By J.D. Crowe, Senior Vice President of Southeast Mortgage Working in the mortgage industry, I can’t believe how many customers are pleasantly surprised at their ability to purchase a home. Likewise, it is unnerving to hear how many misconceptions there are about what it takes to purchase in this economy. Here are some of the […]
Author Archives: SaportaReport
Posted inPublic Relations, Thought Leader
Reader of the news
My first journalism writing class was sophomore year of college. It was an intro level class and the first in which we were given writing assignments in my public relations curriculum. My eagerness to write was met with disappointment on the first day of class. The instructor walked us through the syllabus and explained that […]
Posted inHome Mortgages, Thought Leader, Thought Leadership
New Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Rules will Help Protect Consumers
By Cal Haupt, president and CEO of Southeast Mortgage Earlier this month, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced their proposed rules to protect homeowners and increase mortgage servicer accountability. The CFPB asked consumers, a Small Business Review Panel and mortgage industry professionals for their input while developing their proposed rules. The public has 60 […]
Posted inLive Healthy, Atlanta!, Thought Leader
Why the Nursing Shortage Exists
By David Martin, President and CEO of VeinInnovations Anyone who’s been treated at a hospital knows how important nurses are, and what a large role they play in tending a patient’s needs. A shortage began in 1998 and eased, ironically, as unemployment rose during the recession. Nurses found themselves in need of income, and those […]
Posted inPublic Relations, Thought Leader
Trending – Social Media and the POTUS
Do followers = votes? In history class we learned about the first televised presidential debates. In 1960, Americans could turn on their television sets to see Richard Nixon – a sweaty man, gripping the podium and blending into the grey background – versus John F. Kennedy – a calm, tanned, extremely handsome man. In an election where every […]
Posted inHome Mortgages, Thought Leader, Thought Leadership
Should You Pay Off Your Mortgage Early?
By Cal Haupt, president and CEO of Southeast Mortgage In Samuel Coleridge’s epic poem, “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner,” the narrating sailor details a stalled voyage on the sea: “We stuck, nor breath nor motion; as idle as a painted ship upon a painted ocean.” Our debts weigh us down, and can make us […]
Posted inLive Healthy, Atlanta!, Thought Leader
In Office Dispensing
By David Martin, President and CEO of VeinInnovations Let me start off with an quick note on the decline of general practitioners. There is a shortage of general practitioners in the United States, a fact that we wring our hands over periodically. General practitioners are becoming scarce thanks in part to the rising cost in […]
Posted inLive Healthy, Atlanta!, Thought Leader
Preventing Childhood Obesity
By David Martin, President and CEO of VeinInnovations “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of a cure.” Benjamin Franklin is famous for many sayings. Today, this one feels prescient. In Georgia, we spend 2.4 billion dollars on obesity related care. It’s a small but sizable portion of the additional 190 billion spent nationally […]
Posted inPublic Relations, Thought Leader
Inside Atlanta PR
J.R. Hipple learned from the “father of PR” and helps counsel today’s CEOs The last class J.R. Hipple took as a student at Miami of Ohio was public relations. He liked it so much, he decided to prusue a masters in the field. Providence led him to Boston University and to finding a mentor who […]
Posted inHome Mortgages, Thought Leader, Thought Leadership
Avoid Being a Victim of Mortgage Fraud
Just this week a federal judge sentenced a former Auburn attorney to nearly four years in prison for mortgage fraud. James Boyd Douglas Jr. handled mortgage refinancings and real estate closings and was found guilty of embezzling $2.3 million from clients. An Atlanta area woman and her brother ran a real estate scam in Baldwin County […]
Posted inHome Mortgages, Thought Leader, Thought Leadership
Consumer Will Benefit From Simpler Mortgage Disclosure Form
For more than 35 years, two federal laws (the Truth in Lending Act or “TILA,” and the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act or “RESPA”) have required lenders and settlement agents to give consumers who take out a mortgage loan separate but overlapping disclosure forms regarding the loan’s terms and costs. This duplication has long been […]
Posted inLive Healthy, Atlanta!, Thought Leader
The Affordable Care Act and the Supreme Court
Speculation as to when the Supreme Court will issue its decision on the Affordable Care Act abounds. Rumors about their decision are flying; Ruth Bader Ginsburg made a statement at a conference held by the American Constitution Society last Friday that, “Those who know don’t talk. And those who talk don’t know.” True to her […]
Posted inHome Mortgages, Thought Leader, Thought Leadership
Basel III To Change Mortgage Landscape
The mortgage industry has undergone many significant changes as a result of the financial crisis. One of the less known pending changes is about to take its final form and in its current draft Basel III will increase consumer costs and reduce consumers’ choice of mortgage providers. Basel III requires that a bank must maintain common […]
Posted inLive Healthy, Atlanta!, Thought Leader
Using the Internet to your advantage
By David Martin, President and CEO of VeinInnovations A long time ago, before the Internet, the only way to find a good doctor was to ask a friend. Now the web is littered with sites to match patients with doctors, along with reviews. For a practice like mine, boosting SEO (search engine optimization) is critical. When a […]
Posted inPublic Relations, Thought Leader, Uncategorized
Trending
Facebook might have a new relationship status with its investors Did you see The Social Network? Watching it made viewers root for the Winklevosses and cheer for Eduardo Saverin. Mark Zuckerberg came off as a socially inept jerk, greedy and just a little bit pathetic. I bet you a billion dollars of Zuckerberg’s fortune he […]
Posted inHome Mortgages, Thought Leader
Now’s the Time for First-Time Homebuyers
If only the experts could agree. In Monday’s paper, The Wall Street Journal covered five personal finance topics, finding completely opposite opinions on each topic. Should you purchase long-term care insurance? Are variable annuities a good investment? There was even a debate over whether children’s allowances should be tied to chores. Of course the one […]
Posted inHome Mortgages, Thought Leader
Thirty Days is Long Enough for Mortgage Closing
For as long as I can remember – and I expect much longer than that – contracts for the purchase of residential real estate in Georgia have been written for 30 days as a normal practice. Today, we are seeing many real estate professionals writing extended contracts, for 45 to 60 days, and even longer […]
Posted inPublic Relations, Thought Leader
Penn State’s ongoing battle with crisis communication
Last fall when news broke of the Jerry Sandusky scandal, the entire nation wondered how Penn State would handle the crisis. The child abuse fiasco is a public relations disaster that Penn State will surely be dealing with for years and years to come. So, what should Penn State do? The day after Sandusky was […]
Posted inPublic Relations, Thought Leader, Uncategorized
Inside Atlanta PR
Sharon Goldmacher might be the only person who can solve this winning PR formula: C21 + 2013 = Final Four When Sharon Goldmacher of communications 21 was trying to decide where to start her career, she had a bit of a Goldilocks experience: New Orleans was too hot and the Baltimore/D.C. area was too cold. […]
Posted inHome Mortgages, Thought Leader
The Value of Industry Partnerships
Every month a few members of the Client Relationship Management team from Southeast Mortgage pack up their professional photography equipment and head to Alpharetta where they host a social for Realtors and take new headshot portraits of anyone who wants one. The events have been very well received, as the Realtors and real estate agents […]
