The holidays have come and gone, and it goes without saying that 2020 was an unusual year! There may be a few more empty shipping boxes and not quite as many shopping bags around your house as in past years, and you may have far more leftovers than you’re used to. Whether you hosted family, stayed put in a solo quarantine, or found another way to stay safe and healthy for the holidays, the time will eventually come to return to normal. It’s not always easy to know what to keep, what to toss, and what can be recycled responsibly. How to store holiday décor High-quality lighting: If you spent a ..read more

You’ve been saving up for months for that perfect gift for your new husband: an extra wide curved monitor he can use for work. You have the perfect spot for it in your makeshift home office, and you know how much frustration it would save him during big, complicated projects. You’ve secretly saved up almost all the money you need, and you’ve been watching sales like a hawk. But as you’re browsing on social media, you see an ad for that exact monitor with “20% OFF” in big, bold text. You click on the ad and soon discover that you really can get 20% off—a deal worth $240—but you would have to op ..read more

Peoria Branch Manager Jennifer Gokool and her nephew smile in the sunshine as he prepares to deploy for duty. Photo courtesy of Jennifer Gokool. Peoria Castle & Cooke Mortgage Branch Manager Jennifer Gokool holds a special place in her heart for all the men and women who have and continue to serve our country as members of the armed forces. Her passion for serving those who have served has deep roots—both her grandfathers and several uncles are retired military, and two nephews are currently serving. Those roots are also wide, spreading community wide. Throughout the last decade, Gokool ..read more

Are you ready to take the plunge? When you picture your dream house, maybe you imagine having friends over for a poolside soiree, or perhaps you hope the neighborhood kids will designate your pool as hangout central. Installing a swimming pool with a home renovation loan could make you the most popular homeowner on the street, but does all that popularity come with a flood of maintenance? Here’s an idea of what you are wading into. The 4 C’s of Maintenance—Cleaning, Circulation, Chemicals & Consistency. Cleaning Swimming pools require a small boat-load of equipment to keep the water crys ..read more

National lenders such as Castle & Cooke Mortgage, LLC are truly grown at the local level. It is the employees working within their communities to build the American dream that create a thriving national company. Castle & Cooke Mortgage’s national leadership wanted to support more local involvement so they instituted the 2018 Year of Service. Each branch picked a cause close to their heart and volunteered their time. As we hit the midway mark, we celebrate CCM’s dedication and the acts of service that are strengthening the places we call home. According to the U.S. Department of Agricu ..read more

You already know there are personal benefits to homeownership—possible tax savings, potential equity and the freedom to decorate and redecorate (and redecorate) however you want. But did you realize there could also be social and economic benefits too? According to The Journal of the Center for Real Estate Studies, homeownership creates economic stability, decreases crime, and increases civic engagement. That’s why many states have created programs to encourage it. Down payment assistance programs, or DPAs, may provide borrowers the down payment funds needed to secure a first mortgage to buy a ..read more

Are you ready to take the plunge? When you picture your dream house, maybe you imagine having friends over for a poolside soiree, or perhaps you hope the neighborhood kids will designate your pool as hangout central. Installing a swimming pool with a home renovation loan could make you the most popular homeowner on the street, but does all that popularity come with a flood of maintenance? Here’s an idea of what you are wading into. The 4 C’s of Maintenance—Cleaning, Circulation, Chemicals & Consistency. Cleaning Swimming pools require a small boat-load of equipment to keep the water crys ..read more

Above the heat, in the cool mountains of Park City, UT, Castle & Cooke Mortgage, LLC managers from all over the nation gathered at the annual Branch Manager Meeting. Hosted at the Waldorf Astoria, the branch managers spent three days meeting, mingling and sneaking in high-elevation doses of outdoor fun mountain biking and hiking. The evenings found them on the lawn clinking glasses, swapping success stories and picking each other’s brains, as some of the nation’s top loan officers. But the meeting was more than morning hikes and evening drinks. National Sales Manager Mike Querrey noted tha ..read more

National lenders such as Castle & Cooke Mortgage, LLC are truly grown at the local level. It is the employees working within their communities to build the American dream that create a thriving national company. Castle & Cooke Mortgage’s national leadership wanted to support more local involvement so they instituted the 2018 Year of Service. Each branch picked a cause close to their heart and volunteered their time. As we hit the midway mark, we celebrate CCM’s dedication and the acts of service that are strengthening the places we call home. According to the U.S. Department of Agricu ..read more

Have you ever wondered what the difference is between the various mortgage loan types? Or were you unaware that there are many types of loans meant to address specific borrower needs? Just as no two borrowers are exactly alike, no two loan programs are set up precisely the same way. If a loan amount is greater than the “conforming” standards set by Fannie Mae, it is a jumbo loan. What is a jumbo loan? While it varies by the market area, loan amounts above $453,100 are typically treated as jumbo loans. These loans are considered to be risky investments by lenders, regardless of the creditworthi ..read more