Mortgage Law, Appraisals & Money

Check out this special edition!

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
The views and opinions expressed by the participants on this
show are not necessarily those of Stuart Information Services Corporation,
Stewart Title, or Stewart Insurance. Before you make any investment,
you should seek the advice of your investment advisor or attorney.

Speaker 2 (00:13):
Whether you're a real estate broker, realtor homeowner, buyer or seller,
everything matters when it comes to real estate. This is
Real Estate Matters with Stoare Title, Steware Titles. Bill Knapik
and guests open the door to what really matters in owning, buying,
and selling real estate. And now Real Estate Matters with
Stoare Title, brought to you by Stuart Insurance, here to inform,

(00:38):
entertain and inspire.

Speaker 3 (00:39):
Bill Knabek, Welcome to the show. It is Real Estate
Matters with Stewart Title. I'm your host, Bill Nappik. That's right.
Thanks for joining us this wonderful holiday weekend. The best
wishes to you and yours wherever you're listening, certainly right
here in Houston, Texas. We remind people to go to
Stewart dot com, Forward Slash Radio Stuart dot com, Forward

(01:01):
Slash Radio. That's right in case you want to check
out the show again, see the guests, see the YouTube video,
or go to past shows. It's easy Stewart dot com,
Forward Slash Radio. Let's get down to business as we
welcome Claire Barber. She's the principal attorney at her firm
called Barber Law. Claire, welcome to the show.

Speaker 4 (01:24):
Thank you, bell I appreciate your invitation, honored to be
here today.

Speaker 3 (01:27):
Well, we're excited to see you and to hear a
little bit about your profession and what you're doing in
the real estate world, especially in mortgage law. So let's
tell people, Claire about your firm.

Speaker 5 (01:37):
So, Barbara Law.

Speaker 4 (01:38):
Is a woman owned and managed firm here in Houston, Texas.
We provide comprehensive document preparation services and general legal counsel
to mortgage lenders and title companies throughout Texas. In Texas specifically,
we have a statutory requirement that our clients must use
a licensed state attorney to prepare or review loan documents

(02:02):
or any illegal instruments related to the transfer of title.
So we're talking warranty deeds, deeds of trust, promisory notes,
releases of leans. So that is really our specialty and expertise.
So much fun stuff oh yeah, all the time.

Speaker 3 (02:15):
Well, let's tell people, and I love your website because
the catchphrases on there. Let's tell people how your firm
raises the bar in your profession.

Speaker 5 (02:24):
Yes, thank you for noticing that.

Speaker 4 (02:26):
I'll have to give a quick shout out to my
mom because I'm sure she'll be listening. But that was
something she came up with, and I just love it
because it really encompasses who we are as a company.
We understand the unique challenges of lending and just real
estate law generally in Texas, and so I wanted to
create Barber Law on the foundation that we were going
to provide exceptional service to our mortgage lender clients and

(02:49):
our title company clients. So what does that mean in practice?
It means that we are approachable. We believe that people
should come first. I think a lot of times in
real estate the transaction is just centered around the formalities
and the transaction itself instead of the people. So my
goal was to remember that people are at the center
of every transaction, and that's something that we try to

(03:11):
keep at the forefront of everything we do.

Speaker 5 (03:13):
We also looked at the whole process of.

Speaker 4 (03:15):
What we do in serving our clients and tried to
come up with processes that made our services more affordable,
more secure, more efficient. And so that's part of our
core values and how we raise the bar in mortgage law.

Speaker 3 (03:29):
And let's define for those that aren't as familiar with
mortgage law as you are and your clients are. But
give people an idea mortgage law. When does it come
into place? And what are the elements and considerations and
mortgage law.

Speaker 4 (03:41):
Yeah, that's a great question. It's actually something they don't
teach you in law school. I often joke with people
that no one ever taught me who Fanny May was.
In fact, I didn't learn that it was actually a
GSC until I went home after the first day of
worked in googled who.

Speaker 5 (03:54):
Is Fannie May?

Speaker 4 (03:55):
But mortgage law is really for us the intersection of
real estate law and corporate or business law.

Speaker 3 (04:00):
And also as far as as we look ahead, here
we are the last couple weeks of the year, and
I understand you do have a crystal ball. We were
wondering and waiting for a guest to have one. So
let's tell people as you look ahead in twenty twenty five,
what do you see in the lookout here?

Speaker 4 (04:16):
Sure, so it's a very exciting year. The twenty twenty
five Texas legislative session is upcoming. I think it starts
on January fourteen, so we're definitely looking forward to that.
Today I did write down before I came here to
the show this morning. There have been over twenty two
hundred bills filed, so we expect a very exciting, fast
paced legislative session upcoming. Some of the hot topics that

(04:38):
we're seeing in real estate right now would be home
equity lending. There was a bill refiled from the twenty
twenty three session that covers where a home equity loan
can close. It's always been a constitutional requirement that it
closed at the office of the title company, the lender,
or an attorney at law. The issue is that is
that sometimes you'll have someone a borrower who is either

(04:58):
disabled or maybe incarcerated and can't make it to the
closing at one of those three locations. So we have
seen a bill refiled on that this session. I also
expect to see some very interesting progress with foreign ownership
for the listeners who maybe haven't haven't experienced or heard
much about this legislation. In twenty twenty three, there was
a push for a bill that would restrict who can

(05:20):
own land in the state of Texas, and they really
defined it as hostile countries think North Korea, Irene, Russia, China.
We've already seen seven bills filed on that legislation this year.
We expect to see more, so stay tuned on that.
And another hot topic I'll just mention briefly is artificial intelligence.
We expect to see it have some impact and mortgage lending,

(05:41):
and I think the same will be true for the
title underwriting process, maybe even real property records. So that'll
be interesting to follow in the coming months.

Speaker 3 (05:51):
Fascinating things and just it's interesting that you look at
the year from a legislative session kind of idea, and
most people don't. But that's why we heard you when
we need help. And in that idea, people that are
in the mortgage profession and the title profession, what are
the things that they should look for when hiring your
company like yourselves, to make sure that they get the

(06:11):
right representation and they're hiring someone as awesome as you are.
Claire Barber, thank you.

