ask you. You know,
do you feel like you need this? Or maybe do
(16:28):
you want to go with a little higher deductible it
would save you a little money. I mean just asking
you questions. Have you bought any jewelry? Do you own
any golf carts? Somebody who's going to get to know
you and somebody who is going to try to customize
that insurance to fit your needs and your budget.
Speaker 6 (16:44):
And that's what we love to do. But we're not.
Speaker 4 (16:46):
The only good insurance, local insurance person out there.
Speaker 6 (16:49):
There are a few others, you.
Speaker 7 (16:51):
Know, a few there are a few others, right, So make.
Speaker 4 (16:55):
Sure that you have somebody local that you do trust
that'll answer those questions for you. Don't ever call an
eight hundred number police, and don't ever go online. I say,
I tell people, please don't go to cheap insurance dot
com because you just don't know what you're getting. These
insurance companies put so much insurance jargon and the fine
print that you may think you have one thing and
(17:19):
then you go to file acclaim and you find out
that wasn't what you had, and that's not the time
to find out you don't have the coverage that you wanted.
Speaker 6 (17:27):
So we're paying a lot of money.
Speaker 4 (17:29):
I often say, we pay way too much money for
our insurance in Southeast Texas for you to find out
that you didn't have the coverage you would have wanted
to have.
Speaker 1 (17:39):
Yeah, and you bring up so many you know, great
points there between the hurricane. You know, hurricane, it's always
a good time, like you said, to be looking at
your insurance and do that check out.
Speaker 5 (17:49):
You know.
Speaker 1 (17:50):
One thing being in the mortgage business with the Royal
West home loans, you know, I see it every single
year and once people have their insurance in their escrow
and it's being paid with their monthly No. One thing
that I always tell folks at closing or before closing
is Okay, you've got an insurance premium right now that
(18:12):
is going to change. Every single year. That will change
one way or the other. It's going to change. You
will get information in the mail about said changes. Likely
you will throw that away. It is important that you
talk to your insurance agent and at least once a
year to remind them who you are so they remember
and take a look at your coverage. Because nobody likes surprises, right,
(18:34):
I mean, some people like surprises if they're good things
like a surprise birthday party, like that's fun, But nobody
likes the surprise when it comes to monthly bills going
up and things like that. And one thing that I
really appreciate about April and her team is it really
is white gloves service as far as what they will
talk with you about, how they will address the terms
(18:57):
that you may not know, the coverages. You know, there's
a lot of jargon that goes into that that people
don't understand because I hear about it all the time.
You hear about it all the time. Having somebody be
able to sit down and look at your coverage and
tell you in plain English like this is what this
means is huge, folks. So you know, whether it's hurricane season,
whether it's whatever season, it's always a good time to
(19:19):
pick up the phone and be looking at your insurance.
And I know that April, I know for a fact
she wi look at any insurance that you have currently
and she'll be happy to review it and say what
is this or are you sure you need this, whether
you have your insurance with her or not.
Speaker 2 (19:33):
For sure, I.
Speaker 4 (19:34):
Will give you an example from when I talked to
earlier today, and we have certain insurance for them, but
we don't have this other insurance. They have it with
another big national carrier. And she sent it to me
and she said, I really want to move all my
insurance to you. I love your team, I love the
service we get there. I really want to move all
my insurance. And I looked at her policy. She had
(19:56):
been with this company for probably thirty or more year,
and she had some really great discounts with them, and
the house had an older roof, and you know, it
was older, and you know, I had some things. We
just we just looked at it. We just had a
conversation and I told her keep that right where it is.
(20:17):
And to me, it's about relationships. It's about being honest
and fair, dealing with people, making sure that they have
the coverage that they want to have, not selling them
an insurance policy.
Speaker 6 (20:31):
And my team is that same way too.
Speaker 4 (20:34):
And I know there's people who don't you know, may
not know us or have done business with us. And
so until you've had that experience and the first time
we ask you, you know, would you feel comfortable would
you send us a copy of your current policy, because
we want to really educate you about differences. If you
have coverages that you can't get with any of our cares,
we want to make sure you know that, and we
(20:55):
want to try to give you all sides so you
can make an educated decision and don't forget. I definitely
want to do the shameless self promotion plug by your way,
which is we do not just have Farmers. We are
now a full service insurance agency where we have several
dozen insurance carriers that we write through, so we can
shop you through. Yes, Farmers as our flagship company and
(21:16):
people know me as the farmer's agent, and we love Farmers.
We still have that option, but we've got Travelers in
Safeco and Progressive and so many others that we can
offer too, So we'd love to be your one stop
shop for insurance.
