Your Credit score Ranking not Rating

If you're a responsible consumer and pay your bills on time, you don't run up exorbitant credit card debt, and you have a healthy credit mix, you probably assume your fabulous credit score of say, 760, is solid and safe. That is, until you go to apply for a home loan, or car loan and see that your credit score is actually more like 720 now. Or, maybe your credit score hasn't changed, but you are now denied a loan that you were able to get a year ago with that same, fabulous score.

So, what happened?

Yuliya Demyanyk, a senior research economist with the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, provides this fascinating finding about credit scores:

Your credit score is not a rating of your credit worthiness, but rather a ranking of your credit worthiness compared to the rest of the U.S. population at a specific point in time.

In other words, when your credit score changes — even if your credit behavior doesn't change — it's because your rank order compared to the rest of the population has shifted. For example, if the rest of your fellow Americans are paying more of their bills faster than you, this will affect your rank and your score. Conversely, if your fellow Americans slip in their payments, your credit score and rank will rise. So, even if you do everything right, you are thrown into the mix with the rest of the population and your score/ranking is affected by what everyone else is doing.

Hidden Data Point — Credit Risk vs. Credit Worthiness

An additional component of your credit score is your credit worthiness. This is a data point that predicts the likeliness that you will pay your bills on time or fall behind in payments. You won't see this number since it's part of a credit-reporting bureau's secret, credit-scoring model, but this is important to lenders who make the assessment of whether to loan you the money. Like it or not, it is an indication of your level of risk to a lender: "What kind of track record does this person have in paying loans on time?"

Another thing to understand is that the relationship between credit score and credit risk is dynamic and changes over time. So the risk associated with a 700 score last year is not the same as the risk with a credit score of 700 this year. And it's risk that the lender fundamentally cares about, not the score.

Also, even though your credit score and credit worthiness might be stable, conditions beyond your control — market conditions, a bad recession — could affect everyone's credit worthiness, not just yours. This is certainly true today in our financial crisis that has affected major aspects of our economy — namely, jobs and housing. So, that fabulous credit score that got you loans in the past may have changed as the "bar" for a good score shifts upwards and out of reach as lenders pull in and loan less.

How Your Credit Score Is Calculated:

For the most part, credit scores are generated from one of three major credit bureaus – Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. Each of these bureaus collects credit information on you and then applies a statistical algorithm to calculate your credit score (the Fair Isaac Corporation was the first to create such a score which is why credit scores are still oftentimes referred to as FICO scores). Each of the bureau's scores will vary slightly because they each have their own proprietary methods to track customer credit behavior and use different methods for collecting data on you. Recently, the three bureaus have gotten together and created a common score call the VantageScore, which is common across the three bureaus.

Factors That Affect Your Credit Score:

35% — Payment history

Lenders look at your payment history on all your accounts; the length of your positive credit history and how long you have gone without a negative item; whether there are any severe unpaid debts like bankruptcies or foreclosures; and the number and severity of delinquencies in your credit history.

30% — Amounts Owed

Too many credit accounts and a high ratio of credit balances to credit limits can affect your score. Also affecting your score is the amount of debt on each account and the level of debt paid off on term accounts.

15% — Length of Credit History

Longer credit histories result in higher scores. Important factors incorporated into credit scores are: length of credit history, length of time specific accounts have been open, and the duration of time since each account was last used.

10% — New Credit

Credit scores track consumers who suddenly take on new debt and potentially overextend themselves, by checking to see when the last time a consumer opened an account and how many accounts were opened and by looking at the number of inquires on the consumer's credit reports.

10% — Types of Credit Used

The type of credit you have plays an important role in determining your credit score. A "healthy mix" of installment loans (mortgage payment, auto loan) and revolving credit from banks is considered better for your score.

What's a good credit score?