Speaker 5 (06:17):
Yeah.

Speaker 4 (06:18):
So, I mean, you know, a law firm provides a service, right,
and so when you're going to hire any type of service,
I think you should hire the service that is best
for you. And so what does that mean for me?
I think lenders title companies need to look for the
law firm that provides the best service for them, and
so we're very forward thinking when it comes to technology.
We train our staff and our team to be problem solvers,

(06:41):
to pick up the phone to ask questions. And again,
at the end of the day, it's all about serving
our clients and providing exceptional service.

Speaker 3 (06:47):
And when we think about your clients from a geographic standpoint, Claire,
what are the area where do you work? Specifically? You're
certainly right here in Houston, Texas, But how far do
you go out?

Speaker 5 (06:57):
We serve all of Texas.

Speaker 4 (06:58):
I would say about a percent of our business is
Texas focus, but we do work with lenders and title
companies nationwide.

Speaker 3 (07:05):
And also in giving back, you're also active in the community.
I understand. Let's tell people some of the things you're
doing there and how you're connected.

Speaker 2 (07:12):
Yeah.

Speaker 5 (07:12):
Absolutely.

Speaker 4 (07:13):
The mortgage industry has been so good to me and
so I really strive to give back where I can.
In one of those ways is serving on the board
of the Houston Mortgage Bankers Association. It's funny how now
today some of my closest personal friends are people that
I met professionally, and those two areas of my life
have really just merged. Most recently, I would share that
we had a holiday party for the Houston Mortgage Bankers

(07:36):
Association group and we were able to raise money and
pick a charity here in Houston that we were able
to support with the money raised at that event. And
so I'm just really proud to be a member of
the HMBA and even Texas Mortgage Bankers Association as well.
I would encourage any listeners that are wanting to get
more involved in the real estate or mortgage industry to

(07:58):
get involved in one of these local association state associations.
Same thing with the Texas Land Title Association. I know
that's a great group over there. It's a great way
to get connected in their very unique special.

Speaker 3 (08:10):
Groups and clear of all the things you could be
doing here. You are in the legal profession, especially helping
in mortgage law. But what was it that inspired you
to be for this to be your profession?

Speaker 4 (08:21):
Oh goodness, Well, I graduated law school in a year
that there wasn't much going on in the job market,
and so my first interview ended up being the first
job that I took.

Speaker 5 (08:30):
It was in the mortgage industry. And you know, it's funny.

Speaker 4 (08:32):
People have always said you either are born into the
mortgage industry or you somehow accidentally fall into it, and
so I guess I would be part of the second category.
But I can't imagine myself, you know, anywhere else. I
think throughout my childhood, I was raised in a family
of four girls and was always told that I was
a great arguer. So I thought the legal industry and
being an attorney was my route, and so just thrilled

(08:55):
to be in the mortgage industry and where I'm at.

Speaker 3 (08:56):
Today, also in the real estate profession and in real
estate trends actions. As you were talking about things that
are upcoming, there are so many details to a transaction,
so I would think those elements keep you busy. But
going back to the AI, tell us a little bit more,
how you think that's going to unfold, Because we've never
heard so much. It's been around, but we've never heard

(09:18):
so much about it since in the last six months,
it's been incredible how much we hear about AI.

Speaker 5 (09:24):
Right and I think that's it's really broad, right.

Speaker 4 (09:26):
We have AI, we're talking about, we have cybersecurity issues,
we're talking about, we have blockchain. I was fortunate to
serve on a blockchain work group back in twenty twenty
one and twenty twenty two and actually study blockchain for
the State of Texas and figured out how Texas state
agencies companies could use blockchain and AI to be more efficient,
to offer better services.

Speaker 5 (09:47):
And so, you know, who knows where it'll go.

Speaker 4 (09:49):
I think in the mortgage space and also real estate
we'll see it and improving our processes, you know, I
hope not you know, taking away jobs, but just making
us more efficient in what we do. You know, we
hear a lot of about the cost of home ownership
being a huge expense to borrowers and a challenge, a
barrier to entry, a barrier to home ownership. And so
if we could take AI and use it to improve

(10:10):
our processes to decrease some of those costs, I think
it would be a win win for both the companies
and the bar wers, the consumers that we have the
honor of serving every day.

Speaker 3 (10:19):
And you mentioned blockchain real quick as far as an
easy definition for those that don't know, let's defined blockchain.

Speaker 4 (10:26):
Gosh, well, I like to think of it as magic,
so you know, just it's a decentralized ledger that is
basically a storage a form of storage of data, and
the best thing about it is is transparent and so
everyone that's ever been on the blockchain can see what
the ledger holds, what's coming in, what's coming out. When
I served on this work group that I mentioned earlier,

(10:48):
I was in charge of the record keeping systems, which
for the state included real property records. So if you
think of it in that context, being able to see
who initially owned a property, where it's been transferred along
the blockchain, any mortgages, or leans that may be on
the property, it would all be stored on the blockchain
and be publicly accessible, but also a very secure way.

Speaker 5 (11:10):
Of housing data.

Speaker 3 (11:12):
So awesome to learn about things like this. We're talking
with Claire Barber. She is the principal attorney at Barber Law. Claire,
before we close the segment, what else do you want
people to know?

Speaker 5 (11:22):
Like I said, I think getting involved is very important.

Speaker 4 (11:26):
We love serving our clients, our mortgage companies and title
companies here in Texas. I'd love an opportunity to work
with our listeners. Please feel free to reach out to me.
I'm very active on LinkedIn. You can find me there,
Claire Barber, or on our website Barber LAWPLLC dot com.
Please send me a message, give me a phone call,
reach out. I'd love to hear from you.

Speaker 3 (11:44):
And the website again is Barber.

Speaker 5 (11:47):
Law p l LC dot com.

Speaker 3 (11:50):
And your phone number Claire is.

Speaker 4 (11:52):
Seven one three three two four eight zero six zero
seven one three three two four eight zero six zero.

Speaker 3 (12:00):
Thanks for being with us.

Speaker 4 (12:01):
Thank you so much, Bill, I appreciate it.

Speaker 3 (12:03):
As we continue, let's talk to Mike brew Baker. His
company is brew Baker and Associates. He is the president. Mike,
welcome to the show.

