Mortgage Executive Magazine named Benchmark Mortgage among the Top 100 Mortgage Companies in America in their Spring 2016 issue. We are honored and proud to be recognized!
The post We Are A Top Mortgage Company In America! appeared first on Benchmark.
The post We Are A Top Mortgage Company In America! appeared first on Michael Blanchard.
The post Happy Martin Luther King Jr. Day appeared first on Benchmark.
The post Happy Martin Luther King Jr. Day appeared first on Michael Blanchard | Essex Junction Mortgage Consultant | Benchmark Mortgage.
CORPORATE CHAMPIONS WHO CARE AWARD
The 2009 Corporate recipient of this prestigious award( is Benchmark Mortgage and their co-founders Bryan Harlan and Stewart Hunter. Two years ago, they created what is known as the Benchmark Loving Cup Fund which assists families and their special needs individuals to remain at the Achievement Center during hard economic times. This fund is based on one dollar contributed for every successful Benchmark transaction nationwide. Former Dallas Cowboy great, and FOX sports announcer, Daryl Johnston presented the award. Johnston received the first individual Champions Who Care Award in 2007 and is a true supporter of the Achievement Center of Texas.
first published at http://ift.tt/1PIAhoT
While we do a lot of work to support our nation’s veterans, we also give to other philanthropic causes.
We have a fund called the “Benchmark Loving Cup Fund” for the Achievement Center of Texas. Marilynne Serie, Executive Director of the Achievement Center of Texas, recently gave us an idea of the reach of our fund in a letter thanking Benchmark for our support. Below is a sampling of the letter to show what it is that the Achievement Center of Texas does, and how the Benchmark Loving Cup Fund helps to support their cause.
“We served 6 students with funds from the Loving Cup which greatly helped them to afford the services here at the Achievement Center. Among the programs that we offered are functional living skills, personal health and hygiene, gardening, sensory motor training, arts exploration (both visual and performing arts), robotics (utilizing our newly acquired robot “Milo” who teaches children with autism). Researchers have found children with autism relate better to the robot than to a human. Our community inclusion program is designed to get students out into their community to experience a world of adventure. As part of this program, students participated recently in World Habitat Day where hey planted seeds, played challenging games, and had lunch with the people of Habitat for Humanity. This year they will visit the Heard museum to see the animals, they will visit a ranch, visit Springcreek Forest Preserve, and will see many new things that they never dreamed of seeing or experiencing…
..
..While we cannot give the names of the students due to strict confidentiality regulation, I am pleased to tell you that you have ben a godsend to these families. It is heart wrenching to tell a parent that we can’t take their child when they depend on us so heavily for our services which allows them to work to provide the high cost of care for their disabled family member. We hope that Benchmark will continue to help our families each year. It is a wonderful thing that you do.”
Marilynne Serie
Executive Director
To learn more about the Achievement Center of Texas, we have included a few snippets from their website, or you can visit their website by clicking the Achievement Center of Texas logo, or by clicking the URL below.
The Achievement Center of Texas is a licensed non-profit day care and day habilitation center for children and adults with special needs. Every effort is made to offer families their choices in services and to support those choices wherever possible. In providing a wide range of services in the least restrictive environment, students at the Achievement Center can grow and develop physically, intellectually, emotionally and socially working toward greater independence and more satisfying way of life.
Our goal is to teach individuals the skills they need to be able to participate in the life of the community and to enjoy the same opportunities available to their non-disabled peers and family members.
Q. Are scholarships available to low income families who do not have HCS or other agency support?
A. Yes. We have the Garland Community Development Block Grant Funds and Benchmark Loving Cup Fund. Each one has special restrictions and these funds are allocated quickly.
The post Benchmark Cares: Achievement Center of Texas appeared first on Benchmark.
The post Benchmark Cares: Achievement Center of Texas appeared first on Michael Blanchard | Essex Junction Mortgage Consultant | Benchmark Mortgage.
The fresh start of a new year is always nice. The ups and downs of 2015 are left behind, and a bright new canvas lies ahead.
What are your hopes and dreams for this New Year? Maybe amidst all the hustle and bustle of the holidays, you haven’t had a chance to make your resolutions. If that sounds familiar, here are a few ideas for inspiration.
Even more important than making your resolution, is to have an actionable plan to be successful in reaching your goals.
Example: If you are want to get in shape, find a work out partner. You are much more likely to get out of bed and get to the gym at 5:30 am (or whatever time you schedule.. which is important.. schedule it!) if you have someone relying on you to be there for them.
Example: If you want to save money, open a savings account, write out a budget plan, and set up an automatic transfer with your bank. If the money isn’t in your spending account, you won’t be tempted to spend it.
A tip to keep yourself accountable without a partner: Post your resolutions in a place it will catch your attention often, and share them with your family and friends who can help you achieve your goals.
Last but not least, let’s all make more mistakes this year. You will absolutely love this quote from Neil Gaiman:
“I hope that in this year to come, you make mistakes.
Because if you are making mistakes, then you are making new things, trying new things, learning, living, pushing yourself, changing yourself, changing your world. You’re doing things you’ve never done before, and more importantly, you’re doing something.
So that’s my wish for you, and all of us, and my wish for myself. Make New Mistakes. Make glorious, amazing mistakes. Make mistakes nobody’s ever made before. Don’t freeze, don’t stop, don’t worry that it isn’t good enough, or it isn’t perfect, whatever it is: art, or love, or work or family or life.
