Mortgage Matters

Announcer 0:00
This is a KU NB studios original program. The 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 to

Roland Daniels 0:43
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 I'm here this morning, as always, with my fantastic co host, Heidi Griffith, good morning. Heidi, well, good morning. Roland, good morning. How are you? I am doing awesome. You are always

Heidi Griffith 1:11
awesome, aren't you? I try Happy Sunday. Happy Sunday. I'm Heidi Griffith. I'm also a mortgage advisor, and I'm your Director of Client Services. My NMLS number is 2247754, we have a really good show today, don't we? We do, we do before we get started, I just want to talk about an upcoming class that we have. We had this class last month with the Nevada housing division, and it was amazing. We did. How many people did we have signed up? We had almost 70 people registered, and we had 30 people in the class, which is good numbers for online classes. It is. It was exciting. So this class is going to be held on Monday, September 22 it starts at 330 ends at five, and it's actually only an hour class. We take that last half hour to go over any questions people have, yeah, Q and A. We talk about all of the programs Nevada housing division offers. They've got several different down payment programs they do. They've got programs for first time home buyers, and that virtually means you haven't owned a home in the last three years. You haven't been on deed or title in the last three years. Then rates have come down. Rates have come down. We just recently have the lowest rates of the year with Nevada housing division. And so they have a program that allows you to own a home in another state. So let's just say you're moving here from out of state. You've got a home. You don't know if you necessarily want to sell it. You can actually keep that as an income producing property,

Roland Daniels 2:30
yep. So as long as you're purchasing a home right here in Nevada, in Nevada, and this is your primary residence,

Heidi Griffith 2:36
if we have any K through 12 public school teachers in the state, they offer a 7500 down payment program. So they give you 7500 bucks. And if you live in your house for five years, it's completely forgiven. You don't have to pay it back. And it is pro rated as well. Yeah, it's prorated every single month you make a mortgage payment. It is, again, that's going to be on Monday, September 22 so a week from Monday, that class is from 330 to 5pm It's a it's a zoom. It's easy to hop on. You know, you get off work, you can hop on from your phone. Please don't be driving. You can hop on from your sofa. You can have snacks while we're having class, if you like. That is your favorite. And you will get a certificate for attending. And that will make you eligible for all of the Nevada housing down payment programs. It also makes you eligible for all of the Nevada Rural programs. If those programs work better for what your needs

Roland Daniels 3:27
are, it does, and that certificate is good for one

Heidi Griffith 3:30
year, one year, one year, and it's a it's a certificate that we can use for a lot of our down payment programs, isn't it? Yeah. So if you'd like to register, you can give us a call or text us. We're at 702-210-2057, again, that number is 702-210-2057, you can also head over to our Facebook page, mortgage matters radio, and you'll find the link to register there as well. So we've got a fun guest, don't we? We do. I'm super excited to have her in the studio. I am too. I am so happy. So we'd like to welcome April noble. She's a fellow mortgage loan officer who works with United security financial Corp. April is licensed in Nevada and California, and even more impressive, she is a retired US Air Force Major. Hey, we have a major in the house. We do major with more than 25 years of leadership and service experience. April specializes in VA loans and programs that help first time home buyers and families homeownership.

Roland Daniels 4:30
She is also a serving member and board member and the treasurer for our local nareb Chapter, the black Realtors of Southern Nevada, and she's also a board member and secretary for the women's veterans of Nevada. That's impressive. It is she partners with organizations like Nevada, partners Junior Achievement, and as always, keeping community at the heart of everything that she does. A. April is known for her integrity, her care, and we're so excited to welcome you today's show, Good morning, April.

Aprille Noble 5:07
Good morning. Thank you so much.

