MARINE CORPS RECRUIT DEPOT SAN DIEGO -- A record number of homes have been lost to foreclosure this year. Education may help home owners learn how to avoid this predicament.
Michael A. McIssac, personal financial management specialist for Marine and Family Services, hosted a Brown Bag Seminar on “How to Finance/Refinance your Home – Understanding the Process,” in Building 14, on April 16.
“What a lot of people don’t understand is the paperwork of financing or refinancing their homes,” said McIssac. “The paperwork is long and there are a lot of fine details that people look over.”
McIssac began the seminar by telling the audience a story about when he was preparing a master sergeant’s taxes. The master sergeant wanted to refinance his home but the penalty for refinancing before his loan term ended was $18,000. It was incidents such as this that gave McIssac the idea for the seminar.
The brief covered what goals a person should have when looking for a home. They must identify what a needs they have and what they can afford.
“The first thing that a person needs to do before going out and applying for loans is to get their credit checked,” said McIssac. “Then go get pre-approved for a loan to find out how much the lender is willing to lend you.”
McIssac also discussed how to determine an affordable monthly payment and where the buyer wants to live.
McIssac then discussed negotiation of the deal and contract. He warned that the buyer must protect himself with writing in contingency clauses in order to make sure he gets what he wants out of the contract.
“I’m not teaching them to be professional loan officers, but just to be cautious of the terms in the contract,” said McIssac.
Many steps in the process are tedious, and the paperwork is long and complicated, said McIssac. He warned that not everyone is there to help a person buy a home; that some real estate agents are more concerned about their commissions than if the client is satisfied with the sale.
“The seminar was very outstanding and the information was well presented on what to look for when financing or refinancing,” said Craig M. Janecek, retired Navy captain.
Toward the end of the seminar, McIssac discussed how one should ensure that he is getting what he wants when financing a home.
“I hope that it planted the seed of planning ahead and to being cautious when it comes to looking to finance or refinance a home,” said McIssac.