$24,000 - Lot 3 Monte Circle, St. Regis, Montana 59866 - Amazing Buy on Large Lot with Water & City Sewer in Place!

$24,000 - Lot 3 Monte Circle, St. Regis, Montana 59866 
Amazing Buy on Large Lot with Water & City Sewer in Place!

Monte Circle St. Regis, Montana

AMAZING price on nearly a half acre with improvements in place. Great building lot with shared artesian well, power, sewer, phone and excellent access offof I-90 and hwy 135.

Priced to sell well under comparable lots. Modulars are allowed on a permanent foundation.

Plat Map

For more information, or to schedule a personal showing, contact Kevin and Monica Ray of Access Realty at 406-207-1185 or visit us online at http://www.YourMT.com.

1 comment • Monica Ray • September 24 2009 08:38AM

24 Mesquite Drive, Alberton, Montana 59820 - Modern Montana Home on 2.9 Acres

 24 Mesquite Drive, Alberton, Montana 59820 - Modern Montana Home on 2.9 Acres

Welcome to this modern Montana dream home with panoramic views of the Lolo National Forest.

              24 Mesquite Drive, Alberton, MT 59820 View from 24 Mesquite Dr. Alberton Montana

Newer home with open floor plan and tons of upgrades and features on 2.9 acres with gorgeous views just west of Alberton.

                          Kitchen at 24 Mesquite Drive, Alberton, MT 5982024 Mesquite Drive, Alberton, MT 59820

                          24 Mesquite Drive, Alberton Montana 59820  24 Mesquite Drive, Alberton Montana 59820

Amazing master suite features huge master bath with large jetted corner tub and glass block shower, amazing walk-in closet and spacious covered deck.

Large laundry room is centrally located upstairs with all bedrooms. The custom kitchen features stainless appliances, large island, breakfast bar and huge pantry.

  • 3 Bedrooms
  • 2 1/2 Bathrooms
  • 2296 square feet
  • Lot Size: 2.95 Acres

Priced to Sell at $265,000 

View the Virtual Tour for 24 Mesquite Drive, Alberton, Montana 59820

For more information, or to schedule a personal showing, contact Kevin and Monica Ray of Access Realty at 406-207-1185.

1 comment • Monica Ray • September 24 2009 08:08AM

We Yearbooked Ourselves! And So Can You!

We Yearbooked Ourselves!

We had fun playing with the site YearBookYourself.com after a post from ActiveRain's Bob Haywood. The site is free and is easy to use - you just upload your photo and select the year that you would like your yearbook photo to be from. You can then save your photos or post them to Facebook. Here's how ours turned out:

Our 1962 Yearbook Photos

Monica Ray YearbookYourself 1962  Kevin Ray YearbookYourself 1962

Our 1976 Yearbook Photos - I just love those glasses!

Monica Ray YearbookYourself 1976  Kevin Ray YearbookYourself 1976

0 comments • Monica Ray • September 24 2009 06:18AM

Missoula Home Buyers - OMG Watch Out for Lurking APR Predators

This is a great explanation of Annual Percentage Rate from Bill Ladewig for Missoula or Western Montana Home Buyers.

Via Bill Ladewig, Your FHA Guru:

APR Predators and APR Demystified

First, lets demystify Annual Percentage Rate (APR).

APR was designed to allow consumers to use one standardized number to compare the real cost of each lender's interest rate and it works like this.

If I lend you, $10,000  and, I charge a $500 Bump-ta-Bump Fee, you will actually receive $9,500, however you must still repay me $10,000.  APR is my real yield and your real cost on this loan.

We agreed that you will repay the loan at 8% interest on $10,000, HOWEVER you only received $9,500 therefore I will earn more than the 8.0% interest rate I charge on $10,000.  In this case, my yield (APR) is 9.799% on the $9,500 you received.   

APR is the lender's yield on dollars actually lent ($10,000 minus $500 = $9,500); in this case, the lender's yield (APR) on $9,500 is 9.799%   (APR is computed as if the above example is a 30 year loan)

The $9,500 also represents the Amount Financed in the Truth In Lending (TIL) disclosure. 

