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Shortsales, Foreclosures, Deed-in-Lieu, Loan Modifications, HAMP, HARP, and a host of others industry terms have only recently become common vocabulary. Many of these terms have been around a long time, however they have become much more common because of current market conditions. The Real Estate Market of the last couple of years has been particularly volatile. Because of this, it is increasingly more difficult for home sellers and buyers to know all of their options and to choose the right one for their particular situation.

Because of the number of variables and volatile market conditions (which can vary drastically from state to state, city to city, and even neighborhood to neighborhood) it is imperative that consumers seek the advice of Real Estate Professionals who have current, recent, and relevant experience!

Ask your real estate professional how many transactions they have been involved in in the past 12, 6, 3 months! Most likely, conditions in your market have changed alot during that period and if your agent has not been active, you may want to seek another opinion from a more qualified professional.

Also, consider the importance of dealing with an agent experienced in the type of property you are interested in. Just because an agent has sold some condos doesn't necessarily mean that they know what the single family market is doing.

It is more important now than ever to seek the advice of experienced and qualified professionals when making such an important decision as required in a real estate transaction.

Experience REALLY Counts in This Market!

For Experienced Pros in the Boise Idaho area visit us at www.BuyandSellinIdaho.com

Has this happened to you?!?

Lately I have had clients make offers on Freddie Mac REOs with the local Freddie Mac REO listing companies. In Boise, as in many communities around the country, local brokerages have a virtual monopoly on listing properties for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

The overwhelming number of REOs dumped onto our market has completely overwhelmed these listing agents. Of course, some of these REO agents are really great. Others agents though.... Just try getting a response from them within a week or two! We have one offer in on a Freddie Mac property and have not had a response from the listing agent for over three weeks! Turns out they recently received approximately 50 new Freddie Mac REO listings. Seems to me that this will merely reduce their poor service and slow responsiveness to non-existent!

It stands to reason that if Fannie and Freddie really do want to liquidate their massive inventory, then they need to spread these listings out over many more agents so that no one individual is overwhelmed. If you have had similar frustrations please comment so we can raise awareness of this issue and help facilitate positive changes in this industry!

I found the following graphic at REOInsider.com

I have been hearing more and more objections from my buyers about purchasing a home TODAY because they keep hearing that the market is going to decline further, so they don't want to be in a negative equity situation. In addition, they have heard that there is going to be a "mad rush" of foreclosure properties soon, so maybe they should wait...

I wanted to start this discussion in hopes that we can all help each other handle this objection so we can all be more successful!

I have been handling it this way; Well, Mr. Buyer that may happen, however, even if you waited to purchase a home that was 5% lower in price, you may end up paying more if the interest rates increase. They are bound to increase in the near future, so do you want to take that chance?

Just some thoughts and I would love to hear your opinions...

Read all about it here:

http://www.dsnews.com/articles/old-republic-will-no-longer-insure-jpmorgan-and-chase-2010-10-05

I figured something like this would start to happen with the title companies as their going to be on the hook.

I can't imagine what will happen to the market if more title companies quit insuring foreclosures.

Up to 3.5 Percent Seller Assistance; Selling Agent Receives $1,500 Bonus

Fannie Mae (FNMA/OTC) today announced a seller assistance incentive on Fannie Mae-owned properties listed on the company's REO website, www.HomePath.com, and expands the initiative to offer an incentive to real estate agents and brokers. Qualified homebuyers who will be owner-occupants can receive up to 3.5 percent of the final sales price that can be used toward closing cost assistance, including a home warranty, if desired and available. In addition, selling agents representing owner-occupants will receive a $1,500 bonus. Eligible offers must be submitted on or after September 23, 2010, and must close by December 31, 2010. The sale must close within 60 days of the offer being accepted.

"More than eighty-seven thousand families have purchased HomePath^® properties in the first half of 2010 - nearly double the number of Fannie Mae foreclosed properties sold in the first half of 2009," said Terry Edwards, Executive Vice President of Fannie Mae's Credit Portfolio Management. "We continue to look for ways to stabilize neighborhoods and offer incentives to qualified buyers who will occupy these properties over the long-term and help support their communities."

HomePath properties are owned by Fannie Mae and include a wide selection of homes, including single-family homes, condominiums, and town houses. HomePath properties may also be eligible for special HomePath Mortgage and HomePath Renovation Mortgage financing.

I really don’t know why this is so hard for so many to understand.

The Government doesn’t make money, it takes money. All the money it spends comes from taxes and that money comes from you and me. I should say, it’s taken from you and me.

When the Government decides to spend enormous amounts of our money on stimulus programs all they are doing is moving resources from one area to another and creating a temporary shallow relief, if it does anything at all. For example, remember cash for clunkers, cash for caulkers, bank bailout, summer of recovery and the latest the housing tax credit. All of which, did no permanent correction or fix to this economy. After this many attempts, what is it going to take for our leadership to understand…..it’s not working, STOP!

Let’s focus on the recent housing tax credit. Did you see the reports the month after it expired, existing housing sales dropped by 27%, in one month! The worse home sales decline on record, since we started keeping records from 1968. In mid August when these terrible numbers came out, we saw reports that asked, “Has the Housing Recovery Stalled?” I got one thing to ask, Seriously?

