Chris Madden Licensed Loan Officer NMLS# 1634490

Chris Madden Licensed Loan Officer NMLS# 1634490 For most people, buying a home can be the most exciting purchase of their lives. Schedule a meeting:
https://calendly.com/thechrismaddenteam

Because of this, I want to make sure my clients have the best possible experience. Homestead Funding Corp, offers a variety of loan solutions allowing me serve my client’s.

08/27/2026

You might think wealthy people get rich simply because they make more money. That’s only partially true. I saw an article a few weeks ago discussing retirement savings and whether some proposed changes could benefit wealthy Americans over everyone else.

But I think the bigger lesson is this.

Wealth isn’t built by income alone. It’s built by ownership. What’s the common denominator amongst wealthy people? They own assets. Stocks, businesses, real estate, retirement accounts. Things that grow while they sleep.

That’s why I tell people all the time, stop asking how to make more money. Start asking what assets are you building? Because income can disappear, but assets continue to work. And for most families, the most meaningful asset they will ever own or the first one they will ever own is a home.

This is why homeownership remains one of the most powerful wealth building assets that exists.

08/25/2026

To use a dating analogy, you know when you see someone that’s been single for a really long time or they always end up single, you start to wonder what’s wrong with them?

Im not going to make this about that, but there’s a similar trend that goes on with homes that have been on the market. If you’re looking at Zillow or listing data, and you find a home has been on the market for 20, 30 or 40 days, chances are there could be something that is wrong.

But it’s not what you think. So here’s what it might come down to. One, the home could simply be overpriced. Sellers, some of them, still think it’s 2021 and they can price the home at any ridiculous number and they’re going to get paid. The other thing is there could actually be something wrong with the property.

Lastly, it could just be something that is market related. Maybe it’s seasonality, buyer activity just not there, interest rates might be too high and that’s hurting affordability.

So understand why it’s been sitting on the market, but you can also use that as leverage to try and get a better deal.

08/18/2026

I’m going to give you a cheat code so that you can classify whether any housing market is either a buyers or sellers market.

Here’s the first scenario, if you have more than 6 months of inventory and some price reductions and homes just effectively sitting on the market longer, you clearly are in a buyers market.

Now, as for a sellers market, which is a little bit more obvious to recognize. Here, you’ll have less than 3 months of inventory, fast rising prices, bidding wars and fewer if any concessions that sellers will make.

What about something in between, that’s called a balanced, or neutral market. That’s where you have homes appreciating, nothing extreme, homes selling in a generally reasonable time frame, and no one has the upper hand.

That’s the code for cracking what type of market you’re in. If you want to learn more, follow me.

08/12/2026

I saw a stat recently that said 45% of homeowners regret their decision of buying a home.

Now, that’s a troubling stat, but here is why. They didn’t go into it with their eyes fully open and being aware of what the hidden costs of homeownership are. And a lot of that has to do with maintenance or deferred maintenance.

For example, if you’re looking and something in Central or Western New York, chances are you’re buying something that is a little dated. And that can be part of the charm because there are homes here that have a lot of character. But they also have a big bill that’s waiting for most of them, which is going to come in the way of repairs and maintenance like a new roof, new flooring, maybe rewiring a house, and especially in New York, property taxes can all be expensive.

So if you’re not paying attention to these things, you can move in, get hit with a big bill and instantly have buyers remorse. You don’t want that, owning a home is supposed to be a positive thing for you, your family, your future, so don’t get caught by these things.

Budget and build your emergency fund so we don’t end up like the 45%

08/07/2026

Here’s where consumers get it all wrong. They think they are supposed to go out there and shop for the cheapest rate, lowest rate, whatever is at the bottom of the barrel. And they think my job is to actually give them that.

A number of years ago, my thinking around this switched. I recognized im not here to give you the lowest rate. Im here to help you create wealth. If you go about the mortgage process with the right strategy that’s catered to you, this will undoubtedly help you unlock and create more long term wealth.