For those of you who use spreadsheets the Rate Function will find APR.  Use the Amount Financed for Loan Amount and use the monthly payment on the actual loan amount.

Fees that must be subtracted from a mortgage loan to properly calculate Amount Financed for APR

  • Origination and Discount Points
  • Processing and Lender Fees
  • Pre-Paid Interest (Use 15 days when closing date is unknown)
  • Monthly Mortgage Insurance must be added to the payment of all FHA loans and Conventional loans greater than 80% loan to value. 
  • The inclusion of Mi or MIP accounts for the large spread between Rate and APR on loans with mortgage insurance.

    •      Note: Fees Not used in APR calculation; third party fees such as appraisal and credit.

    How Do APR Predators Work?

    Many sophisticated borrowers shop interest rates by searching for lowest APR which, if property stated, is the real cost of borrowing.  Unfortunately, APR is not always stated properly.

    How is advertised APR is misstated? 

    • Prepaid Interest is not included - most common deception and true on all online Rate sites   i.e.: Bankrate.com, Interest.com, Mortgage101.com, ShopRate.com, etc.
    • Prepaid Interest is understated - must be 15 days when closing date is unknown.
    • MI or MIP is not included in the APR on any online rate sites, Bankrate etc.
    • Some lenders do not include MI or MIP on their web sites such as Amerisave.com 
    • Lender fees are either understated or not included in the APR calculation.  This is a tricky one because No or Low Lender Fees does not necessarily indicate a predatory lender.  Some lenders charge a higher rate and no points or fees for their so called "Zero Cost" loan.  However, the "Zero Cost" rate will always be higher than a rate with points and/or fees. 
    • Notes to the above: 
      • there is no such thing as a Zero Cost loan and some states prohibit lenders from advertising Zero Cost Loans.
      • The spread between Rate and APR on loans greater than 90% LTV should be at least 0.700%.  When it is not... you are being scammed

    Rate - Points - Fees are all interdependent

    The best way I can explain this is show various Rate - Point - Fee combinations where the lender is making the same gross profit on each combination. 

    In the examples below, we will use a $200,000 loan amount and Lender gross profit of $1,000, on a day when the Lender's cost for a 5.000% rate is par (0 point).

    Best Rate:  $1,000 Lender profit in various combinations of points and fees

    Rate

    Fees

    Points

    APR

    Profit

    5.000%

    $1,000

         0   

    5.044%

    $1,000

    5.000%

    $500

     0.250

    5.044%

    $1,000

    5.000%

    $0

     0.500

    5.044%

    $1,000

    Lowest Fees: You pay $0 points and fees and Lender's investor pays the lender $1,000 for the higher rate.  

    Rate

    Fees

    Points

    APR

    Profit

    5.125%

    $0

        0   

    5.125%

    $1,000

    The point here is that lenders design their loans to provide talking points for their sales staff (loan officers).  They all require a certain profit margin and it is not important the way the loan is structured as long as the closed loan delivers their margin. 

    This illustration also points out the value of correctly stated APR as a way of evaluating the true cost of a mortgage loan.  For sake of these illustrations, prepaid interest was not used.  If 15 days PP was calculated it would have increased each APR by 0.019%.

    Your FHA GuruBill Ladewig, Your FHA Guru (and APR)

    800.664.7283 (SAVE)

    Bill@YourFhaGuru.com

    Mortgage Mentor Website

    1 comment • Monica Ray • September 22 2009 09:51AM

    Are Your Missoula or Western Montana Property Taxes Too High?

    Hit by TaxesAre Your Missoula or Western Montana Property Taxes Too High?

    If you're like most of us, you recently received your notice from the Department of Revenue for the property taxes on your home or land in Western Montana. The Montana constitution and state law require periodic reappraisal of property and 2009 is a reappraisal year.

    And if you're like me, your mouth dropped at the value that was assigned to your property - our appraised value was significantly higher than what our property is worth. If you're assessed value is high then the taxes assessed to your property may also be high.

