In case you haven’t heard, a simply amazing mobile app is now available for iOS- and Android-powered devices.

I’m talking about a life-changing app that will make your life easier, less complicated, and will help answer your questions.

Want to start taking guesses?

Nope, not Angry Birds.

Definitely not Scramble with Friends (although that is a personal favorite of mine).

I’m talking about the Quicken Loans Mortgage Calculator.

With four calculators in one to help you crunch numbers on different mortgage possibilities, seriously, the sky is the limit with this one.

Take a look at the embedded video below about our App, and if you cannot view it, click here.

For more information, click here, or just go ahead and download it from the App Store or Android Market today!

To help raise awareness of the importance of heart health, Quicken Loans sponsored the American Heart Association’s Go Red For Women Luncheon held today at the MGM Grand Detroit.

The event began at 9 a.m. with health screenings, informational exhibits as well as a silent auction, which raised nearly 400 percent more than last year!

Paula Silver of Quicken Loans served as Co-Chair for the Go Red For Women Luncheon

A heart-healthy lunch of salad, salmon and veggie quiche was served, and Chris Powell of ABC’s Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition spoke to the hundreds of attendees about the small steps women can take now to make sure they live a long and healthy life.

Deena Centofanti of FOX2 Detroit was emcee, and Paula Silver, Vice President of Communications at Quicken Loans, and Deborah Greenman Arlin, Managing Counsel at Toyota served as co-chairs of the event.

Guest speaker Chris Powell of Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition

Cardiovascular disease is the number one killer of women, causing one in three deaths each year. The color red and the red dress have become synonymous with the ability all women have to live healthier lives. To empower women to take charge of their heart health, the American Heart Association created Go Red For Women – a campaign designed to educate, inspire and celebrate women’s health.

For more information about the Go Red campaign, visit GoRedForWomen.org.

With Fat Tuesday and the big New Orleans Mardi Gras celebration right around the corner, I thought this was a great article/slideshow from Bloomberg to share with you.

It’s all about Mardi Gras and how it’s actually very good for New Orleans’ economy.

Let’s put it this way. Mardi Gras has one big economic impact on the area. Consider it a giant footprint full of money.

Because, unlike a lot of festivals and public events, Mardi Gras actually makes New Orleans money.

And what a time it is down there at this time of year. I went once, back in 1993 and I’ll never forget it. It was crazy. Anyone who hasn’t gone at least once – go.

Anyway, back to Mardi Gras and the New Orleans economy.

Here’s a bit from the article

With Mardi Gras revelers taking to the streets, New Orleans spent $1.5 million on police protection related to the celebration in 2011 and $824,000 for sanitation, according to Weiss. Add in the viewing stands, barricades, and fire department and emergency services, the total cost for the city for Mardi Gras, net of revenues generated from things like the use of viewing stands, came to $1.8 million, according to Weiss. “The city’s expenses are actually down from previous years,” she says. “That shows better fiscal management.” Not only that: New Orleans generated a return of $8.45 for every dollar it spent.

The slideshow also breaks down the impact of the parades, the krewes, hotel bookings, sales of food at restaurants and supermarkets. Stuff like that. How many beads are sold. We love those beads.

I’ll let you get the rest of the info from the article. Read it here.

After you’ve made an offer to buy a home, and it has been accepted, most potential home buyers choose to include an inspection as a contingency in the purchase agreement. It’s the wise thing to do. The last thing you want is to buy a home without realizing that there’s a significant foundation or roof problem.

If this is your first time buying a home, you’re probably not familiar with what to look for in an inspector, or even know how to pick the right one.

Here are some questions to ask your home inspector before you hire him:

Are you certified and licensed? Even though some states don’t require a certification or a license, a home inspector who has them can give you additional peace of mind.

 Are you insured and bonded? By having insurance, the home inspector is covered in the case that there’s a mistake in his inspection report, and the new homeowner decides to take legal action.

