https://pillarmortgagegroup.com/blake-hermann

Blake Hermann, Loan Officer, 9089 E Bahia Drive STE 101A, Scottsdale, AZ (2026)

09/07/2026

Everyone keeps telling me the Phoenix market is falling apart. The August numbers landed last week and they say something more boring.

Same source, this August against last August (Realtor.com Housing Inventory Core Metrics via FRED, updated Sept 4):

Median days on market: 67 this August, 70 last August. Homes are moving three days faster than a year ago.

Listings with a price cut: 8,332 this August, 8,260 last August. Basically flat, and down five months straight off the March peak of 10,902, about 24 percent.

Active listings: 17,707, up about 5 percent from 16,831 a year ago.

More homes to pick from, selling a touch faster, sellers cutting no more often than last year. That is not a crash. It is a normal market with patient sellers.

If you are buying, you have selection and time, but do not expect a desperate seller. Ask for a rate buydown instead of a price cut and run both numbers.

On refinancing, be straight with yourself. The 30 year averaged 6.71 percent last week, up from 6.66 and up from 6.50 a year ago (Freddie Mac PMMS, week of 09/03/2026). This is not a rate driven refi market. The ones that pencil have another reason behind them: dropping mortgage insurance, leaving an adjustable, or clearing a high rate second.

Send me the address you are watching and I will run the real numbers. Free, no pitch. pillarmortgagegroup.com

Scottsdale's communication-first mortgage broker. Conventional, FHA, VA, DSCR, Non-QM, and bank statement loans. Complex deals done right. NMLS #2700076.

09/04/2026

Six basis points. That is the average weekly move in the 30 year fixed this year, and it is why most people think about locks backwards.

Freddie Mac has published 35 weekly prints in 2026. Twenty one moved up, thirteen moved down, none came in flat (Freddie Mac PMMS, 2026 archive).

The part that matters on a refinance: a refi takes roughly six weeks, so the real question is where rates sit six weeks from your lock decision, not where they sit next spring. There have been 29 six week stretches in 2026. Twenty two ended higher. Seven ended lower. The worst run cost 45 basis points, from 6.01 percent on Feb 19 to 6.46 percent by April 2. The best run saved 15.

Floating has been the losing side about three times out of four, and when it went wrong it went wrong three times harder than it ever went right. On a 400,000 dollar loan, a quarter point is roughly 67 dollars a month.

Two questions before you lock anything. What does an extension cost if we miss the closing date, and is there a float down if rates drop. The CFPB notes your Loan Estimate says whether the rate is locked but not what extending it costs, so ask out loud.

The 30 year averaged 6.71 percent this week, up from 6.66 (Freddie Mac, Sept 3 2026).

Send me your rate and balance and I will show you what locking versus floating looks like on your loan. Free, no pitch. pillarmortgagegroup.com

Scottsdale's communication-first mortgage broker. Conventional, FHA, VA, DSCR, Non-QM, and bank statement loans. Complex deals done right. NMLS #2700076.

09/03/2026

A seller in Gilbert told me last week he wanted to cut his price before he had an offer, because he was sure the appraisal would blow up the deal.

That fear is pointed at the wrong thing.

In NAR's REALTORS Confidence Index for July 2026, only 6 percent of contracts were delayed by appraisal issues. Down from 7 percent a month earlier and a year ago. In the same survey, 12 percent of contracts had delayed settlements and 6 percent were terminated outright.

So the thing sellers lose sleep over sits at the bottom of the list, and it got better, not worse.

Here is the part nobody tells sellers. Plenty of deals never see a traditional appraisal. In that same report, 26 percent of buyers paid cash. On the financed side, Fannie Mae value acceptance can skip the appraisal on eligible purchases up to 90 percent loan to value. It is issued case by case, so never assume it.

The real variable is how solid your buyer's financing is. And rates moved again this week. The 30 year fixed averaged 6.71 percent as of September 3, up from 6.66 percent (Freddie Mac PMMS).

Homeowners, same idea on a refinance. Most assume a full appraisal is required. Often it is not.

Send me the offer you are weighing and I will tell you where the real risk sits. Free, no pitch. pillarmortgagegroup.com

Sources: NAR REALTORS Confidence Index July 2026; Freddie Mac PMMS 09/03/2026.

Scottsdale's communication-first mortgage broker. Conventional, FHA, VA, DSCR, Non-QM, and bank statement loans. Complex deals done right. NMLS #2700076.

09/02/2026

Four mortgage rates published this morning. Same survey, same week, same 80 percent loan to value.