Now if you go with the wrong strategy, and chase the lowest rate, and only pay attention to fees and structure, this could end up being a horrible decision. So understand that my job is not to get you the lowest rate, my job is to protect your money. And by protecting it, I’m giving you the opportunity to create more wealth from it.

08/04/2026

The tappable equity in the United States is upwards of $11 Trillion dollars. With the average American sitting on about $230,000 in tappable equity.

Now, this is different from overall equity because a certain amount needs to stay, but tappable equity is going to be your answer to getting out of debt.

Most Americans are completely saddled by debt that has them in over their heads right now especially with credit card debt at all time highs and just general financial worry out there.

The smart move would be to take this high interest debt, that likely exceeds 20% in interest and absorb it into something that would likely have a 6 in front of it, save money, make the debt money for tax advantageous now and just rest easy.

Because the less stressed you are, the faster you’re going to arrive at other solutions in your life. But when you have this noose around your neck of debt, it can be crippling and stopping you from getting other things done.

08/04/2026

Mortgage Myth: Mortgage insurance is always bad.

Fiction.

Mortgage insurance isn’t something every buyer should automatically fear. For some buyers, especially first-time homebuyers, it can be the tool that makes buying a home possible sooner rather than waiting years to save a larger down payment.

And waiting isn’t always the cheaper option.

Home prices, interest rates, rent payments, and your personal financial situation can all change while you’re waiting to reach that “perfect” down payment number.

The better question isn’t, “How do I avoid mortgage insurance at all costs?”

It’s: “What does each loan option cost me, and which one makes the most sense for my situation?”

Depending on the loan, there may also be different ways mortgage insurance is structured or paid, so talk through every option with your lender before making a decision.

💬 Did you think mortgage insurance was always a bad thing?

08/04/2026

Not all “free money” is as simple as it sounds.

Buyer grants can be an incredible tool to help make homeownership more affordable—but it’s important to understand exactly how each program works before you rely on it.

One thing I learned during this conversation? Some grant programs may place a forgivable second lien on the property. If you sell or refinance before the required time period, you could be required to repay those funds. Not every program works this way, but some do.

That’s why I always tell buyers: talk to a trusted lender before making assumptions.

Even after years in real estate, I still learn something new every time I sit down with a knowledgeable mortgage professional. Every buyer’s situation is different, and the right loan or assistance program depends on your goals—not just the headline that says “free money.”

07/31/2026

This mistake right here is how you can destroy your financial flexibility as a buyer, and sadly its happened to a lot of New York home purchasers over the last few years and this is basically attributable to buying up at your maximum allowed mortgage limit.

A difference in $200,000 can result in anywhere from $1,000 to $1,200 in monthly payment depending on the interest rate. Well that adds up to a lot of money over the course of 5-10 years. Any if you think about where that money could have gone, and how it’s basically being sunk into the home, it’s going to leave you feeling house poor and morso with regret or remorse about buying the home in the first place.

Buying a home should be a celebrated milestone, not something you look back on and ask why did I even do this and we cant even enjoy this home because we feel so stretched financially. So by below means, don’t stretch just because your pre approval says you can and remember, this home is probably not going to be the last one you live in, so use it as a stepping stone.

07/28/2026

So this right here is pretty serious. And the fact that most American’s are not prepared for any sort or emergency expense and coupled with the fact that we are riding at record high levels of credit card debt means that the American consumer, is literally one bad day away from being in serious financial trouble.

So here’s what you need to do:

First, you need to create an emergency fund. This means to continue carrying that high interest debt for a few more months, make your minimum payments or whatever sort of dent you’re putting into them but really focus on putting away ALL your living expenses for 3 months.

Now you have your emergency fund and its set. From there you want to aggressively pay off your consumer debt. Start with the lowest balances first because that will give you some confidence and momentum that you’re on the right track.

While you’re chipping away at that debt, you’ll at least be prepared for if that sudden event happens for an emergency, you can actually afford whatever expense that might be.

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