A stimulus isn’t a recovery. A stimulus is nothing more than a temporary shallow fix so, if in the mean time you aren’t implementing solid economic strategies that instill confidence, fix corruption and allow business and individuals to make as much money as they can, recovery will never happen.

Today we learned the unemployment numbers rose to 9.6%. Let’s get down to brass tax, if people don’t have an income, people can’t keep or buy homes. Folks, unless the Government gets serious about creating jobs, foreclosure will be around for a long time.

How does anyone create a job?

Mr. and Mrs. John Q. Tax Payer need to be confident enough to invest in their communities by opening up a sandwich shop, a bike retailer, a coffee house, a “you fill in the blank”.

Confidence is key to our housing recovery. Business owners need to know what their expenses are and more importantly that they aren’t going up. This Government has got all of us asking, how much for Obama Care, how much for the next bailout, how much does Barney Frank want to spend, don’t forget, Nancy Pelosi wants some to. Who is going to go out, and put their life savings in an environment where the bottom line is hazy at best?

I just attended the WinDS conference in Las Vegas last week... what an event! This group was founded by Marla Webb, Shelley Kaye, Arna Friedman, and Shelia Blockson. The first day was packed with Keynote speakers, forming of committees, and networking. The second day we joined with the Asian Real Estate Association of America, conducted a question/answer session with an asset manager panel, and ended the day with a charity poker tournament at the Hard Rock Hotel.

There are several reasons to become a member of WinDS:

• Get noticed by asset managers
• Make connections with other REO professionals
• Learn from the pro's
• Increase your knowledge of the business
• Be available to service providers

I would encourage everyone to check out this powerhouse group of professionals. Learn more about WinDS, or to join this dynamic force in the default industry, please click here! Men are always welcome as members .

If you end up joining, please mention my name!

Wow, this is what I like to see! The following info is from the home page of their website:

http://earthfriendlymoving.com/greenbox/

Why are we cutting down our trees to make a cardboard box that's used once, maybe twice, to just throw it away in a landfill?

It doesn't make any sense, when over 20 percent of the American population packs and moves each year- generating massive quantities of waste, that ultimately ends up in a landfill. It's a huge problem and we haven't had a choice or a gree sustainable solution in over 230 years.

New or used cardboard boxes are just too expensive, very inefficient, extremely wasteful and really bad for our planet; as you'll learn in the following pages.

The more you learn about Rent A Green Box and our Zero Waste Solution, the more you'll see that we really need to RETHINK how we pack and move in America.

We have a solution that's a win for you, a win for the environment and a win for the economy. Rent A Green Box is cheaper, faster and easier than using a new or used cardboard box. We're in business to help you green your move. Move Green and Save Green with our zero waste alternative.

Our idea is remarkably simple. Spencer Brown, the founder and brain child behind Rent A Green Box has re-invented the cardboard moving box from 100% hard to recycle plastic trash mined from local landfills.

His invention is called The Recopack and it stands for [recycled ecological packing solution]. Available in 3 sizes and delivered direct to your door on our fleet of super green eco-trucks powered by waste vegetable oil and bio-fuel.

We deliver them a week before you move and pick them up a week after giving you 2 full weeks (14 days) to pack and move. Delivery and Pickup are included in your price. Think about all of the time and effort it takes to build all of those cardboard boxes. No handles and messing with that fussy tape. We have re-invented a better, faster, easier and cheaper way to pack and move.

All you need to do is make one call and we'll drop off your Recopacks on the delivery date. You pack, stack and move. When the Recopack are empty, just call us and we'll come over to your new place and pick them up. It's just that simple. It's moving made simple for a Happy Planet!

No more confusion on how many boxes you really will need, fussing with that messy tape, building boxes late into the night, exhaustion, stress and then breaking them down after your move. No more guilt from tossing all of those boxes in the trash.

Why waste your time and money using a new or used cardboard box when you can Rent-a-Green Box? We have the solution that's changing the way America packs and moves anything.

Welcome to the first, comprehensive, zero-waste, environmentally friendly, super simple, no hassle packing and moving system developed entirely from 100% recyclable trash, mined from local landfills.

Are you ready to green your move, save a lot of time and money... are you tired of the stress and aggravation with using new or used cardboard boxes....Are you ready to green your move and make a difference? We're here to help!

I am currently reading the Emerging Trends Real Estate 2010 report and happened upon this quote to start the Second Chapter of the document:

“The key to success in real estate investing is to follow the capital flows, not the fundamentals. Anticipate what capital wants and be there.”

This is a must-read report for anyone in the commercial real estate world or just anyone looking for knowledge on where the industry has been and where it is going. You can download the report on the homepage at the www.CommercialREOs.com website.

According to the report:

Slowly, capital will flow back into commercial real estate markets during 2010, led by all-cash investors “looking for pop” in quality assets owned by distressed borrowers or sold by lenders out of growing REO portfolios.

... a very interesting read indeed

For those of you who might be unaware, Fannie Mae has been releasing their REO inventory. Whatever your opinions are on Fannie, Freddie or the government programs in general, they have released more REO than most other financial institutions and we have to work with them. Embrace it, especially if you're a buyers agent... this is a good thing for buyers. Check out their website, they list their Active listings as well as listings that are coming soon. Use it to your advantage, and your buyers: www.homepath.com

Ok, I blew my Fannie horn for the day :) Have a good weekend!