Speaker 1 (21:30):
Well, April, you'll you always do such a good job.
Your team is always just so pleasant to work with
and deal with. So you know, where can people find you?
We got about thirty seconds left. Where can people find you?
Learn more about you and your team?
Speaker 4 (21:43):
So the best way to get US is by phone
our Beaumont office such as our main office number four
oh nine eight six six one two three three. You
can find us on Facebook, Google US. We have offices
on Major Drive in Beaumont, also in Kirbyville and soon
to come in Jasper.
Speaker 1 (21:59):
April, thank you so much of being on the show today.
We look forward to having you on the show again
in the future. Folks, there's more to come on the
Roy West Show. Thanks April, Welcome back to the Roy
West Show. I'm your host, Zach Styles. We've had a
great show so far and we're going to keep it going.
We have got Hayley Morrow with the Beaumont p D.
(22:20):
She is with the Police Community Relations Division in public
relations with Baumont.
Speaker 5 (22:25):
Pete.
Speaker 1 (22:26):
I've said that three different ways. I'm so Hayley, welcome
to the show.
Speaker 7 (22:30):
Thanks for having me, happy to be here.
Speaker 1 (22:32):
We always love having you on the show because you
always provide great information, whether it's about safety, whether about
what's going on in the community right now. You know,
I'm just going to jump right into it because I
know it's on people's minds right now. But the recent
shootings and things like that, we've heard it on the
news we've seen it in the papers. You shed some
(22:53):
light kind of what's going on there and what the
police department's doing to mitigate that.
Speaker 7 (22:58):
Sure, well, first and foremost, you know, we absolutely know
that that is something that weighs on the hearts of
our citizens. It definitely is something that they are fearful about.
And our police departments Crimes against Persons Unit, they are
the ones who investigate all crimes against people involving violence,
so terroristic threats, aggravated assaults so shooting, stabbings, severe just
(23:23):
physical assaults, and then of course homicides. So unfortunately they
stay extremely busy, but with that they are very very
good at their jobs. And so you know, from May
first through the seventh, we had about seven shootings, like
eight different people shot across the city, but we connected
(23:44):
that a lot of those were related, and through the
investigation we've learned that, you know, two groups of individuals
kind of been chasing each other essentially around the city
and shooting at each other, and it's been a miracle
that no one has actually been killed. With that, Several
people have been shot, a lot of different vehicles and
nearby residences have received gunfire. So it's absolutely terrifying and
(24:09):
we understand that. But we have made several arrests in
those cases, we've identified the suspects who were involved in that.
I think I can't remember off the top of my head,
but I think we've had an upwards of five arrests already.
And then we have a couple of juveniles who, of course,
due to their age, we can't release their name, but
they have it's called a directive to apprehend, but it's
(24:30):
essentially it's a warrant for someone who's not over the
age of seventeen. So they have been looking for them
as well. So we're on it. We know people are
concerned about it, but the most important thing that we
really need from the community is, you know the old campaign,
See something, say something. In some cases, you know, we
will have a shooting where a victim is struck by
(24:53):
gunfire and then when the police get there to investigate,
they're not cooperative. Well that's a red flag for us.
Somebody who is a victim of a violent crime who
doesn't want to cooperate with an investigation usually leads us
to believe that they're involved in some type of criminal activity,
whether it's drugs or.
Speaker 6 (25:11):
Anything like that.
Speaker 7 (25:11):
So, but with that, there are still innocent people nearby
these apartment complexes or neighborhoods where these individuals are going
back and forth and shooting at each other. So we
need cooperation from those people who may be witnesses who
maybe vehicle was shot or home was shot. Those are
(25:32):
still charges of deadly conduct. And so several of the
people we've arrested we have charged with deadly conduct. And
you know, we just need cooperation from everyone involved so
that we can help put these people behind bars.
Speaker 1 (25:46):
Yeah, well you heard it. You heard it here, folks,
I mean, hey, you can reach out to them right now.
If you know anything about anything that's happened over the
last year with these shootings, you know, reach out to
Bonwot PD. You can also file anonymous through holm Stoppers.
That's one way to be able to do things, to
be proactive to help the police department acture these bad
(26:08):
guys and these folks that are doing this. Just let
the record show if I ever get shot, I will
I will absolutely go along with the police because I
need I need all the help I can get. Right, So,
you would think that if somebody gets shot.