Whatever it is you’re scared of doing, do it.
Make your mistakes, next year and forever.”
Let’s make it a great one full of fun, happiness, and love!
C. Gomez
C. Gomez works at our corporate office as an administrative assistant. She recently welcomed a new addition into her family as she became a new mom! She contributed the foundation for this article. Thank you!
The post 15 New Years Resolutions And the Secret to Keeping Them appeared first on Benchmark.
The post 15 New Years Resolutions And the Secret to Keeping Them appeared first on Michael Blanchard | Essex Junction Mortgage Consultant | Benchmark Mortgage.
Your home’s mortgage payment is based on the price of the home (minus the down payment), and the interest rate for the loan.
Both prices and interest rates will likely rise in 2016.
CoreLogic anticipates a national 5.2% home value increase for the next year. The percentage varies by state, with WA, CA, NV, UT, AZ, NM, FL, and VT seeing the greatest increase at an average of 7.6% (the highest being CA at 10.8%, the lowest of this group being NM at 6.0%). The lowest forecasted home price increase is WV at 1.3%. Clearly, the majority of the country is projected to see a real home value appreciation that outpaces currency inflation (0.5% from 2014-2015).
Which reminds one of this post: click here
All four establishments who provide future projections on mortgage interest rates agree that rates will rise in 2016. The following table shows the change for each quarter of the next year.
| Quarter | Fannie Mae |
Freddie Mac |
MBA | NAR | Average of all four |
| 2016 1Q | 3.9 | 4.0 | 4.2 | 4.1 | 4.05 |
| 2016 2Q | 4.0 | 4.2 | 4.4 | 4.3 | 4.23 |
| 2016 3Q | 4.0 | 4.4 | 4.6 | 4.6 | 4.4 |
| 2016 4Q | 4.1 | 4.6 | 4.8 | 4.9 | 4.6 |
Since home prices and interest rates expected to increase over the next year, it makes sense to buy sooner rather than later, if you are buying a new home.
The post Home Prices and Mortgage Interest Rates to Rise in 2016 appeared first on Benchmark.
The post Home Prices and Mortgage Interest Rates to Rise in 2016 appeared first on Michael Blanchard | Essex Junction Mortgage Consultant | Benchmark Mortgage.
Today, we are excited to release our all new website here at Benchmark.us. (it was a labor of love, and is long overdue)
When we set out to make a new website, we started by thinking about our clients: YOU. We wanted our new website to be mobile-friendly, up-to-date with a clean modern design, and (most importantly) to provide you with tools to make the best decision for you when choosing your mortgage lender.
One of the sections on our new website that we want to highlight is our LIFETIME LOAN approach – which is simply our way of doing business. We strongly believe that our job is not over when you finish closing on your new home. We continually monitor your loan and the market for the best next move for your mortgage.
We also have an entire section on our new website dedicated to our CORE VALUES, where you can learn more about what drives us and our desire to help you in the purchase of your new home, or the refinance of your current home.
For those of you who are new to the home buying process or are not sure where to start, we have created the BENCHMARK UNIVERSITY (located under our Resources tab on our new website) where you can find information about the loan process, information concerning gathering documents, select FAQ’s, and four free ebooks for you to download!
Do you want to read what others are saying about Benchmark, or do you want to let others know about your own experience? Check out our TESTIMONIALS page where you can read testimonials left by others, and you can even leave your own!
We are pleased to finally present this new website to you, and we hope that you find it to be enjoyable, helpful, and easy. Thank you for allowing Benchmark to be your mortgage lender of choice!
-Benchmark Media Team
The post Benchmark.us New Website Update appeared first on Benchmark.
The post Benchmark.us New Website Update appeared first on Michael Blanchard | Essex Junction Mortgage Consultant | Benchmark Mortgage.
Looking to buy or sell your home? You may have noticed the vast amount of information available in the news and on the internet about real estate. When trying to make sense of it all, one can easily get overwhelmed or confused.
You need an agent who can help navigate the current housing market. If you are looking to sell, you need an agent who can help you price your home correctly and appropriately. If you are looking to buy, you need an agent who can help you determine what to offer on your dream home (without overpaying or offending the seller with a below-market offer).
How high should you price your home? How much should you offer on a listing? A great agent can help you determine these numbers, and help you come out on top.
Financial guru Dave Ramsey says,
We admit, this seems rather obvious. But, how do you know whether an agent is really up-to-the-minute on what is happening in your real estate market? How do you know if they will take the time to simply and effectively explain what it all means and how it may affect you?
A simple way to find out is by searching through a real estate agent’s social media channels. What kind of material are they sharing? Are they using their social media platforms to share current, helpful information or are they just posting trendy recipes and inspirational quotes?
The best agents spend time educating and informing so you can be confident when buying or selling your home. What they share online will help you to determine whether an agent meets the description advised by Dave Ramsey above:
“…you should always look for someone with the heart of a teacher.”
Do you know a great agent like this? What other tips do you have for us? Share this article with your additions.
The post Find A Great Real Estate Agent The Easy Way appeared first on Benchmark Mortgage Blog.
The post Find A Great Real Estate Agent The Easy Way appeared first on Michael Blanchard | Essex Junction Mortgage Consultant | Benchmark Mortgage.
