David Reed
1 This book is a must read for anyone in the business
I have been working on a review of this book off and on for a few months, and I am still not ready to post it, but I wanted to put something up for now. I train residential mortgage loan originators around the country and I recommend it to all of them. I have learned more from this book than from dozens of other books combined. Do not lend or broker mortgage money without reading this book; you will learn more from this book than you would from spending ten years in the business.
2 An Excellent Primer
Dave Reed has written an excellent book. His style of a Q & A format makes for easy reading and he keeps the answers short and on point. I own a mortgage company and a real estate brokerage, and I think his book could easily be used by the following 3 groups:
1) People shopping for a loan
2) Realtors who want to familiarize themselves with the multitude of loan products available.
3) Any agent new in the industry. I would advise every lender to have a copy on hand. If you get a new agent who is inexperienced, put them in a corner their first day on the job and have them read this book.
I think Mr. Reed has done a thorough job explaining what is currently out there in the way of mortgages, and his Q & A format worked because that is typically how a loan officer gets and delivers information, i.e. "If I do that what happens?" or "Can I buy this house with this much or that much down?"
He strongly encourages in this book to find an experienced loan agent who is working in your best interest. Even though there are a loans available these days, not all make financial sense to all people. Sometimes a borrower just has to take what is offered due to job history, credit history, or lack of downpayment. But, the good news is that people can now get loans who could not get loans in the recent past (at somewhat reasonable rates). Real Estate has been so good to so many people, that it is undeniably the best investment for the average person. I've seen it too many times in my 19 years of being in the business. Dave Reed has done much to add to the understanding of loans for the average person.
Good job Dave on this great book.
3 First Rate Information
Mortgages 101 is an easy to read, down to earth, book, to provide information to people about what goes on in a mortgage process. Any question you might have about a mortgage, credit, is answered in an easy to comprehend fashion. I truly believe this book should be in every Realtor's office and in the hands of any prospective buyer or seller of Real Estate. All a person has to do is have a question and look up the question. From deciding whether to rent or buy; what type of loan is best; credit scores. It's all there. I highly recommend this book
4 Great book, easy to understand, lots of secret information
I picked this book because it was kind of a cross between Mortgages for Dummies because it was easy to get through and find different information and other mortgage books that get so technical that they're boring. One of the quotes on the back cover said something like "...the book on getting the lowest rate is worth the price of admission alone..." I couldn't agree more. I'm buying my second house now and wish I had this book the first time around.