Scores may range from around 300 to 900 with the average credit score in America being around 720. Here is an approximate range of how credit scores are judged:

Excellent credit = 720 and above

Good credit = 660 to 719

Fair credit = 620 to 659

Poor/bad credit = 619 and below

For anecdotal evidence of your good credit standing, if you notice you are receiving a lot of zero percent credit card or lines of credit offers, you are probably in pretty good shape.

Summary

In conclusion, having a high credit score is still very important in getting the best mortgage rate, and you should be guided by the factors that make up your credit score. But, since you are ranked against the rest of the population and financial conditions also impact credit worthiness, improving your credit score is not always within your control.

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Utility Savings that help the Environment

‘Power With Purpose’

Dear Friends and Family,

Did you know you can choose your energy supplier? Switch and simply pay less on your electric bill – that’s right, no extra bills. Your utility just costs you less money. Your reliability and emergency repair remain the responsibility of your utility company and are unaffected.

Make the switch in less than 5 minutes. Visit www.energywithpurpose.com and follow the steps outlined below. You will be so glad you did!

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Energy Consultant

443-982-0075

Step One of Three: Finding Your Utility

Utilities and Service Rates
1. Enter zip code for your residence
2. Utility Company (BGE or Pepco)
3. Account Class (Residential)
4. Rate Plan (Everyday Green 20%)


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• Enter information exactly as it appears on your electric bill


Final Step: Confirm All Information
• Enter email and phone number
• Type in your e-signature


Get started now >>> www.energywithpurpose.com





Congratulations and please share the savings with others!

Congress Approves Extension of the Homebuyer Tax Credit Closing Deadline

Congress approved late Wednesday an extension to the June 30 closing deadline for the home buyer tax credit, hours before it was set to expire. The move will give would-be buyers who signed a purchase agreement by April 30 more time to close on those deals and receive the credit that is worth up to $8,000. The new deadline is Sept. 30.

The Senate approved the measure unanimously on Wednesday, one day after the provision sailed through the House of Representatives with little opposition. The President is expected to sign the measure soon.

The Senate had failed to pass the provision last week when it was included in a bigger package that would have extended jobless benefits, among other measures. On Wednesday, an effort to reinstate unemployment insurance failed, and the Senate opted to pass the tax credit provision by itself.

In recent weeks, lenders and real-estate companies have warned of bottlenecks that could lead thousands of potential buyers to miss out on the credit that they thought they were getting. The probably is particularly acute for short sales, where a lender allows a home to sell for less than the amount owed. Banks and the federal government have stepped up efforts to encourage short sales as an alternative to foreclosure, but the deals take longer to approve because they require note holders to reconcile losses.

Congress first created a tax credit for homeowners in 2008. It was extended and expanded twice during 2009. The last extension, approved last fall, said that house purchase contracts would have to be signed by April 30, and home buyers would have until June 30 to close on those sales. The extension is only good for those buyers who were under contract by April 30. Someone who signed a contract after April 30 and buys a home by Sept. 30 isn’t eligible for the tax credit.

The Senate also passed an extension of the federal flood insurance program until Sept. 30. The change is retroactive to June 1, when the program had lapsed.

Wonder Twins

Please share this and continue to nurture and challenge every child that comes your way this is absolutely AWESOME!

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Paula and Peter Imafidon are just like any other 9-year-olds. They love laughing, playing on the computer and fighting with each other. What sets these twins apart from their peers, though, is that they are, hands down, prodigies who are about to enter high school and make British history as the youngest to do so.

The precocious London-based tykes, known as the "Wonder Twins," floored academics a year ago when they aced University of Cambridge 's advanced mathematics exam. They are the youngest students to ever pass the test.

The future little scholars' father, Chris , and mother, Ann, immigrated to Britain from Nigeria more than 30 years ago and have actually been down this prodigy route before with their three older children, who are also overachievers.

The couple's oldest daughter, Anne-Marie , is now 20, but at age 13, she won a British government scholarship to take undergraduate courses at John s Hopkins University in Baltimore . Christiana ,

17, their other daughter, is the youngest student ever to study at the undergraduate level in any British University at the age of 11. Youngest daughter, Samantha , now 12, passed two rigorous

high school l evel mathematics and statistics exams at the age of 6. She mentored the twins to

pass their own math secondary school test when they were also 6.

