Benchmark Lending Benchmark Lending Group Featured in Wall Street JournalSANTA ROSA, Calif. (July 20, 2005) - Benchmark Lending Group, Inc. is pleased to announce the publication of acœEasy Money, A Salesmanac Pitch,ac Wall Street Journal, July 20, 2005. This front-page article about Benchmark Lending Group highlights the companyacs philosophy; customer service; and friendly, knowledgeable staff. The article also explains some of the benefits of non-traditional loan programs, such as Benchmark Freedom Loan. Ben Ray, one of Benchmarks top loan officers, is featured in the article which outlines the high-level of customer service that he and all employees at Benchmark provide. When he books loans, he arranges for appraisers About Us Experience you can count onFor over a decade, Benchmark Lending has been helping home buyers and owners realize theirdreams. As a primary lending institution, Benchmark is uniquely positioned to assist both refinancing and new mortgage customers. We take the time to understand you and your financial goals. We tailor loans that take into account your cash flow, payment timeframe, equity plans and investment opportunities. You will get a loan that won't break your budget and provides you the flexibility and resources to get the most out of your property investments.Our loan process is in one word easy, easy to understand, easy to complete and most of all easy to manage, because we handle all the hard work. Your personal Loan Officer will manage the application process, work with you through any and all credit issues and help ensure that every I is dotted and every T is crossed. They will carefully explain every detail of your mortgage so there are no surprises on your monthly bill. Our sole aim is to make the experience of financing a new or existing home absolutely painless. We will guarantee that you have a loan tailored to your specific financial needs.
Citing Slower Economy, Fed Lowers Benchmark Lending Target to 4.5% : Surprise Cut In U.S. Rate Electrifies Wall Street By Mitchell Martin International Herald Tribune Thursday, April 19, 2001 U.S. central bankers unexpectedly cut interest rates Wednesday, seeking to encourage investment and consumption in the face of an economy whose growth they described as "unexpectedly weak." . Market reaction was ebullient after the Federal Reserve Board said it would reduce its target on overnight loans among commercial banks to 4.5 percent from 5 percent. The Dow Jones industrial average gained more than 4 percent in early trading, while the Nasdaq composite index was up more than 9 percent. . The timing of the cut was more a surprise than the action itself, which was expected to take place May 15, the next regular meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee. . The Fed's statement did not indicate whether a further rate cut could be expected at that time, though many private forecasters have said the central bank is likely to reduce the target on federal funds, as the overnight rate is known, to 4 percent by the end of the summer. . With the move Wednesday, the Fed has cut its key rate target four times this year, dropping it from 6.5 percent to counteract signs of a weakening economy. . Before the Fed announcement, the private Conference Board said its index of leading economic indicators fell 0.3 percent in March, following a 0.2 percent decline in February. (Page 11) . The largest contribution to the fall in the leading indicators was the stock market, the Conference Board said. Yet on Wednesday, Wall Street was rising smartly ahead of the Fed's move, reacting to positive interpretations of earnings announcement from Intel and Texas Instruments. Although both had sharply lower first-quarter earnings than the year before, they beat investors' diminished expectations, and comments from Intel encouraged investors around the world. . In Japan, for example, the Nikkei 225 index rose 4.4 percent and in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng was up 2.9 percent, with trading ending well before the Fed announcement. European indexes were also higher, helped late in the day by the Fed's move, with gains of roughly 2 percent to 4 percent. . When the Fed was raising rates in 1999 and 2000, its chairman, Alan Greenspan, said he was trying to cool economic growth that was leading to a dearth of available workers and to an unsustainable and growing trade gap. . Both imbalances are easing. Unemployment bottomed out at 3.9 percent in autumn 2000 and now stands at 4.3 percent, while the February trade report, released before the Fed's action Wednesday, showed an unexpected decline in the merchandise deficit, to $27.0 billion from $33.3 billion in January U.S. central bankers unexpectedly cut interest rates Wednesday, seeking to encourage investment and consumption in the face of an economy whose growth they described as "unexpectedly weak." . Market reaction was ebullient after the Federal Reserve Board said it would reduce its target on overnight loans among commercial banks to 4.5 percent from 5 percent. The Dow Jones industrial average gained more than 4 percent in early trading, while the Nasdaq composite index was up more than 9 percent. . The timing of the cut was more a surprise than the action itself, which was expected to take place May 15, the next regular meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee. . The Fed's statement did not indicate whether a further rate cut could be expected at that time, though many private forecasters have said the central bank is likely to reduce the target on federal funds, as the overnight rate is known, to 4 percent by the end of the summer. . With the move Wednesday, the Fed has cut its key rate target four times this year, dropping it from 6.5 percent to counteract signs of a weakening economy. . Before the Fed announcement, the private Conference Board said its index of leading economic indicators fell 0.3 percent in March, following a 0.2 percent decline in February. The largest contribution to the fall in the leading indicators was the stock market, the Conference Board said. Yet on Wednesday, Wall Street was rising smartly ahead of the Fed's move, reacting to positive interpretations of earnings announcement from