New Years Resolutions

In the past, like most everyone I've made lots of new years resolutions.  A couple of years ago I stopped.  I did this because I realized that if I wasn't going to keep them, there was no point.  Since then I've learned a little more about goal setting.  Proper goal setting requires a few things.  First, the goal has to be written.  Second the Goal has to be specific (writing it down helps with this).  Third, the goal has to be attainable.  With these three things in mind, here are my goals in no particular order for 2010.

1. Complete the Cowtown 1/2 marathon on February 27.
• I'm already training for this one
• My Longest training run is nine miles so I should be prepared by the end of February
2. Complete a full marathon while I'm still 30
• I have until April 9th to complete this
• I need to find a race and use my 1/2 traning time to prepare for the full marathon
3.  Increase our Mortgage business to five closings per month by March and ten per month by December.
   
• In order to complete this I have to contact all my former clients asking for referals
• I will make 15 calls per week to former clients
• I will mail something to them once per month
  
• I also have to nurture existing referral partner relationships
• I will contact 9 existing referral partners each week in addition to regular transactional contact
  
• I have to establish new referral partner relationships
• I will contact 15 potential new referral partners each week
• I will make presentations to groups of potential clients and referral partners at least once per month
• In each transaction I will strive to provide the right product for the client and will refuse to provide something to a client that I believe will harm them now or in the future 
  
• I will strive to keep the borrowers and other parties to the transaction informed at all times and be quick to deliver good news and faster to deliver bad news.
4. Become debt free except the house.
• We have to increase business as outlined above
  
• We have to sell the boat
• It's listed on Craigslist if you are looking for a nice Malibu Wakeboard Boat search my phone number 817-929-3584
• We have to payoff Jen's truck the remaining credit cards and other outstanding debts.
• Once this is complete, we can begin working on paying off the house but we will be ecstatic if we get everything but the house done in 2010.
5. Take the LSAT this summer and apply to the top five law schools on my list and three safety schools.
6. Make more time for my family.
• To do this I am going to have to make actually make mandatory date night mandatory.  No more excuses.
• I will also strive daily to find ways to make my beautiful and special wife feel as beautiful and special as she is.
  
7. Continue to keep my GPA up.
• In order to do this I need to do a better job of making time to study, specifically I need to make two hours per day, every day available for studying something for a class.
8.  Continue to find a place to serve at Church.
• I firmly believe that if you go to church regularly, the next step is to find a place to serve.  If you are not moving forward, you are moving backward.
  

Christmas

Yesterday I had the opportunity to speak with the elementary students at Lifestone Church, a new church in Weatherford that we have been helping launch.  Normally when I talk with them it is for about three minutes before they watch a twenty minute video skit of the lesson.  This time, however, all I had was an outline of the lesson that was written for a teacher and a co-teacher.  Having never taught or done much public speaking I was concerned about all of the little things.  I wanted the timing and organization to be just right, I wanted the presentation and delivery to be perfect, and most importantly I wanted the message to be delivered in a way that the students understood what I was saying.

I spent most of the day Saturday rewriting the lesson for one teacher, putting together some Christmas music videos from the internet, and doing a power point presentation with all of the bible verses that I wanted to go over.


The message was intended to be about how Christmas is a reminder to tell others about Jesus but for some reason as I was delivering it, the message became about how the story was about belief.

I covered the following verses and I think you may also see what I saw.

• In Luke 1:26-38 and 45-56 God told Mary that she was going to give birth to Jesus - She Believed
  
• In Luke 1:39-45 Mary went to see Elizabeth, as soon as Mary walked into the door, her baby leaped in her womb - she believed, 
• the baby in Elizabeths womb was John the Baptist - he believed
• In Matthew 2:3 King Herrod began orchestrating a plan to have Jesus killed - he believed
  
• In Matthew 2 the three wise men believed that Jesus was the savior but more importantly in verse 12 they had a dream that warned them not to tell Herod where Jesus was - they believed
• In Luke 2: 8-20 the Angels told the shepherds in the field -they believed
  

We also talked about how the Shepards in the field believed the angels so much that they went and told everyone they could find that the Savior had been born.

It turns out that Christmas does remind me to tell others about Jesus but it also reminds me of how those people believed.  Can you imagine what you would do if an Angel came up to you?  I Can't.  I also can't imagine walking toward a star because I think that it is taking me toward a baby.  I can't imagine what Joseph thought when he heard that his fiancee was pregnant.  I can't imagine what Joseph's family thought when they realized that he wasn't married when Mary became pregnant.  And even Herod, he was the king over everything and he believed that this baby was a threat to his power so much that he tried to kill him.