Even with all of this, the proud dad denies that there is any particular genius in his family. He does credit his children's success to the Excellence in Education program for disadvantaged inner-city youth. "Every child is a genius," he said. "Once you identify the talent of a child and put them in the environment that will nurture that talent, then the sky is the limit. Look at Tiger Woods or the Williams sisters -- they were nurtured. You can never rule anything out with them. The competition between the two of them makes them excel in anything they do."

The darling duo are competitive to say the least, and this is what fuels them to out-achieve each other. Paula said, "I am excited to pass, but I should have got higher than Peter."

As far as career paths Paula says she wants to be a math teacher, while Peter aspires to be prime minister one day.

Use These Basic Ten Tips For A Good Night’s Rest

How did you sleep last night? As an African-American, chances are you probably didn’t get enough.

It’s already a well known fact that African-Americans suffer disproportionately from just about all major diseases and chronic health conditions, including diabetes, high blood pressure, obesity and heart disease.

Here are the top ten suggestions to have good night’s rest.

1. Save your worries for the daytime. If concerns come to mind, write them in a “worry book” so you can address those issues the next day.

2. Stick to a sleep schedule. Go to sleep and wake at the same time every day, and avoid spending more time in bed than needed.

3. Select a relaxing bedtime ritual and relaxing techniques. Focus on calming activities and thoughts, particularly an hour before your bedtime, like a warm bath or listening to calming music.

4. Prepare your bedroom for sleep. Create an environment that is conducive to sleep that is quiet, dark and cool with a comfortable mattress and pillows.

5. Stop making your bedroom an all-purpose space. Use your bedroom only for sleep to strengthen the association between your bed and sleep. It may help to remove work materials, computers and televisions from your bedroom. If you can’t sleep, go into another room and do something relaxing until you feel tired.

6. Enjoy a carbohydrate-rich dinner or snack, as well as a cup of herbal tea. Carbs can stave off hunger, a known sleep robber. A study found that when healthy sleepers ate carbohydrate-rich suppers of veggies and tomato sauce over rice, they fell asleep significantly faster at bedtime. Also, some experts say that herbal teas, while not scientifically proven, may make you sleepy by generating body heat. Chamomile, lemon balm, hops and passionflower are all touted for their sleep-promoting properties.

7. Avoid caffeine, alcohol, and (believe it or not) milk. Caffeine affects everyone differently, so if you’re sensitive it might be worth trying to cut down—or limit caffeine to the morning only.

Also, though a glass of wine may help you fall asleep, excessive alcohol use can make you wake up in the night. One theory is that alcohol suppresses the REM (rapid eye movement) sleep state that’s critical to a good night’s sleep. Drink moderately, if at all; avoid drinking within a few hours of bedtime.

“What about a warm glass of milk!?” Well, decades ago, scientists looked into this folk remedy and posited that tryptophan, an amino acid in milk (and turkey), might be responsible for its supposed sleep-inducing effect. But in recent tests, they failed to affect sleep patterns, perhaps because other amino acids in those foods competed with tryptophan to get into the brain. Warm milk at bedtime may be comforting, but it won’t boost sleep-promoting serotonin.

8. Try alternative sleep technologies, such as RealSleep. Remember that kind of groggy, sleepy sensation you get when you’re on a bus, train or are the passenger in a car? RealSleep is a CD that helps you sleep by triggering that same sleepy sensation. It uses three kinds of nearly-inaudible sounds embedded in music to help induce a natural state of sleep, and has been extremely affective in clinical trials. “Sound can drive so much,” says Seth Horowitz. “If you’re really stressed and trying to get to sleep, this will help you.”

9. Exercise regularly. But avoid vigorous workouts close to bedtime.

10. Talk to your doctor. Of course, if you find that nothing is helping you, or you have questions or concerns, speak to a doctor or sleep professional.