Speaker 6 (12:11):
Thanks for having me.

Speaker 7 (12:12):
Bill.

Speaker 3 (12:12):
Well, here we are. You are a legend right here
in Houston, Texas. Brew Baker and Associates. I've seen you
at many talks sharing information about about your company and
the appraisal itself. But let's tell people Brew Baker and
Associates about your company.

Speaker 6 (12:27):
So we're an all purpose real estate appraisal firm real
estate appraisal. What we do is we value properties. We
provide an opinion of value. And folks say, well, what
all can you appraise?

Speaker 8 (12:39):
I tell people I praise.

Speaker 6 (12:41):
Anything and sit still long enough. We don't do cars,
we don't do art that kind of thing. But if
it's real property, we appraise it. We don't do big
commercial things. There's other firms that specialize in that, so
I don't do that. Most of our work is residential
and farm and ranch and all these small sort of

(13:03):
mom and pop business buildings, that kind of thing.

Speaker 3 (13:06):
And I'm glad as you mentioned farm and ranch and
even commercial. It's interesting that when we think of appraisal,
there are so many different type of things to a praise.
In your world, Oh my god, it has to be
very interesting.

Speaker 6 (13:16):
Yes, yes, and even within the residential arena, you've got
everything from you know, years ago we appraised a building.
It was the Texas White House. So and you know
a lot of folks say, well, we want three comparable sales.
That's how you figure out what something's worth. We have
so many properties we've appraised, there's nothing like it. And

(13:40):
that's really where we get an awful lot of calls.
A lot of my referrals really come from other appraisers,
some of them call me and say, well, we have
something we need an appraisal on. And so where'd you
get my name? That's why I call so and so
he's another appraiser. He says, no, no, we don't do that.
You need Brewbaker. So we've done this a long time,
a wide variety of things.

Speaker 3 (14:01):
And when you say a long time, it's just about
to say say how many years, because it's quite a few.
It's a few. It's forty two years, all in Houston, Texas,
all in Houston. We opened up Breebaker and Associates in
nineteen eighty eight, but I started appraising prior to that.
I have no desire to retire. I really loved the business.

Speaker 6 (14:25):
So my suspicion is ten years from now we'll be
saying I've been doing it for fifty two years.

Speaker 3 (14:30):
And who are the people that call an appraiser, just
as someone's listening out there in the real estate world
or otherwise, when do we call an appraiser? And typically
who is the person that makes the call to say, hey,
we need your services.

Speaker 6 (14:42):
Yep, you know, there's basically two different groups here. If
you're buying a home and getting a mortgage, the lender
is going to choose the appraiser, don't they, So the
lender's going to choose. The buyer's not going to be
able to call me. The seller not going to be
able to call me if the purpose of the appraisal

(15:03):
is for mortgage lending, if the purpose of the appraisal
is anything else. And some folks don't understand this because
they've been told they're not allowed to pick an appraiser.
But you know, we do all kinds of appraisals for divorces,
things that aren't necessarily happy estates. We get a lot

(15:25):
of calls. There's a large number, and I don't know
the exact number now, but it's twenty some odd percent,
maybe higher than that. Where our purchases are cash purchases
these days, and even those buyers will come to us
and they'll say, you know, I don't mind paying fifty
thousand too much for a house, but I don't want
to pay three hundred thousand too much for house. So

(15:48):
they'll get an appraisal. We'll get sellers that will want
an appraisal because they don't have a clue what their
property is worth. Towards the really ugly side, we do
an awful lot of litigation and support, and that's everything,
and this becomes very complex sorts of appraisals. These are
appraisals that take months long and are infinitely more expensive

(16:10):
than a standard appraisal. But construction defects, we've done things,
title companies, miss something, easements, toxic wastes, hazardous materials that
are left on properties, some pretty complex stuff. So we

(16:32):
get into all that.

Speaker 3 (16:33):
Always interesting, Mike, I mean, just as you describe it,
there's so many different configurations and things that you're approaching
every day.

Speaker 8 (16:41):
That's why I love it.

Speaker 6 (16:42):
That's why I love it because it is it's a
problem solving business, and for an awful lot of the properties,
it's a unique problem. Now there's the you know, you
could say, well in a subdivision out and Katie, all
the homes look alike. That's pretty easy to appraise. And
I agree if you're just appraising for a value as
of today. But we got a call the other day,

(17:05):
true story. It's for in a state and I don't
know how they hadn't figured this out, but they need
a value of a property as of data death and
that was in April of two thousand and four. So
those are we get an awful lot of that where
as of data death and they didn't know they needed it,
and whether it was their tax attorney or CPA or

(17:28):
maybe even the IRS says, you know, we need this
value as of data death. Technically they call that a
retrospective appraisal. We do that all the time. It's a
normal part of our business.

Speaker 3 (17:40):
And going back to as you said a minute ago
about the cash buyre if I'm a cash buyer and
I want to get an idea of the value of
the house, if it's worth what they've accepted. Maybe I
guess during the option period that cash buyer can call
you and you can go look at the property. Oh, absolutely,
have that a common thing?

Speaker 6 (18:00):
You know what, It's very common. It's very common. I
think people want somebody else's opinion because the purchase of
real estate is very very personal, and some folks say,
you know, I want somebody to look at it from
a professional level. I love the house, but again I
don't want to spend too much money on it, so

(18:21):
we'd get those costs quite a bit.

Speaker 3 (18:22):
Yes. In fact, as you're describing that, I'm thinking someone
maybe from another state that doesn't even have a feel
for what's going on here except just a little bit
that could be of even extra value to someone like that.

Speaker 6 (18:34):
Absolutely, I don't know if you recall, but during COVID
we had people buying home sight unseen sight unseen, and
they were coming from different states, and what they had
was videos that were done by a realtor or somebody,
and we'd get calls from out of state, Yeah, can
you go buy and give us an appraisal on this property.

Speaker 3 (18:53):
Absolutely really would come in handy to situations or configurations.
Let's say a quote normal high house with a regular
lot twenty five hundred square feet in a neighborhood, not
all real type, but a little bit of elbow room.
The mechanics of the appraisal, how long would something like
that take? And then give us an idea of let's

(19:14):
say a typical quote farm and ranch appraisal. How long
would that take?