Speaker 7 (26:27):
Right, and on that topic, you know, just so that
people stand well, I think on that topic, so that
people understand when someone says I'm not cooperating with the
investigation and I don't want to file charges, that ends
our involvement if we don't have another victim. So we
you know, the District Attorney's office is only going to
accept cases where victims are cooperating because that's how you
(26:48):
get convictions. And so when somebody says, I don't want
to cooperate, I'm not filing charges, our investigation ends there.
We have way too many cases where we have true
victim who want to cooperate. Our detectives need to use
their resources to work those cases that they're already very
inundated with. So we can't waste our time and resources
(27:10):
on non victim that you are, you know, a victim
that doesn't want to cooperate. So it makes it difficult.
But even though we know these people are going to
continue and that's what we see, especially with the shooting
on Mattock Street that happened and in the same house
on Virginia twice, we know that they don't want to
(27:30):
cooperate because they feel like they're going to continue that violence.
And you know, go try to track the person down
again and shoot them and it becomes a back and forth,
and unfortunately that's how people can get hurt that are
really truly innocent victims.
Speaker 1 (27:43):
Yeah, well, it's good to know that, you know, the
police department is all over it and that y'all are
doing everything and y'all can in your power to get
these guy guys behind bars, and we appreciate that kind
of Moving on to another topic, we know that summer's
right around the corner. Do you have any tips, trips
things like that for safety, being aware, things like that.
Speaker 7 (28:05):
Yeah, well, of course all of these tips should go
year round. You should follow them anytime of you know,
the year. But we know people think that during the
summer maybe juvenile crime increases. I don't know that we
have statistics that are really highlighting that because unfortunately, we
just have juveniles that are involved in crime a lot
these days. But the summertime, people travel, and so important
(28:28):
to know your neighbors. If you are going out of
town for a little while, maybe you don't advertise that
on social media, tell your neighbors to keep an eye
on your house, maybe stop. I don't know, do people
still get newspapers delivered these days, maybe don't let the
newspapers call up at your front door or let your
mailbox become over full, because that's kind of an indication
that no one's home. And then also anytime, but especially
(28:52):
during the summer, if we do see juveniles out and about,
more auto burglary prevention, so making sure that you're removing valuables,
especially firearms. You know, these firearms that are in the
hands of these juveniles that are running around and shooting
at each other, well, they didn't go by that firearm.
They're not old enough. They got it from somewhere, and
usually they're stolen out of vehicles that are left unlocked,
(29:15):
and so it's so important for our gun owners to
be responsible and remove those firearms. Also very important to
make sure you have your serial number recorded for your
gun because how many times do officers come across a person,
whether it's a juvenile or a young adult, where it's
kind of clear to us that that's not their gun,
but that gun's not reported stolen, we can't trace it
(29:37):
back to the original owner. We recover firearms all the
time that we believe are stolen and have no way
of knowing who the owner is because when the owner
made that police report, they did not have the serial
number so that we could put it in our system
as stolen. So super important to have those serial numbers
recorded and in a safe place. But if you make
(29:57):
sure and remove your firearm from your car, you don't
have to become the victim of a stolen gun. So
locking the doors and then of course cameras we all know,
the Real Time Crime Center has been an absolute game
changer for Beaumont when it comes to swiftly identifying suspects,
tracking them down and taking them into custody. And so
the more people we can get on board with that system,
(30:19):
the better investing in cameras. You know, I often and
for the last nine years, have preached the importance of
having surveillance video at your home, whether you just have
the ring doorbell camera or the state of the art system.
Speaker 3 (30:34):
Uh.
Speaker 7 (30:34):
And then I didn't have one myself at my home
until recently, but I do now, So a little incident
kind of carest sense and making sure that we were
practicing what we preach. So the moros are practicing what
they preach now and it's really inexpensive, you know, whether
but anything is better than nothing if you just have
the ring doorbell camera. We've had We've had homicide solved
(30:57):
off of a neighbor having ring doorbell camera, So anything
like that that you can do to prevent it. And
then of course, just you know, be aware of suspicious activity,
be aware of your surroundings. For the most part, our
violent crime is targeted between individuals who are engaging in
illegal activity, So pay attention to your surroundings, don't get
(31:18):
involved in activity you shouldn't be involved in, and the
chances are that you will very unlikely become a victim
of violent crime.
Speaker 1 (31:26):
Awesome, Hailey, thank you so much for all the information.
You're always a wealth of information. You do such a
great job in your role there with the city and
it's always fun seeing you out at events and thanks
for all you do. Folks. Make sure you are checking
out the crime Stoppers. You can always report your tips there.
Be aware of your surroundings all the time. Make sure
(31:47):
those guns are going at your home each night and
not staying in your car. And lastly, thank you Hailey
for the update on the shootings. That's super helpful for us.
