Posts made by author 'Jay Mattlin'

It's extremely important to pay your mortgage on time every month. But sometimes, things don't work out that way, and you may not have the cash needed to pay your mortgage when it's due.

So what, exactly, happens if you're late making a mortgage payment?

A recent article from realtor.com answered common questions around what happens if you're late paying your mortgage, including:

• Will you get hit with a late fee? While all loans offer a grace period to help borrowers avoid late fees — which are typically between 7 and 15 days — if you submit your payment 

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Real estate often seems like a fun, easy, high-paying career to outsiders. But it seems even more appealing to people when the market is hot, like it had been over the past few years. Couple that with a pandemic that caused people to either lose their jobs or simply look for something they'd rather do for a living, and the past few years saw the number of real estate agents swell to record numbers.

But now that interest rates have risen — causing many buyers to either hit the sidelines or get priced out of the market — a lot of real estate agents are calling it quits. In fact, 60,000 agents have left the business in just the last 6 months alone, according to 

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Real estate agents spend a lot of time in their cars! It's not only a means of getting from one appointment to another, it's also a mobile office, and pretty much a second home to many agents.

Unfortunately, a lot of that time is wasted sitting in traffic jams, driving long distances, or just going to back-to-back appointments all day. If only there were a way to make that time more productive…

A chauffeur to drive their car would be nice, but that's not in the budget for most agents. But a self-driving car might be!

Okay, there are probably laws that would forbid an agent from doing any of these things, but let's take a look at 8 things agents could do if they had a self-driving car and could truly put it on 100% auto-pilot:

1) Chill and Netflix…

No, that's not a typo — those words are in the correct order! (Although, depending on the agent and their love life, a little Netflix and chill in the car might be appealing…) Agents get a lot of great recommendations from clients about shows they should binge, but they don't have the time to watch an episode, let alone an entire series. If they had a self-driving car, they could finally see what all the rage is about with that Tiger King show!

2) Actually take a lunch (or dinner!) break…

Eating in their cars isn't something new for agents; they probably eat more meals in their car than they do at home. But it's usually something quick they can scoff down, or easy to eat while driving, like a granola bar. To have an actual leisurely meal (even if it's fast food) while the car drives itself would be heavenly.

3) Snooze control…

Agents are often up early and working late into the night, so they don't get a lot of sleep. Not to mention all the things on their mind that keep them up at night once they do get to bed! The only thing better than a full belly, would be to loosen the belt after a nice meal, recline the seat, and take a power nap, while letting the car cruise to the next appointment.

4) Clean out the backseat…

Take a peek into the backseat of an agent's car. There's a good chance you'll see brochures, files, half-full water bottles, empty energy drink cans, fast food wrappers, for sale signs, and probably some random paint cans from 1989 that a seller tried to leave behind so the buyers could do touch-ups, but the buyers refused to close until they were taken away, so they somehow ended up in the back seat of the agent's car. Don't judge! When you're constantly on the go, things can really start piling up! A self-driving car could give an agent time to do some tidying between appointments, and make room for the trash another seller leaves behind on closing day.

5) Beat other buyers' agents to the punch…

It doesn't matter if the market is hot or slow… when you find a house you want, your agent needs to get an offer written up and sent over to the listing agent ASAP to avoid losing it to another buyer! With a self-driving vehicle, your agent could whip out their laptop and crank out your offer the minute you leave the listing while gliding along to their next showing.

6) Quickly respond to Internet leads…

Agents need to respond promptly to anyone who calls them if they want to survive in this business, but they have to respond at the speed of light if it's a lead that's coming in off the Internet! People surfing the web looking to buy or sell a home want an immediate response. They'll literally choose another agent just because they replied within a few minutes, rather than carefully choose the best agent to help them with their needs. Unfortunately, it's kinda tough for an agent to respond when they're driving, so a self-driving car could allow them to speedily respond as the car speeds along.

7) Keep track of miles more easily

Agents can use the mileage they put on their cars as a write-off on their taxes… as long as it's well-documented. Keeping track of the mileage doesn't sound difficult, but it's the kind of thing agents forget to do in the midst of a hectic work schedule. Sitting back and just watching the miles tick up on the odometer as the car drives itself would be a great reminder (and the perfect time) for them to jot down the information in their records so they aren't scrambling to do it on April 15th each year.

8) Take a trip down Memory Lane…

Here's a fun fact: real estate agents turn their heads and look at every single house they've ever sold in the past as they drive by them. (If you've ever been in the car with an agent, you know this, because they'll also point them out and tell you they sold it…) But it's just a quick peek, because they need to keep their eyes on the road. Having a self-driving car would allow an agent to take a long gaze at the houses they've sold over the years, and fondly remember all the times they spent with the particular client they helped buy or sell them.

Whether you've been planning on buying a house in the near future or not, you've probably heard that people with higher credit scores are now paying higher fees, and people with lower credit scores are paying lower fees when getting a mortgage.

Hearing that might make you feel one of two ways if you're planning on buying a house:

• Yippee! I'm finally getting a fair chance. It's not fair that people who don't need lower rates and fees always get the better end of the stick, and now I have a chance at buying a home.
• Not fair! I've worked hard to improve and maintain a great credit score, and now I'm being penalized for it?! What was the point of caring? Does it even pay off to be careful with m...

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For whatever reason, most of us are aware of "Pi".

Mostly we just think of it as that number that goes on and on forever, with no end or solution. And we just know it as 3.14.

When and why do we learn about it in life? What good does it ever do us?

There's certainly a lot more to it…

For instance, it's a "constant" ratio in circles. And, it's an "irrational" number. They teach us that, too. Maybe that stuff sticks with us. Maybe not.

For most of us, just knowing the 3.14 part is good enough. There's no need to think about it much beyond that. Pi probably isn't going to affect you or me one way or another in life…

But…there is a rath...

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