Today’s show will motivate you to do some things you know are important but have not gotten around to doing what you need to do. Eugene Jones, Coordinator of Shelby County Community Emergency Response Training will be showing you how to get yourself certified to keep yourself, those around you and your neighborhood safe in case of an emergency or a disaster. He will show you how to be the hero to those around you. I will be sharing some ways I see my mortgage clients prepare for the unexpected financially.
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To Your Success,
Jo Garner, Mortgage Loan Officer NMLS#757308 (901) 482-0354 jo@jogarner.com
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Good morning, Memphis! Welcome to our listeners across the 50 states! You’re on Real Estate Mortgage Shoppe. I’m your host, Jo Garner, Mortgage Loan Officer. You can connect with me at www.JoGarner.com. Thank you to Chad Irwin, Mortgage Department Manager of the Memphis Mortgage Office at Evolve Bank and Trust for sponsoring this episode of Real Estate Mortgage Shoppe. If you or someone you know is interested in building a successful mortgage career and having some fun doing it, call me, Jo Garner at (901) 482-0354 or Chad Irwin at (901) 260-1480. Our general topic is At Your Home and In Your Neighborhood-In An Emergency, Are YOU Ready? If you have a question or comment email me at jo@jogarner.com or call me directly off the show at (901) 482-0354. You can call us while we are live at (901) 535-9732 Today is July 15th, 2017.
GET READY, BE READY FOR THE UNEXPECTED
Today’s show will motivate you to do some things you know are important but have not gotten around to doing what you need to do. Eugene Jones, Coordinator of Shelby County Community Emergency Response Training will be showing you how to get yourself certified to keep yourself, those around you and your neighborhood safe in case of an emergency or a disaster. He will show you how to be the hero to those around you. I will be sharing some ways I see my mortgage clients prepare for the unexpected financially.
INTRODUCING OUR SHELBY COUNTY CERT COORDINATOR
Eugene Jones is the coordinator of Shelby County TN Community Emergency Response Training. He has been with the Shelby County Office of Preparedness for over 9 years. Welcome to Real Estate Mortgage Shoppe, Eugene. Take a minute or so and introduce yourself to our listening audience. Tell us a little bit about yourself and how our listeners can benefit from the Shelby County Community Emergency Response Training. (Eugene has a little over a minute to introduce himself and talk about what CERT does for the community)
MORTGAGE MARKET NEWS
(Jo) Following comments by the Federal Reserve this week, the mortgage market reacted to what they expect will happen. The prices on mortgages improved to the best all week yesterday morning. The better pricing made it look like investors were spreading a checkered table cloth on the ground for borrowers and opening the picnic basket. But by the end of yesterday, investors, a little leery of some unexpected economic weather over the weekend, packed up the picnic basket but left the table cloth out by taking away some, but not all of the best mortgage pricing. Rates are still great though. The 30 year fixed rate conventional rates ended the day at around 4% to 4.25% or so and the 15 year conventional fixed rates ended the day in the low to mid 3’s.
Here’s a word to the wise: MAKE YOUR PLAN. LET’S WORK YOUR PLAN. IF THE DEAL WORKS FOR YOU TODAY, LET’S DO IT TODAY. Call me directly and let’s look at the best way to execute YOUR plans. But you have to work with me personally to work with me. I WANT TO WORK WITH YOU! Call me at (901) 482-0354 or email me at jo@jogarner.com Connect with me at www.JoGarner.com
COMMUNITY EMERGENCY RESPONSE TRAINING -WHAT, WHEN, HOW, WHY TO GET CERTIFIED
(Jo) Eugene, just like the investors in the mortgage market, people tend to not like the unexpected and want to be prepared in case of the unexpected. You presented some very interesting stories and information at the Talk Shoppe meeting in Memphis a few days ago. Share with our listeners about the Community Emergency Response Training and the skills you teach in your free 16 hour course. (Eugene takes a few minutes to share about what CERT is, how people can sign up for it and what kinds of skills they will get from the course. )
Also , how can people get their neighborhood organized in case of an emergency?