 Are you experienced in residential inspections? Make sure the inspector has experience in residential inspections, as opposed to commercial inspections.

How long have you been a home inspector? How many inspections have you completed? Obviously, the more experience your home inspector has, the better you’ll feel. However, newer inspectors often have more experienced ones helping them out, so you actually get two sets of eyes instead of one, which can also help you. In other words, if the inspector is not as experienced, ask if he’ll have someone more experienced helping him.

Are you a full–time home inspector? If he is, then you know that the demand for his services is high enough for him to make a living out of it.

How much is the inspection? Don’t necessarily go for the cheapest option. Buying a home is probably the largest investment you’ll ever make, and you don’t want to jeopardize it by choosing an inexperienced inspector with the lowest price.

How long will the inspection take? If it takes less than two hours, then the home inspector may not be spending enough time to do a thorough inspection.

What does the inspection cover? Your home inspection should cover all applicable requirements in your state and comply with the standards of practice and code of ethics. Your inspector should be able to provide a list of areas that are included. If there are areas that you want to make sure your inspector covers, make sure you ask upfront so there are no surprises.

Will you provide a full report of the inspection? What will this report include? Does it include pictures? Do you have a sample? How long will it take for me to receive it? By asking to see a sample, you can determine if you’ll be able to understand the reporting style. Also, you should be able to receive a report within 24 hours of the inspection.

Can you do repairs based on the inspection? If not, do you have contractors that you’d recommend? This one is kind of tricky. If they say yes, then you’d worry about their intentions as they inspect your home. If they do offer repairs, make sure that someone you know well recommended this home inspector.

Will I be able to be there during the inspection? If they say no, that’s a red flag, and you should probably keep looking.

Are you a member of any professional home inspector associations? Some of the largest associations include the National Institute of Building Inspectors (NIBI), the American Home Inspectors Institute (AHIT), the American Society of Home Inspectors (ASHI) and National Association of Home Inspectors (NAHI). If they are members of any of these organizations, ask for their membership ID.

How do you keep your expertise up to date? What training do you have? This will give you an idea of how serious and professional the home inspector is. A good inspector will stay up-to-date on his training.

Can I get names and contact information of your last three references? You’re really interviewing this person for a job. It makes sense that you do your due diligence before trusting him with such a large purchase.

This is going to be the ultimate test of my creative writing skills. How do I convey the exact same information for a third week in a row, seeing that mortgage rates plateaued at all-time record lows again according to the Weekly Primary Mortgage Market Survey from Freddie Mac?

Should I freestyle rap it?

Maybe record myself doing an interpretive dance and upload it to our YouTube channel?

Perhaps I should write a sonnet in iambic pentameter? Yeah, I just dropped iambic pentameter on you. You can thank my 11^th grade honors English teacher for that one.

Or should I just go right into the numbers and save you all of the hassle of anticipation?

I think I’m going right into the numbers.

30-year fixed mortgage rates didn’t budge for the third consecutive week and held strong at 3.87 percent with 0.8 points. This is the 11^th straight week that 30-year fixed rates have been below 4.00 percent. A streak like this is almost as strong as the Red Wings winning 21 consecutive games at home, but not quite.  Last year at this time, 30-year fixed mortgage rates averaged 5.00 percent even.

15-year fixed mortgage rates saw their buddy holding still and decided to do the exact same thing. 15-year fixed mortgage rates came in this week at 3.16 percent with 0.8 points, remaining the same as last week except for a 0.1 point bump from last week’s 0.7 points.  Last year, 15-year fixed mortgage rates averaged 4.27 percent.

5/1-year ARMs dropped slightly from 2.83 percent with 0.7 points last week to 2.82 percent with 0.8 points this week. 1-year ARMs took a decent sized jump to 2.84 percent with 0.6 points from 2.78 percent with 0.6 points last week. This is the first time since November 17, 2011 that the average rate for 1-year ARMs was higher than that of the 5/1-year ARMs.