So Haley, if people want to learn a little bit
more about the police community relations. I can go to
police Community Relations and check that out on Google. So, Hayley,
(32:07):
thank you so much for being on the show. I
appreciate you.
Speaker 7 (32:11):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (32:15):
Welcome back to the Royal West Show. I'm your host,
Zach Styles. As we enter this last segment of the show,
we're gonna do something a little bit different today. We're
gonna talk about mortgages. Right So, we talked with April
Tolbert a little bit earlier in the show about insurance
and all the things related to that, and you know,
I figured it might be a good time just to
(32:35):
talk about mortgages, home loans, what rates are doing right now, affordability,
you know, things of that nature. So I'm more or
less going to interview myself. I've got some questions that
often get asked of me throughout the mortgage process, and
I felt like it would be some good information to
hit y'all with as we end the show today. So,
(32:57):
first and foremost, what are interest rates doing?
Speaker 6 (33:00):
Well?
Speaker 1 (33:00):
Not a lot. So they have been pretty stagnant, stagnant
all year. At the beginning of the year, we saw
a little bit of relief after Trump took office. There
was some you know, positivity there in the markets. Things
like that. Well, you know a lot of that has
shifted recently just with the tariff announcements and things like that,
(33:20):
so it's really just made interest rates kind of hangout
where they are. National average right now in conventional rates
is going to be around six point nine. Your average
on FAHA is going to be low sixes, so i'd
see around six point three seven five, that kind of nature.
So you know, rates just in general have been very stagnant.
The Fed met last week or really two weeks ago now,
(33:42):
I guess, and they basically said that they were not
going to be looking at doing a rate cut anytime soon,
that they would look a little bit further into twenty
twenty five before they started really looking at cutting the
federal reserve rate, which you know, the federal reserve rate
is not exactly what mortgage rates are based on. The
Federal reserve rate is just the the rate at which
(34:05):
banks can lend money, you know, really to each other,
not necessarily for mortgages specifically. Okay, it's kind of their rate,
but it does affect the mortgage backed securities market, the
bond market, things like that really because it shows you know,
what's going on with inflation. If inflation was coming down
(34:27):
in the federalserve rate, they would lower that Federal reserve rate.
Things of that nature. They are related, but just from
a broad perspective, rates are very stagnant. I anticipate they
will brain stagnant, stagnant for the rest of the year.
Will probably be used to that kind of high sixes
on those conventional loans and low sixes on those FAHA
(34:50):
government loans. So yeah, I wanted to kind of just
touch base on the whole interest rate thing. Now let's
talk about, you know, the home buying process. You know,
important to work with a local lender. I belove it
if you work with the Roy West team of Guild Mortgage,
but work with a local lender that you can go,
you can talk to, you, you can sit down with have
(35:10):
a discussion a meeting with about buying a home. You know,
buying a home is one of the most important things
that you may do in your life. It's also one
of the most expensive purchases that you will make in
your life. And you may only buy one home, right
maybe two, But anyways, I digress. My point is work
(35:31):
with a local lender. The pre approval process is really
pretty simple, right. We just get some basic information from
you work history for the last two years, residential history
for the last two years. We do a soft pull
on your credit kind of see what we're working with there.
We have specific guidelines that we get to work within
that the government, the federal government necessarily you know sets
(35:54):
forth right. So Fannie Mae, Freddy mack A, FAJA, those
entities put the guide lines together and we have to
play within those guidelines, right, So we look at those things,
and once we get a really good idea of who
you are and what you would like to accomplish, well,
then we start talking about different loan program that might
make the most sense for you. Right. And a lot
(36:15):
of people are renting right now, and that's fine. It's
good to you know, rent and kind of get your
feet wet, get used to paying the Markleino things like that.
But what I'll tell you is that I would urge
you to look towards getting pre approved. Why Why is that, Well,
it is to build your own portfolio, to build your
own wealth, To invest in your home is to invest
(36:38):
in yourself, right. And when you're paying rent to a
rental company or an individual. You are supplementing their income, right,
you are paying their mortgage in some form or fashion.
So while rates are a little bit higher than maybe
what you would like, maybe higher than what they were
in twenty twenty eight, twenty twenty one, still right now
is a great time to purchase a home. Okay, when
(37:02):
you're paying rent, you are paying one hundred percent interest, right,
which is a lot higher than say six point nine percent. Right,
So just keep that in mind. A lot of people think,
oh I can't buy a house, or oh my credit's
too bad. Well, you don't know what you don't know, right,
So I would recommend reaching out to the roy West team,
you know for zero nine eight six six one nine
(37:24):
zero one, and let's find out, let's have a discussion,
let's talry about it, come by the office, have a
cup of coffee, sit down, and let's work towards home ownership. Right.
