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HSBC Bank Policy Designed to Destroy Homeowners who want to Avoid Foreclosure.

I currently have a client who has two liens on his home. The first lien is with HSBC and it’s a conv. fixed rate 30 year mortgage. The second lien is with US Bank and it’s a Home Equity Line of Credit. In order to avoid foreclosure, my client originally approached both lenders and requested a Deed-in-Lieu however, the lenders advised him to complete a short sale. He finds me, we list the home for sale, and get an offer that pays off the first lien in full, as per the HSBC pay off letter and pays the second lien nearly 60% of what they are owed. This past weekend, we received notice that HSBC has decided to set a foreclosure sale date of 10/24/2013. We notified US Bank of the pending HSBC foreclosure and they have opened an Expedited / Assist request in order to escalate our offer through their system for a quick decision on the short sale. We have contacted HSBC to notify them of this development with US Bank and requested HSBC to postpone the foreclosure 45 days in order to give US Bank enough time to complete their process. As of right now, HSBC is refusing to postpone the foreclosure any length of time.

The baffling part of this issue is that it appears, by HSBCs actions, they would rather incur the cost of foreclosure, attorney fees, court cost, preservation cost, disposition cost and REO cost in general in order to purposely avoid the short sale and avoid getting a pay off in full. So, my question is, why would a bank do this? Do the bank’s executives know this is how their short sale / foreclosure / loss mitigation departments are being run? Do the bank’s executives know that they have policies in place that hurt themselves, hurt the homeowners, hurt the local communities, creates a situation where no one wins?

I suspect that if an Executive at HSBC saw my clients case, they would step in and fix this. I suspect that if an HSBC investor saw what was going on here, they would step in and do something. In fact, I suspect that if anyone at HSBC would stop, look at this situation, evaluate their policy and see how this doesn’t make any sense what so ever, they would step in and help us but, so far….no help at all.

In order to bring national attention to this issue, I am going to use my network to its fullest capability. I am going to list the names and dates of the people I spoke with at HSBC in hopes that someone…anyone who can do anything….even if it’s nothing more than some advice, will step in and help.

A list of HSBC employees who haven’t been able to help us or haven’t been willing to help us….

10/8/2013 @ 8:11 am cst called into 1-855-698-7627, Got a call from Mrs. Mantra who was calling me on behalf of Mrs. Danielle Paschale. I was transferred to Sandra Scott who transferred me to supervisor Dania. Call ended with no resolution other than I needed to talk with Foreclosure.

10/7/2013 @ 4:06pm cst I called HSBC 1-800-395-3489 and spoke with Sandy, who said I needed to talk with my Single Point of Contact Danielle Paschale. Danielle wasn’t available so I was transferred to Chris in Modifications. Chris said I needed to speak with Danielle Paschale or someone in HSBC’s customer relations department. Transferred me to customer service who gave me Danielle’s number and said I need to call her.

So, the end result, no one was able to give me an answer, no one took accountability for the file and in fact, I am back to where I started, with a call into Danielle Paschale who is likely going to have Mrs. Mantra call me to tell me she can’t help me so, who can? Better yet, who will?

If you want to read the full story, go to The Blaze.com

As a REOPro, I am completely astonished by these types of stories and it never ceases to amaze me at just how scary the practices of some of these smaller banks can be. Do they just hire the bank President's son's best friend's sister in-law who knows this guy who happens to be friends with a Realtor they can use? Really?

Do these banks not have policies, procedures, best practices, a platform?

Now, it's bad enough this happens and gets reported but, how many times does this happen and not get reported? How many people out there have this happen to them and then end up having to hire an attorney, with money they likely don't have, to fight an injustice that should have never happened in the first place?

It's not like the markets are flooded by well trained, in most cases, highly experienced Realtors who would fight at the chance to win the listing assignment from one of their local banks. Personally, I would have no problem working the assignment from monthly drive by inspections, property address verification, occupancy checks...etc.... if I knew I was getting the listing.

