Meerbaum & Company, Inc. Volume 1, Issue 1 February 2007 Did you know that . . . Pay bills online, you’re less likely to miss deadlines that could cost you late fees and hurt your credit score. . . .rising short term interest rates won’t hurt most Americans? Reason: Americans hold more assets linked to short-term interest rates, such as savings accounts & certificates of deposit, than they do liabilities linked to short-term rates, such as credit card debt. One exception: homeowners with adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs) may want to refinance into long-term fixed rate mortgages. ...appliances use electricity even when they are not on? Televisions, stereos and microwave ovens run on low power even when they are off. Equipment in low-power mode may account for as much as 10% of residential energy consumption. Free Stuff on the Web: www.bestdealsontheweb.net www.coolfreebielinks.com www.fabfree.com www.freebies.about.com Portƒolio Real Estate+Technology+Personal Finance Is Your Voice Mail Increasing your Sales? How to make Voice Mail more productive Is your voice mail promoting your business? As companies look to cut operating costs, they are turning to automated answering systems to greet their callers. Here are some tips you can use to utilize your voice mail as an effective tool to promote your business. State your company name, your unique selling proposition and your office hours. Don’t say “I am on the other line or away from my desk.” Do mention the time zone you are in, your fax number and website (no need to say “www”). Guide your caller through any directories, otherwise proceed to instruct the caller to leave a message. A sample greeting would state: “Thanks for calling Meerbaum & Company, we work for you, not the bank. Office hours are from 8am to 6pm Eastern Standard Time, Monday through Friday. Our fax number is 212.986.5316. Our website is meerbaum.com. Please leave a message, and speak slowly when leaving your phone number. We look forward to talking with you.” To make your greeting effective deliver the greeting in 20 seconds or less. People have the capacity to listen 10 times faster than they can read. Update your personal voice mail every seven days. If you are out of town and will not be returning calls, state so. You can include information about your product of the week, but remember to keep your entire message under 20 seconds in length. Additional points: 1. Don’t mention “today’s date.” If you were unable to change the date of your greeting, you give the impression More » Want A Great Deal On Real Estate? Take These Steps Right Now To Ensure You Get The Best Loan. Having a strong credit score is crucial to getting the best terms on a residential mortgage. However, if you are considering a commercial loan, bank underwriters consider other items. On a Commercial project, creditworthiness is one of the factors lending institutions use whether to issue a letter of interest (a letter of interest in a commercial loan is similar to an approval letter for a residential loan). For a commercial loan, property cash flow is the primary concern, next is the net worth of the borrower, and then the borrower’s credit score. The most important criteria commercial loan underwriters look for when analyzing a property is its ability to generate excess cash flow after paying operating expenses, mortgage payments and taxes. Ideally, payment of all of these items should not take up more than 80% to 85% of the property’s cash flow, leaving a cushion of 15% to 20%. Next, lenders look at the applicant’s net worth. When an applicant has sufficient net worth, he demonstrates a stronger likelihood to be able to pay back the loan. This is like financial insurance to the lender. The final factor is the credit score. Although it is not as important as income generation or net worth, a strong credit score can push marginal transactions to fund. Furthermore, strong credit scores can allow borrowers with access to a greater number of funding sources and options. Credit scores are calculated and reported by the three major credit bureaus: Trans Union, Equifax, and Experian. Credit scores range from 350-850; the higher the score, the better the credit. More » Maximize Your Property’s Appreciation: The Smart Investors Annual Property Maintenance Schedule. Property Tune-up Schedule Keeping your property well maintained is paramount to having it appreciate and rented out to desirable tenants. Preventive maintenance will also avoid “unexpected emergency” repairs. Even if you are not ready to sell, you will benefit from the increased equity from your property’s curb appeal. Here is a prudent property owner’s maintenance calendar. . . January Focus on your property’s interior: Write a to do list. Walk through your home, and write down projects and maintenance problems that you have in mind. Carry a screwdriver and machine oil so you can immediately fix minor items, such as replacing a battery for your fire detector, or loose door hinges. Bring order to the chaos. Organize your closets. Donate or discard any clothing you don’t wear. Buy additional shelves, hooks, and boxes to organize your closets. Next: Declutter your laundry room, another often disorganized, small space. Consider your flooring. January is a slow month for the flooring retailers, so it’s a great time to get a deal on a new carpet. February More indoor tasks before warmer weather arrives. . . Examine bathroom and kitchen caulking. If you find gaps between your tub or shower and the floor and walls, or between the countertop and backsplash, recaulk. More » © 2006 Meerbaum & Company Inc. To unsubscribe from this mailing list, click here. Useful Web Sites: Knowledge is power. Interesting information on variety of subjects: www.infoplease.com An apple a day. . .here’s some informative health related sites: www.4women.gov www.menshealthnetwork.org www.kidshealth.org Building Wealth: Financial Planning, broker check up, franchise offers and other business intelligence, financing college, online banking, and more. www.mymoney.gov Keep enough reserves in a bank account or money-market fund to pay three to six months of expenses. Use low rate credit cards for balances that you carry. If you can’t payoff your balance by the time your lowest rate expires, transfer balances to a lower rate card. Check out www.cardweb.com. Keep track of your cash flow for a month. A rule of thumb allots 30% of take home pay for housing, 10% for utilities, 15% for food, 10% for transportation, 5% for clothing, 10% for debt repayment, 5% for entertainment and 5% for insurance and miscellaneous expenses. That leaves 10% for savings or special purchases. Meerbaum & Company, Inc. 555 Fifth Avenue, 14th Floor New York, NY 10017 t: 212.378.1720 e: info@meerbaum.com w: www.meerbaum.com mortgage blog: mortgageblog.meerbaum.com