Apply these basic ten tips and Sweet Dreams!

Practitioners Seek Compensation from BP

Among people trying to collect compensation from BP for income loss caused by the oil spill are real estate practitioners.

Four states—Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi and Florida—have opened claim centers where residents who lost income due to the spill can request compensation.

Only Florida is reporting its numbers. Over the last three weeks, BP has paid $75,725 to begin settling 446 claims against it for income lost from rental properties. It paid another $5,000 to begin settling losses due to stalled real estate sales.

BP CEO Tony Hayward said in a TV commercial, “We will honor all legitimate claims, and our clean-up efforts will not come at any cost to taxpayers.”

Health Benefits of Water

How 8 Glasses a Day Keeps Fat Away

Incredible as it may seem, water is quite possibly the single most important catalyst in losing weight and keeping it off. Although most of us take for granted, water may be the only true "magic potion" for permanent weight loss.Water supresses the appetite naturally and helps the body metabolize stored fat. Studies have shown that a decrease in water intake will cause fat deposits to increase, while an increase in water intake can actually reduce fat deposits.

Here's why: The kidneys can't function properly without enough water. When they don't work to capacity, some of their load is dumped onto the liver. One of the liver's primary functions is to metabolize stored fat into usable energy for the body. But if the liver has to do some of the kidney's work it can't operate at full throttle. As a result, it metabolizes less fat more fat remains stored in the body and weight loss stops.

Drinking enough water is the best treatment for fluid retention. When the body gets less water,it perceives this as a threat to survival and begins to hold on to every drop. Water is stored in extracellular spaces (outside the cell). This shows up as swollen feet, legs and hands.

Diuretics offer a temporary solution at best. They force out stored water along with some essential nutrients. Again, the body perceives a treat and will replace the lost water at the first opportunity. Thus, the condition quickly returns.

The best way to overcome the problem of water retention is to give your body what it needs -- plenty of water. Only then will stored water be released.

If you have a constant problem with water retention, excess salt may be to blame. Your body will tolerate sodium only in a certain concentration. The more salt you eat the more water your system retains to dilute it.

But getting rid of unneeded salt is easy -- just drink more water. As it's forced through the kidneys it takes away excess sodium.

The overweight person needs more water than a thin one. Larger people have larger metabolic loads. Since we know that water is the key to fat metabolism, it follows that the over weight person needs more water.

Water helps to maintain proper muscle tone by giving muscles their natural ability to contract and by preventing dehydration. It also helps to prevent the sagging skin that usually follows weigh loss -- shrinking cells are buoyed by water which plumps the skin and leaves it clear, healthy and resilient.

Water helps rid the body of waste. During weight loss, the body has a lot more waste to get rid of -- all that metabolized fat must be shed. Again, adequate water helps flush out the waste.

Water can help relieve constipation. When the body gets too little water, it siphons what it needs from internal sources. The colon is one primary source. Result? Constipation. But when a person drinks enough water, normal bowel function usually returns.

So far, we've discovered some remarkable truths about water and weight loss:

• The body will not function properly without enough water and can't metabolize stored fat efficiently.
• Retained water shows up as excess weight.
• To get rid of excess water you must drink more water.
• Drinking water is essential to weight loss.

How much water is enough? On the average, a person should drink eight 8-ounce glasses every day. That's about 2 quarts. However, the overweight person needs one additional glass for every 25 pounds of excess weight. The amount you drink also should be increased if you exercise briskly or if the weather is hot and dry.Water should preferably be cold. It's absorbed into the system more quickly than warm water. And some evidence suggests that drinking cold water can actually help burn calories. To utilize water most efficiently during weight loss, follow this schedule:

Morning: 1 quart consumed over a 30-minute period.
Noon: 1 quart consumed over a 30-minute period.
Evening: 1 quart consumed between five and six o'clock.When the body gets the water it needs to function optimally, it's fluids are perfectly balanced. When this happens, you have reached the "breakthrough point." What does this mean?