Heidi Griffith 5:09
We're so excited to have you so we bring a lot of people into the studio. We we really do strive on giving information to folks that's important that a lot of people don't talk about, right? We're very community centric, and I believe you to be exactly the same. You and I have had some some great personal conversations. We sat next to one another in NA rep meetings. I know you're the treasurer. I know you worked your butt off with that, but I also know that you spend a lot of time helping people in the community, don't you? Yes, I do. We appreciate that. So you're part of the women's veterans of Nevada. Yes, tell me a little bit about that.

Aprille Noble 5:47
So women veterans of Nevada is really important to me because we offer membership and we offer a safe space, we offer resources, we offer outreach to female veterans, you know, across the board, and so, you know, it doesn't matter what level. It doesn't matter whether you've, you know, only served for two years and you were discharged, or if you retired. It doesn't matter. We offer a space, a safe space, for all of our female veterans to, you know, go out into the community for outreach, if they may need a service, any social services, we direct them to where they can go to get their disability benefits, just to discuss anything VA related for them,

Heidi Griffith 6:32
that's wonderful, especially, and not to, not to, you know, dog, the guys right now, obviously, but there isn't all you know, especially in the military, obviously, there is a line in the sand in a lot of instances. And I think that it's wonderful that we are helping female vets to find those resources. So you really, you really are a resource for these ladies,

Aprille Noble 6:52
yes, and I'm extremely, you know, honored and proud just to do that, because, of course, you know all of our veterans that serve their heroes, okay, yes, absolutely, but most of the time it is geared toward the men, and nothing against the men. They're heroes. But our ladies, they're heroes as well. And they deserve, you know, the attention and the needs. You know, you know that they have should be

Heidi Griffith 7:17
addressed as well. That's wonderful. Well, thank you. Thank you for your service, and thank you for helping everybody. And again, I'm still impressed that you're a major you've got some stripes. So part of neighbor up, obviously neighbor up means a lot to all of us in this room today, right? Yes. So the National Association of real estate brokers, we do a lot for the community. And aside from that, the organization as a whole. You know, if you've heard us on the radio before, you've heard me talk about this, they were one of the founding creators of the Fair Housing Act, and that means so much to Roland and I, and I know it means tons to you as well. And we do all believe that everyone deserves, you know, fair and equal treatment when it comes to housing, because housing is a human right. Don't you agree absolutely, so you're the treasurer. You're the the current treasurer for nareb. Sounds like a fun job. It's amazing. Fits hand in hand. You're a lender. You're the treasurer. You like money?

Aprille Noble 8:19
Yes, yes,

Heidi Griffith 8:24
and so, so when you look at being a lender, because obviously we're lenders as well, right? You work with veterans, what made you decide, Hey, maybe I should go into lending after you got out of the military. Because did you use your VA loan? Yes, you did. Did someone tell you about it? Or were you aware? Did you learn about it while you were in the service?

Aprille Noble 8:46
I did not learn about my VA loan benefits until towards the end, really, of my first assignment, which was in Japan, which is where I met my husband, who was also a retired Navy veteran. And so the fact that I found out a little bit late in the game, you know, I still appreciated that. You know, I wouldn't have been ready at that time because I was still overseas. But when I was ready, when my husband, I we were ready, you know, we understood the process. You know, we were, you know, sat down with before we even went out looking and, you know, people, they don't have to share information with you. A lot of times, people keep it to themselves, but in this scenario, you know, it was a full disclosure of everything that's required in every home we've owned we've used our VA loan, and that's why I choose to just dedicate my career, you know, to helping veterans and people in my community in their journey to home ownership, because that was given to me, I kind of look at it as a way of paying it forward.

Heidi Griffith 9:50
I love that. I love that. And we, we all know sitting here today that far too few veterans are actually using those benefits. We talked to a lot of people who. Didn't even really understand what that meant, that that benefit and what that looked like. But in my opinion, and I know the Roland Do you feel the same way I do. VA loan is potentially the best loan out there, and every one of you that is served certainly deserves that probably your best benefit, right? Yes, and certainly something that you deserve for putting your life on the line for all of us.