Speaker 6 (19:19):
So you know, you measure it in hours, but it
usually ends up taking days. I think a standard appraisal
report on a typical home and a typical neighborhood, you're
about eight hours in total work. But the reality is
is by the time somebody calls us, then we have
to range appointments to get out and see the property.

(19:40):
And if it's for a mortgage loan, then we're probably
working with a realtor or a seller to get out
and visit the property. So now their schedules and our
schedules have to mesh. So when it you know, it's
eight hours total, but you're probably going to be three
to five business days before it's action done and ready

(20:01):
to be delivered. On the farming ranch, you know, they
answered all appraisal questions is how hard it is and
how much does it cost? Well, it depends, it depends, right,
And I've said that for years. I've made a good
living saying it depends, made a real good living, calling
myself appraiser extraordinary too. And after saying it for forty years,
there's three or four people that believe that. But a

(20:23):
farming you know, once you get into ranch properties, and
let's just imagine something that's give or take a thousand acres.
Now you've got soils, grasses, farm animals. We don't appraise
the animals, but the land, the soil has to be
appropriate for whatever need that buyer may want. If you're

(20:46):
down in Matagorda County, that's cattle and rice. If you're
out in the hill country, that's more likely to be
horses and gentlemen ranches. And if you're way out in
West Texas, that's hunting. So those things are going to
take I would tell you ten to fifteen business days

(21:06):
from start to finish usually.

Speaker 3 (21:09):
And on the extraordinary moniker, let's tell people at least
one or two things which make Brewbaker and associates in
that league.

Speaker 6 (21:20):
I'm just going to say, experience you can get. I
have the highest level of certification that's offered by the
state as real estate appraiser. The requirements to get that
certification take about two years. And I was actually in
a praiser before we had state licensing and certification. None
of that existed back then, so what you had to

(21:42):
sell was your customer service, skill, knowledge ability. But over time,
it's the experience you've seen and you've never seen everything.
Trust me on this, I learned.

Speaker 3 (21:58):
That keeps you going right.

Speaker 6 (22:00):
And that's again part of the fund exactly. But you
learn something new every day. So all of our appraisers,
you know. So I'm sixty nine years old, forty two
years experience and still loving the business. Most of the
appraisers in my shop look just like me. You know,

(22:20):
they may not. Some of them have over forty years experience.
We've got two folks over there that have been around
longer than I have, but they're all twenty twenty five,
thirty years of experience.

Speaker 3 (22:31):
We're talking with Mike Brewbaker. He's the president of brew
Baker and Associates. Mike, as you look ahead, you and
the team at your company look ahead the twenty twenty
five what are you seeing that's before us here in
this next year?

Speaker 6 (22:44):
So for us, it just gets more and more interesting again,
the phone calls on the really strange stuff, the litigation support,
the unique properties relative to Houston in general. I think
we're going to have a phenomenal I think people are
finally two and three percent interest rates were artificial rates.

(23:08):
They should have really never happened. But I'm not going
to get into that. I bought my first house in
the mid seventies. I paid eight and eighth percent. That
was my interest rate and was happy to get that
because it was going up to eight and a quarter,
and by nineteen eighty two it was eighteen percent was

(23:28):
a standard rate for a mortgage line. We're in at
whatever you want to call it these days, six to
seven percent. That is a great interest rate. It's a
very normal interest rate, and I think people are finally
acclimating to that. So as people acclimate to a normal

(23:49):
interest rate and kind of get back into the market,
I think overall we're going to do very well. We
continue to generate jobs here in Houston. It's one thing
this town does very well. We will probably have listened
to an awful lot of economists. We're gonna generate between
fifty five and seventy five thousand jobs in twenty twenty five,

(24:11):
which means they all need homes.

Speaker 3 (24:14):
No doubt about it. Mike. Let's tell people how they
can reach Brew Baker and Associates.

Speaker 6 (24:20):
Okay, phone number seven one three for six four four
six sixty six. Seven one three four six four four
six sixty six. Find us on the web if it's
BREWBAKERAMC dot com, or if you just google Brewbaker Appraiser,
you're gonna find me.

Speaker 3 (24:41):
It's gonna come up. Thank you so much. One more time,
the phone number, Mike.

Speaker 6 (24:44):
Seven one three four six four for six sixty six.
Talk to one of the four lovely ladies that answers.

Speaker 3 (24:51):
Mike Brewbaker, thanks for being with us, Mike, thank you, Bill,
And speaking of money, here he is Paul Vincent with
Prime Blending. Hey, Paul, welcome to the show.

Speaker 7 (25:01):
Well, I thank you very much Bill for having me.

Speaker 3 (25:04):
Well, first of all, let's tell people about Prime Lending.

Speaker 7 (25:07):
Yes, sir, so, Prime Lending is a national lender. We
are owned by Hilltop Holdings. We are three legged stools,
so to speak. So we are Prime Lending, Planes, Capital Bank,
and Hilltop Securities.

Speaker 3 (25:21):
And your role at the company, Paul, Oh, I.

Speaker 7 (25:23):
Am a mortgage banker and have been for it will
be thirty one years in March.

Speaker 3 (25:28):
That's awesome. Yes, So you've seen a lot of interesting
things in the lending world, and you've seen a lot
of changes. I would think I have.

Speaker 7 (25:36):
I've seen rates in the ones and I've seen rates
as high as the nine. So the one thing that's
constantly changing in the mortgage industry is change, and that's guidelines.
What people qualified for back then may not qualify for today.
And that's the one great thing about Prime Lending is
that we have a product for just about almost anyone

(25:58):
and outside of you know, someone with damaged credit, we've
got some creative mortgage products where we don't use tax returns.
We'll use bank statements, we'll use deposits to qualify. We'll
use asset depletion for someone who's got money and institutions
but doesn't have income reported on the tax returns. So

(26:20):
it's a whole new world. It's certainly not subprime back
in eight. These are for well qualified, credited borrowers.

