Mortgage Matters

Announcer 00:00
This is a KUNV Studios original program. The

Wesley Knight 00:04
content of this program does not reflect the views or opinions of 91.5 Jazz and more, the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, or the Board of Regents of the Nevada System of Higher Education.

Music 00:22
Go back, so.

Roland Daniels 00:43
Good morning, Las Vegas. Welcome to Mortgage Matters. I'm Roland Daniels, a certified mortgage advisor with Geneva Financial. My NMLS number is 355859. Our company NMLS number is 42056. And as always, I am joined by my wonderful co-host Heidi Griffith. Good morning, Heidi.

Heidi Griffith 01:06
Good morning, Roland. Happy Sunday.

Roland Daniels 01:08
Happy Sunday. Good morning.

Heidi Griffith 01:09
Good morning. I'm Heidi Griffith, mortgage advisor and your director of client services. My MLS number is 2247754. Every week on Mortgage matters. Roland and I have conversations with people who want to become homeowners, and sometimes we notice that there's so many conversations that begin exactly the same way. Yes,

Roland Daniels 01:30
I agree with you.

Heidi Griffith 01:31
I probably don't qualify. I don't have enough money saved.

Roland Daniels 01:34
My credit probably isn't good enough. That's a big

Heidi Griffith 01:37
one, right?

Roland Daniels 01:37
Right. Or I've waited too long. I've waited

Heidi Griffith 01:41
too long. I think I'm too old.

Roland Daniels 01:42
Or maybe home ownership just isn't for someone like me. That

Heidi Griffith 01:46
hurts my heart.

Roland Daniels 01:47
I agree with you. That hurts my

Heidi Griffith 01:49
heart. And the surprising part is, most of the time, they're wrong.

Roland Daniels 01:52
I agree.

Heidi Griffith 01:53
Most of the time they're wrong. And today's show is for anyone who's ever counted themselves out before they even knew what was possible, because sometimes the biggest obstacle isn't your income and your credit; it's simply just not knowing where to start. Right,

Roland Daniels 02:06
information and the confidence to start.

Heidi Griffith 02:09
I agree. So today we're welcoming back someone who's been a familiar voice here on Mortgage Matters, and honestly, she's one of my favorite people to have in our studio. If you've attended one of our Nevada Housing Division homebuyer classes, you've probably already met her. She spent years helping educate Nevadans about the homeownership opportunities available through the Nevada Housing Division, and she's passionate about making sure people have the information they need before they decide homeownership is not possible. One of the things I appreciate most about Josie is she just doesn't teach these programs. She understands what they can mean because she once stood exactly where so many of our listeners are today. Miss Josie Hattam, welcome to Mortgage Matters.

Josie Hatem 02:53
Good morning. Good morning. Thank you very much for having me here today. Of

Roland Daniels 02:56
course. Welcome again to the show. We

Heidi Griffith 02:58
always want to thank you for coming in. Absolutely. That's your seat. We've got a seat for you. We've got a seat for Kevin Hickey.

Josie Hatem 03:03
Right.

Heidi Griffith 03:04
You guys are both always welcoming.

Josie Hatem 03:06
Oh, thank you. You're

Heidi Griffith 03:06
welcome. And before we get into it today, if today's show leaves you with even one question, we actually have a opportunity for you tomorrow.

Roland Daniels 03:14
We do

Heidi Griffith 03:15
tomorrow, Monday, august 10 at 11 a.m. We're hosting another Nevada Housing Division Homebuyer Education class. This one's online. Josie's going to be walking us through the programs available right here in Nevada, and Roland and I will explain the mortgage process. There'll also be a realtor who knows these programs, and they'll talk about the buying process.

Roland Daniels 03:32
Right, and it'll be taking place 11 a.m. to about 1230.

Heidi Griffith 03:35
11 to 1230. It's online. Super easy to hop on. You can do it from your couch. You can do it from your car. I mentioned last week. If you're in your car, let's make sure you're pulled over or not driving. You can be the passenger, but it's it's a great way to find out about the programs because we talk to so many people that continue to say, "I have been told that nothing is available. There are

Roland Daniels 03:57
any programs, no money, not true.

Heidi Griffith 04:00
Josie, it's not true,

Josie Hatem 04:01
is it? It's not true. It is not absolutely not true.