    So what can you do?

    1.) Request an Informal Review: To do this, complete a Request for Informal Review Form (Form AB-26) and send it to your local Department of Revenue office within 30 days after you receive your assessment notice. This form allows you to attach information to it - such as a summary of similar properties and recent sales prices to show the market value. We provide a Free Comparative Market Analysis for residents in Western Montana upon request.

    The completion of this form requires your property's Geocode and Legal Description, if you don't have that information, you can look it up online on the Montana Cadastral.

    2.) You can also File an Appeal Directly to the County Tax Appeal Board. To do this, complete a Property Tax Appeal Form (which is much longer than the Request for Internal Review Form) and send it to the Clerk and Recorder in the County in which the property is located before the latest of these dates:

    • 30 days after you receive your assessment notice
    • 30 days after you receive the determination of your Informal Review Or
    • By the first Monday in June

    Shake DownThe forms are available by clicking on the above links, at your County Clerk & Recorder's Office or online at www.stab.mt.gov.

    If you are appealing your property's market value or classification and your taxes become due before your appeal is resolved, you will need to:

    • Specify the grounds of your protest in writing, and
    • Pay the taxes disputed under protest by the due date.

    If you are successful in your appeal, your County Treasurer will send you a refund.

    Property Tax Assistance Programs

    There are also several programs available for qualifying Montana property owners. Contact your County Treasurer for more information or visit the State's website at www.stab.mt.gov.

    • Disabled Veterans or Spouses of Disabled Veterans
    • Low Income
    • Extended Property Tax Assistance
    • Elderly Homeowner/Renter Income Tax Credit

    Completing the forms just take a few minutes and could save you hundreds or possibly thousands of dollars on your property taxes.

    2 comments • Monica Ray • September 20 2009 03:39PM

    Speechless Sunday: Kevin Wasn't the Only One Fishing the Flathead River this Week

    Bear Print

    Bear Track

    I wrote a blog post earlier this week about Kevin's fishing trip with one of our friends /clients on the Flathead River near Paradise, Montana. While he was out, he took the following photos of Bear prints along the river - apparently he wasn't the only one fishing on the Flathead River!

    A Day Spent Fishing on the Flathead River

    For more information on the Flathead River or Western Montana, contact Kevin and Monica Ray of Access Realty at 406-207-1185 or visit Riverfront Montana.

    11 comments • Monica Ray • September 20 2009 01:26PM

    Thinking About Buying a Home in Missoula? Compare FHA Loans to Conventionals Loans

    This is a great article about FHA Loans versus Convenetional Loans. If you are considering buying a home in Missoula or Western Montana, this will help you weigh your loan options.

    Via Jeff Belonger -- The FHA Expert.com -- FHA Loans -- FHA mortgages - USDA loans (Infinity Home Mortgage Company, Inc):

     

    fha loans vs conventional loans

     

    FHA loans seem to be one of the main choice of mortgages in the last 12 months or so. There are many reasons for this. And FHA loans will definitely be the main choice for anyone buying a condo now. More on that later.. What I hate hearing is that FHA mortgages have taken the spot of the subprime loans. This is not true by any part of the imagination. This statement is from those that are inexperienced in both the mortgage and the real estate industries. The realization has been that 30% of the subprime mortgages from 2002 to 2006, should have been FHA mortgages, not subprime.

     

    To compound this, so many said just because you had a conventional loan, you had the better loan. This was not always true when putting 3% or even 5% down. In most cases, you were told this, because that particular lender was not FHA approved. Now?  Even with 10% down and credit scores less than 680, FHA loans in many cases, will be the best mortgage for you. You want to see a shocking example?  

    And sellers, don't listen to your agents on how bad FHA loans are.

     

     

     

    The example below is based on a $300,000 purchase price with 10% down. One reason why conventional rates are a little higher in this scenario as in FHA rates is because Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have added penalties per se. If you are putting down less than 30% and your credit score is less than 720, certain fee penalties would apply to you, which would increase your rate and or points.  The FICO (credit score) that I am going to use is 659 and I will still show in this example that FHA loans are cheaper, even with 10% down.  