Roland Daniels 10:22
So there's a surprising stat, only about 13% of the veterans have ever used their VA home loan benefit. That is crazy.

Aprille Noble 10:32
Yes, it is. I'm so glad that you mentioned that a lot of times I think that our real estate professionals think that maybe it takes longer for that process? Yes, that's one of the myths. Or that maybe veterans don't have money, yep, or that it'll take. Maybe it's just going to take too long for them to close. It's too much involved. And so maybe we should not even do that. Why don't you go with a different you know? And sometimes, you know, you have to side side by side. Compare the types of loans and you know, but I definitely, as you said, you know, Heidi, I believe that VA loan, it is the best one out there for so many different reasons. You know, all things being equal, it really is the best one out

Roland Daniels 11:14
there. And that's just an old stigma that real estate

Heidi Griffith 11:18
agents it still carries to today. And I speak from experience. I don't know if you know this about me or not, this about me or not, but in my previous life, I was a realtor, and my dad is a Vietnam vet, and I had bad information, and I actually talked them out of using their VA benefits for a purchase. At one point, didn't understand. Thought it cost more money for the seller. Thought that it was going to take way too long. Thought that there was too many hoops to jump through. And another misconception that I personally had, and, you know, I was somebody that was out working, it wasn't like I, you know, did a transaction a year I was working. And one of the bigger misconceptions was that sellers weren't going to accept these offers. And I'd had conversations with my sellers that, you know, oh, well, if we accept a VA loan and all of the myths that went along with it, shame on me. I certainly know better now they did, fortunately, go on and use his benefits. A big one that I hear often now is people assume that VA loans are done by some lender that works for the VA admin. That's not, in fact, the case, right? So there aren't a million hoops to jump through. They're as easy to close as any other loan. There are no crazy cost associated. I mean, really, if I were a seller today, it would be my honor to offer VA loan, and if I was looking at multiple offers, I might seriously take a look at accepting a veteran's loan, right?

Roland Daniels 12:51
Yes, because with the VA loan, there's no down payment, no monthly mortgage insurance, you have flexible credit, and for veterans and their families, it means that they can save them hundreds of dollars every single month.

Aprille Noble 13:05
Yes, absolutely everything you said is spot on. It's really about, you know, once you have that certificate of eligibility, we know that you're there for our active duty, our veterans, our surviving spouses and the other thing, people feel like they had a bad credit event. Maybe they had a bankruptcy. They had a force closure, something like that. As you mentioned, Roland, you know the VA and ultimately, you know that lender. We can be very flexible as long as you've reestablished, you know, good credit after that for, you know, a certain period of time, usually, you know, 12 months. You know, we can look at 12 to 24 months. We can look at getting you that loan, getting you on your path to homeownership, right?

Roland Daniels 13:48
Because in a lot of instances, especially with vets, they have some kind of medical episode, or maybe they were injured in the military that prevented them from working. Maybe they lost their their job and that caused some kind of credit challenges. And a lot of times we can explain that with a letter of explanation along with some supporting documentation and get them approved with the VA loan, absolutely.

Aprille Noble 14:11
And I've experienced that, you know, several times with the veterans doing a letter of explanation. You know, whether they were divorced from their spouse and they're veterans, and they had a bankruptcy, and the VA is like, Okay, how's your credit? Look? Looks, looks pretty good. Let's get you that VA loan. It's not a deal breaker at all.