Heidi Griffith 04:03
It's not true. So, if you'd like to register, you can give us a call or text us. We're at 702-540-0420. Again, that number is 702-540-0420. You can also hop over to our Facebook page, Mortgage Matters Radio, and there'll be a link to register there as well,

Roland Daniels 04:21
Josie. It is always a pleasure having you on the show. But before we talk about any other programs, I would like to actually like to talk about people themselves. You've taught so many homebuyer education classes over the years, and I just have a question: before people even walk into that classroom or log in to the Zoom, what assumptions do you think people usually have?

Josie Hatem 04:48
Most of them think that you have to be a first-time homebuyer to participate, and usually a lot of them I feel are wondering, you know, what am I going to have to, you know, pay? What these are the. Trying to sell me something-is this real, for the better part?

Roland Daniels 05:03
And for the program, what is a first-time homebuyer?

Josie Hatem 05:06
Someone who has not owned a home in the past three years is considered a first-time buyer.

Roland Daniels 05:12
Okay.

Heidi Griffith 05:12
So, and that's a big one because people think first-time homebuyer means you've never owned a home before, and when we talk about these kind of programs, it just means that you haven't owned a home in the last three years. So if you owned a home five years ago, you sold it. You haven't owned since. You're a first-time homebuyer, right?

Josie Hatem 05:27
Right. I

Heidi Griffith 05:27
think that's a biggie.

Josie Hatem 05:28
Yes.

Roland Daniels 05:29
Right. And why do so many people wait years before asking questions like, or do you think is it fear? Is it embarrassment? Or do people simply do not know where to begin? What do you think?

Josie Hatem 05:41
I think it's all three because sometimes even when when you think you know where you begin, you might end up with you know just misinformation,

Roland Daniels 05:49
right?

Josie Hatem 05:49
And it's the fear, you know, of of what they're gonna tell you because not knowing you know what your background holds, you're just afraid to open up your book and put it in front of folks, and of course, and with that said, you know the embarrassment, you know, of showing what you have and not knowing that the lenders out there have seen everything. That's it. That's I

Heidi Griffith 06:11
actually I got a call today from a gal who's actually registering for our class tomorrow. She's going to be joining us in class, and she said, "I just don't know. She said, "I don't have a lot of money saved, and I said, "That's okay. That's why these kind of programs are in place. That's why we do these classes with you in Nevada Housing Division because we understand that not everybody's walking around buckets of money, right? And we want to make more home. We want to make homeownership more accessible, don't we? And then she said, "Well, you know, maybe I have to clean up my bank statement. I said, "What do you mean you clean up your bank? She said, "Well, you know, door dad. I'm like, "I see Taco Bell and Starbucks, right? Because over the

Roland Daniels 06:51
over the last 20 years, you know, we've seen 1000s of credit reports and mortgage applications. We pretty much have seen it all,

Heidi Griffith 06:59
and it's a judge-free zone. We're here to help. We're not here to judge anybody. We want to make your dream of homeownership a reality. We want to make it possible. It's true. It's true. So I I agree with you on the embarrassment part. I wish that we could kind of get rid of that. So we've done a bunch of classes together, haven't we?

Josie Hatem 07:19
We have. Yes.

Heidi Griffith 07:20
I know that I have. Have you seen people's minds? You know, their mindset shift like mid class.

Josie Hatem 07:25
Yes, it does. Does it? Because when you start telling them what the options, and you know, in fact, if you start sharing what you've done and what other folks have done, it's like the whole expression many times just changes. It's it's a it's kind of almost one of my favorite things because then you know you're hopefully you're you're you're touching someone and now they feel more comfortable and now they know okay I got this I can do it I'm not the only one I

Heidi Griffith 07:49
can really do it's a moment isn't it and then it's it's kind of interesting especially in the online classes in person classes tend to be a little different than online but in the online classes you know you've got a very straight-faced bunch. Nobody's asking any questions in that first half segment. And Josie, you do the you do the presentation about all of the programs. And right after Josie's done, I start to watch people. Then the hands start raised, and people start asking questions because they're like, "Oh, that really is for me. Because there's so many bad myths about down payment assistance as it is. People think you know that they make too much money, or they don't make enough money, or it's for low income, or you have to be a first-time homebuyer, meaning you never owned a home before. And it's it's a great atmosphere to watch people go, maybe I can do this. And even if it's not today, there's hope. There's hope. It's going to be someday.