Well, this is a perfect example as to why we need to start making agents the AMC. You see, most of these small banks won't hire a big ole AMC to outsource their assignments because, it's just too expensive for them but, if they had a local agent, that would do all the work for the commission, they may think twice.

To learn about how REOPro wants to make the Realtor the AMC, read my discussion forum titled, REOPro Makes the Agent the AMC.

While prices are rising in the Silicon Valley there are still homes that are underwater and you may need to short sale your South San Jose home. If this is the case, don't wait!

Bank of America has instituted some new policies which can have a major influence on your South San Jose short sale.

Co-operative Short Sales: Bank of America has a program where they will let you know ahead of time how much they are willing to accept for you South San Jose home in a short sale. Once you agreed to do the short sale they would put a hold on foreclosure activity and give you some money at close of escrow.

The new policy is that there will be no holds on foreclosure until the offer is fully accepted by Bank of America. What this means is that if you can not make your payments  on your South San Jose home and want to short sell you can not wait. You will not be allowed to stay in your home for months trying to modify your loan and trying to get a new job. Once the notice of default has been recorded you will have 3 months to get your South San Jose home sold as a short sale before the notice of trustee sale is recorded. At that point you have another 3 weeks before foreclosure on your South San Jose home.

As any real estate agent familar with south San Jose short sales knows, they take time for approval. Even a Bank of America co-operative short sale can take time. 4 months is not unheard of to obtain approval on a South San Jose Short Sale, so if you can not make your payments, do something or you could lose your home to foreclosure.

If you have any questions about Short Sales in Santa Clara or San Mateo County please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

D.R.E. 01191194

650-619-9285

We are happy to announce the closing on another one of our short sale listings, this time in Madison, WI! This was a Bank of America negotiated short sale. Bank of America has made many changes to make their short sale process easier and more efficient. Short sale transactions can be complex, but if you have an experienced Short Sale Realtor® the process is much more manageable.

This was a beautiful home, at a great price that the new owners are sure to enjoy! If you are thinking of selling or buying a short sale home in Wisconsin, our short sale specialists would be happy to assist you. Give Rock Realty a call at 608-921-8536.



Is a Short Sale right for my situation??

If you are considering the possibility of a short sale for your home and have further questions, feel free to visit the page below:

The market is always changing and as such, I have learned that I too need to always be changing or at least growing. With that being said, for the past 3-4 months, I have been doing a lot of reading on self directed IRAs. More specifically, the "Private Bank Concept" within the self directed IRA industry. Honestly, this concept amazes me, in fact, I am struggling to understand why more of us in the REO industry aren't cornering this market.

I guess first off, I had to realize that many people don't even know they have the ability to direct their own IRA. I had read somewhere that 3.4 trillion dollars is setting in IRA funds right now across this country and most people (like 99%) aren't making more than 1-2% annually.....if that. Granted, most of these people have their money with some investment firm who has the money diversified in stocks, bonds or mutual funds and they make money by managing those funds for you so, it's not in their interest to tell you, "hey, did you know you can do this better on your own and save the money you are paying us?" so, most of you don't know anything about self directed IRAs. Don't feel bad, as of 3-4 months ago, I didn't either. I don't even remember how or who told me about them so, I can't even source or thank anyone for directing me to this awesome opportunity.....sad but, true.

At this point, it's important to tell you, I am a Realtor, not an Investment Adviser, not a Certified Public Accountant and most definitely not an Attorney (no offense). I am simply a Realtor who is looking to drum myself up more business, make more money and start my own brokerage by the start of 2013. Like any good small business owner, I need to find capital however, I don't want to be tied to the SBA (Government Secured Loans) or tied to a bank, personally, I would like to work with individual investors however, it's tricky. Yeah, I have a proven track record and yeah, I have a great business plan...as told to me by my SCORE counselor but, it's not easy to convince someone to give me their money to grow my business and in return, I will give them their money back plus interest. Let's face it, money is tight these days for us all however, what if I was able to tap into money you aren't using to pay your day to day bills? Ok...so, who isn't living paycheck to paycheck, I get that but, some of us worked hard enough that we have nearly 3.4 trillion dollars that isn't doing much for us and my thinking was, how could I convince people to give me some of that money. My thinking was, what if I told potential investor, Priscilla Penny Pincher that I was able to find a real estate investment (flip) that would net her a 10% return on her retirement money, why would she say no? Ok....yes, I am sure you can think of many reasons to say no but, really.....10% return in 6 months on money that is making 1% return in 12 months, it's a no brainer, right?

