Tuesday, October 16, 2007

Are Title Companies the Same?

I'm closing on a new home loan and I questioned the cost of the title company and it's insurance. So I have a question, do all Title companies charge the same? What about all these fees to close? How many are real, and what are just BS to pump up the profit for the transaction?

Mark

McCain-Romney love (slug)-fest: Round Two

by Jill Zuckman

The Republican spat continues.

What began with Mitt Romney jumping on Rudy Giuliani at the Republican debate in Detroit last week quickly expanded this weekend to John McCain taking aim at Mitt Romney for claiming to represent the "Republican wing of the Republican Party" a la Howard Dean and the Democratic Party.

Today, the love-fest showed no signs of abating.

Chuck Douglas, the former New Hampshire Republican congressman serving as McCain's vice chair, derided Romney's claim over the weekend that he made a political contribution 15 years ago to N.H. Democrat Dick Swett out of a personal friendship.

"As a Republican who ran against liberal Democrat Dick Swett, I can assure you that in 1992 Republicans wrote checks to defeat him; and those Republicans weren't voting for Paul Tsongas that year either,'' said Douglas, who lost his seat to Swett in a surprise upset in 1990.

Clinton takes New Hampshire Democrat presidential primary, says Marist Institute poll

Clinton takes New Hampshire Democrat presidential primary, says Marist Institute poll

Poughkeepsie -- Hillary Clinton has a wide lead over her Democratic rivals for the 2008 New Hampshire Democratic Presidential Primary, according to a Marist College Institute for Public Opinion poll released Sunday.

Forty-one percent of likely Democratic presidential primary voters support New York Senator Clinton followed by 20 percent for Senator Barack Obama. Former Senator John Edwards receives 11 percent. The other candidates, Governor Bill Richardson, Senator Joe Biden, Congressman Dennis Kucinich, Senator Chris Dodd, and former Senator Mike Gravel, all trail with single digit support.

The voters’ priorities in the New Hampshire Democratic primary are the war in Iraq, health care, and the economy outdistance other concerns.

On the Republican side, former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney edges the field of candidates vying for the Republican presidential nomination, according to the Poughkeepsie college poll.

Twenty-six percent of likely New Hampshire Republican Presidential Primary voters support Romney followed by 20 percent for former Mayor Rudy Giuliani, 17 percent for Senator John McCain, and 10 percent for Senator Fred Thompson. The remaining candidates, former Governor Mike Huckabee, Congressman Ron Paul, Congressman Duncan Hunter, Congressman Tom Tancredo, and Senator Sam Brownback, all follow with single digit support.

Security from terrorism tops the list of concerns on the minds of likely New Hampshire Republican Presidential Primary voters. Twenty-six percent of these voters say security from terrorism is the most important issue when deciding their vote for president. The poll reports that 18 percent cite the economy while 14 percent feel the war in Iraq is central to their choice for president. Twelve percent find illegal immigration to be the vital issue.

Mitt Romney spent $6 million on radio and television advertising

Romney outspends Giuliani on media in past quarter

WASHINGTON - Seeking to catch national GOP presidential frontrunner Rudy Giuliani, Mitt Romney spent $6 million on radio and television advertising in the past three months, 12 times as much as Giuliani expended on media, campaign finance reports filed yesterday show.

Romney outspent all of his Republican rivals, sinking a total of $21 million into his campaign, compared with Giuliani's $13.3 million in expenses and newcomer Fred Thompson's $5.7 million, according to the reports to the Federal Election Commission.

As the primaries near with no GOP contender breaking away from the crowded field, candidates began ramping up their spending during the last quarter, even though they faced difficulty in raising new funds.

Clinton, Romney Lead in New Hampshire, New Poll Shows

Clinton, Romney Lead in New Hampshire, New Poll Shows (Update1)

By Demian McLean

Oct. 14 (Bloomberg) -- Senator Hillary Clinton leads among Democratic voters in New Hampshire, the state that traditionally holds the first U.S. presidential primaries, while Mitt Romney holds a narrow edge over his Republican rivals, a new poll shows.

Clinton, of New York, is backed by 41 percent of likely voters, compared with 20 percent for second-place Senator Barack Obama of Illinois, according to a poll by the Marist College Institute for Public Opinion. Former Senator John Edwards is in third place with 11 percent.

In the Republican race, former Massachusetts Governor Romney has support from 26 percent of Republicans likely to vote in the primary. That compares with 20 percent for his nearest competitor, former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani. Senator John McCain of Arizona has 17 percent and former Senator Fred Thompson 10 percent.