     

     

     

    ***And keep in mind, some lenders have penalties on FHA mortgages with credit scores under 660. And many lenders can't do FHA loans under 620. Just beware of those that promise you a mortgage with scores under 620. It can happen, but they aren't as easy as advertised. Please read - Credit scores/FICO scores - I need a 700 credit score? ***

    fha loans vs conventional loans

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Disclaimer :  These rates are examples of today's pricing, and the spread shown in the example is real with the same profit margin for both sides. To compare this scenario apples to apples, there are no lender fees and with a half of a point. The conventional rate also includes the penalty for the 659 credit score, hence why there is a half of a point charge, because of the large pricing penalty for the credit score.

     

     

    Some of you might be saying that you will be adding $4,725.00 onto your principal balance if you did the FHA mortgage because of the FHA one-time mortgage insurance premium. This is correct and I don't want to confuse you with more numbers and charts. But here is a quick breakdown. If you kept your house for 5 years, you would have saved $12,646.20 in payments in 5 years. Subtract the Upfront Mortgage Insurance premium from the monies saved in 5 years and you have saved a difference of $7,921.21!!!   And one other thing that is very small, but still makes a difference. You will be subtracting a few more dollars per month from your principal because your interest rate is lower, which would offset the interest that you would write off on the 6.25% rate. Just something else to remember, but consult your tax consultant or CPA.

     

     

     

    Lastly, keep in mind, depending on the area that you are buying or refinancing in, that you might not be able to get a conventional loan unless you have 10% down or a 90% LTV. The reason being is the mortgage insurance companies and how they view certain geographical areas and declining market areas.

    Which leads me to the issues about Condos. Not only are there restrictions from the MI companies (Mortgage Insurance companies) in regards to what area you live in, but that many lenders won't go above 80% LTV's now on conventional mortgages. On a FHA mortgage for condos, you can still go up to 96.5%, depending on the state, but you still have to make sure that the condo association has been FHA approved. There has been a major change on FHA condo spot approvals.  Please read : FHA condo changes for spot approvals -

     

     

     

     

    For more FHA loans vs conventional loans comparisons :

     

     

     

     

     

    follow Jeff Belonger on Twitter               The FHA Expert     

                                                                                                   FOLLOW ME ON FACEBOOK

     

     

    - FHA Loans - USDA Loans - VA Loans -

    - Energy Efficient Mortgages - 

    - Conventional Loans - 203 k loans -

    - Mortgages -

     

    Experience & Knowledge at its BEST !!!

     

    _________________________________________________________________________________________

    For more information on FHA loans, please go to this link. The FHA Expert

    For more information about the 2009 Tax Credit for First Time Homebuyers : 2009 Tax Credit

    For important mortgage insight to watch for, please read : Consumers need to be aware of these Red Flags !!!!

    Copyright © 2009 by Jeff Belonger of Infinity Home Mortgage Company, Inc

    3 comments • Monica Ray • September 20 2009 12:21PM

    You Mean Sharing Information Freely Isn't the Norm? It is on ActiveRain! Memories at ActiveRain

    You Mean Sharing Information Freely Isn't the Norm? It is on ActiveRain - Memories at ActiveRain

    We gave a presentation at our local MLS last week on Using Social Media for Real Estate. We didn't have a huge turnout so we were able to really structure our presentation around the attendees, most of which were new to social media. It was a really fun presentation with lots of questions and good interaction. We shared what we knew and our experience with using social media to increase our listings, our sales, and our leads.

     

    When the presentation was over, one of the brokers in the class approached us and really thanked us for being so willing to share with the group. She said that she's been a broker in our area for many years and that it's very unusual for agent to help other agents, especially from other brokerages.

    Sharing Information at ReBar Camp with our Friends from ActiveRain

    I guess I realized that somewhat from our real estate transactions and what seems to be the competitive nature of the business.

     

    However, we've been members of ActiveRain since Day 1 of our real estate careers, and agents on ActiveRain share information - AND LOTS OF IT! And they help each other out.