30 year conforming: 6.79 percent with 0.65 points
30 year FHA: 6.49 percent with 0.82 points
15 year fixed: 6.14 percent with 0.86 points
5/1 ARM: 5.94 percent with 0.66 points
(MBA Weekly Applications Survey, week ending Aug 28 2026)

Look at the FHA line. It reads 30 basis points cheaper than conforming and most buyers stop reading there. But it carries 0.82 points instead of 0.65. On a 400,000 dollar loan that is roughly 680 dollars more paid up front to get that number, before you touch mortgage insurance. Part of that lower rate was bought, not given.

That is why a rate quote by itself tells you almost nothing. It only means something sitting next to its points, its lender fees and its mortgage insurance. That is what the Loan Estimate is for. Every lender has to hand you one on the same form, so the pages line up.

And no, collecting a few will not wreck your credit. The CFPB is clear that mortgage inquiries for the same loan type inside a 14 to 45 day window count as one. One home, one pull, as far as your score cares.

Same rule when you refinance later. Compare the sheets, not the headlines.

Send me two Loan Estimates and I will tell you which is actually cheaper. Free, no pitch. pillarmortgagegroup.com

Sources: MBA Weekly Applications Survey, CFPB

Scottsdale's communication-first mortgage broker. Conventional, FHA, VA, DSCR, Non-QM, and bank statement loans. Complex deals done right. NMLS #2700076.

09/01/2026

A homeowner called me last week convinced he was stuck with his rate until 2029. He closed in July. Somebody told him you have to wait three years to refinance. That is not a rule anywhere.

Myth: there is a long waiting period before you can refinance.
Fact: on a conventional rate and term refinance, Fannie Mae has no seasoning requirement at all. Your servicer may add an overlay, but the agency rule is zero.

Myth: the wait is the same no matter what you are doing.
Fact: cash out is different. On a conventional cash out, the loan you are paying off generally has to be at least 12 months old, measured note date to note date. On a VA cash out, it is at least 210 days from the closing of the loan you are replacing. Same house, different clock.

Myth: rates barely move, so there is nothing to check.
Fact: the 30 year fixed has run between 5.98 percent (week of Feb 26) and 6.69 percent (week of Aug 6) in 2026 alone, and averaged 6.66 percent the week of Aug 27 (Freddie Mac PMMS). That is a 71 basis point swing in eight months.

The real question is never how long you have owned it. It is whether the numbers work today and whether you will stay long enough to earn the cost back.

Send me your closing date and your rate and I will tell you what clock you are on. Free, no pitch.

pillarmortgagegroup.com

Sources: Freddie Mac PMMS, Fannie Mae Selling Guide, VA.

Scottsdale's communication-first mortgage broker. Conventional, FHA, VA, DSCR, Non-QM, and bank statement loans. Complex deals done right. NMLS #2700076.

08/31/2026

Is the Arizona market falling apart? The July numbers look rough until you read the whole release.

Pending home sales in the West, which includes Arizona, fell 4.7 percent from June and 7.1 percent from a year ago, the worst of the four regions (NAR Pending Home Sales, July 2026). Nationally the index dropped 2.3 percent to its lowest level since January.

Here is the part nobody quotes from that same report. NAR's chief economist noted that pending contracts are running about 30 percent below their 2019 level while payroll employment is 5 percent above it. The people are here. The paychecks are here. The contracts are not.

That is not demand disappearing. That is demand sitting on its hands, and NAR's read is that the highest mortgage rates of the year hitting mid summer pulled signings back.

Rates have since gone quiet. The 30 year fixed averaged 6.66 percent for the week of Aug 27, barely moved from 6.65 the week before (Freddie Mac PMMS), with more homes hitting the market and slower price growth.

Buying in the Valley right now means competing against fewer signed contracts than at any point since January.

If you own and have been wondering should I refinance, a flat rate stretch is when you decide on your numbers instead of waiting on a headline.

Send me your scenario at pillarmortgagegroup.com and I will run it straight.

Scottsdale's communication-first mortgage broker. Conventional, FHA, VA, DSCR, Non-QM, and bank statement loans. Complex deals done right. NMLS #2700076.

08/28/2026

Here is a refinance rule almost nobody learns until it costs them money. Asking for a little cash back at closing can reprice your entire loan.

Lenders sort refinances into two buckets. A rate and term refinance pays off your existing mortgage plus the closing costs. A cash out refinance is anything more. On a rate and term you can generally get back the lesser of 2 percent of the new loan amount or 2,000 dollars. Go past that and the whole file becomes a cash out.

That matters because cash out loans price higher and the loan to value limit is tighter, usually 80 percent on a primary residence. So the 5,000 dollars you wanted for the backyard can raise the rate on your entire balance for 30 years.

The one that catches people: paying off a HELOC you opened after you bought the house counts as a cash out even if you walk away with zero dollars in your pocket.

The 30 year fixed averaged 6.66 percent this week (Freddie Mac PMMS, Aug 27 2026) and refinances are still 42 percent of all applications (MBA Weekly Applications Survey, week ending Aug 21 2026). Plenty of people are refinancing. Very few ask which bucket they are in first.