Well, that is where the Private Bank Concept with self directed IRA funds comes into play. It's nothing more than a strategy that real estate investors are using to complete more deals than ever before. Basically, it allows me to borrow money from an individual...not a bank, to do my flips with while paying the individual back the money borrowed plus a interest rate triple, quadruple or even quince the rate they are currently getting on the money.

Yes, it's risky, it's real estate and yes, we can't guarantee anything but, we can reduce risk by implementing strong, robust loss mitigation and exit strategies so, risk is minimized. Let's also not forget, the loan you are providing me is secured by real estate....real property so, it's not like you're going into this with no collateral.

So, here I am, learnded (yes, that is my Honey Boo Boo term for the day) about this Private Bank Concept and all I need now are the funds however, I am curious, are any of my REOPro member doing this already? If so, let me know, let's talk, let's exchange resources, let's work on creating our own Private Bank!

I am so excited about this news! I know, it doesn't take much for me to get excited, but this is really big news in my opinion.

Up until now if you were involved in a Silicon Valley Bank of America Short Sale they did not take electronic signatures. This would have been ok if the bank could sit with you in your conference room and look at the offers. We all know this does not happen and the paperwork will often be faxed several times before B of A gets to see a document. Since they cannot accept illegible documents it made things harder for the participants.

Also, despite the sometime lengthy process of a short sale, Bank of America will often say they need a document now, and not being able to get electronic signatures is sometimes tough.

Now, for any new short sales, you can send all documents with electronic signatures. This makes me very happy. As a Silicon Valley Short Sale Specialist anything that can make a short sale more efficient is ok with me.

So if you have any questions about short sales in San Mateo or Santa Clara Counties please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

650-619-9285

D.R.E. 01191194

I was reading about short sales, as I do every Sunday morning on a great site for short sale information Short Sale Superstars. There was a discussion about a Bank of America Short Sale that had been approved, and then denied after the approval, a few days before closing. The reason:

The seller was a real estate broker and the listing agent works for the seller. The buyer used the listing agent to represent her.

Surprise Surprise, B of A said this is not an Arm's Length Transaction and rescinded the approval.

There are multiple things wrong with transaction so let me see if I can organize the problems coherently.

1. All short sales must be an Arm's Length Transaction and an affidavit needs to be signed by all parties saying they are not related to each other in any way. The listing agent works for the seller so that is not arms length.

2. The seller may be offered a closing incentive by the bank, but is not allowed to receive any money from the buyer. Since the buyer is using the the listing agent who works for the seller and would have received commission for the sale, a portion of which would go to the broker, then the seller is getting money from the buyer.

3. Again, since the listing agent works for the seller and would get commission from the sale, a portion of which would go to the broker, the seller would be receiving money from the sale outside of the closing incentive.

4. The buyer has agreed to a dual agency and is entitled to the information that the listing agent works for the seller and that this can cause potential problems with The Arm's Length Transaction.

I do not know if the seller was trying to pull something over on the bank, or if he was just not familiar with short sales but this was totally avoidable.

Buyers: get your own agent to represent you.

Sellers: If you are a broker, get a different company to represent you. If you are an agent, get another agent to represent you, not your broker, and ask the bank if it is ok to be represented by someone else in your campany first, not after you are about to close.

If you have any questions about buying or selling a short sale in Santa Clara or San Mateo County please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

650-619-9285

D.R.E. 01191194

In Los Altos from Jan 1, 2012 until June 30, 2012 there were:

3 closed short sales

3 closed bank owned homes

Total sales during this time period were 192

Total % Short Sales: 1.5%

Total % REO Sales: 1.5 %

Total Percentage  Los Altos Distressed Properties: 3%

Again, we have a high priced neighborhood and almost no distressed property sales. Values are appreciating and there are more pople trying to buy homes than there are homes available. Additionally, there is very little new contruction before the crash, so there is not a big group of people who bought into a large development and are now underwater.