    If it weren't for ActiveRain, we would be in a much different place than we are today. I told the agents at the presentation, and I tell all agents - Participating on ActiveRain is the SINGLE BEST THING you can do to improve your real estate career.

     

    We've also attended two ReBar Camps where real estate professionals from all over the country gather together for the sole purpose of sharing information on real estate technology and social media. So many people have shared their knowledge with us that it only seems fair to share what we have learned with others.

     

    Some (There are MANY - this is only a few) of my vivid memories of people sharing and helping us on ActiveRain - THANK YOU for sharing, and for making ActiveRain such a great place!

    Missy CaulkMissy Caulk - Missy is one of the best mentors on ActiveRain and is always willing to share her expertise. Missy went above and beyond sharing her blog posts but actually shared some of her checklists with me. I was so surprised and excited that she would be willing to do that for someone she's never even met.

     

     

    Midori MillerMidori Miller - Midori has some great posts on low cost real estate tools that you can use to help promote your business online, as well as lots of great advice for agents. Midori's posts got me to explore many of the options out there for agents today.

     

     

    Rebecca LevinsonRebecca Levinson - Rebecca has a great blog called Blogging in the Rain, and she's also a genuinely nice person. Rebecca's encouragement and positive feedback on our Localism posts early on in our blogging kept us going and her positive posts continue to provide assistance.

     

     

    Bill GassettBill Gassett - Bill is one of the top agents on Localism, and for good reason, he knows how to promote his local area and shows up at the top for local search terms. So when Bill Gasset commented on one of my listing posts - this is a great listing but you'll never get found by the search engines with that title. So with some great info from Bill, I learned a lot about marketing listings online and getting them "found" by the search engines. 

     

    Mary McKnightMary McKnight - Mary doesn't post as much as she used to on ActiveRain but her blog has some of THE best information on SEO on the Internet, and it's in language that you can understand. I was, and am still impressed that she would share so much great information when others charge a fortune for far less.

     

    Rolando GillRolando Gill - Rolando posted information about improving the results at at Open House and provided us with the information sheet he has visitor's complete. Using the form has helped us to be able to share quality feedback with our sellers, and learn more about what each potential buyer is looking for.

     

    Some of my other favorites and friends on ActiveRain include Clint Miller, Kim Daugherty, Jason Crouch, Renee Burrows, Jeff Turner, Brad Andersohn, Mike Mueller, Carole Provenzale, Jeff Dowler, Rene Fabre, Jeff Belonger, Nick Bastian, and Kathy McGraw.

    Thank you for making "Sharing the Norm" on ActiveRain and at ReBar Camps!

     

     

    9 comments • Monica Ray • September 19 2009 07:38AM

    2009 Sanders County Fair & Rodeo Parade Highlights

    The Sanders County Fair and Rodeo is held during the last week of August or the first week of September every year in Plains Montana. It's small town living at its best. Plains, MT is located approximately two hours northwest of Missoula. The parade is the kick-off to the Fair which features rides and games, a rodeo, a demolition derby, vendors, and live music. It's a great event for the entire family.

     Plains Fair Plains, MT

    Plains Montana

    Sanders County Fair & Rodeo Parade

    Cowboy in the Plains Fair Parade

    Pictures from the Plains Fair

    Small Town Montana

    Photos by Kelsey Ray.

    2 comments • Monica Ray • September 19 2009 05:15AM

    A Day Spent Fishing on the Flathead River Near Plains & Paradise, Montana

    Kevin and one of our friends and clients recently took an afternoon to go fishing on the Flathead River between Paradise and Perma, Montana. It was an amazing early fall Montana day and the weather was perfect. They caught a few fish and enjoyed being on the river.

    On Montana's Flathead River

    Fishing on the Flathead River

    Fish caught on the Flathead River

    Flathead River Near Paradise MT

    For more information about Montana's Flathead River, visit RiverFrontMontana or contact Kevin and Monica Ray of Access Realty at 406-207-1185 or at www.YourMT.com.

    9 comments • Monica Ray • September 19 2009 04:48AM