Daily Rate Briefing:

RATES HAVE RALLIED

So what happened since Tuesday’s Morning Update? Well, good things happened. Between Tuesday and Wednesday we improved by 50 BPS in the conventional market. Can I get an amen? As of this morning, we are up another 9 BPS, taking us to $590 better pricing per $100K in loan amount in just over two days.

We can attribute a majority of this improvement to the ongoing talks with Iran. Per President Trump, negotiations are moving forward regarding nuclear weapons and a possible resolution surrounding the Strait of Hormuz. That news has pushed stocks higher, rates lower, and created a more hopeful market sentiment. Take it while you can get it, friends. As we all know, things can change quickly.

Week over week, mortgage applications were down 4.4%, but I have a feeling we may see that reverse with the recent market improvement. Make sure you are part of that increase. Those who react quickly are usually the ones who benefit the most when opportunity shows up. Refinances fell 5% and purchases dropped 3.7%, so just know you are not alone out there.

For those who monitor the markets closely, oil is currently sitting at $90.50 per barrel, which is a far cry from the $108 levels we saw the other day. In addition, the 10 Year Treasury is sitting around 4.31%, which is helping support the improvement in mortgage rates.

Make the most of the moment, friends.

DYK – Mortgage Playbook:

GRASPING FOREIGN NATIONALS

When you hear the term “Foreign National” loan, do not automatically think impossible deal. Think niche or I can do this.

A Foreign National is a non-U.S. citizen authorized to live in the U.S. on a temporary basis but does not
meet the definition of a Non-Permanent Resident Alien. Simple as that.

That does not mean they cannot buy real estate in the U.S.

As an example, here at AD Mortgage. Foreign National borrowers can finance investment properties and even second homes under certain programs.

This is where many loan officers miss opportunities because they assume:
No U.S. credit = no loan
No tax returns = no loan
Foreign borrower = cash buyer only

Not true. Many Foreign National borrowers have strong assets, strong cash flow, and substantial reserves. They simply need a lender that understands how to structure the deal outside the conventional box.

Here are a few things that may surprise you:

• Loan amounts up to $3 million

• Up to 75% LTV on purchases

• Second homes and investment properties allowed

• Short term rentals, condos, condotels allowed

• LLC ownership available in many cases

• Overseas assets allowed for reserves

• Interest only options available

• First time homebuyers allowed

• Some programs allow no U.S. credit score at all

One of the biggest things to understand is the difference between Full Doc and DSCR.

FULL DOC FOREIGN NATIONAL
This uses a more traditional approach with items like foreign CPA letters, bank reference letters, assets, and credit documentation to support income qualification.

DSCR FOREIGN NATIONAL
This program qualifies the borrower based on the property cash flow instead of personal income. No tax returns or employment income required. The property income does the qualifying.

Another key point many LOs do not realize is that an active visa is required, but an EAD card is not necessarily needed if the visa is active.

The takeaway here is simple. Foreign National does not mean hard no. It usually means there is another way to structure the deal. Sometimes the borrower is perfectly qualified. They are just standing in a scary box many folks do not understand and are scared to ask. Go ahead, just ask.

Jackism – A Thought For Today:

UNEXPECTED CONNECTION

I had the opportunity to spend time with an AD Mortgage fellow AE named Luis. Before this trip, we had never really crossed paths. Different ages. Different backgrounds. Different seasons of life. I am 35 years into my career. He is 2 years into his. I am 31 years into marriage. He is in the excitement of building a relationship and dreaming about what the future may hold. I am an empty nester reflecting on the years behind me while he is thinking about how many children he hopes to have someday.

There are moments in life that remind you how much bigger this world is than the little circles we often stay inside. I had one of those moments this week at a mortgage convention. Funny enough, it had very little to do with mortgages.

Even our faith journeys come from different expressions of Christianity. I cherish my Protestant faith, and he faithfully walks in his Catholic beliefs. Yet somehow, over conversations at meals, long talks between conference sessions, and simply slowing down long enough to really listen to each other, none of those differences created distance. They created connection.

And honestly, it became my favorite part of the entire conference.

We talked about mortgages and business, but we also talked about life. Relationships. Faith. Finances. Traditions. New ideas. The way younger generations think. The way older generations see things after years of experience. Somewhere in those conversations I realized something important.

Wisdom is not owned by age alone.

Experience teaches things youth cannot yet understand, but youth sees things experience sometimes forgets.

Those of us who have lived a little longer have stories, scars, victories, failures, and lessons that can help guide others through storms we have already survived. But younger people bring something just as valuable. They bring fresh vision. Hope. Energy. Curiosity. They remind us what it felt like to dream before life taught us to be careful. They ask questions we stopped asking. They challenge routines we assumed could never change.

Sometimes the older generation thinks its job is only to teach. Sometimes the younger generation thinks its job is only to prove itself. But the best conversations happen when both sides decide to learn.

I walked away encouraged by Luis. Not because he thinks exactly like me, but because he does not. God created generations to need each other. The young need wisdom. The experienced need reminding. Somewhere in the middle of that exchange, both people grow.

Maybe that is the lesson.

Get outside your comfort zone. Sit at the table with someone in a different season of life. Listen longer than you speak. Ask questions. Share your experiences honestly. Stop assuming age determines who has value in the conversation.

Because sometimes the greatest gift at a convention, in a workplace, in a friendship, or even in life itself is not the presentation on the stage.

It is the person sitting across the table.