The crazy moral of this whole thing is that it is because all of them believed that I was given the opportunity to share the story of Jesus with those students yesterday.

New to the Blog world

I'm not sure what I'm going to do with this blog.  I had to set it up as part of a class project in Business Information Systems.  Right now, I'm working on my BBA.  I plan on graduating from TCU in May of 2011 then going to the best Law School that will let me in.  In the interim, I need to work on my writing and this is probably as good of a place as any.

So far I've posted some emails that I sent out to friends family and clients about my Mortgage business.  I'll try to keep this more personal and less business but when you are self employed everything seems to run together.  This is probably more true when you are self employed and a full time student.

Bryan J May

Mortgage Market Update

Mortgage Market Update Dear Friends, I hope your thanksgiving was full of family and friends.  I know we all have more to be thankful about than we can imagine. -Bryan   Tax Credit Extended Provision for Current Homeowners Added The tax credit that was set to expire at the end of November has been extended to all contracts executed prior to April 30th 2010.  Additionally, a new provision was added for current homeowners.  Current homeowners must have used the home sold or being sold for their principal residence for a consecutive five out of the previous eight years. The extension offers up to $8,000 to first time home buyers and $6,500 to current homeowners.  There are other restrictions and requirements.  Call Bryan with questions. 817-929-3584 "Mortgages Tie Record Low of 4.78%" According to the Wall Street Journal "rates on 30-year fixed-rate home mortgages averaged 4.78% this week".  Also, "fifteen-year fixed-rate mortgages averaged 4.29% for the week ended Nov. 25, a new low since Freddie Mac began tracking it in 1991".  This combined with the extended and expanded tax credit is great news for those looking to buy or refinance. Thank you for your support.  If you have any questions about mortgages, real estate, the market or anything real estate related, don't hesitate to pick up the phone or send an email.   Sincerely,   Bryan J May Southwest Funding Branch 766 1124 Seaman Fort Worth, TX 76111 SML MBK 64940 817-929-3584 P.S.  Referrals are my primary source of business.  Please pass my information along to anyone you know interested in buying, selling or refinancing. Southwest Funding Branch 766, 1124 Seaman, Fort Worth, TX 76111. Telephone 1-817-929-3584. This email is not intended as an offer to extend credit nor a commitment to lend.  Southwest Funding registration number is 64940. In This Issue Tax Credit Mortgage Rates Quick Links Find Bryan On Facebook! Apply Online About Bryan Bryan J May has been in the mortgage industry since 1999.  His knowledge and expertise give him an uncanny ability to find the right loan for the right borrower at the right time.  This ability saves his clients and referral partners time and money. Bryan can be reached at 817-929-3584 or bmay@southwestfunding.com

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Mortgage Market Update

Mortgage Market Update Dear Friends, .   $8K Tax Credit set to Expire The home buyer tax credit is set to expire on November 30th.  Now may be the best time for first time home buyers to become homeowners.  Also, November has two federal holidays so keep this in mind when setting closing dates. "Mortgages Stay Below 5%" According to the Wall Street Journal "the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.92% for the week ended Thursday".  This is great news for those looking to buy or refinance. Thank you for your support.  If you have any questions about mortgages, real estate, the market or anything real estate related, don't hesitate to pick up the phone or send an email.   Sincerely,   Bryan J May Southwest Funding Branch 939 201 Main Street, Suite 600 Fort Worth, TX 76102 SML MBK 64940 817-929-3584 P.S.  Don't forget that the $8,000 Tax Credit expires in less than 60 days. Southwest Funding Branch 939, 201 Main, Suite 600, Fort Worth, TX 76102. Telephone 1-817-929-3584. This email is not intended as an offer to extend credit nor a commitment to lend.  Southwest Funding registration number is 64940. In This Issue Tax Credit Mortgage Rates Quick Links Find Bryan On Facebook! Apply Online About Bryan Bryan J May has been in the mortgage industry since 1999.  His knowledge and expertise give him an uncanny ability to find the right loan for the right borrower at the right time.  This ability saves his clients and referral partners time and money. Bryan can be reached at 817-929-3584 or bmay@southwestfunding.com