Last year at this time, 5/1-year ARMs and 1-year ARMs averaged 3.87 percent and 3.39 percent respectively.

Alas, we come to my favorite part of every Thursday morning – “What Did Frank Say?” As we all know by now, Frank Nothaft, vice president and chief economist over at Freddie Mac, chimes in with some insight every week.

This week, he explained, “Fixed mortgage rates were unchanged this week amid mixed confidence measures. Small business confidence ticked up slightly in January, representing a fourth consecutive month gain, according to the National Federation of Independent Business index. However, the Reuters/University of Michigan index of consumer sentiment fell in February by more than the market consensus forecast breaking a five-month trend. In the meantime, home builder confidence rose in February to the highest reading since May 2007, based on the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index.”

If you haven’t taken my weekly advice of refinancing or grabbing a new 30-year fixed mortgage yet, I have to ask you, “WHY NOT??” No one knows how long these rates will last, so act today!

Remember all of those times that I said we had a special treat for you? Forget about them. Today is the treat of treats.

Sticking with the appraisal theme, we reached out to Patrice Uhnavy, a certified general appraiser, and asked her some of your questions about the appraisal process for our weekly installment of Watch-It Wednesday.

We’ll touch on questions such as where appraisers get their information, what type of home add-ons are not that big of a deal for an appraiser to see, what parts of the house appraisers need to access, and much more.

Take a look at the embedded video below, and if you cannot view it, click this guy right here.

Ever want to calculate an interest rate that best meets your financial goals while at your daughter’s dance recital?

What about trying to figure out the best term to pay off your mortgage and save the most money when you’re in line at the grocery store?

Have no fear because the Quicken Loans Mortgage Calculator is now here!

If you follow Quicken Loans news at all (if you don’t, go ahead and slap yourself on the wrist right now), you know that we are fully committed to being the most technologically advanced mortgage lender around. We pride ourselves on that, and this solidifies that claim.

The Quicken Loans Mortgage Calculator was released in the App Store for iPhone and Android Market for Android powered phones today, and let me tell you, this app has it all.

The four calculators in one will meet all your mortgage calculating needs right in the palm of your hand.

The monthly payment calculator will figure out how much your monthly payment will be after you punch in your loan amount, interest rate,terms, annual taxes and annual insurance.

Want to figure your ideal interest rate based off of your loan amount and term? No problem. Our interest rate calculator lets you do that with ease.

Our term calculator will figure out how much money you can save by refinancing. Just plug in in your loan amount, interest rate, and monthly payment, and our app will take it from there.

You can also punch in what your interest rate is, how many years you want your term to be, your ideal monthly payment, and our calculator will figure out what your loan amount will be.

We’re not stopping with just calculators, though. You can take a picture, jot down the price of the home, figure out how much of a loan you will need, and take any special notes about the house (you know, which house has the indoor slide, and which house doesn’t). You can even compare the pictures and notes of the homes side-by-side.

All. On. Your. Phone.

With the Quicken Loans Mortgage Calculator, you can answer your questions, organize your results, and calculate with confidence.

Don’t take my word on it. Go out and download it from the App Store or the Android Market, and tell us what you think!

Also, check out this awesome video explaining our app. If you cannot view the embedded video below, click here.

Hey everyone. Got some news I hope you’ll find interesting.

Mortgage lenders are rolling out HARP 2.0, and underwater homeowners with a Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac loan should start preparing.

Most homeowners understandably don’t know all the intricacies of these changes and if they will qualify.

In the first of a biweekly video series we’re calling Markets and Musings, which can be found in the Quicken Loans Press Room, Quicken Loans Chief Economist Bob Walters lays out the key timing of the program.

Subsequent issues of Markets and Musings will include home affordability, the evolution of the mortgage market and several timely financial topics.  Please be sure to check back often.

Enjoy the video, and let me know if you have any questions.