Josie Hatem 08:43
Yes, absolutely. And they

Roland Daniels 08:44
have the ability to ask questions on chat, so they don't have to ask the question themselves. They can just put it into chat. And I think once that gets going, more and more people will and ask. And they speak up. Yes, because they hear there are other people asking some of the questions that they actually wanted to say, but they're sometimes too afraid to ask that. Yeah, they they don't

Heidi Griffith 09:04
want to ask a question that makes them look you know less than or like like they should they should know something that they don't. That that's what we do these classes for. That's why the Nevada Housing Division does several of these classes a month, is because they want people to have the opportunity not only to learn about the programs but to ask those questions and get those questions answered, you know, one of the reasons I always love having you on the show not only because you're an amazing human, but because because you actually utilized these programs yourself, didn't you?

Josie Hatem 09:34
I did. Yes.

Heidi Griffith 09:35
So you shared pieces of your story before. Let's do it a little differently today. So looking back, why had you convinced yourself that homeownership wasn't for you before using the program?

Josie Hatem 09:47
Well, first of all, I did go to to inquire. I made a phone call one time, and the first thing they asked me is like, "What's your credit score?

Heidi Griffith 09:55
Right,

Josie Hatem 09:55
and I told them, and it was you know, and then they said, "Well, you have." Get your credit score if you ever want to buy a home, and after that, I spent 10 years, 15 years trying to get my credit score up by yourself. Right. So at that

Roland Daniels 10:11
time, they didn't give you a plan. They just told you that come back when your credit score is at where it needs to be.

Josie Hatem 10:17
Yes,

Heidi Griffith 10:18
man. I wish they didn't do that to you.

Josie Hatem 10:20
Right. And we

Roland Daniels 10:21
do hear that a lot of times.

Josie Hatem 10:22
And then at that point, you kind of just figure, okay, you know, I'll I'll get on track, I'll I'll fix my credit score, and I'll do it

Roland Daniels 10:29
myself.

Josie Hatem 10:29
Right, and back then it was very different than it's now. You know, there was different agencies that helped out, and and you know, some necessarily they're gone now. Right, you know, because they weren't necessarily helping, but that's kind of where I got involved in and caught up in and thinking. Okay, you know I'm gonna fix it. I got it. Start making payments, and then something happens. And then again, two years later. Oh wait, I want a home. Let me fix it. Let me do this. Another, you know. So I just went like that for about 15 years.

Heidi Griffith 10:56
And you did you know what you were supposed to be fixing on your credit? Because you've got two daughters. Oh

Josie Hatem 11:00
yeah, yes, yeah. So all I knew is that I had you know all sorts of things, you know, especially medical because of my daughters, their medical conditions, and I knew I had to clear those things up. I knew I had people who were after me who I had to you know settle with,

Heidi Griffith 11:14
right?

Josie Hatem 11:14
Be you know because of it, and then you know just one thing after another. So I was trying to get those cleared and paid off, which I thought I was doing with these agencies, and they were making money. I was getting where, and you were

Heidi Griffith 11:27
paying money, losing money, and you and you didn't do it. But what was the change? What happened?

Josie Hatem 11:32
So then, finally, you know, with this program, you know, found out that your credit, that your lender can actually help you. There are lenders out there. There's people like Heidi and Roland who are going to be out there and help you and say they're going to look at your credit, even if you have your eyes closed. You go up to people. This is my credit. They'll be like, oh, do this, do that. So basically, was given a plan, right? Right. To where it's like, okay, so just you know, all that back stuff. Leave it alone. Stop paying on medical, and you just have to do this, this, and that within six months. Within six months, I had I was closing on my home after 15 years.

Heidi Griffith 12:14
Isn't it crazy? Yes,

Josie Hatem 12:15
you have to get in contact with your lender. You have to get in contact with someone who's just going to guide you because there's a whole different system now, right? Right. Where you put in the information, you see what my credit score is, and I'm sitting there embarrassed, and you have no clue. You're the lenders, they've seen it all, and so you just have to get out there and get in front of them because they're they're here they're there to help. Remember, they're trying to get you to help get into a home, so now they have all the tools for that, and it is just nice to be with the right people who are wanting to help you.