Heidi Griffith 14:31
No, absolutely not. And, and the great thing about the VA loan, and we as lenders, we've got what they call overlays, and this could be for any type of loan product. It could be for FHA. Could be conventional. It could be for VA. We've got overlays that maybe this lender says we're going to add this thing that has to happen with VA, the actual VA guidelines. There is no credit

Roland Daniels 14:55
limit and no minimum VA credit score, right? Associated with the VA

Heidi Griffith 15:00
loan, right? So that there's no maximum on how much home you can purchase if you you know, if you qualify for a $1.5 million you can buy a $1.5 million house. There is no credit score. Now, most lenders actually do have overlays for credit scores, but they're not crazy. You know, you don't have to have a 700 Fico. You can get in in many instances, in the high fives with most lenders. And we're really just taking a look at, like April, like you said, you know, you know, are we trying to build from where we were? Because life happens. We all know that. And when we take being a veteran into the equation, we're really going to look and say, Hey, this happened, it's time to rebuild. I agree.

Aprille Noble 15:48
Yeah, I think that's a great point, too. You know, a lot of times, you know, I understand that, you know, you make sacrifices. So as a veteran, we make sacrifices. All veterans make sacrifices, and so do people within the community. So I understand that, and I understand the challenges that people may go through when they're making a transition from being in the military to civilian life. I experienced, you know what? That's like? It's going to be crazy. It is, and it can be and it can be frustrating, because you are used to have in certain positions. It's a very disciplined lifestyle. You know, you're there at a certain time. You know your work duty day, but technically you're on duty, 24/7, right? If you get recalled, then you need to show up. So I'm familiar as my fellow veterans. You know, they understand that as well. But for those in the community, I can relate to whatever those you know, those difficulties that you have with the transition, and maybe you think that you're not there. You might be closer than you think that's true, you know. So just you know, you have to have a conversation, and as you both are always available to have those conversations, I do the same thing. Let's talk about where you are now, and let's, let's map out a chart, out a journey for you to get to your home ownership, step by step.

Heidi Griffith 17:06
That's a great point we talk. We actually talk about that a lot because, you know, a lot of times when we're thinking, Oh, maybe I want to buy a house, but, and we've got these buts in our head, right? But my credit, but the money, but all of these things, and we create scenarios in our brains that sometimes sound good and they might not necessarily be the truth. And I love that you said that, because I believe that about you, and that's why you're in this chair today, because you know, we all come from a place of service. Come from a place of helping someone far before any financial gain, and we are here. So maybe your journey takes you know, we've had clients 345, years that we were helping with credit and we were helping with different things, and maybe you've been sitting there creating a story for yourself, and you're going to be in a house in 60 days. You don't know until you sit down and you have those conversations, right, right?

Roland Daniels 18:02
So, April, any, if any listeners out there want to have a conversation with you, what is the best number that they can call you?

Aprille Noble 18:11
Thank you so much. They can reach me at 702-530-5019, and they can contact me at any time.

Heidi Griffith 18:19
Very good, wonderful, wonderful. So let's talk. Let's go back to VA loan really quickly, because I know that over the past several months we've seen, we've seen a pretty big market adjustment, and it's all over, you know, social feeds, it's all over the news. You know what's happening is the market going to crash? None of us at this table have a crystal ball. None of us know what's going to happen tomorrow, no less six months down the road. But, you know, all indicators show that we are currently in the valley in what, you know, we would consider a buyer's market, where, six months ago, not so much. It was more of a stable market. We were, you know, seeing some sellers, you know, make some concessions right in between, and then it's gonna always depend on the property, right? But we are in a buyer's market. We are, you know, we've got, roughly, I pulled numbers for our last path to homeownership class. Is it still over 9000 Yeah, we're over 9000 homes in the valley. And that sounds like a lot, right? Because, couple months ago, we were at 7200 But realistically, we're in a city of nearly, you know, 3 million people, it's really still, we've still got a housing shortage. When we talk about housing shortage, I'm really talking about affordable housing. Affordable housing, there's not a whole heck of a lot of that out there. But when I pulled numbers, there was about 900 homes on the market that were under $250,000 the majority of those were condos and townhomes. And keep in mind, if you're thinking about purchasing and you're thinking about condo townhome, there are HOA dues that are going to be associated with that. So in a lot of instances, we're looking at folks who, if we've got a set dollar amount that they've got a hit, in a lot of instances, makes more. Cents to go single family, if that's something that they're looking at doing. Because, you know, HOA dues 150 is probably the lowest I've seen right in a long time. But there's homes available, and as more homes come on the market, and as more sellers are out there, the more we're seeing them willing to to, you know, give a concession or reduce sales price. And we've talked about this weekly on the show, it probably makes more dollars and cents to ask for a seller credit, a seller concession, same thing versus asking for $10,000 off the sales price, because your monthly payment is only reduced. Short 1020, 30 bucks a month versus getting 10 or $15,000

