Housing Giants - February 1, 2009 - (Page 10) FEATURE “A lot of our buyers are working people who thought they would never be able to own a home. Their pride of ownership is, if anything, greater than people in $300,000 houses.” — David LeBoeuf few conventional loans, but the bulk of what we do is FHA. Zero down is the key to this thing. We have prospects who want to buy and can qualify for a mortgage, but they just can’t come up with the down payment.” LeBoeuf is adamant that first-time buyers did not cause the subprime mortgage crash. “Our buyers never used subprime loans,” he says. “That mess was caused by people buying investment properties. If the government authorizes a zero-down program, it should be restricted to owner-occupied dwellings. We’d have no problem with that.” Bartholomew and LeBoeuf have evidence to back their contention that first-time home buyers are worthy credit risks. In 2004, they created what they call “The Rainy Day Fund.” Whenever Main Street closes a home, the partners put money into the fund, which is intended to be a safety net if job loss, illness or another calamity jeopardizes home buyers’ ability to make the mortgage payment. “We use the fund to help them make mortgage payments until they’re back on their feet again,” Bartholomew says. “We’ve only had to use the Rainy Day Fund five times since its creation. Our delinquency rate is less than the average for all homes. Our buyers have tremendous pride of ownership in their first home.” 10 02.01.09 HOUSING GIANTS www.HousingGiants.com http://www.plygemwindows.com http://www.plygemwindows.com http://www.plygemwindows.com http://www.plygem.com http://www.HousingGiants.com
Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Housing Giants - February 1, 2009 Housing Giants - February 1, 2009 Contents Viewpoint News & Moves Process Feature Housing Giants - February 1, 2009 Housing Giants - February 1, 2009 - Housing Giants - February 1, 2009 (Page Cover1) Housing Giants - February 1, 2009 - Contents (Page 2) Housing Giants - February 1, 2009 - Viewpoint (Page 3) Housing Giants - February 1, 2009 - News & Moves (Page 4) Housing Giants - February 1, 2009 - News & Moves (Page 5) Housing Giants - February 1, 2009 - Process (Page 6) Housing Giants - February 1, 2009 - Feature (Page 7) Housing Giants - February 1, 2009 - Feature (Page 8) Housing Giants - February 1, 2009 - Feature (Page 9) Housing Giants - February 1, 2009 - Feature (Page 10) Housing Giants - February 1, 2009 - Feature (Page 11) Housing Giants - February 1, 2009 - Feature (Page 12) Housing Giants - February 1, 2009 - Feature (Page 13) Housing Giants - February 1, 2009 - Feature (Page 14)
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