Heidi Griffith 12:47
And that's it. That's it. So you know, we've had so many conversations that maybe someone wasn't ready today. Maybe their credit wasn't ready. Maybe they needed to save some. Maybe you know, whatever that looked like. But we tell people all the time that it's not no. It might not be right now, but it's it's not now. Like

Roland Daniels 13:03
not today, but maybe you'll be approved next month, or in three months, or six months from now.

Heidi Griffith 13:07
And like Josie said, we do have tools available. So when we pull a credit report, and we'll talk about credit a minute with Nevada Housing and what's required to utilize your programs, but when we pull a credit report and we're looking at credit scores, we can actually. We've got an algorithm that will let us know how to get to a certain score. Sometimes we can do it. Sometimes we can do it within 30 days. Right,

Roland Daniels 13:30
and it'll tell you how much you need to pay on certain debts.

Heidi Griffith 13:32
And and sometimes it's not you know pay off the Amex. Sometimes it's pay it down by you know $67.39. It's that specific. And if there's things that we need to do that need a little bit more work, we actually have free resources. Not someone that you're going to go and pay. We have free resources. HUD certified credit counseling agencies, CPLC. We talk about them often. That will sit down with you and do a credit counseling session, one on one

Roland Daniels 13:58
session for free,

Heidi Griffith 13:59
and they'll walk you through the path, they'll help you write the letters. They'll help you with everything that you need to do to get your credit in line where it needs to be. Because life lies. We've all been there. I mean, we have. You've been there, Josie. I've been there, Roland. You've been there. Yeah, I have. So understand that when you're working with a professional that really is looking out for your best interest, this is what you're going to get. And Josie, you're absolutely right. People are faced with so much fear of the unknown and create scenarios in their own head that they don't realize there's a lot of great stuff out there.

Josie Hatem 14:31
Right. There's a lot

Heidi Griffith 14:32
of great stuff out there. So if Josie, if today's Josie, if you today could sit down next to the Josie from 10 years ago, what's the one thing you tell her?

Josie Hatem 14:42
I would have told her you need to go. You know, just not stop at one person. Like Nike, go do it. Just do it. Go do it. Go ask another person. Go, go find out.

Heidi Griffith 14:51
And that's it. That's a you know, and that's a great a great statement because if someone's told you no, does it hurt to ask somebody else? Nope. Never give up. Never give up. Never give up. And one of the things people don't understand is why homebuyer education is required for these programs. I get a lot of people. Oh, I have to take a class. Yes, you have to take a class. They hear it's required, but they don't really understand it. So why does Nevada Housing believe education is such an important part of homeownership?

Josie Hatem 15:15
Because we want to prepare you. You're making probably the biggest purchase in your life, right? And we want you to understand what the process is, and we want you to help you once at closing. What what you're going to do? What to expect? You're going to be a homeowner, right? And so there's a lot that's involved with that, and we want to set you up for success. That's right. So the programs, so you know, they're there to help you, and they're also there to guide you.

Roland Daniels 15:37
Right. So what's the biggest surprise people have after taking the class. What do you think?

Josie Hatem 15:43
Well, that I guess that finding out that the there's there's what's the catch? Yeah, the answer is no. There is no catch, right? And also to find out that they they determine that they they're actually going to be able to get into a home that they feel comfortable that there's just trust that everything they thought that can stop them. That there's something there for them.

Heidi Griffith 16:05
It feels good after the class, doesn't it? It does. It always does. Feels good. Ever hear somebody say, "Man, I wish I took this class last year.