Your neighbor is often your real first responder.
Ready Shelby has teamed up with The City of Memphis’ Neighborhood Relations office to reach out to neighborhoods with the important message of emergency preparedness.
Block captains, district leaders and association officials have been tapped to help our neighborhoods become better prepared in case of a countywide emergency. But it takes all of us doing our part. We encourage you to join in the effort. From becoming a Ready Shelby leader through our “train-the-trainer” sessions, to participating in emergency summit meetings, there’s something easy for everyone to do.
So get ready, Neighbors! Register today to learn more. Or email us at neighbors@readyshelby.org.
Five Simple Steps To Preparedness
Ready Neighbors are leaders in their communities, inspiring everyone to get started on the road to preparedness. There’s no better time than now to tackle these five simple steps:
- Create a family communication plan … where to meet, who to call, who’s picking up the kids, etc.
- Determine your safe place at home, at work, at church, etc.
- Pack an emergency kit and first aid kit.
- Learn compression-only CPR.
- Participate in free Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) training.
http://www.readyshelby.org/first-steps/cert-training/
PREPARE FINANCIALLY IN CASE OF AN EMERGENCY
From the financial side of the table here are some of things you could do to be financially prepared and ready for an emergency at your or office:
- Video everything in your house and the outside of your house too. Make a list of the items you own in the house with copies of the handbooks, make and model of appliances and other things. Store the list off site, in case you have to make an insurance claim. In case of an emergency, if possible, make a video of your home and what is left to give to the insurance company also. Having the proper documentation can go a long way in getting an insurance claim settled.
- Put copies of important documents in a fireproof safe or a bank lockbox. Make copies of other important documents to store off site from your home.
- Keep your wallet with your drivers license, credit cards and medical cards in it and your iphone next to your bed or in a place easy to get to in an emergency. At all times have a bag with these important items in it so that you can GRAB and RUN –not GATHER AND RUN. Being able to Grab everything important in one bag allows you precious seconds to spend getting yourself and others to safety.
You’re on Real Estate Mortgage Shoppe. I’m your host, Jo Garner, Mortgage Loan Officer. When we come back from break we will be talking more with Eugene Jones of Shelby County TN Community Emergency Response Training. Join our conversation by calling us while we are live in the studio July 15th, 2017 (901) 535-9732.
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QUESTIONS ANSWERED BY EUGENE JONES, COORDINATOR OF SHELBY COUNTY CERT PROGRAM-
- What does the Shelby County Community Emergency Response Training offer the people who take the 16 hour class?
- How do people sign up for the course?
- Who can sign up? What is the maximum limit allowed in a class?
- How much does it costs?
- When are the classes?
- Where are the classes?
- What could we experience in case of an earthquake?
- What are some great tips for us to follow in the few minutes during and after an earthquake that could save lives?
- What could we experience in the Memphis area in case of a flood?
- What are some great tips for our citizens to follow during a flood and shortly after a flood?
- What could the situation look like during a tornado?
- What are your recommendations on the best actions to take during and following a tornado?
- How could a possible terrorist attack play out?
- What are some rules to stay safe and keep everyone else safe during an attack like the one you described?
- What is the general emergency plan for Memphis and Shelby County in case of an earthquake?
- What are some of the latest findings and predictions concerning our earthquake fault line in Memphis?
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QUESTIONS ANSWERED BY JO GARNER:
- What are some steps to take financially in case of an emergency?
Video everything in your house and the outside of your house too. Make a list of the items you own in the house with copies of the handbooks, make and model of appliances and other things. Store the list off site, in case you have to make an insurance claim. In case of an emergency, if possible, make a video of your home and what is left to give to the insurance company also. Having the proper documentation can go a long way in getting an insurance claim settled.
Put copies of important documents in a fireproof safe or a bank lock-box. Make copies of other important documents to store off site from your home.
Keep your wallet with your drivers license, credit cards and medical cards in it and your iPhone next to your bed or in a place easy to get to in an emergency.
- What do you see some of your customers do to prepare financially for the unexpected?
