Page 14 - Boca Club News - April '23

Page 14, Boca Club News

From The Professionals’ Desks

Healthy Answers–A Guide To Healthy Living:

“You Might Want to ‘Process’ This!”

By Dale Brown, B.S., M.A., C.E.C. for maintaining the health and balance of bacteria in your Eat fish at least once a week.
Dale is a motivational speaker who digestive system. Use olive oil instead of butter in preparing food.
has spent many years as a Certified What to do? Take stock of how much ultra-processed Serve fresh fruit for dessert.
Life Coach and has written numerous foods you are actually eating on a daily basis. Try to cut Eat red meat and sweets only occasionally.
articles and e-books relating to self- back by substituting green salad in place of fries or chips, Drink wine in moderation.
improvement and ways to build a fruit rather than cookies or cake for dessert, and avoid meat You may not be able to totally eliminate ultra-processed
high-performance team. She is the products, such as bacon, sausage, ham and salami. foods from your diet, but awareness is the first step to
author of the recently published book, The best quality control that you can do for yourself and making choices that are better for you. When you learn to eat
“Small Steps...Big Changes: The those you love is to cook and prepare your food from scratch. differently, it will make you feel lighter and give you more
Personal Stories of a Life Coach.” Her education and years The Mediterranean diet has been deemed one of the healthiest energy. Living a healthier lifestyle also means being physically
of experience in physical fitness and training of elite athletes ways of eating. Try getting started by following these tips: active and sharing meals with loved ones. All that said, don’t
has enabled her to sharpen her knowledge in many health- Build meals around vegetables, beans and whole grains. let this stop you from going on your next cruise! Bon Voyage!
related areas. The following introduces a new approach to
deal with the mind/body connection and the importance of Legal: Changes in Mortgage
Ms. Brown’s series of columns devoted to many topics that

living a healthy lifestyle. Dale, a Bocaire resident, can be
My husband and I recently returned from a ten-day Loan Costs
reached at dalebrown@lovingmondays.com.