Josie Hatem 16:12
Yes, all

Heidi Griffith 16:13
the time,

Josie Hatem 16:13
right? All the time. Yes, because folks, you know, they're they're they're wondering. They've spoken to people. I had a gentleman one time who helped me with my car, and he says, "Oh yeah, the funds ended, and so I want to tell you that Nevada Housing Division has been around for 14 years, and we've always had programs. Yes, there are programs that come to an end from the programs that we have, but there's always something out there, and so you just got to make sure you're talking to the right person because also that it's a participating lender. That's a big clue, right? Because not all our wonderful lenders throughout the state of Nevada participate with the program, and that's absolutely fine. They don't have to, but we do have a list of those who who do who do participate, as as we have here, Roland and Heidi. And you, and that list is published on the website, as well as a list of real estate professionals

Heidi Griffith 17:00
that are familiar with the program are on the website, and that's a big one because we hear this a lot. You probably don't hear it like we do, but people call us all the time, like Roland said earlier, and say, "I spoke to my credit union, and they told me that funds weren't available. I mean, we had a client who is now in a home that prior to purchasing came to us, and when we told them about the programs, because it's the first thing we talk about, it's a because you don't have to not have money to utilize these programs either. It's the first thing that we mention, and they came to us. They said, "No, no, I spoke to this lender, such

Roland Daniels 17:36
and such,

Heidi Griffith 17:36
and we started the process. I found a property, and midway through the transaction, I was told that there were no more funds available. Ran

Roland Daniels 17:46
out of money,

Heidi Griffith 17:47
and it hurt my heart. Fortunately, she went on to purchase a great home. She utilized actually the Worker Advantage program. That's no longer, you know, although those funds are exhausted. But she went on and purchased with those funds, and she couldn't be happier. But it hurts me that there's stuff that you and I can't do. There's stuff that somebody else can do, and if it's in the best interest of someone, I'm going to say all day long, go do that.

Roland Daniels 18:12
I agree with that. Right,

Heidi Griffith 18:13
right,

Josie Hatem 18:14
right.

Roland Daniels 18:15
So we've been covering a lot today, but maybe you're sitting there thinking, okay, what do I do next? What do you do?

Roland Daniels 18:23
What is the next step?

Heidi Griffith 18:24
Well, that's exactly why we offer our home as possible down payment assistance homebuyer class tomorrow. We're going to walk through the process. Josie's going to be there. She's going to be able to answer any questions about the Nevada Housing Division down payment assistance programs, and this month's class is online, so it's easy. If you want to register, you can call or text us. We're at 702-540-0420. Again, that's 702-540-0420. Okay, Josie, let's talk. Let's talk about the opportunities. Let's talk about the programs. You know these things inside and out. Let Let's start off. Let's start off with the flagship. Home is Possible.

Josie Hatem 19:01
Okay, tell me

Roland Daniels 19:02
about it.

Josie Hatem 19:03
So, well, Home is Possible. It's a down payment assistance program that is made for those of us who are able to make a monthly payment. So we're all paying somewhere. We're living somewhere. We're making payments, right? Right. So this program it offers the down payment assistance program, and with that, we currently have three programs that are offered, and so the first one being the first-time homebuyer program. For that, once again, as long as you haven't owned a home in the past three years, you are considered a first-time buyer.

Speaker 2 19:30
Yeah.

Josie Hatem 19:30
All right. And so then, with that said, your it gives up to it gives either two or 4% of the loan amount in assistance, which can be used towards down payment and closing cost, and as well as we with a it's a 640 credit score. By the way, the 640 credit score is for all Nevada Housing Division programs. All the programs that is what's required, right? Right. But who's going to help you get to the 640 once again? That's right. Right.

Heidi Griffith 19:55
Especially you know we talk to so many people. Well, I'm at 620. I'll call you when I'm ready. And and you can do that. I'm not telling people that they can't do that, but understand that 620 to 640

Roland Daniels 20:06
is not that long. It

Heidi Griffith 20:07
can be 30 days depending on your credit profile. So yes, okay. Excuse me. Sorry. And with that said, I

Josie Hatem 20:15
that that I was not at that 640. I was not even in the 600. Right. Yes. So that's that's just the truth right there. And yes, you're right. Even within you know you can get that set up. Okay, going back to the program. So we have the first time buyer program, and then we have our HIPDPA program. That one offers three and 5% of the loan amount. You do not have to be a first time buyer for this program. It also this program gives you the opportunity to own one home outside of the state Nevada, so you can own one home as long as it's outside of the state Nevada. And you know, a lot of what we're doing that is because we have Nevada. What happens? We have so many people coming from out of state.