So I would just urge you today, this beautiful Sunday,
maybe think about it, maybe pray about it, go into
your week, think hey, maybe I can purchase a home.
Maybe that's something that I can do. Right And then hey,
(37:47):
if you can't get qualified right now, we're not just
gonna slam the door in your face and say, oh,
you're not qualified. Right, we're gonna take steps to help
you get there. Okay, So just I know there's a
lot of folks that are listening that may already own
a home, and that's great. Come talk to me about
an equity loane. Talk to me about a cash out refinance. Hey,
you want to put a swimming pool, and we've got
(38:08):
a loan for that.
Speaker 6 (38:09):
Right.
Speaker 1 (38:09):
Hey, you want to put a new roof on your home,
we've got a loan for that. We have loans for
all types of different situations scenarios. If you already own
your home outright and you want to do a reverse
mortgage and you're of age to do so, let's talk
about that. Right. Let's pay off some debt. You know,
right now folks have more debt than they ever had
(38:29):
in history. Right. Inflation hasn't helped that. Credit card debt
is high. Let's get you out from under credit card debt.
Let's do that. Six percent seven percent on a cash
out refinance is a heck of a lot less than
twenty two percent, twenty five percent on a credit card. Okay,
So we have solutions we can use the equity in
(38:50):
your home. Call us today. We really want to help,
right So, my name is x Styles. I'm the sales
manager at the roy West Team. Roy West is the
branch manager. We are a family run and operated organization
here been in business for the last twenty years, so
we are here to help, excited to help. We do
the radio show as a small part of our time.
(39:13):
The rest of the time Will Royceby and Mayor and
I am doing mortgages every day. I so look forward
to assisting you. I hope this segment has been helpful
in getting you an idea of qualified things like that
what you can do to build yourself up, to invest
in yourself. We work with credit scores as low as
five forty. So anyways, enough about mortgages. Four O ninety
(39:36):
six six nineteen oh one. As I finished my little
eight minute segment here, I do want to mention Beaumont
Community Players, Southeast Texas Stages. Charlie in the Chocolate Factory
is going on right now. You can get tickets for
this coming weekend, so check it out Southeast Stages dot com.
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory shameless plug for Beaumont Community
(39:58):
Players and my daughter's a play, so obviously I have
to push it and I'm super excited about that. Folks.
More coming up on the roy West Show. Thank you
for listening and we will talk soon. Be right back
on the roy West Show. Welcome back to the Royal
West Show. It's time for a two minute wrap up.
We kicked off the show with Vincent the Filipino Association,
(40:21):
talking about their event that they're having on June eighth,
from nine o'clock till I think it was five o'clock.
It's gonna be a great time. They're gonna have food
trucks out there, they're gonna have music. Maybe it's just
gonna be great. Get out there, have fun. That's on
June eighth. That is the Southeast Texas Asian Festival. It's
gonna be a great time. And then we got to
(40:42):
move into a conversation with April Tolbert talking about insurance,
hurricane season, the importance of knowing your coverage, folks. I
see it every day in my line of work. Make
sure you know what kind of coverage you have. Make
sure it's the right kind of coverage for you. Nobody
likes surprises when it comes to insurance and coverage. So
reach out to April Tolbert today find out all the
(41:04):
things you need to know about insurance. Then we got
to talk to the one and only Haley with Gomont PD.
Always such a good time, right, I mean, she just
kills it every single time we talk. She's got great information,
great value. Shout out to crime stoppers if you want
to make an out on his tip, check them out. Folks,
don't leave your guns in your car, lock your cars
(41:25):
at night. Do smart things, right. I mean, we're coming
to the summer, there's gonna be more kids out in
the streets and all the fun things that that entails.
But I mean, just be smart and watch your surroundings.
Things like that great interview. Haley always does a wonderful job.
Then you got to listen to me talk about mortgages.
I mean, who doesn't want to talk about mortgages, right,
I mean it's fine, it's great, it's great time to buy.
It always a great time to buy. Use a local lender,
(41:46):
Roy West team and build mortgage. Shout out to them.
You know, if you have any questions about mortgages, just
give them a shout. Today the show is actually brought
to you by the roy West team of Guild Mortgage
always reached them at four zer nine eighty sixty six
zero one. Folks, what a great show, so much fun,
love doing it. Love y'all, stay classy Beaumont. Have a
(42:07):
great week, no, make it a great week. Talk soon.
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