Caribbean cruise. What’s not to like about cruising? Gorgeous
blue waters, lots of sunshine, great entertainment and, of By Michael J Posner, Esq., a partner a home purchase with a credit score of greater than 780 will
course, plenty to eat and drink. Eating seemed to be the one in Ward Damon P.L. a mid-sized real pay a loan premium of 0.625%, or $625 for every $100,000
activity we excelled at. We humored ourselves every morning estate and business-oriented law firm borrowed. A borrower with a 741-credit score putting down
by going on the television menu tab and checking out breakfast, serving all of Florida, with offices the same amount will now pay 1.125%, or an extra $500
lunch and dinner menus. To make matters worse, we found it in Palm Beach and Lee County. per $100,000 borrowed. On a $600,000 house purchase the
almost impossible to resist those warm French baguettes, fresh They specialize in real estate law difference in credit score will cost the borrower with a lower
croissants, numerous pastries, and the creamy homemade ice and can assist lenders, buyers and score an extra $2,500.
cream that can be found on every deck of the ship! sellers with purchases, loan closings Down-Payment: The guidelines also added additional
Now that we’re home and back to our normal routine, it’s and refinances of residential and premiums for borrowers with large down payments that
time to “deflate,” as my husband would say, which translates commercial real estate. They can be reached at (561) 594- previously paid no or lower premiums. To escape all
to what I call “spa diets!” 1452 or at mjposner@warddamon.com. premiums regardless of credit score, a down payment of
According to statistics, the average weight gain for most With the real estate market already rocked by high at least 70% is now required. Given a U.S. average credit
people on a cruise is a pound a day. Yikes, that would mean mortgage interest rates peaking above 7% after years of score of 716, a down payment of at least 60% is required to
we could have actually packed on ten pounds on our latest below 4% mortgages, new changes to the Federal National avoid premiums. For borrowers who want to avoid mortgage
trip. The good news is, although it’s tempting to over-indulge, Mortgage Association (“Fannie Mae”) and the Federal Home insurance, a down payment of 20% is required. With a 20%
we were able to exercise (some) restraint most of the time. Loan Mortgage Corporation (“Freddie Mac”) mortgages down payment, premiums range from 0.375% for top credit
A friend of mine who thinks a cruise ship is her second will likely also have a potentially damaging effect on the score borrowers to 2.75% for borrowers with credit scores
home tallied up a total of 14 pounds on her last seven-day real estate market. As a refresher, Fannie Mae and Freddie below 640.
cruise. When I asked how she thought she could have gained Mac’s purpose is to “expand the secondary mortgage market Debt to Income Ratio: With the student debt loan crisis
that much weight in such a short period of time, she said it by securitizing mortgage loans in the form of mortgage- pending before the Supreme Court, the effect of this debt
was easy. She confessed she passed on the “good food” and backed securities.” Traditionally, lenders were required to is a factor for many borrowers who are home shopping,
went instead for the buffets, loading up on hamburgers, hot hold their mortgages which tied up the lender capital so that as this debt, plus car payments, mortgage payments, taxes
dogs, French fries, milkshakes, pastas, pizza and a ton of they could not make new loans. By selling their loans through and insurance and credit card debt are all added together to
chocolate chip cookies. Fanny Mae and Freddie Mac they can reinvest those funds in calculate a borrower’s debt to income ratio. If the debt-to-
Vacations can sometimes give you the feeling that it’s additional mortgage loans (and the premiums paid per loan). income ratio is too high, a borrower cannot usually qualify
okay to cheat from your usual eating habits because you know Effective for loans purchased by Fannie Mae and Freddie for a loan. Currently, the total allowable debt-to-income ratio
it’s short-lived. You throw caution to the wind and think…” I Mac after May 1st, 2023, new requirements for the Loan- ranges from 45 to 50% depending on a variety of factors.
don’t always eat this way, so it won’t matter just this once!” Level Price Adjustment Matrix will make loans potentially Under the new guidelines, a borrower whose debt-to-income
Whether we’re on a cruise or not, we’re all guilty of giving more expensive in three specific areas: Credit Score levels, ratio exceeds 40%, putting down the usual 20% will pay an
into making the wrong choices on our food selections. It’s okay Down Payment requirements and Debt to Income ratios. These additional premium of 0.25 to 0.375% depending on the
once in a while, but when your meal consists of processed and changes will affect the cost of a loan to borrowers, increasing borrower’s credit score and other factors.
fast food items your diet and waistline may be in jeopardy. those costs beyond the costs in effect prior to May 1st, 2023. The higher premiums will also apply to other real estate
According to a new study, ultra-processed food now Loan-Level Price Adjustments represents the fees a purchases, including condominiums and second homes
accounts for two-thirds of calories in diets of children borrower has to pay if they do not meet applicable credit financed through Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. Condominiums
and teens. This study found an association between ultra- scores, down payments amount and/or debt to income ratios. purchased with 20% down will include an additional 0.75%
processed foods and the acceleration of cognitive decline This extra pricing is going up on May 1st, in part to cover premium and vacation homes purchased with 20% down
in adults, and has also been linked to other health issues, the additional costs/risk to these loans, but also, in part, to will have premiums at 3.375%. These higher borrowing
including heart disease, diabetes and cancer. subsidize loans to first-time homebuyers with qualifying costs, coupled with mortgage interest rates pushing 7% will
How do you know if a food is ultra-processed? It may income of less than 100% of an area’s median income or less certainly have a chilling factor on the real estate market.
be hard to tell, but in general these are packaged foods that than 120% of an area’s median income in high-cost areas. Because these premiums may be paid by either the buyer
have a long list of ingredients and extra-long expiration dates. Credit Scores: Prior to the May 1st change, the top tier to or seller at closing, we expect buyers to seek more financing
Have you ever wondered why some products seem to last get the best loan pricing was a credit score above 740. Scores concessions from Sellers to help shoulder these additional
forever? What preservatives could possibly be added to keep below that number paid a higher loan premium, scores above costs. In addition, borrowers may seek out alternative
them tasting fresh? Things to watch for are high amounts of paid a lower premium. That number has been raised to 780. loans from the Federal Housing Authority and the Veterans
sodium, sugar, saturated fat, as well as high-fructose corn The average American credit score is 716, and therefore most Administration. These lenders offer better deals with lowers
syrup and chemical preservatives. borrowers will have to pay a loan premium. For example, costs, but come with some significant drawbacks due to loan
So why are ultra-processed foods so popular? Ready-to- under the new guidelines a borrower putting 20% down on amount and eligibility guidelines.
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