Speaker 3 (26:28):
And we hear so much. I mean, we're always hearing
about interest rates, right and even as we record today,
a few days from now, there's there's news that could
be transpiring. Absolutely, give us an idea what you think
in terms that we hear people saying the rate's going
to come down, Well, give us an idea what you
think is going to happen. Is it going to come down,

(26:49):
and is it going to be a significant drop if
if you feel that way.

Speaker 7 (26:52):
Perfect, Yes, thanks Bill, so great question. So we are
in what is very unique right now. When the made
the first rate cut back in September, when they cut
the prime landing rate a half a point, rates went up.
When they did the next rate cut in October November,
I'm sorry, the rates went up. And so it is

(27:14):
believed that the Federal Reserve will lower the prime landing
rate by a quarter of a point. But if we
look at history over the last three months, we could
see rates take a slight bump up. It was believed
that we were going to see six to eight cuts
next year, and that has been whittled down to maybe three,

(27:34):
at best four rate cuts in the new year. I
think the big key is inflation is not as low
as the Federal Reserve wants to see it. We're hovering
around three point three and we've got some federal debt
that's going to come due next year. You've got investors
looking at going into mortgage buying where you could have foreclosures,

(27:57):
you could have late pays, or you could buy reserve
federal government debt where you know you're going to be paid.
I think rates where they are now in the mid
sixes will become a welcome trend if you will. I
don't think we'll see rates go back into the sevens.
I think if we could see rates go under six

(28:17):
hover in the mid fives, then we'd see a lot
of activity stir. There's a lot of pin up demand.
You've got people in low rates. I know I'm in
a fifteen year at one point eight seven five. So
if you had people who are in those low rates
but don't necessarily want to be in the home that
they're in, when we get rates that are maybe three

(28:38):
points higher as opposed to five points higher, then we'll
see that demand come up.

Speaker 3 (28:43):
It's interesting that you said the fives, because you might
have been reading my mind. I was thinking of the
number five, and then as I thought about talking with you, though,
I think the number five seems like that's a number,
and you mentioned pin up demand, it seems like that's
a number that could really start astir So.

Speaker 7 (29:03):
Absolutely absolutely, and so I know rates again, Right before
the Federal Reserve met in September, the thirty year fixed
rate had fallen to five point sixty two five so
five and five eights, and the applications had ticked up tremendously.
So right now, we're in what's called a buyer's market.
So you've got a lot of inventory sitting, and so

(29:27):
you've got sellers competing against themselves, meaning they're lowering their
price because they're not getting enough showings. I think when
we get rates below six, we'll see a lot of
that demand kickoff, not only for people who are sitting
on the fence waiting for rates to fall, but people
who are in mortgages right now that just want a
different home. But you've got the people that say, well,

(29:51):
I'm going to wait till rates fall and waiting till
rates fall. Yes, you're going to get a lower rate,
but will you pay higher for them home? And that's
what I believe will happen is when that pin up
demand kicks off, it becomes a seller's market. Sellers will
be able to ask more for their home, well rates rates.

Speaker 3 (30:12):
Yes. In fact, I had someone ask me over the weekend.
I work for Stewart Title. I'm a title company, but
I'm in the real estate world, and I had so
much just that, hey, well, what are the rates going
to do? I'm like, I have no idea, but I said, yeah,
my guess is maybe the fives. But I'm not even
in the mortgage banking world. You are how many times
a week is someone asking you what are the rates

(30:34):
going to do? Or what are the rates?

Speaker 7 (30:35):
Over and over and in the world that we live in,
you know, news gets displayed or carried across in different channels.
But when the news finally advertised rates have fallen, it's
three or four days after they actually fell, and the
market's probably repriced for the worse if we go back

(30:58):
into current history. So, you know, I think with the
new administration coming in with a pro business model, you're
going to see a lot of investors starting to get
back into the market where they'll be, you know, cautiously
pursuing investing into real estate, which could possibly lead for

(31:20):
a more dynamic mortgage rate into the five.

Speaker 3 (31:24):
We're talking with Paul Vincent, he's with Prime Lending. What
are some of the in terms of down payment regardless
of what the rates are. Give us an idea what
you're seeing saying the last ten loans that you're serving
people with, what kind of down payments have they put
down on average?

Speaker 7 (31:40):
If you would so, on average, my client base typically
will do anywhere between ten to twenty percent. But again,
if you're a first time home buyer doing a conventional mortgage,
you can get in it with as a little ass
three percent. But there's a lot of down payment assistance
programs out there literally that you can get into a
home with no money. You know, it is a unique

(32:02):
time to be pursuing a Mortgagital will tell you. And
if you've been told no in the past, I think
you should revisit that because guidelines have changed, and they've
changed for the positive not for the negative.

Speaker 3 (32:16):
Give us a word about down payment assistance. I would
guess you would know, but there may be people that
don't even know that there is a down payment assistant.
Sure does it work.

Speaker 7 (32:27):
So down payment assistance is based off of the loan amounts.
So if you're borrowing a two hundred, if your loan
amount's going to be two hundred thousand dollars, you can
get up to a five percent down payment assistant. So
that means we would give you ten thousand dollars to
go towards your down payment. Your minimum down payment would
be six thousand, so the ten thousand gets divvied up

(32:47):
between down payment and closing costs. You can then even
add seller concessions to where the would be buyer brings
no money to the table.

Speaker 3 (32:57):
So many things, and so when you're helping in an
individual or a family, a couple, you really there's so
many things to help tailor their situation so they make
the right moves mortgage wise. So you're counseling a lot,
I would think absolutely absolutely.

Speaker 7 (33:13):
And one of the ways to get around high interest
rates right now is if you've got a seller who's
got a home that's been sitting on the market, rather
than the seller reducing the price of the home, we
can have the seller pay what's called a temporary buydown.
So you have what's called like a two to one
temporary buydown. That means for the first year, the rate's

(33:35):
two points lower than the locked in rate. Year two,
the rates one point lower than the locked in rate.
Years three through thirty it goes to the locked in rate.
So if you lock in a rate today at six
and a half, your first year your rate could be
four and a half, gets that payment down, but it's
not costing you money the seller's pay.

Speaker 3 (33:54):
And Paul, you've been in the profession over thirty years,
what is it that keeps you added about it day
in and day out.