Mortgage Market Update

Mortgage Market Update October/2009 Dear Friends, I hope Columbus day reminded you that if it was not for those that think otuside the box the world would still be flat.   "Mortgage Rates Fall Again" According to the Wall Street Journal on Friday the average 30 year mortgage fell further below 5%.  In fact they said "The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.87% for the week ended Thursday, the lowest since May.  It compares with last week's 4.94% average and 5.94% a year ago." If you are interested in finding out if refinancing makes sense right now call Bryan at 817-929-3584. Local Housing Markets are doing well. The third quarter home price forecast for the largest US markets, published by the Local Market Monitor, includes several Texas cities. According to the forecast, among the largest US markets, the ten markets with the best expected performance are: Baton Rouge, LA Buffalo-Niagara Falls, NY Dallas-Plano-Irving, TX Fort Worth-Arlington, TX Houston_Sugar Land-Baytown, TX Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR Omaha-Council Bluffs, NE-IA Pittsburg, PA San Antonio, TX Syracuse, NY Wichita Falls, TX Five of the top ten are in Texas and two more are in states that border Texas.  This is a great indicator of the strong local economy and that Texas was never part of the "housing bubble" that effected the rest of the country. Thank you for your support.  If you have any questions about mortgages, real estate, the market or anything real estate related, don't hesitate to pick up the phone or send an email.   Sincerely,   Bryan J May Southwest Funding Branch 939 201 Main Street, Suite 600 Fort Worth, TX 76102 SML MBK 64940 817-929-3584 P.S.  Don't forget that the $8,000 Tax Credit expires in less than 60 days. Southwest Funding Branch 939, 201 Main, Suite 600, Fort Worth, TX 76102. Telephone 1-817-929-3584. This email is not intended as an offer to extend credit nor a commitment to lend.  Southwest Funding registration number is 64940. In This Issue Mortgage Rates Local Markets Doing Well Quick Links Find Bryan On Facebook! Apply Online About Bryan Bryan J May has been in the mortgage industry since 1999.  His knowledge and expertise give him an uncanny ability to find the right loan for the right borrower at the right time.  This ability saves his clients and referral partners time and money. Bryan can be reached at 817-929-3584 or bmay@southwestfunding.com

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October 2009 Mortgage Market Update

Mortgage Market Update October/2009 Greetings!   Distressed Homes According to the National Association of Realtors almost a third of sales in August were distressed sales compared to 18% a year ago.  Distressed properties are commonly defined as properties that have either been forclosed on or are likely to be forclosed on in the near future.  This means, they are either owned by the bank or they are owned by someone who is no longer able to make their payments. What does this mean?  In many cases, this means that these properties can be purchased at a discount.  This may also mean that the home is in poor condition.  Buying a distressed property sometimes means that major repairs will be necessary before moving into the property.  In this case, an FHA 203-k loan may be the right financing product.  An FHA 203-k loan allows the buyer to purchase a home in less than perfect condition and finance the improvements required to turn the house into the perfect home. For more information about this or any other home financing option, call or email Bryan. Are Mortgage Rates going to fall further?   Nobody knows what the market is going to do but according to Friday's Wall Street Journal "the average rate on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages [fell] below 5%." Now may be the best time to buy that dream home after all. Thank you for your support.  If you have any questions about mortgages, real estate, the market or anything real estate related, don't hesitate to pick up the phone or send an email.   Sincerely,   Bryan J May Southwest Funding 817-929-3584 P.S.  Don't forget that the $8,000 Tax Credit expires in less than 60 days. In This Issue Distressed Homes Mortgage Rates Quick Links Find Bryan On Facebook! Apply Online About Bryan Bryan J May has been in the mortgage industry since 1999.  His knowledge and expertise give him an uncanny ability to find the right loan for the right borrower at the right time.  This ability saves his clients and referral partners time and money. Bryan can be reached at 817-929-3584 or bmay@southwestfunding.com

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Happy Monday

Happy Monday I looked online for some reasons to be happy that it was Monday and found nothing.  Maybe I didn't look hard enough or maybe nobody else is happy that it is Monday.  Either way, I thought I would send this to you.  These are personal, feel free to make your own list and send it back to me or forward them to a friend. 1.       I made it through another weekend. 2.       Since I moved my office back home, I do not have to commute to Fort Worth every day. 3.       I have four more opportunities to work until next weekend. 4.       Mortgage Rates are still low. 5.       I only have two more days of school until next year. 6.       The weather is beautiful today. 7.       I have a wonderful wife that takes care of me. 8.       I only have to walk 16 steps to the kitchen for lunch. 9.       Monday is my rest/stretch day for my half marathon training. 10.   I have an awesome family, great group of friends, wonderful clients and referral partners that keep me from worrying about doing without. If we don't talk until then, Merry Christmas. Bryan J May 817-929-3584 P.S. Referrals are my primary source of business.  Please pass my information to anyone you know interested in buying, selling or refinancing.

This is my first post