No one likes to think of the possibility that a mortgage company isn’t looking out for the best interests of its customers. Unfortunately, there are some brokers whose business emphasis makes customer service an afterthought at best.

Well, there is one broker who is attempting to change things and he is doing it through his own blog titled, “Mortgage Secrets Revealed.” On Mortgage Secrets Revealed, Brian Diez takes a hard look at some popular mortgage industry practices including:

• 5 Dirty Tricks That Bankers and Brokers Don’t Want You To Know About
• 9 Tricks You Can Use To Stop Foreclosure Today
• Are 2 Mortgages Better Than One?

Diez is a former stockbroker who made a career change to mortgage sales following 9/11. With Mortgage Secrets Revealed you just may uncover some important tips to save you money and help you avoid grief and aggravation.

No matter where you live in the USA, housing revaluations occur on a regular basis. At least they are supposed to according to the laws of the state where you reside.

Where I live — Wake County, NC — housing revaluations are conducted about once every eight years. This is a high growth area with plenty of land to build on, however those homes “inside the beltline” have been appreciating the fastest as they are a lot closer to sought after downtown Raleigh than homes in Morrisville, Zebulon, Wake Forest, and elsewhere.

We relocated to this area in 2004, so it’ll be our first revaluation. Living just outside of the beltline will likely mean that our home will not double in value, but a 50% increase is possible. Whether that translates into a 50% increase in tax payments is another matter, something that local homeowners will be wondering about.

I remember a revaluation in my native NJ where a local town jacked up property taxes on average by $2000 in just one year. That sort of increase is an amazing amount of money to come up with especially for those people living on a fixed income. Fortunately, NC property taxes are relatively low so for many folks the anticipated increase shouldn’t be quite as shocking, but it will certainly cause much discomfort for some.

Reference: ABC11TV.Com

The strong British pound and weak American dollar mean one thing — the British are coming! No, there are no redcoats here just some red faced, suntan lotion-less Britons who understand a thing or two about investing overseas particularly in Florida, a destination favored by many vacationing British residents.

According to an article published on the Homes Worldwide website Florida is particularly desirable for its theme parks, pretty beaches, and larger homes. Compared to what the average U.K. residents owns, Florida homes are much larger than what they are accustomed to living in.

The Florida market has seen a downturn in price, another benefit to British expats who can benefit from a weaker housing market and stronger pound.

The Federal Reserve Bank is considering responding to the current mortgage crisis brought on as a result of cash strapped consumers losing their homes to foreclosure. The historically low rates of just a few years ago are no longer in place meaning homeowners with adjustable rate mortgages were soon facing monthly payments several hundred dollars higher. Over the past year the foreclosure rate has surged, creating a housing crisis in some neighborhoods.

The Federal Reserve, tasked with overseeing the country’ money supply, is considering implementing the following in a bid to stem the bloodletting caused by the rash of sub-prime lender generated foreclosures:

• Obtain proof of income from borrowers.
• Get rid of penalties for early mortgage payments.
• Guarantee that property taxes and insurance bills are covered.

According to an Associated Press story:

The Mortgage Bankers Association reported Thursday that the percentage of payments that were 30 or more days past due for subprime adjustable-rate mortgages jumped to 15.75 percent in the January-to-March quarter. That was a sizable increase from the late 2006 delinquency rate of 14.44 percent and the highest on record, said Doug Duncan, the association’s chief economist.

Foreclosure filings, meanwhile, were up 90 percent in May compared with last year, according to industry data firm RealtyTrac Inc.

Members of Congress have been calling upon the Federal Reserve to take action as their constituents fall victim to foreclosure. Although the proposed legislation doesn’t help those who have lost their homes, it could help future home buyers by putting consumer-friendly rules in place.