If you have any questions about short sales or foreclosures in Santa Clara County please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

650-619-9285

DRE  01191194

In Los Altos Hills from Jan 1, 2012 until June 30, 2012 there were:

1 closed short sales

0 closed bank owned homes

Total sales during this time period were 45

Total % Short Sales: 2.2%

Total % REO Sales: 0%

Total Percentage  Los Altos Hills Distressed Properties: 2.2%

The low number of distressed property sales in Los Altos Hills is consistant with the other high prices neighborhoods in Silicon Valley. These areas are showing strong sales, good appreciation, and plenty of buyers with enough cash and income to purchase. Compared to the same time period in 2011 there were 2 closed short sales and 5 foreclosures with 52 sales for a total of 13.5% sales being distressed. 2012 is definatley different.

If you have any questions about short sales or foreclosures in Santa Clara County please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

650-619-9285

DRE  01191194

In Woodside  from Jan 1, 2012 until June 30, 2012 there were:

3 closed short sales

4 closed bank owned homes

Total sales during this time period were 51

Total % Short Sales: 5.8%

Total % REO Sales: 7.8%

Total Percentage  Woodside Distressed Properties: 13.6%

These numbers do not tell the whole story. 3 of the 4 foreslosures and 2 of the 3 short sales were in the Skyline area which is always a harder sell than closer to town, so given that information again, there are almost no distressed property sales in Woodside. There are currently 47 active listings in Woodside, about the same number as in Palo Alto, but without the incredible competition for homes like in the Palo Alto market. Maybe it is worth giving Woodside a look if you are having trouble finding what you want in Palo Alto.

If you have any questions about short sales or foreclosures in San Mateo County please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

650-619-9285

DRE  01191194

In Palo Alto from Jan 1, 2012 until June 30, 2012 there were:

1 closed short sales

3 closed bank owned homes

Total sales during this time period were 284

Total % Short Sales: .3%

Total % REO Sales: .9%

Total Percentage  Palo Alto Distressed Properties: 1.2%

1.2% of all Palo Alto sales being distressed properties is not enough to even comment on. The price of homes have in Palo Alto is now up to pre 2008 prices in the $2,500,000 price range and the homes over $2,500,000 usually do not have loans that are a very high percentage of their value so anyone who is having financial problems can generally sell and be made whole. So if you are looking for a bargain, look outside of Palo Alto.

If you have any questions about short sales or foreclosures in Santa Clara County please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

650-619-9285

DRE  01191194

Marcy Moyer Keller Williams Realty Palo Alto, Ca. Specialist in Short Sales and Trust and Probate Sales

In Santa Clara from Jan 1, 2012 until June 30, 2012 there were:

97 closed short sales

47 closed bank owned homes

Total sales during this time period were 491

Total % Short Sales: 19.8%

Total % REO Sales: 9.6%

Total Percentage  Santa Clara Distressed Properties: 29.4%

29.4% of all Santa Clara sales being distressed is enough to have an effect on the overall market. However, as inventory is still so low, unless these homes are truly physically distressed, which is more common with bank owned homes at this level, most homes will not sell for much less than fair market value. There are twice as many short sales as foreclosures in this time period which is what we are seeing in many other cities. 

If you have any questions about short sales or foreclosures in Santa Clara County please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

650-619-9285

DRE  01191194

In Mountain View from Jan 1, 2012 until June 30, 2012 there were:

16 closed short sales

22 closed bank owned homes

Total sales during this time period were 349

Total % Short Sales: 4.58%

Total % REO Sales: 6 %

Total Percentage  Mountain View Distressed Properties: 10.58%

10.58% of all Mountain View sales being distressed is not enough to have a major effect on the overall market. Additionally, as inventory is still so low unless these homes are truly physically distressed, which is more common with bank owned homes at this level, it probably will not have much effect at all. Ther are so many employed people looking for homes near Google, Apple, and other high tech companies, that homes are getting multiple offers, selling at appreciating prices, and are almost always in high demand. It is interesting to see there are more foreclosures than short sales which we have not seen in other cities. 