The clients I have gotten to know over the years who plan ahead for the unexpected have gotten with an attorney and put their estates in a trust or other arrangement so that their loved ones are spared unnecessary time and expense in getting the assets they inherit. Check with your certified financial advisor and your attorney for advice on your specific situation.
Here’s something else I see homeowners do often. Structuring their mortgage on a longer term like 30 years even though they prepay enough each month to get the mortgage paid off in less than 15 years. In an emergency they are only required to pay the much lower payment so they have the option to go back to a lower payment and still keep their mortgage paid on time and the credit in tip top shape.
Here’s an example of how a client of mine is prepared for the future and hedged themselves against unexpected negative emergencies. Some aspects of the story I have changed for this on-air story but the desire of this client, the challenges they faced and their resolution ring true for many. My former clients (we will call The Grandparents-to-Be) over the last 10 years had accumulated a mountain of debt trying to help other family members and handling some unexpected bills of their own. They had a challenge. They sat down across my desk and sighed.. “We are excited about our first grandchild who will be born soon. We want to enjoy life and we want to enjoy spending time with our grandchild and hopefully more to come. But we have so much debt. It looks like we will be strapped down with this debt for YEARS to come.” Mr. Grandpa-to-be wanted to pay off one particularly big debt and they both wanted to lower the interest on their home mortgage which only had about 15 years left on it.
When we started working their financial puzzle, paying off the big debt they really want to pay off was NOT the best way for them to eliminate the most debt expenses overall. We ended up paying off debts that had the highest payment to balance ratio. Most of those carried the highest interest rate too.
Because we took the time to look at more than one angle of their finances, we were able to include a lot of debt into the mortgage, getting rid of the high payments connected with those debts. We structured the mortgage on a 30 year low, fixed rate—at a much lower rate than they were paying on their old mortgage in order to get their income-to-debt ratios to work.
Getting all the high interest, high payment debt paid off saved them almost $2,000 per month on money they had been paying out for debt. They plan to use $1,500 per month of the $2,000 per month savings to pay extra on their mortgage each month to get rid of the entire mortgage in LESS THAN 7 YEARS. With the rest of the $500/month savings they plan to pay off the other big debt we were not able to add into mortgage.
We had to structure the mortgage and the strategic debts we chose to add back into the new mortgage very carefully because if we had tried to take the mortgage back to a 15 year term right away their income-to-debt ratios would have been too high and they would not have been able to qualify for the loan. And, they still would have owed 15 years on the loan, not reducing the term at all. But by taking the mortgage up to a 30 year initially they could afford to roll in more debt. When they prepay the mortgage each month, using the savings from paying off the other debt, they can be close to debt free in less than 7 years instead of 15 years. NO DEBT IN 7 YEARS! Time to take the grandkids to Disney World!
Let’s talk about plans to conquer YOUR challenges! MAKE YOUR PLAN! WORK YOUR PLAN. IF THE DEAL WORKS FOR YOU TODAY, LET’S DO IT TODAY! Call me directly after hearing this show at (901) 482-0354. You can email me at jo@jogarner.com Check out our blog posts and podcasts at www.JoGarner.com
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ANNOUNCEMENTS:
- Talk Shoppe offers free networking & education to anyone interested in real estate or in business. Talk Shoppe meets every Wednesday 9A-10A CT Nova Copy 7251 Appling Farms Parkway Memphis, TN. This Wednesday July 19th, 2017 Talk Shoppe presents: Tax Attorney Wis Laughlin to talk about “Learn About Owning an Air-BNB-Including Important Tax Information.” WisLaughlin@gmail.com
- Talk Shoppe events are free thanks to sponsors/advertisers/supporters like Tim Gilliland of www.BackupRX.com . Tim Gilliland offers a very complete and affordable data backup to protect your data files at home or at work in case of a disaster or a data breach. Thank you BackupRX for keeping our data backed up and safe at Talk Shoppe. Contact Tim Gilliland at www.Backup.RX.com
- Thank you to Mary Ann Lessley of Signs Now Memphis for her financial support in making Talk Shoppe’s networking and education free to our local business community. Mary Ann can help you get the right signage for your business or event. She’s at 4945 American Way Ste 8 Memphis, TN. (901) 368-0784.
