LeTip Chester County East met on Tuesday, October 21, 2014. We were joined by guests representing a flooring company.

Our showboater was Gary Hunter, our carpenter from Hunter Custom Carpentry (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.). He displayed some materials that he has been using recently for building decks. Wooden decks can rot over time, so he may opt to use composite or PVC materials that come in different colors and/or can be painted in the desired color.

Our speaker was Lonnie Cooper, our mortgage broker from The Rate Kings Mortgage (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.). Lonnie told us about the importance of acquiring a mortgage pre-approval before searching for a house. The pre-approval is proof of your financial backing and will give "teeth" to an offer that you make on a home. Many realtors will not take you to look at a house without a pre-approval, and many sellers will automatically disregard and offer that you make on their house if you lack this financial backing. There is a loan application on Lonnie's website (www.theratekings.com) to get the process started. The general rule for pre-approval is that your total debt can't exceed 45% of your monthly income. A mortgage calculator will figure out what the monthly payment would be for the loan amount you need (house price minus your down payment amount). Lonnie can help with any or all of this process, and if you are able to qualify for the pre-approval, he can generally offer a lower rate than other mortgage companies, banks, or credit unions. He may also be able to offer a slightly higher rate than his usual rate for the loan but then cover all the closing costs. It may be attractive to a buyer to pay a bit more for the monthly mortgage payments in exchange for the elimination of additional costs at closing. Contact Lonnie to discuss options for home purchases or mortgage refinancing. He is The King, but he'll treat YOU like royalty!