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It's true, when you think about getting a mortgage for that condo or getting an offer put together for that speed boat on credit, we are upset when the credit company or the mortgage lender turns us down. This is all despite the fact that we have a good salary, a steady job and always pay off our credit card bills on time.

It's a fact that millions of Americans have absolutely no idea how their credit score is calculated. There have been at least four surveys that have taken place in America that ask us what it is we think affects our credit score. In some of the surveys, well over 20 questions have been posed. But while the majority of us know that mortgage lenders and those dishing out credit cards definitely use them to check on us if we submit an application – there are huge gaps in the knowledge surrounding the other factors that could directly help or hinder our credit score.

Generic Scoring

Less than half of all Americans are aware of the three key points where lenders and banks use generic scores. This is where you find your score start to go down just for applying for another credit card, making an application for a mortgage or applying to buy that Harley Davidson Fat Bob on credit. It does not matter if your creditors approved those mortgages, credit card applications or a chance for you to cruise down Route 66 on credit or not – your credit score will be affected by the application process alone.

If there is a risk that you may not be able to pay off that loan, then your credit score will be affected; not a lot of Americans knew that. This could be due to something as simple as being in a job that has some form of instability associated to its industry. But Americans can do something to improve their credit rating and paying all your bills, loans and credit cards on time does go a long way to help.

Many young Americans seem to be less savvy when it comes to understanding what pushes our credit score up or down, particularly the age group between 18 and 32. There are however several online websites that mimic the factors that determine our credit score and it would be prudent to those of us that do not know how our credit score is defined, to pay attentions to it.

Keep your eyes on that credit score and do your research before applying for a loan, credit card or mortgage.

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You may have heard the term "HUD home" from time to time and wondered what these properties actually were. HUD homes are properties that have been repossessed following the original owners failing to keep up with mortgage payments. A series of foreclosure proceedings takes place and the home once possessed, goes on to become a HUD home. This is because the property is now managed by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

The HUD (Housing and Urban Development Department) becomes the rightful owner following foreclosure and will then seek to sell off the property to a new buyer in order to recover the costs. If you are a member of the public and want to bid on a HUD home you would need a realtor to place a bid for you and the real estate agent must be registered to bid on a HUD home (they will instantly be able to tell you whether they are registered or not).

HUD homes are often located in an area where revitalization is taking place. These are urban areas which may have had a high crime rate or poor development in the past and are now becoming areas where the local government and state housing departments are taking action to improve the area. Good Neighbours – Every District Needs Good Neighbors.

I’ve had limited interaction with Bank of America. And what I have had has never been favorable.

I am aware of how Fannie handles posting of the KYO form and cash for keys documents.

I have a friend renting a local home, a letter came in the mail today stating that foreclosure proceedings have begun and will expect occupant to vacant the home prior to HUD taking the house over. (60 to 90 days)

Then the letter states that if HUD does not take it over there will be other options.

My question is will this tenant experience a knock on the door by an agent requesting cash for keys agreement?

Or if HUD does take the house over, will HUD offer a cash for keys?

Or will there be a cash for keys of any kind offered?

I thank you in advance.

If you can help me I would greatly appreciate it. Thank you.

Wisconsin Short Sales
Madison Wisconsin Short Sale Realtor®
Janesville Wisconsin Short Sale Realtor®
Beloit Wisconsin Short Sale Realtor®

Although it is hard these days to still find a true no money down mortgage loan, there are a few programs that come pretty darn close. Take the HUD|FHA $100 sales incentive program as an example. The loan officers over at Inlanta Mortgage have brought this newer mortgage program to my attention. I have included some excerpts from their HUD FHA $100 Down Mortgage Program blog post below.




 

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Just like every bank out there, HUD has also seen a rash of foreclosures over the last few years. When someone defaults on a FHA mortgage, HUD may end up owning that property since they insured the borrower against default. HUD is not in the business of owning or renting properties so they came up with a unique sales incentive in order to sell these homes.

