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Late today Bloomberg reported that after losing 90% of its market value this year, Indymac may soon close some operations Chief Executive Officer Michael Perry said.  “We’re certainly going to whittle back some of our business activities,” Perry said in a telephone interview today. “We don’t have anything finalized, or even the plans developed right at this moment.”

Over the weekend, the LA Times reported that depositors were lining up at some of its San Gabriel Valley branches to pull their money after different reports were released that questioned the company’s survival.  Since June 26 Indymac customers have withdrawn about $100 million from the bank’s branches, or about 0.5 percent of total deposits, IndyMac said.

It turns out the trimming has already started… Today, ML Implode reported that an email was sent to customers of Indymac’s commercial lending unit that said:

“ICLC, due to the current market and capital constraints has ceased lending operations as of 7/1/08.

A formal announcement from ICLC will be coming out tomorrow regarding details and loans in process.”

An official notice was sent out a few minutes after.  There has been talk of the company exiting the home lending business completely but in his interview with Bloomberg, Perry said that speculation “is just a rumor. There’s no basis in fact for it today.”

On top of all of this news the company was blasted by the Center For Responsible Lending which released a 22-page report that accuses the company of “unsound and abusive lending” during the recent boom.  The CFRL interviewed 19 ex-employees and touches upon “Disneyland loans” which was a name given to poorly documented loans by Indymac personnel in honor of a mortgage awarded to a Disneyland cashier who reportedly earned $90,000 a year, per the loan application.

Indymac stock closed today at $0.62.

IndyMac to Trim Operations, Not Shut Down, Perry Says (Update1)

Sun West Mortgage Company recently released their Apply Online feature that ties into their reverse mortgage calculator and is being offered to all of their business partners.

SWMC will give business partners a custom URL that is branded with their company name and logo to allow their prospects to see basic reverse mortgage calculations and submit their information online.  If a borrower decides to submit information online all of the data is automatically entered into your SWMC pipeline and assigned a lead number. Below are a few images to give you a better idea of what it will look like.

The calculator also allows borrowers to print out an information product as well.  If you are curious to see the calculator in action, SWMC was nice enough to create a RMD calculator for you the check out here.

Overall it’s a simple way for a small company to add a new feature to their website and you can’t beat the price… free.  Personally, I would rather have the ability to embed the code directly into my company’s website vs. directing them to another URL somewhere else.

While the calculator isn’t as detailed as the calculator you can get from a company like IBIS, it could be a good way to start "testing the waters" of advertising online.  Kudos to Sun West.  Click here for more information.

Reminder - Join us on Wednesday July 2nd at 12pm (EST) for “Becoming the Professional’s Professional:  20 Keys to Unlocking the Adviser’s Referral Door” with Monte Rose.  This session is part of RMD’s free training sessions.  Space is limited, sign up now!

Technorati Tags: Reverse Mortgage,Advertising,HECM,FHA,HUD,Sun West Mortgage,IBIS

Here are the upcoming reverse mortgage events in July:

• July 2 – Becoming the Professional’s Professional w/ Monte Rose (Webinar) Details and Sign Up
• July 16 - Trusts and How They Effect Reverse Mortgages w/ All Reverse Transactions (Webinar) Sign Up For Details
• July 22 - General Power Of Attorney Questions w/ All Reverse Transactions (Webinar) Sign Up For Details

Do you want to promote your upcoming event on RMD? Add your webinar or event to the events page by filling out our form. If you have multiple events to add please email me for instructions on how to upload.

Reverse Mortgage Events

Reminder - Join us on Wednesday July 2nd at 12pm (EST) for “Becoming the Professional’s Professional:  20 Keys to Unlocking the Adviser’s Referral Door” with Monte Rose.  This session is part of RMD’s free training sessions.  Space is limited, sign up now!

Technorati tags: Reverse Mortgage, News, HECM, FHA, Training

While real estate buyers are sitting on the fence, they are jumping right over it to participate with homeowners in the many online water cooler conversations surrounding real estate. They are talking about everything from how much to underbid on a listing price to what the rents are like in Atlanta, Georiga.

The conversation is buzzing. 

What's really funny to me is the amount of people who comment on areas outside of their roots. No subject is off-limits for crossover community members. A homeowner in Chicago will advise a homeowner in New York whether to increase/decrease their purchase price. That same out-of-town homeowner would tell another community member whether to buy or rent. 

It's not an anomaly. These types of conversations happen daily.

I hope consumers are not completely relying on what they find out about a real estate market online. It's good to do some research. Heck, join a conversation if you need to. But be aware of whom you're getting the information from. Look for advice from those who have real estate knowledge and only those who are local to your area.

The data is only as good as the end user and the person from whom you are receiving it. 

Irrelevant conversations have always been going on when it comes to real estate. Tell a friend, family member or coworker you are selling or buying your house. Suddenly, everyone has an opinion and you find yourself surrounded by a circle of consultants. Unfortunately, Aunt May might never have owned a house; your coworker who lives in the same town might have bought their house 10 years before you did; the friend who is selling his house right now might live across the country from you.

When it comes to real estate, everyone has an opinion.

It is only the true real estate professional who can help you navigate your real estate path. Real estate is personal and it is business. You are the only one who can make the final decision and who has to live with that choice. 

Choose wisely.

If you enjoyed this post, you'll want to read:

• There is no such thing as a cookie-cutter relocation
• A homestead declaration could save your house from creditors
• How to sell your house and keep your sanity

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Posted by Rebecca D. Levinson