Roland Daniels 20:45
to help pay for closing costs to help, quote sorts closing no down payment with the bn,

Heidi Griffith 20:49
and that's what I was mentioning, is, yeah, but now with with the VA loan, there is zero. It's not $1 down it's a zero down payment loan, right? Yes, it's a zero down payment loan. One of those old myths out Yeah, your Realtor can negotiate seller credits. We can get up to 4% for VA loans. We can get up to 4% in seller credits, and that's of the sales price of the property, and you can use that for your closing cost. Um, another thing, especially if you've got some debt, like we all do right now, right we do that's at an all time high. You can actually utilize programs like Nevada housing, they've got two separate programs. They've got a program that doesn't offer any down payment help, but it offers a really nice below market interest rate. Or you could actually use part of their down payment program anywhere from two to 5% you could apply that towards your closing costs, since your down payments taken care of, and then get seller credits to pay off your debt. That's a wonderful thing going into a home without that debt, and sometimes the realtor fees as well. Yeah, absolutely so if you're paying your Realtors commission, and all of that stuff is negotiated with the seller, but if the sellers are not willing to pay, you can actually use that money towards

Aprille Noble 22:04
that as well. And I appreciate you. You know, breaking down all the things about the VA loan, just leveling the playing field. You don't have to have a 20% down. You can have zero down. You know, you only can put a down payment if you want to use nothing you can, and it's not required. And so, you know, those down payment that you talk about, I love down payment assistance, you know, I love the fact that you can have a forgivable or repayable and they both have perks associated with both, depending on what works best for that buyer, right? So I just think that's great level the playing field. You know, have you a path to get that home? And it doesn't have to be your forever home. We didn't have our forever home that first time around, but get yourself in there and then give yourself a few years, and let's look, look at hey, I can either sell this or I could rent it out and buy another property, but get into your home. Doesn't have to get in. Yes, that's Yes, sir,

Heidi Griffith 23:04
because we talked, we do. We talked to so many people that are looking for, you know, unfortunately, pillow and Redfin and realtor.com that's the first place we go before we meet with a mortgage professional and or a realtor, we start looking at $800,000 houses. And, yeah, they look fantastic.

Roland Daniels 23:22
And then we only qualify for 400,000

Heidi Griffith 23:25
and then 400,000 never looks like that 800,000 and, you know, so I talk about it in the path to homeownership workshop. I talk about needs and wants and really understanding the difference between the two. You know, maybe you do need a single story because you've got a bum knee? Yeah, you need a single story. But do you need a fireplace in the master bath? Probably not

Aprille Noble 23:48
exactly, probably more of a wand. Yes, that's such a great point about the bum knee. When we think about all of the disabilities that veterans will have, one of the great things about the VA loan is that if you are 10% at minimum for your VA disability, you don't have to pay what's called the funding fee for the VA, for the VA. So I'm so glad that that you mentioned that, because most of the veterans, they they do have a legitimate disability, you know, and so this is something that's another, another opportunity for them to level their playing field with them getting into their home.

Heidi Griffith 24:23
Absolutely, absolutely. It's about buying smart, and it's about being a successful homeowner. And everyone here today, you know that's our goal. Our goal is to make sure that everyone is a successful homeowner and that they have options, right?

Aprille Noble 24:39
Yes. Ma'am, yes. Ma'am.