- Thank you to Chad Irwin, Mortgage Department Manager of the Memphis Mortgage Office at Evolve Bank and Trust for sponsoring this episode of Real Estate Mortgage Shoppe. If you or someone you know is interested in building a successful mortgage career and having some fun doing it, call me, Jo Garner at (901) 482-0354 or Chad Irwin at (901) 260-1480.
- SPECIAL NOTE: REAL ESTATE MORTGAGE SHOPPE RECOMMENDS THAT YOU CONSULT WITH A FINANCIAL, LEGAL OR OTHER CERTIFIED, LICENSED PROFESSIONAL BEFORE ACTING OR INVESTING ON ANYTHING YOU HEAR OR SEE FROM THE CONTENT ON THIS SHOW OR BLOG POSTS. THE INFORMATION WE SHARE ON REAL ESTATE MORTGAGE SHOPPE IS GENERAL IN NATURE MEANT FOR GENERAL EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY.
- FOR THIS PODCAST OF REAL ESTATE MORTGAGE SHOPPE AND MORE, GO TO JOGARNER.COM
- Real Estate Mortgage Shoppe reminds you to MAKE YOUR PLAN. LET’S WORK YOUR PLAN. IF THE DEAL WORKS FOR YOU TODAY, DO IT TODAY.
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REJOINDERS:
- Chad Irwin, Mortgage Manager at Evolve Bank and Trust in Memphis, TN. (901) 260-1480
- Pat Goldstein, Realtor with Crye-Leike Realtors in Memphis and Mississippi. Pat is the gold-standard in real estate with over 30 years experience and a great reputation. (901) 606-2000.
- David Lenoir, Shelby County Trustee.
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ABOUT EUGENE JONES, COORDINATOR OF SHELBY COUNTY, TN COMMUNITY EMERGENCY RESPONSE TEAM TRAINING
Preparedness Officer
Shelby County Office of Preparedness
Dates Employed May 2008 – Present
Employment Duration 9 yrs 3 mos
- Training officer teaching C.E.R.T. (community emergency response teams) to the public, private business, teachers and other emergency response personal.
- Perform presentations to public, private and government agencies.
- Performed other duties as assigned.
Eugene.Jones@ShelbyCountyTN.gov
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About Jo Garner
cell: (901) 482 0354
Twitter: @jogarner
Jo describes her job description: “As a mortgage loan officer, my job is to give my client the benefits they want from their financing terms– listening to my client and determine what’s of the most value to THEM– What is their comfort level on a house payment, how much are they comfortable paying down, what type of financing do they need to get the house they want to buy or refinance. Different clients have different priorities in life—some are buying their first home with very little down payment funds. Some are recovering from medical challenges, divorces or preparing to send children to college and some are embarking on a long term goal of buying properties to build rental income. Whatever their personal priorities are, my job is to put together a mortgage with comfortable terms that will help them achieve their goals.”
Jo Garner is a mortgage officer with extensive knowledge in tailoring mortgages to her customers who are refinancing or purchasing homes all over the country. She offers conventional, FHA, VA or other loan programs for refinancing and purchases.
Jo can help you look at rent vs buy, when it makes sense to refinance, how to get the best deal on your home purchase financing.
Jo Garner has been in the real estate/financing business for over 20 years. She got her start in Portland, Maine where she first began her real estate career. She received her real estate education from the University of Southern Maine and was personally mentored in San Diego, California by Robert G. Allen, author of Nothing Down, Creating Wealth and The Challenge.
On moving back to West Tennessee in 1987, she went into business buying and selling discounted owner-financed notes secured on real estate. In 1990 Jo went to work for a residential mortgage company and has been a mortgage loan officer for over 20 years. Her goal is to offer excellent, affordable service to her customers, tailoring the loan programs to the specific needs of her clients.