If you have any questions about short sales or foreclosures in Santa Clara County please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

650-619-9285

DRE  01191194

In East Palo Alto  from Jan 1, 2012 until June 30, 2012 there were:

36 closed short sales

20 closed bank owned homes

Total sales during this time period were 96

Total % Short Sales: 37.5%

Total % REO Sales: 20.8 %

Total Percentage  East Palo Alto Distressed Properties: 60.7%

60.7% of all East Palo Alto sales being distressed is enough to still have major effect on the overall market. However, as inventory is still so low unless these homes are truly physically distressed, which is more common with bank owned homes at this level, it probably will not have a long lived effect. It is interesting to see there are almost twice as many short sales as bank owned sales which has also happened in other cities. 

If you have any questions about short sales or foreclosures in San Mateo County please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

650-619-9285

DRE  01191194

In Sunnyvale from Jan 1, 2012 until June 30, 2012 there were:

58 closed short sales

32 closed bank owned homes

Total sales during this time period were 447

Total % Short Sales: 12.9%

Total % REO Sales: 7.1%

Total Percentage  Sunnyvale Distressed Properties: 20%

20% of all Redwood City sales being distressed is enough to still have some effect on the overall market. However, as inventory is still so low unless these homes are truly physically distressed, which is more common with bank owned homes at this level, it probably will not have a long lived effect. It is interesting to see there are almost twice as many short sales as bank owned sales.

If you have any questions about short sales or foreclosures in San Mateo Clara County please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

650-619-9285

DRE  01191194

In Redwood City from Jan 1, 2012 until June 30, 2012 there were:

46 closed short sales

22 closed bank owned homes

Total sales during this time period were 363

Total % Short Sales: 12.6%

Total % REO Sales: 6%

Total Percentage  Redwood City Distressed Properties: 18.6%

18.6% of all Redwood City sales being distressed is enough to still haves some effect on the overall market. However, as inventory is still so low unless these homes are truly physically distressed, which is more common with bank owned homes at this level it probably will not have a long lived effect. It is interesting to see there are twice as many short sales as bank owned sales.

If you have any questions about short sales or foreclosures in San Mateo Clara County please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

650-619-9285

DRE  01191194

Anyone with experience in short sales and REO's know the bank requires proof in writing that the buyer has the necessary funds for the purchase of the property. If the buyer is paying cash I have always advised them to obtain a letter from their bank stating they have the necessary funds for the transaction.

In a recent short sale where I had the listing, the buyer submitted a letter from his bank signed by the Vice President of Banking which included his contact number and email.

The negotiator with the bank would not accept the letter as proof of funds and asked for a copy of the buyer's account statment. His reason was the wording "access to cash currently on deposit". He said the buyer could move these funds from this account into another account at any time. I responded by saying the buyer could still move funds from an account after he gets a copy of the bank statement. He simply said "A bank statement would be different".

I understand an actual copy of the bank statement is a harder proof of funds, but if there is any issue, the negotiator could call the Vice President and get clarification. If the letter was truly a fraud then what would be the end game? Not closing? I don't understand why banks are making the process more difficult than it has to be. In this case, it ended up being an acceptable offer and went to closing.

In Menlo Park from Jan 1, 2012 until June 30, 2012 there were:

9 closed short sales

9 closed bank owned homes

Total sales during this time period were 227

Total % Short Sales: 4%

Total % REO Sales: 4%

Total Percentage  Menlo Park Distressed Properties: 8%

8% of all Menlo Park sales being distressed is not enough to have any effect on the overall market. This is evidenced by the appreciation and high activity level of the market.

If you have any questions about short sales or foreclosures in San Mateo Clara County please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

650-619-9285

DRE  01191194