Intel and Texas Instruments. Although both had sharply lower first-quarter earnings than the year before, they beat investors' diminished expectations, and comments from Intel encouraged investors around the world. . In Japan, for example, the Nikkei 225 index rose 4.4 percent and in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng was up 2.9 percent, with trading ending well before the Fed announcement. European indexes were also higher, helped late in the day by the Fed's move, with gains of roughly 2 percent to 4 percent. . When the Fed was raising rates in 1999 and 2000, its chairman, Alan Greenspan, said he was trying to cool economic growth that was leading to a dearth of available workers and to an unsustainable and growing trade gap. . Both imbalances are easing. Unemployment bottomed out at 3.9 percent in autumn 2000 and now stands at 4.3 percent, while the February trade report, released before the Fed's action Wednesday, showed an unexpected decline in the merchandise deficit, to $27.0 billion from $33.3 billion in January U.S. central bankers unexpectedly cut interest rates Wednesday, seeking to encourage investment and consumption in the face of an economy whose growth they described as "unexpectedly weak." . Market reaction was ebullient after the Federal Reserve Board said it would reduce its target on overnight loans among commercial banks to 4.5 percent from 5 percent. The Dow Jones industrial average gained more than 4 percent in early trading, while the Nasdaq composite index was up more than 9 percent. . The timing of the cut was more a surprise than the action itself, which was expected to take place May 15, the next regular meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee. . The Fed's statement did not indicate whether a further rate cut could be expected at that time, though many private forecasters have said the central bank is likely to reduce the target on federal funds, as the overnight rate is known, to 4 percent by the end of the summer. . With the move Wednesday, the Fed has cut its key rate target four times this year, dropping it from 6.5 percent to counteract signs of a weakening economy. . Before the Fed announcement, the private Conference Board said its index of leading economic indicators fell 0.3 percent in March, following a 0.2 percent decline in February. . The largest contribution to the fall in the leading indicators was the stock market, the Conference Board said. Yet on Wednesday, Wall Street was rising smartly ahead of the Fed's move, reacting to positive interpretations of earnings announcement from Intel and Texas Instruments. Although both had sharply lower first-quarter earnings than the year before, they beat investors' diminished expectations, and comments from Intel encouraged investors around the world. . In Japan, for example, the Nikkei 225 index rose 4.4 percent and in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng was up 2.9 percent, with trading ending well before the Fed announcement. European indexes were also higher, helped late in the day by the Fed's move, with gains of roughly 2 percent to 4 percent. . When the Fed was raising rates in 1999 and 2000, its chairman, Alan Greenspan, said he was trying to cool economic growth that was leading to a dearth of available workers and to an unsustainable and growing trade gap. . Both imbalances are easing. Unemployment bottomed out at 3.9 percent in autumn 2000 and now stands at 4.3 percent, while the February trade report, released before the Fed's action Wednesday, showed an unexpected decline in the merchandise deficit, to $27.0 billion from $33.3 billion in January U.S. central bankers unexpectedly cut interest rates Wednesday, seeking to encourage investment and consumption in the face of an economy whose growth they described as "unexpectedly weak." . Market reaction was ebullient after the Federal Reserve Board said it would reduce its target on overnight loans among commercial banks to 4.5 percent from 5 percent. The Dow Jones industrial average gained more than 4 percent in early trading, while the Nasdaq composite index was up more than 9 percent. . The timing of the cut was more a surprise than the action itself, which was expected to take place May 15, the next regular meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee. . The Fed's statement did not indicate whether a further rate cut could be expected at that time, though many private forecasters have said the central bank is likely to reduce the target on federal funds, as the overnight rate is known, to 4 percent by the end of the summer. . With the move Wednesday, the Fed has cut its key rate target four times this year, dropping it from 6.5 percent to counteract signs of a weakening economy. . Before the Fed announcement, the private Conference Board said its index of leading economic indicators fell 0.3 percent in March, following a 0.2 percent decline in February. . The largest contribution to the fall in the leading indicators was the stock market, the Conference Board said. Yet on Wednesday, Wall Street was rising smartly ahead of the Fed's move, reacting to positive interpretations of earnings announcement from Intel and Texas Instruments. Although both had sharply lower first-quarter earnings than the year before, they beat investors' diminished expectations, and comments from Intel encouraged investors around the world. . In Japan, for example, the Nikkei 225 index rose 4.4 percent and in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng was up 2.9 percent, with trading ending well before the Fed announcement. European indexes were also higher, helped late in the day by the Fed's move, with gains of roughly 2 percent to 4 percent. . When the Fed was raising rates in 1999 and 2000, its chairman, Alan Greenspan, said he was trying to cool economic growth that was leading to a dearth of available workers and to an unsustainable and growing trade gap. . Both imbalances are easing. Unemployment bottomed out at 3.9 percent in autumn 2000 and now stands at 4.3 percent, while the February trade report, released before the Fed's action Wednesday, showed an unexpected decline in the merchandise deficit, to $27.0 billion from $33.3 billion in January