HUD has offered a program to allow for a qualifying borrower to purchase a single family home with only a $100 down payment requirement. The borrower can finance the cost of the home + the 1% UFMIP as long as the value is supported by an appraisal. The home buyer may increase the offer and ask for a seller credit to cover closing costs and then would only be required to bring $100 to close. This is a great deal if you can find a property that is eligible. We have a link we’ll post below to get you to HUD’s website where these eligible homes can be found in your area.http://hudhomestore.com/HudHome/Index.aspx

The requirements for this program:
Home must be an approved HUD home
Single Family Residence
Owner Occupied
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I'd be happy to help you find the perfect HUD home for you! Don't forget about our home buyer discounts available. Call me at 608-921-8536.

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New HUD Process

I had the opportunity to attend a webinar for new HUD listing brokers and there are somechanges, I think HUD is improving their customer service and their system, Ihave been selling HUD homes since I started in real estate 5 years ago, alwaysfrom the buyer side and sometimes it was very frustrating, and I think some ofthe new changes will make things easier.

I think the most important change is the time allowed for home owners to purchase FHA uninsurablehomes, in reality it is harder for a home owner to do all the renovations, andsome either don’t qualify or don’t care much about a renovation loan. Now withthe new deadline, it makes more sense for investors to start bidding earlier.

Well here is an overview of the changes.

· Separatecontractors responsible for property management and marketing/sales.

· HUDHomestore.comis a one national site for everything.

· Commissions,minimum $2,500 divided equally between listing agent and buyer’s agent. Maximum6% commission also split equally for both listing and buyer’s agent.

· NewBroker Registration Process.

· Earnestmoney (made out to HUD) submitted with the contract.

· ElectronicLock Boxes.

HUD has divided the country in 4 contract area and every region is divided in a smaller set ofsubregions.

HUD register, (no only listing agents) brokers may advertise, and hold open houseson HUD properties, however they must gain approval from the Asset Manager.

For agents to bid and sell HUD homes, their broker has to be approved by HUD and have a NAIDnumber and also both broker and agents must be register with HUDHomestore.com.About this site it is one site for the entire country, purchasers will see whatbroker see, bringing more transparency to the transaction, Asset Manager willlist properties on a daily basis instead of once a week. Also this website isthe only place to submit a bid.

House insurable or Insurable with Escrow will have an Exclusive “Owner Occupant”period of 30 days, a 10 day biding period and if no offer is accepted then bidswill be reviewed daily for another 20 days only for owner occupant.

For Uninsurable Properties there will be a 5 day exclusive Owner Occupant period, after thatbidding will be open to all purchasers on a daily basis if an acceptable owneroccupant offer was not received.

Also agents have to make sure they have complete sales contract HUD form 9548 andcertification of broker form, Lead Base paint, Radon and Mold, MED, ExtensionPolicy, Home Inspection, Owner Occupied (if applicable) and local requireaddenda, together with a pre-qualification letter form a certified, licensedlender if sale contains a mortgage contingency. Agents have 48 hours to submitall those documents to HUD after bid acceptance

Earnest money will be held by HUD’s designated closing agent, and they will notify thebrokers who will closing agent will be once the contract is ratified.

Important Reminders

Never take or give a property key to anyone, absolutely no repairs prior to settlement,remember that all HUD homes are sold ASIS, do a pre-settlement inspection, alldocuments and contracts have to be submitted to HUD with in 2 business days.

I was literally stunned today when I learned that HUD and many of the largest sevicing lenders have partnered to expand the government's "First Look" program through the Neighborhood Stabilization Programs (NSPs) in place around the country. These programs are exactly the wrong prescription at precisely the wrong time. The First Look program and NSPs are certainly not new, they further erode housing stability, and prescribe a shot of tequila after a night of binge drinking.

The First look program came into being around the beginning of 2010, and was a result of home buyers not being able to compete with investors in the open market. Back in the spring, there were very few homes on the market for sale in Arizona, and the Home Buyer Tax Credit was pumping along, building buyer demand. The problem was, every time a home came onto the market, a cash investor would offer over the asking price, and financed home purchasers simply could not compete. Because of appraisal restrictions, financed buyers cannot pay more for a home than it will appraise for. Cash buyers can pay whatever they want. This worked great for lenders and investors. The lenders got more than the property was even worth, and investors got rental properties to put back on the market. (It is worth noting here that many families are experiencing foreclosure, and cannot find a rental home on their markets. The market needs more rentals.)