Roland Daniels 24:41
April, so your organization, do they help veterans? Say, help them fill out paperwork or show them how to apply for some of the VA benefits. For maybe they do have a disability. Maybe they've been denied.

Aprille Noble 24:57
Yes, women veterans of Nevada, for. All the ladies that come through, and they don't, some don't have anything as of yet, and they do have disabilities as documented in their medical records. So we have names and contacts through the VA, through the American Legion, through the VFW, of resources of veteran service officers that we know personally that can help them to complete their, you know, their disability package. So yes, so we offer them, you know, a lot of them are, aren't ready at all, and they do need social services. So, you know, we use the VA Resource Center in North Las Vegas and at the VA hospital to get them connected to whether it's where their health care, it could be for, you know, their disability is a number of things, but yes, we connect them.

Roland Daniels 25:43
What about resources for our homeless vets? Any resources for them?

Aprille Noble 25:48
Yes, so we have a veterans providers meeting, and then we have a Veterans Service meeting. It's both of those are once per month, and so all of the groups, as a matter of fact, they go out into the communities and do outreach to the homeless veterans. And right now, there's an organization that is offering a tiny home right now. So we're in the application process, nomination and application process, and they and they plan to have three homes, tiny homes, next year. And so clearly, you know, this is for the veterans that that they don't, they don't have very much, they just need a very small accommodations. But yes, to answer your question, the Homeless Veterans Outreach Program is huge. It's so many organizations that they do that on a regular basis, and we meet and just discuss, you know, when they're going out and who they're trying to connect with, maybe to get a job or to get housing period, they're not ready to purchase and they just need housing.

Heidi Griffith 26:52
Well, can you keep us informed on that? That's great. Absolutely. That's great. My pleasure. It's always wonderful to hear people actually helping people. And I love that. Yes. Ma'am, yep. So April, one of the things that Roland and I are most proud of is the way this show connects with people who are actually making a difference. We just celebrated our one year anniversary a couple weeks ago here on the station, congratulations. Thank you. Very excited. And we're going to start something new this week, and it will happen every week following but super exciting news, we're starting a good human campaign honoring people in our community who are selflessly giving back April today, you're our very first good human

Aprille Noble 27:36
I'm so honored. We're

Heidi Griffith 27:37
going to present you with a certificate. Roland has the certificate to thank you for all that you do for veterans, for ne rep and for families across Nevada.

Aprille Noble 27:46
Thank you so much. Thank you. Oh, that means so Oh, thank you.

Heidi Griffith 27:52
So if you know a good human who should be honored on mortgage matters, you're more than welcome to give us a call or text us. We're at 702-210-2057, you can also message us on Facebook at mortgage matters radio, thank you again.

Aprille Noble 28:06
April, my pleasure. Thank you for having me.

Roland Daniels 28:10
We also want to remind listeners about Silver State Fair Housing Council and the work that they do to make sure everyone has equal access to housing. So one of the best ways to support their mission is by becoming a fair housing tester. It's a volunteer role that helps uncover discrimination and protects opportunity for all. If you'd like to get involved to learn more about it, you can go to S, S, F, H, c.org, or you can simply give them a call at 1-888-585-8634

Heidi Griffith 28:44
That's right. So today's show was really a powerful reminder from VA loans and the importance of structuring deals in today's market and of course, recognizing people in our community who are making a difference. April, again, thank you for sharing. Would you like to give your number again? Why don't you give us your contact information is how you can contact April noble,

Aprille Noble 29:03
thank you. So my number is 702-530-5019,

Roland Daniels 29:08
thank you. If you have any other thoughts or questions about what we've covered today, feel free to reach out at 702-210-2057 once again, that's 702-210-2057 row two to one, oh, 2057, we'll be back next Sunday morning at 7:30am right here on K, U, n, b, 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.

Music 29:39
You.

Transcribed by https://otter.ai