Speaker 7 (34:02):
Well, A, it's the pleasure and the honor of getting
people into a home that is fulfilling. But the industry,
every barrower is different, and the industry has so many guidelines.
So it's taking what that borrower's story is and finding
a product that fits their needs and getting them into

(34:22):
their dream home.

Speaker 3 (34:24):
And what else should people know as they may not
buy a home every seven years, whatever their situation is,
if they haven't purchased a home in a while or
borrowed money for a purchase, what should they know now
at the end of this year, at the very end
and looking ahead for next year, what should they know
in terms of being ready to do the process?

Speaker 7 (34:46):
So, yeah, one of the biggest benefits is getting it's
making sure that you're pre approved for that mortgage. The
last thing you want to do is go out and
find the home of your dream and only to find
out that you don't qualify. So when working with a
mortgage lender, you want to first start off with, you know,
a soft credit poll. There's no reason to do a
hard credit poll and ding the borrow worst credit score.

(35:08):
Let's look at that credit. Let's say maybe they've had
a little bit of a challenging year or two, they've
gone through some life change, and we've got to work
on their credit. We can do what's called a rapid
rescore where we take their current credit and we rescore
it in as little as five business days and bring
their score up to a more desirable level, which will

(35:29):
obviously benefit their interest rate. So again it's getting pre
approved first and foremost, let's let yourself know what you're
qualified for. And it's like a blank check when you
go out and start looking at homes.

Speaker 3 (35:42):
Paul Vincent Prime Lending. Right now, people are out there
and they say, I think I want to call this
Paul Vincent with all these years of experience to help
me and or my family secure a loan. What should
people do?

Speaker 7 (35:54):
Paul, Yes, you can call me at two eight one
eight two seven eleven thirty nine, or you can email
me at Paul DoD Vincent at prime lending dot com
two eight one eight two seven eleven thirty nine.

Speaker 3 (36:09):
Paul, thanks for being with us.

Speaker 7 (36:11):
Thank you Bill.

Speaker 3 (36:12):
Real estate matters with Stuart Title would not be possible
without our partner Stewart Insurance. With a focus in real
estate and a special focus on real estate brokers. Stewart
Insurance creates insurance plans to address the risks facing our
industry today. They invest a significant amount of time helping
real estate broker owners offset and manage their risks. Here

(36:33):
he is once again with a very important and sought
after insurance segment. John Bramle with Stuart Insurance. John, welcome back.

Speaker 8 (36:41):
Thank you Bill. Always a pleasure.

Speaker 3 (36:43):
Well here we are. What an array of interesting things
that we've already talked about so far, and yet the
icing on the cake, somehow is always Insurance.

Speaker 8 (36:54):
Well this has been This has been great because this
has been a friends show. It has and you've been
We'll tell people you have been. You are many things,
but you today you are have been the casting director
to assemble these giants in the in the industry. So
Mike and I have known each other for quite a
number of years, both active with the Houston Independent Real

(37:15):
Estate Brokers Association, and we're both on the board of
the Houston Mortgage Bankers Association. And that's where I met Claire,
and Claire's become a friend and really enjoy working with her.
And then Paul is a new friend, but he was
introduced to us by our friend Pammy Schwald, who we
both remember care a lot about. So it was really

(37:37):
exciting that today was truly a friend's show.

Speaker 3 (37:40):
It came together masterfully. You put it together in a
in a in a super way.

Speaker 8 (37:45):
Well it was. It was fun and it's always nice
to be with folks that not only you enjoy being
with but respect his professional.

Speaker 3 (37:52):
It's interesting too. I know the listeners love to hear
the insurance segment, but I bet your guests that you
have assembled today their second motivation was to say, I
want to hear what John has to.

Speaker 8 (38:01):
Say, exactly what I know. Mike mentioned that. Mike mentioned
that several times that that was important to him.

Speaker 3 (38:07):
Yeah.

Speaker 8 (38:07):
So, UH, today we're going to talk about intent, and
that intent is important when we're talking about insurance because
it's important that we understand whoever you're working with your
insurance advisor, whether it's with your personal insurance or for
your business insurance, that your advisor understands what the intent

(38:30):
is that you have for your coverage. And intent also
is important to understand the intent of the policy because
an insurance company, each policy has a different intent based
upon how it's written and who it's going to be
served who it's going to serve. So if we can
take the intent of the insured, the consumer, UH, and

(38:54):
then look at the intent of the insurer the insurance company,
and we can match those two together where they make
the most sense, then we'll have a client that's properly insured.
And everybody's definition of that is different that it's really
is what your coverage you need at this time in
your life, whether it be for your personal insurance or

(39:15):
your business insurance.

Speaker 3 (39:17):
No doubt, those two things must be in proper alignment.
And the associates at Stuart Insurance do that in a
tremendous way.

Speaker 8 (39:25):
Well, we do. I mean it's important to understand. I mean,
if it's a first time home buyer, you know their
intent would be, I need to have coverage in order
to get my loan. I need to have that right
a debt to income ratio to get my home. And
that's fantastic, and we can work with that, work with
them on getting a plan that's affordable. And as their

(39:48):
family grows, or is their needs grow as their home grows,
then we can work with them on adjusting those plans
to make sure that maybe at that point they have
they need more robust coverage. They have a bigger home
where they've got more personal property, they have another car,
or they have more drivers, and we can take all
of that into consideration, whether it's building up or they're downsizing.

(40:12):
Maybe they're downsizing and they don't need as much coverage,
or they do have some cash in the bank, So
maybe we look at higher deductibles, lower premiums to make
it more affordable because the individual can afford to cover
some of those issues on their own before they would
follow acclaim with the insurance company. So you know, we're

(40:34):
going to look at that from a personal perspective. Well,
also going to do that from a business perspective, because
again the intent of the policy depends upon the company itself.
There are some policies that are very generic, and they
can be generic for somebody that's in a general industry,

(40:54):
but if you're in a specific industry, like everybody that
we have on real estate matters in and around real estate,
you want to make sure you have a policy that's
written the intent is to ensure those that are in
the real estate world. So the language they use, the
type of things that they'll coverage, the type of services
they'll coverage, are very specific, where in a general policy

(41:15):
you won't see.