• Endocrine-gland function improves.
• Fluid retention is alleviated as stored water is lost.
• More fat is used as fuel because the liver is free to metabolize stored fat.
• Natural thirst returns.
• There is a loss of hunger almost over night.

If you stop drinking enough water, your body fluids will be thrown out of balance again, and you may experience fluid retention, unexplained weight gain and loss of thirst. To remedy the situation you'll have to go back and force another "breakthrough."

Housing Inventory Snapshot

I hope you will find the following snapshot of local Real Estate inventory interesting. The table represents aggregated values based on MLS data for the specified date.

Housing Inventory Snapshot May 31, 2010 Average List Price Median List Price Average Days On Market Anne Arundel County, MD Single Family under $500K $332,560 $329,000 131 Single Family over $500K $1,052,815 $749,999 180 Condo/Townhome under $300K $194,382 $209,999 128 Condo/Townhome over $300K $460,228 $379,000 131 Baltimore County, MD Single Family under $500K $280,704 $265,000 122 Single Family over $500K $914,592 $679,900 148 Condo/Townhome under $300K $169,124 $165,000 115 Condo/Townhome over $300K $433,518 $389,000 117 Baltimore City, MD Single Family under $500K $233,793 $219,900 128 Single Family over $500K $855,148 $689,900 166 Condo/Townhome under $300K $124,209 $119,900 140 Condo/Townhome over $300K $509,657 $410,000 146 Cecil County, MD Single Family under $500K $274,802 $260,000 155 Single Family over $500K $944,037 $700,000 233 Condo/Townhome under $230K $147,450 $152,150 162 Condo/Townhome over $230K $304,610 $270,000 140 Harford County, MD Single Family under $500K $311,914 $315,000 129 Single Family over $500K $734,534 $634,990 166 Condo/Townhome under $300K $186,252 $194,990 110 Condo/Townhome over $300K $424,113 $375,900 134 Howard County, MD Single Family under $500K $369,162 $375,000 111 Single Family over $500K $824,708 $699,900 154 Condo/Townhome under $300K $210,266 $219,900 93 Condo/Townhome over $300K $399,312 $365,000 65 Montgomery County, MD Single Family under $1M $528,164 $496,900 87 Single Family over $1M $2,053,150 $1,624,900 104 Condo/Townhome under $600K $261,262 $250,000 93 Condo/Townhome over $600K $1,081,597 $820,000 89 Prince Georges County, MD Single Family under $500K $255,759 $244,900 127 Single Family over $500K $848,628 $643,995 217 Condo/Townhome under $300K $163,155 $165,000 122 Condo/Townhome over $300K $386,774 $350,000 98

MORTGAGE. National Averages (May 31, 2010)* 30-year fixed Rate - 4.92% APR - n/a% 15-year fixed Rate - 4.33% APR - n/a% 5/1 ARM Rate - 3.79% APR - n/a%

Baltimore

Native blue crabs seasoned with Old Bay are reason enough to visit Baltimore, but there's much more to experience in this waterfront town. Take, for example, this underrated city's revitalized Inner Harbor area, where you'll find where you’ll find Kimpton’s new Hotel Monaco (opened in July 2009); the upscale neighborhood of Mount Vernon, home to the nation's first large-scale Washington Monument and the 29-room boutique Hotel Brexton (opened in March 2010); and Harbor East, where a number of hotels and restaurants are opening their doors. Its new, contemporary look aside, you can still discover some 300 years of American history along Baltimore's cobblestone streets (not only was the "Star Spangled Banner" written here, but abolitionist Frederick Douglass lived and worked in the historic waterfront community of Fells Point in the 1830s) and track down the settings for John Waters's films (Hairspray, Pink Flamingos, and Female Trouble, among many others, were all shot here). Sports fans will also find no shortage of outlets, since Baltimore is also home to the Orioles baseball team, Ravens football team, and the Preakness (the second leg of the Triple Crown).