If you want cash, a second lien behind your current mortgage is sometimes the cheaper move. Price both.

Send me your payoff and your goal. I will run it both ways, free. pillarmortgagegroup.com

Scottsdale's communication-first mortgage broker. Conventional, FHA, VA, DSCR, Non-QM, and bank statement loans. Complex deals done right. NMLS #2700076.

08/27/2026

Turning down a VA offer right now is one of the most expensive things an Arizona seller can do.

I hear the same three objections. All three are outdated.

"Zero down means the buyer is weak." A VA buyer still qualifies on credit, income and debt. VA also runs a residual income test, a check on how much cash is left over each month after the mortgage and the bills. It is one of the strictest tests in lending.

"VA deals take forever." The appraisal is ordered through the VA system, so it runs on its own timeline, but that is days, not months. The bigger threat to your closing date is a slow lender.

"I have to pay all their costs." There is a short list of fees a veteran cannot pay, and a lender credit usually covers them. Ask the buyer's lender before you assume.

Why this matters today: pending home sales just hit their lowest level in six months while homes for sale hit the highest since May (Redfin, four weeks ending Aug 23 2026). Median time on market is 29 days, up from a month ago and a year ago (NAR, July 2026). Rates held steady at 6.66 percent (Freddie Mac PMMS, Aug 27 2026). Buyers are scarce. Cutting a whole group out of your pool over a rumor costs you money.

Veteran staying put instead of selling? Ask me about the VA IRRRL streamline refinance.

Send me the offer terms at pillarmortgagegroup.com and I will read it with you, free.

Scottsdale's communication-first mortgage broker. Conventional, FHA, VA, DSCR, Non-QM, and bank statement loans. Complex deals done right. NMLS #2700076.

08/26/2026

Same 13,500 dollars from the seller. One version saves you 78 dollars a month. The other saves you 172. Most buyers pick the wrong one.

Say you are buying at 450,000 here in the Valley with 10 percent down. That is a 405,000 loan. At 6.65 percent on a 30 year fixed (Freddie Mac PMMS, Aug 20 2026), principal and interest is about 2,600 a month.

Now the seller agrees to give you 3 percent, or 13,500.

Option one, you take it as a price cut. Purchase drops to 436,500, loan drops to 392,850, payment goes to about 2,522. You saved 78 a month.

Option two, you take it as a credit and use it to buy your rate down. 13,500 is roughly 3.3 points on that loan. Depending on pricing that day, call it 6 percent instead of 6.65. Payment goes to about 2,428. You saved 172 a month, for as long as you keep the loan.

Same money. More than double the benefit.

Why now: Redfin counted about half a million more sellers than buyers in the four weeks ending Aug 16, and said some sellers are willing to cut price or give concessions. The money is on the table.

One honest catch. If you expect to refinance within a year, do not sink three points into a permanent buydown. Ask about a temporary buydown or put the credit toward closing costs. Run both before you decide.

Send me your scenario at pillarmortgagegroup.com and I will price it both ways, free.

Scottsdale's communication-first mortgage broker. Conventional, FHA, VA, DSCR, Non-QM, and bank statement loans. Complex deals done right. NMLS #2700076.

08/25/2026

A guy called me last month with four rental doors, an 800 credit score, and a bank that had just told him no.

Nothing was wrong with him. His CPA had done a great job. Depreciation and write offs knocked his tax return income to almost nothing, and his bank only reads that line.

That is the borrower a DSCR loan was built for.

DSCR stands for debt service coverage ratio. Instead of underwriting you, the lender underwrites the property. Take the rent and divide it by the full payment (principal, interest, taxes, insurance, HOA). A 1.0 means the rent covers the payment. That ratio, not your tax return, qualifies the loan. No W2s, no returns, no personal debt to income math.

Why it matters now: individual investors and second home buyers were 14 percent of July sales, up from 13 percent in June but well under 20 percent a year ago. All cash purchases fell to 26 percent from 31 percent (NAR, July 2026). Fewer investors are writing checks. More are financing.

The honest part: DSCR usually means more money down, reserves, and pricing above a standard conventional loan, which averaged 6.65 percent on a 30 year fixed last week (Freddie Mac, Aug 20). If you can document income the normal way, conventional is often cheaper. Run both.

It works on a refinance too, including cash out to fund the next one.

Send me the address and the rent. I will run the ratio free.
pillarmortgagegroup.com

Scottsdale's communication-first mortgage broker. Conventional, FHA, VA, DSCR, Non-QM, and bank statement loans. Complex deals done right. NMLS #2700076.

Blake Hermann, Loan Officer

09/07/2026

09/04/2026

09/03/2026

09/02/2026

09/01/2026

08/31/2026

08/28/2026

08/27/2026

08/26/2026

08/25/2026

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