Speaker 3 (41:17):
And things are ever changing. In fact, John, I know
a guy that had two cars. He took those two
cars that were insured, of course, traded traded them in
for one car just so he'd have more room in
his garage.

Speaker 8 (41:31):
Can you imagine, No, I would love to have that opportunity.
You know, that would be fantastic. Man, I talking to
that guy. Yeah, I'll figure that out. Yeah, yeah, I went.
I wanted. I wanted to be that guy and get
that portion of seven eighteen. But I will work on that.
I'm just glad to have more room of the garage.
So which one did you keep?

Speaker 3 (41:49):
I didn't keep? I sold. I traded in two cars
and I got a whole different car. Okay, you know
what the not that you care, but it is kind
of fascinating of all the car transactions I ever had
in my life, I walked away from the car dealership
not paying a dime. It was even I traded two cars,

(42:09):
got a brand new one and didn't pay one cent
and I love the car.

Speaker 8 (42:13):
That's It's crazy Bill Nappick negotiations. Maybe that'll be our
first show in January.

Speaker 3 (42:19):
Well, it's a longer story introduced.

Speaker 8 (42:20):
We'll introduced the Bill napping negotiation tick.

Speaker 3 (42:23):
But it blew my mind anyway.

Speaker 8 (42:25):
That's no, that's fair, but it is. It is important
then make sure that you get that new car properly insured.

Speaker 3 (42:31):
But there you go. Everybody's thing changes, whether it's home cars.
Like you mentioned on other shows watercraft. It's we have
to be ready and be nimble and know what our
insurance needs are.

Speaker 8 (42:42):
That's right, because it really is. It's the intent of
the coverage. So if you're if we're helping somebody with
professional liability or Arizona missions coverage, the attent of the
policy should be just for that. So in case somebody
feels like you did not do your job as professional,
you've got some defense costs and some potential settlement claims.

(43:02):
What you want to avoid is sometimes we'll see multiple
coverages appiled into one policy. And while that's convenience and
it does provide some coverage that maybe you wouldn't have
had previously, the problem is if you get a claim
against one of those other policies or other areas of
coverage that are lumped into that policy, it does affect

(43:24):
the liability limit of the mainstream coverage, and then it
could affect the ensurability down the line. So again, understanding
what that intent is of the policy, understanding what the
intent is of the individual or the business, that allows
us to then find the right coverage for that individual.

Speaker 3 (43:41):
And I'm so glad you brought up the word intent
today because it is a great theme. But one of
the places the intent occurs is when you're on the
phone and people can actually call Steward Insurance. When you're
on the phone, it becomes communication. So when you talk
about your needs, your intention, and that the trained people
at Stuart Insurance when they hear that, they're experts at

(44:04):
knowing and asking the right questions. Thus the communication takes place,
so away we go to being properly insured.

Speaker 8 (44:12):
Well, I mean Claire mentioned it specifically and Paul and
Mike also spoke about it that that, you know, that's
really our point of difference. I mean, we're not the
only company that offers the plans and the policies from
the different partners we have. There are other independent insurance
brokers out there that work with the same companies that

(44:33):
we do. Now, there are some situations on the business
side where we have some unique coverages that not all
not everybody has access to access to. However, the big
difference are our advisors and the ability to take the
time to ask the right questions, the ability to understand
there are things that you can do to minimize that
risk so that when we do writ coverage the premium

(44:56):
could be a bit more affordable or in some cases
the things that you need to do in order to
minimize that risk in order to get coverage. So being
willing to have that conversation and work with somebody that's
going to take the time to make sure that you
understand that, and that that takes the time to be
an expert in real estate. And that's our mission is
to be the insurance real resource for real estate that

(45:18):
makes all the difference in the world.

Speaker 3 (45:20):
Well, John, fascinating stuff. What else should we know?

Speaker 8 (45:23):
Well, if you would like to be properly ensured, whether
that be as a family or an individual for your
home or your apartment, your investment property, your car, water craft,
we're able to help you out and you can reach
us at eight sixty six seven ninety eight two eight
two seven. On businesses, we work with law firms and
title and attorney agents of property management firms, realtors and

(45:45):
real estate brokers on their business insurance airs in a
mission cyber liability, general liability, workers compensation, and you can
also reach us at eight sixty six seven ninety eight
two eight two seven, and we'd be very happy to
help you out.

Speaker 3 (45:59):
John. The number again is.

Speaker 8 (46:00):
Eight six six seven nine eight two, eight two.

Speaker 3 (46:03):
So thank you so much, John Bramblet with Stewart Insurance.
Thank you, Bill, And she's back, Claire Barber with barber Law. Claire,
welcome back to the show.

Speaker 5 (46:11):
Thank you so much.

Speaker 3 (46:13):
Well, here we are winding down the show the last
few minutes. What else do you want people to know
about what you're doing and how you're helping people at
barber Law.

Speaker 6 (46:21):
Yeah.

Speaker 5 (46:21):
Absolutely.

Speaker 4 (46:21):
Just after hearing John speak, I'll just hit on this
one more time. Relationships matter so much in this business,
just like we talked earlier about our slogan raising the
bar and so I'm thankful to John for the opportunity
to be here in the relationship with him. Excited to
have a relationship with you now, Bill and get to
know you.

Speaker 3 (46:39):
Your friends are made every day right here, Knittt.

Speaker 5 (46:42):
I love it. This is great.

Speaker 4 (46:42):
I hope to come back again one day and tell
you more about the firm and how much we've grown
looking back in a couple of years.

Speaker 5 (46:49):
So I appreciate it.

Speaker 3 (46:51):
Well, give us an idea. Whatever profession someone's in, you're
in something that has a lot of complexities, and as
you said, like everybody in the real estate Profeshion building
relationships is so important, but a lot of details go
into it in addition to the building relationships, But how
do you stay balanced? How do you keep your mind

(47:12):
in the right mindset to be able to do so
many complicated things, build relationships and put that all together?
As you say, hey, we have a new year, and
you're all revved up for that, how do you put
that all together? What are your keys to success?