Housing advocacy groups denounced this investor glut as a travesty of social justice that needed to be stopped, so that more homeowners could buy homes (with borrowed money and more "sub-prime," low down payment loans, by the way. Sound familiar?). Government responded with the First Look program. The program was deceptively simple: only owner-occupied purchasers would be allowed to make offers on properties within the first 15 days of being on the open market. This would presumably ensure that homeowners got "first dibs" on properties for sale. In reality, the program had limited effect, as it was shortly thereafter that banks glutted the market with more homes, making the point kinda moot.

NSPs came into being to help foreclosure blight. An NSP is simply a local, county, or state community housing authority that has been given millions of dollars in tax-payer money from the Feds to buy foreclosed homes. What will they do with these homes? They can fix them up and resell them, or they can turn them into section 8 housing. You don't really need to use your imagination to figure out which will actually happen. Even before this introduction of a strong and prominent role for NSPs, the "unintended?" consequences have already ensued.

The combination of the First Look program with the NSPs has produced the glaring problem of government nepotism. See, now when a property comes to market, the NSPs are automatically notified of the property, and are given the right to purchase the property before anyone else. Please note that when I say "before anyone else," I am NOT talking about other investors. I'm actually talking about homeowners. The reality of the program is this: if an NSP wants the property, it gets the property, no questions asked.

Allow me to provide an example: A property comes onto the market. It is a nice home at a great price, and people want it. So, let's say that 5 potential buyers (these are owner-occupants) arrive with offers on the property. The lender begins to negotiate the price as high as they can get, and let us suggest that a particular buyer is willing to pay $120,000 for this home. Done deal, right? Not so fast. An NSP has also noticed the home, and would like to purchase it for their rental program. So the NSP puts in an offer of $90,000. What happens next is simply stunning: all potential private purchasers are kicked to the curb, and the home is sold to the NSP at the reduced price. In fact, NSPs are mandated to be able to purchase these homes for 1% less than market value.

The combination of these two programs is deadly stuff to the housing maket. The anti-competition that these programs engender, along with the sizeable expansion of Section 8 housing is NOT was this market needs.

Allen

HELLO I RECEIVE THIS INFORMATION I HOPE IT CAN HELP BROKERS ON THOSE REGIONS.

July 20, 2010- Arlington, VA – Matt Martin Real Estate Management (MMREM) has been awarded three contracts by the U.S Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) under the Marketing and Management III procurement. The Federal Housing Administration (FHA), which is a part of HUD, provides federal mortgage insurance ensuring that mortgage lenders will be reimbursed in the event homebuyers default on their mortgage. When a lender is forced to foreclose on an FHA-insured single family home, townhome, or condominium because the owner can no longer make payments, it can file a claim with FHA for the balance due on the mortgage and convey title of the property to HUD. A HUD Home, therefore, is a one-to-four unit residence acquired as a result of a foreclosure on an FHA-insured mortgage. As the largest seller of real estate in the country, HUD has been outsourcing the disposition of its foreclosed FHA inventory under the M&M contracting process since 1999. After conducting extensive research into market-based best practices, HUD has developed its new M&M III disposition structure to streamline its operations, capitalize on the expertise of potential vendors and provide flexibility in a changing environment.

Friends,

On a current discussion on my LinkedIn Group, "REO," a person posted asking about a company who is trying to collect $149 from agents to post their profile on their site and (they claim) generate REO listings, BPO orders, and buyer referrals, etc. The company is www.HudGovAgents.

Now, none of us were born yesterday when it comes to this business, but it was interesting to me to see that post because this past January, the salesperson from HudGovAgents somehow managed to convince my ordinarily very skeptical business partner to spend $149.

Has she seen anything since? In the first week of February, she received a list of BPO servicers and was told how to apply for BPOs. Hmmm. We all have these lists. What's new? Since then, not ONE thing.

The person she dealt with is a man named Donald. If ANYBODY has ANYTHING positive to say about this service, I welcome it.

So, the point is, even a skeptic can be convinced by the right words, and the right website. I am simply committed to getting the word out so nobody else contributes their hard earned dollars.

You can find me on LinkedIn by clicking here.