Heidi Griffith 20:52
So many,

Josie Hatem 20:53
right? They left a home behind. Now they're making a life here. We want to give them the opportunity to own a home. So this is what we do. We try to make sure we can find someone for something for everyone. So this program is that's the HIP DPA program, second program. Our third program is our Home as Possible program for teachers. This program was created for teachers between kindergarten and 12th grade in a public school, whether it be public charter, charter, public virtual, or public magnet. As long as it is a public school, teachers between kindergarten and 12th grade, they must be a classroom teacher, which means they sit in the class with the kids. We know we understand we have substitute teachers, or we have other people who work within the school district that have teaching. You know, they have degrees as well to teachers. They have to be presently sitting in the class with the students-that is what is disqualified. They qualified for this one. This one is 7500 in assistants for the teachers, and that is fully forgivable after five years.

Heidi Griffith 21:53
We've gotten some great teachers into homes using this. We had a gal who she had just graduated from UNLV. She had just graduated from UNLV. She worked a full-time job prior to graduating, and she got hired on with Clark County School District. Young, amazing gal. She was able to because she still had her second income. Then she had her teacher income because we all know, and I am going to go out and let me say that Nevada Housing Division offers this number one to bring teachers to the state because we all know how much teachers mean to us and how much we need them in our classrooms, and also we know that they're not getting paid probably everything that they should be getting paid, especially year one. She was able to utilize her her income that she was getting on her second job, use this. She bought her first place. She was under 30 years old, and it was magnificent. And like you said, it's forgiven after five years. Oh, and prorated, right? Over those five years, prorated.

Josie Hatem 22:54
So a portion of it gets forgiven every month if they're in the home, right? During that five year period, so it's basically $125 gets forgiven every month up until it disappears at the five-year mark. Because

Heidi Griffith 23:04
most programs are not forgivable. Correct. The

Josie Hatem 23:07
funds need to be paid back. So, and a lot of folks think is like, wow, I have to pay it back. This is money that either you save up, right, or you you you know you obtain. You're going to obtain somewhere. You have to obtain it somewhere. So you're either going to save it up, or you're going to obtain it from you know get it from a friend, loved one. So it's down payment assistance. It does have to be paid back, and you're going to those funds are there to help you get into the home now. Other than that, you'd have to save them up and wait. And what happens when we wait, right? What's happening to the home prices? Seven years continue. Seven years

Heidi Griffith 23:39
is the average time a home buyer waits to save for their down payment,

Josie Hatem 23:43
right?

Heidi Griffith 23:43
What do prices look like in seven

Josie Hatem 23:45
years? Right. What's what? What did they look like? You know, seven years ago. Oh, right. And so, if you could have gone into a home at that time, knowing that our program has been around since then, then you know that's one of the things we just want to keep in mind when you're thinking of the programs you want to get in there now?

Heidi Griffith 24:01
Well, and I tell people all the time in every class that I'm in, I talk about the repayable because that's always like that's always a you know brick wall for something. Oh yes, you have to pay it back. And my thoughts on it, and you actually, Josie, you you led me in this direction because I'm like that makes so much sense. Is that if someone came up to me tomorrow and said, "Hey Heidi, I want to give you, you know, whatever that dollar amount is-10,000, 15,000, 20,000-in cash to go do whatever you want, and you don't have to pay me any interest. You don't even have to make monthly payments to me. Just pay me back whenever you feel like it. And would I say no? No, I would not say no. I would be ridiculous to not say no. And then, like you said, now now we're borrowing money, and I want you to tell the story because you tell it, so it's a good story. Somebody, you you just borrowed money from I don't know your cousin to buy a house,

Josie Hatem 24:52
right? So either either you get it from us with no interest, no payments, right? But you can also get it from a family member, right? No interest, no payments. Right, and so it's just going to sit there with us. It sits there quietly. But when you're with the family member, what happens when you get money from a family member? Right, the minute you walk into that party with a new pair of shoes, or you're taking a selfie with that dish you just bought, right, that food you're at a restaurant, and you haven't paid them back, it gets awkward.

Heidi Griffith 25:19
Oh, and then don't go on a cruise, right? Don't go on a cruise because,

Josie Hatem 25:23
and you haven't paid them back. With Nevada Housing Division, we're just like the family member.

