Business
Business for March 15, 2007 Speakman, Lennar Homes
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Mar 15, 2007, 10:33

Speakmans Make Apollo Beach Home


NASCAR Busch Grand National and Busch North Series NASCAR driver Mike Speakman from Pylesville Maryland, now calls Apollo Beach home.

Speakman a union carpenter for 24 years and a part time NASCAR competitor since 2000, enjoys running against the big boys with unlimited funds. The race team has had a few top twenty finishes against America’s toughest NASCAR drivers at Dover Delaware’s monster mile track and also on the twisting turning road courses of Watkins Glen, NY and Lime Rock, Connecticut.

Speakman and his wife, Dawn, have two girls, Kelly 8 and Katie 5 years old. In July of 2006, the family made the big move south to Florida. Racing is put on hold temporarily, until a new raceshop is finished in Riverview.

Dawn Speakman is a real estate agent with Keller Williams Realty, at the new south shore office, located by Publix, in Apollo Beach.

Mike Speakman is the owner of Hillsborough Home Services, a home inspection service company in Apollo Beach. He has 24 years in the carpenters’ union, experience in residential and commercial construction, was owner of Allstate Remodeling and Construction and built their prior homes, all in addition to running the racing team in Maryland.The home inspection industry seemed like a perfect fit, so with some additional training to back up knowledge of the home building process, the couple has started Hillsborough Home Services, Home Inspections.

Today’s home buyer needs to be an “informed” home buyer, especially on their largest investment. Hiring a home inspector is a wise decision, even when buying a newly constructed home.

To contact Mike Speakman call 813-944-8802 or www.inspectorpages.com/mspeakman, or inspectorfla@hotmail.com. Buying or selling your home, let Dawn Speakman’s 12 years experience get the job done. She can
be reached at 813-546-1111 or dawnspeakman@kw.com

What’s Involved in Mortgage Fees?

By Dennis Manning, Tampa Branch Manager, Market Street Mortgage

Nobody really likes paying for fees, but it’s even less enjoyable when you don’t know exactly what you’re paying for. This is especially true when buying a home. Many people aren’t sure what’s involved in the fees associated with their mortgage.

The key is to learn a little bit before you close on the home. With just a little research and the willingness to ask your mortgage consultant for help in defining terms, you’ll know just what you’re being charged for and will leave the closing table assured the fees were fair and accurate.

Most closing costs are fees paid to the lender or to various service providers in helping you purchase your new home. More often, the buyer is responsible for covering the fees, but they can also be paid by the seller. That is usually negotiated at the time of the sale. It’s important to realize that some, but not all, mortgage fees are standard in this process. Here are some of the fees that you’ll normally find at closing:

Mortgage Origination Fee:
This is basically what your lender charges to find the loan and process it. It’s their service charge for doing what they do best: finding the loan that best suits your financial situation. It generally is 1% of the loan amount. For example, if your home costs $300,000, and the origination fee is 1%, you would pay a fee of $3,000.

Rate Adjustment:
If you are looking to lower your overall interest rate and have lower payments during the course of the loan, you can accomplish this by adding discount points up front. For example, by paying discount points as an upfront lump sum, you can reduce your rate from say 6% to 5.75%. Your mortgage consultant can help you decide if this is a good option for your specific case.

Appraisal Fees:
Every time a house is purchased or refinanced, the lender must know the market value of that property. The appraisal fee is usually between $300-$500 and is set by the appraiser. Be sure to keep a copy of the appraisal for your records.

Mortgage Underwriting Fee:
Lenders may charge a flat rate no matter how much you are borrowing. Sometimes it’s called a commitment fee or the administrative fee. Regardless, it is a payment to the lender for funding, underwriting and closing your loan. Underwriting is a thorough credit analysis that takes into consideration your entire financial history drawn from employment records, financial statements and wage history. Every home loan requires an assessment of the borrower’s overall credit worthiness.

Some lenders group their services under one underwriting fee. Others will itemize them with individual fees. If itemized, they can include fees for the mortgage application, to process the mortgage, to check for any fraudulent information, and even for flood certification to confirm the home is not in a flood zone.

Title Search and Title Insurance Fees:
Lenders will work with a title company that will check and verify the public title records for the home you are about to purchase. The title insurance protects the lender from loss due to any inconsistencies such as unpaid taxes that may surface in the public record, while owner’s title insurance will protect your interests.

Survey Fee:
The title company or lender may want to survey your property to verify the official boundaries or check for any property infractions, which could include a building encroaching on your land.