Speaker 4 (47:25):
A few of them if you would, Yeah, absolutely so.
Just the entrepreneurial spirit. It's something that I'm very thankful
to have, you know, just having that grit and that
tenacity that the problem solving mentality, like I mentioned earlier,
has been super important for us. I think that's part
of why the firm has been so successful. You know,
January will be two years since we opened, and I

(47:46):
look back and think of how far we've come and
where we're headed into twenty twenty five. But I also
think just surrounding yourself with the right people. I have
great mentors, I have great coaches, great colleagues. I could
just go on and on and about all the people
who have supported me.

Speaker 5 (48:02):
In my journey.

Speaker 4 (48:02):
And so you know, it's like they say, so you're
most like the five people you surround yourself with, and
I really buy into that, and so I really am
just truly thankful to be part.

Speaker 5 (48:13):
Of this industry.

Speaker 3 (48:15):
Very inspiring. Now outside, if you have any spare time
when you're not in the world of mortgage law at
your law firm, Barber Law, what do you did one
wind or relax?

Speaker 5 (48:27):
I'm unwine. I'm a runner, Yes, I am a runner.
My husband I enjoy traveling.

Speaker 4 (48:33):
We have a three year old, have Anese puppy, which
is organized chaos, I like to say, but we try to,
you know, finding that work life balance is a challenge,
as everyone knows, especially post COVID. I feel like, but
you know, just try to use that time to be together,
be with family, nieces and nephews, and it's just great.

Speaker 3 (48:54):
And they have an eese puppy just you describe a puppy.
So that's still in training, I would think, right it
takes a while. From the puppy standpoint.

Speaker 5 (49:02):
It shouldn't.

Speaker 4 (49:03):
But you know, I kind of slocked on the obedience
training at the beginning. I take four responsibility for that.
But it's funny you mentioned the website earlier. He's even
mentioned on the website so you know Buzz Barber. He's
you know, my pride and joy.

Speaker 3 (49:16):
But ask you his name. His name's Buzz. Yes, Buzz
might be listening to the show. The tails signs wagon.
That's right. We know that dogs when they hear the show,
the tails wag even more. It's been scientifically proven. Well,
Claire Barber, thank you for being with us one more time.
Let's tell people how they can reach your firm.

Speaker 4 (49:35):
Yes, please connect with me Claire Barber on LinkedIn send
me a message. You can also find me online Barber
lawp LLC dot com and there you'll find my email
and the firm's phone number.

Speaker 5 (49:47):
Please reach out. I'd love to hear from your listeners.

Speaker 3 (49:51):
Easy name. But remember Barber Law, raising the bar, raising
the bar. Thank you, Claire. He's back, legendary Mike Bruber Baker,
Brew Baker and associates. He's a praising everything, probably a
praising us as we've done the show and welcome back. Mike.
You get high marks. Thank you so much, favorite, Penny. Well,

(50:12):
as you're here and winding things down, what else do
you want people to know about what you're doing there
and or what's coming in the year?

Speaker 6 (50:19):
You know what it's not so much what we need
people to know about us. I think I'm going to
encourage everybody in any business, but particularly in real estate.
And I think Claire mentioned it, and it's been mentioned
a few times. Relationships get started giving back early. Claire's

(50:40):
perfect examples. She's owned her own business for two years,
sits on the board. I sit on the board with
her at the Houston Association of Mortgage Bankers. I sit
on the board for about four or five local organizations.
I'm a board member a national organization of real estate
appraisers that specialize in complex or prass. But also I

(51:02):
love to give presentations, realtor presentations, any kind of group.
And I tell people it's a give back because all
of us, whether you're insurance attorneys, mortgage lending, realtors, we
all have to interconnect one way or another. And nobody

(51:22):
really needs to know my business at the level I
know it, but they should know some of the basic
functions of that.

Speaker 3 (51:31):
And that's how I knew of you years ago, as
seeing you at a presentation. So people you're saying can
give you a call, give your company call, and then
bring you at an event or something. How do they
do that, Mike.

Speaker 6 (51:42):
You know, I love to do that. So one Natan
called me or two you know, just reach out our
website BREWBAKERAMC dot com or Brewbaker and Associates dot com
or Houston Appraiser dot com. Usually if you google me,
you're gonna find me pretty close here. Yes, sir seven
one three for six four for six sixty six, give

(52:07):
us a call.

Speaker 8 (52:07):
I'd love to talk to him.

Speaker 6 (52:08):
Seven one three four six four for six six six.

Speaker 3 (52:13):
Thank you, Mike, he is back. Paul Vincent, Mister Vincent,
money is the lifeblood of real estate and pretty much
everything else. Absolutely a final word about your your work.

Speaker 7 (52:27):
Well, again, I think rates are still doable, and I
think if you're in the market to buy a home
and you're hesitant about buying, remember you can always refinance
and it would be easier to save two hundred dollars
a month and pay fifty thousand dollars more for the
same house you want. I would definitely recommend anyone in

(52:49):
the past who's been turned down with it because of
a unique situation they have to reach out and contact me.
I'd love to have another look at.

Speaker 3 (52:57):
It because things change, and with your knowledge and the
years of experience, you'll be able to help people where
sometimes they'll think, well I give up or I'll just
wait exactly, but information is key. You have the information.

Speaker 7 (53:10):
Information is key. Guidelines change all the time, so what
may have been an A could be a.

Speaker 3 (53:15):
Paul Vincent Prime Lending. Let's tell people how to reach.

Speaker 7 (53:18):
You sure two eight one eight two seven eleven thirty
nine or email at Paul dot Vincent at prime Lending
dot com. Two eight one eight two seven eleven thirty nine.

Speaker 3 (53:32):
Thank you, Paul, thank you, and thank you all for
listening to Real Estate Matters with Stuart Title. I am
your host, Bill Napick. Simply go to Stuart dot com
Forward Slash Radio.

Speaker 8 (53:41):
That's right.

Speaker 3 (53:42):
You can not only hear this show again, you could
get the show archives at Stuart dot com, Forward slash
Radio and even see the guests on the YouTube video.
It's that simple. On behalf of all of us at
Stuart Title Stuart Insurance. Once again, Bill Nampick, together with
John Bramlett, we will see you next week and thank
you for listening.