Speaker 1 25:27
They're like enjoy your life, right? It's

Josie Hatem 25:29
like there's no interest, no payments, except with us. It sits, it sits quietly, and with your family member, it does not sit quietly. So, so when you say no interest,

Heidi Griffith 25:37
no payments, just so that people understand, so you pay your mortgage. That would be your mortgage with or without down payment assistance. And how does the down payment assistance work?

Josie Hatem 25:44
So what it is, it's funds that help you get into your home now. Right, right. On those funds, just just like your family, there's there's not going to be any payments or any interest. It sits there up until it makes sense to you to refinance or sell. But by that time, you've built equity, and that's why you're going to be able to pay back. You're making money, and you're pretty much paying into something that's going to be yours. Those funds become yours later. That home is yours, and so that is how that works. That what there there's no payments on that, no interest. So

Heidi Griffith 26:14
there's no it's it's not like a hidden thing that somebody's going to go. What no, there's no payments, right? So and you're absolutely right. Most people are going to build the equity in it. You know, most people think repaying. They think they got to pull out their page, their their checkbook, and write a check. That doesn't happen. I mean, that very rarely would happen, right? Right.

Josie Hatem 26:31
No, because it's when you sell your home. You know, any money that's coming out of there now, you're getting some money for you, and the other, you know, 16, 17,000 you got is just going to be sent back, but you've built the

Heidi Griffith 26:42
equity. You've built the equity. You're building wealth. You're not building someone else's wealth by renting. We've had people who have run into situations where they actually came into the money after closing and wanted to pay it off. They can do that as well, right? Absolutely.

Josie Hatem 26:55
Yes, if they like that. That's absolutely fine.

Roland Daniels 26:57
Because what's the percentage of people actually using the program, who already have their own money for down payments and closing costs,

Josie Hatem 27:04
right? There's 75% of folks who are using the Home as Possible program already had their own funds, but they decided to hold them aside, their own funds aside for a rainy day, right? You know, or just you know for the sake of investing it, right? Because now if they have the money to do that, you know, put it somewhere, and may have it make money for you. And because why? Because this money's you know sitting there, and it it they're not they're not you don't have you're not going to collect anything on it. We're not going to collect anything on it. Well, and that's what that's

Heidi Griffith 27:32
why that's the first thing that we talk about with folks because you know having liquid, having cash is not a bad thing, especially because when you do buy a house, number one, I always tell people it's not like renting; you have repairs, and more than likely within that first 12 months that you are a homeowner, something will happen. It may be as minor as you need to change the the garbage disposal, or it may be something a little bit bigger. Having those rainy day funds is important, or maybe you want to change the countertops, or maybe you want to go on a cruise,

Josie Hatem 28:02
right?

Heidi Griffith 28:02
Or put your kids in college, or whatever that looks like. So there's a lot of great ways to utilize your programs. Anything else you want to tell us about the programs?

Josie Hatem 28:11
So one of the things that I just want to mention amongst the questions that came up, folks are always worried about when they're purchasing a home, purchase of a home, right? Because they're like, what if something happens? You know, this this economy, what have you. When you are a homeowner compared to when you are renting, what happens when you're renting and the economy goes bad? Your landlord needs that money, right? What are you going to do, right? You just don't have the funds. When you're homeowner, the banks work with you. The banks work with you. They help you out. They make sure that they don't want you to lose your home. So if we're in that bad economy, homeowners are are working with their banks, and the people who rent sadly are trying to figure something out with the landlord. And for the better part, as much as most landlords want to help you, they can't because they have they have mortgage.

Heidi Griffith 28:58
That's it, man, Josie. Here we are, out of time again,

Josie Hatem 29:01
as always. Oh

Heidi Griffith 29:02
man, thank you so much for being here. You're going to come back absolutely. And and if you if you'd like to register for tomorrow's class, you can actually see Josie in person.

Josie Hatem 29:10
Right, you'll be

Heidi Griffith 29:11
able to see her right on the screen. If you'd like to register for tomorrow's Home is Possible Down Payment Assistance class with the State and Nevada Housing Division, you can register by calling or texting us at 702-540-0420.

Roland Daniels 29:24
We'll be back next Sunday morning at 730 a.m. right here on KUNV 91.5. Until then, believe in what's possible, even if you've been told that it's out of reach. And remember, stay true to yourself and your mind. Bye. Bye.

Transcribed by https://otter.ai