If you don’t understand the fees, ask your mortgage consultant for definitions. By law, you have the right to have fees explained if you ask. Knowing what you’re being charged for helps prevent you from paying too much. A lender is required to provide you with a Good Faith Estimate, a document which estimates as accurately as possible the lender and other fees related to the closing.

Also, ask to see all the final costs days before you come to close. The settlement agent is required to provide the settlement statement, also called the HUD-1 or HUD-1A, for your review at least one business day prior to the scheduled closing date. Study these and be prepared to inquire if you have any questions. The last thing you or your lender wants is a surprise at the closing table.

Florida Public Service Commission Encourages Taxpayers to File for Phone Excise Tax Refund

Many Floridians are not filing for the telephone tax refund-

TALLAHASSEE - The Florida Public Service Commission (PSC) is encouraging taxpayers to take advantage of a one-time-only telephone tax refund. This tax season, most taxpayers will easily qualify for a standard telephone excise tax refund, ranging from $30 to $60. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) reports more than 30 percent of early filers in Florida have not requested the refund, including many people using tax preparers.

The federal government stopped collecting the long-distance excise tax last August after several federal court decisions ruled the tax does not apply to long-distance service as it is billed today. Federal officials authorized a one-time refund of the federal excise tax collected on service billed during the previous 41 months, stretching from the beginning of March 2003 to the end of July 2006. The tax continues to apply to local-only phone service.
To make the refund easier to figure, the federal government established a standard refund amount, based on personal exemptions, ranging from $30 to $60. If taxpayers have phone bills and other records, they can request the actual amount of excise tax paid. Taxpayers only have to fill out one line on their return, and they don’t need to present proof to the IRS.
If you paid the tax and haven’t filed your return, here are some tips to help you figure the refund correctly:

• File electronically. Electronic-filing software flags often overlooked tax breaks and helps you figure them accurately and report them properly. If you use a professional tax preparer, ask that person to e-file your return.

• Consider using the standard-refund amount for the telephone-tax refund. Although using the standard amount is optional, the amount is easy to figure and approximates the eligible amount for most individual taxpayers. You only have to fill out one line on your return, and you don’t need to present proof to the IRS. The standard amount, ranging from $30 to $60, is based on the number of exemptions you can claim on your return.

• If you paid more than the standard amount, you may figure your refund using the actual amount of tax shown on your phone bills and other records. Base your refund request on the three-percent federal tax paid, not the total phone bill. Do not count tax paid on local-only service. You must have the phone bills or other records adequate to support the amount you are requesting. These documents should not be sent along with the refund request, but should be retained in case the IRS questions the amount requested.

• If you normally do not file a return, get a copy of form 1040EZ-T in order to receive the excise tax refund. This form is only for people who are not required to and do not file an individual income tax return.

• Stay away from tax preparers who falsely claim that many, if not most, phone customers can get hundreds of dollars or more back under this program.

• Use the telephone excise tax refund section on the front page of IRS.gov. You can download forms, find answers to frequently-asked questions, and link to participating Free File partners.

The PSC is committed to making sure that Florida’s consumers receive their electric, natural gas, telephone, water, and wastewater services in a safe, affordable, and reliable manner. The PSC exercises regulatory authority over utilities in the areas of rate base/economic regulation; competitive market oversight; and monitoring of safety, reliability, and service.

For additional information, visit www.floridapsc.com.

Heart Is Where the Lennar Home Is for Local Couple

There are extravagant Valentine’s Day gifts .. . and then there’s David Fish’s present: a brand new Lennar home, complete with big, red bows.

Fish kept the entire home-buying process a complete surprise until Dian Yanko flew in to Tampa from her home in Pittsburgh, Pa., to celebrate Valentine’s Day. Fish picked her up at Tampa International Airport and drove her to the home he purchased for them, a 1,827-square-foot Geneva design at River Bend in Ruskin, a master-planned community on the Little Manatee River in southern Hillsborough County.

When she saw the home, Dian said, “I love it.”

The new home wasn’t Dian’s only surprise. The keys to the home came with a marriage proposal as well. She loved that, too.

New home consultant Elizabeth Sinopoli, who recently celebrated her 20th anniversary with Lennar, admitted this was a first for her, says Debbie Jones, marketing manager for Lennar’s Tampa division. Lennar representatives greeted the couple with champagne and red roses.

The completed one-story home has four bedrooms and three baths and is situated on a quarter-acre homesite that backs up to environmental wetlands and preserves.

For more information on Lennar homes at River Bend call (813) 641-0933 or visit lennar.com.