Joan Rusco's (ruscoloan) Blog

We were working with a client to acquire a VA loan to buy a home when we received a call from his Realtor. The Realtor questioned the rate her client was receiving on a VA loan. “But rates are down in the 4% range” said the Realtor, a full percentage point lower than what we offered our mutual cl...

And the survey says: Minnesota and Midwest mortgage rates for buying or selling homes are ready to rise. We’re talking about VA Loans, FHA and conventional mortgage loans, we’re talking about the ability to buy or refinance a home with any mortgage. Yikes! Not the results we wanted. But here it i...

Minnesota’s active duty military may have another full year to take advantage of the $8,000 first time home buyer tax credit. It makes a lot of sense. How can a soldier serving in Afghanistan or Iraq buy a home stateside by the end of April this year? Simple answer: they can’t. So congress, in th...

   Minnesota Veteran's have earned the right to buy a home with a VA home loan and buy that home with extra benefits which now include a tax credit. My worst nightmare is Veterans missing out on the great home buying opportunity that exists right now. Granted, many people think this is not a good...

        The best Realtors or lenders are those who do less talking and more listening. Some of my clients at VALoansMN.com tell me of their discouragement while shopping for a house. The Realtor, they say, seemed more interested in showing them houses that she wanted them to buy rather than homes...

The word "homemaker" may be taking on new meaning.  Traditionally, it stood for a woman who spent time in the home raising children, cooking and cleaning.  Today it may be coming to mean the person who makes the home possible.  Women are becoming a powerful force in housing.  Strike that, women a...

       Gazing into crystal balls is dangerous in this business but it's hard not to be bullish at this time for a few reasons.  Interest Rates Housing Prices Free Money       Interest rates remain near their historic lows. Here in Minnesota and nationwide housing prices have dropped considerably ...

       There are few times in any career when the opportunity arises to be of service beyond the call of duty. This may be one of those rare moments in history for many of us. As we are all painfully aware the mortgage industry has been on the short end of the public relations stick for several y...

Just a few short years ago it seemed that any home buyer with a pulse could purchase a house with no money down.  Those days are now gone. Even the most liberal lenders require at least 3.5 % down payment even then it's hard for those loans to be qualified for the required mortgage insurance.  Ma...

        A client finds the home they want, the Realtor writes the offer, gets an acceptance and off we go to the races. But whoa!  There's a problem. We find that the property won't appraise for the accepted sales price.  The bank won't lend the amount needed to complete this purchase. What?!!  H...