There is a great need to boost the image of the real estate professional. Giving the benefit of the doubt to most if not all participants here, we all do a resaonable job. Let us look at a few areas that will propel us out of a "notch above used cars salesman" to something more like a designation like a firefighter or police officer. Firefighters protect lives and property. Police officers protect lives and sometimes property. REALTORS PROTECT BOTH BUYER AND SELLER AND BOY DO WE HAVE A RESPONSIBILITY.Let us take a common look at "AS IS".AS IS is a commonly used catchall to supposedly preclude any requests by the selling side of a transaction. Yet it is often used a cover by the listing side to avoid being responsible for characteristics of a property that a listing agent may acquire. I have seen contracts that the listing side glosses over the mandatory "agent visual inspecion " that we have in California. This puts the extra burden on the buying agents to perform the "due diligence" when it comes to that stage of the escrow. We must never forget that we as listing agents have as much responsibility to the asset manger as the selling agent has to their buyer. We owe a definite fiduciary duty to our clients to protect AND guide them through the process. If we fully disclose the defects about the property and all property has at least a few, then we mitigate the chances of a post escrow law suit. Do not get me wrong...if you don't want to pay for repairs, you should not have to, but we are AGENTS...representatives... and we get paid for our service so we should take it seriously- not just managing expenses and securing the property.Asset managers cannot know all of the paperwork that a state requires and we need to keep the updated on proceedures in our jusridiction. California has a whole battery of prescribed forms that make things clear who is doing what and what the terms are so there are no misunderstandings. We agents are both teachers and guides. We are the doctors in our field, curing the sickness and providing for the well being of realestate.Let us take a look at proper buyer counseling. I have come to not believe all preapprovals that come in and that includes the big bank ones. Recently I had a prospect that was preapproved for a particular amount. When it came time to offer a price the mother and my client the daughter had a debate on what the daughter could actually afford to pay monthly. It was significantly less than the preapproval amount and I wondered what that big bank used as crtiteria?I had another prospect that wanted to buy property. He confessed to me that he was out of work but not to tell his loan officer...I advised hime this was like loan fraud and he was not even aware that it was. We buyer agents need to really interview our clients to make sure they are fianacially fit for this. Don't leave in another's hands!I have had another buyer that only wanted to spend a certain amount in an area with few suitable choices...he found out by looking at little further east that he couold buy MORE house for the same money. Again all it takes is proper qualifying and counseling.Finally as listing agents, we have an incredible amount of resources at our fingertips: virual tours, plenty of redistributable info from CAR and NAR, websites galore for marketing etc. We need to do for the asset managers what we would do for a standard sale: Do a Kick Butt Job...we are more than paperwork pushers...we are customer service..from fielding client calls to prospect calls and as well being a conduit of information for all. We are licensed for a reason.Now if any asset manger is reading this I hope you get an idea of what kind of agent I am...ready to roll up my sleeves and service fully you my client.2010 is about to begin...lets us agents start out right by moving to the next level. We are licensed professionals.We are licensed servants. Let us keep real estate simple and honest.
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Posted by Howard Bell on December 27, 2009 at 12:03pm
Because of ongoing weakness in the real estate sector, the institutions that have filled the vacuum left by lenders, have run into trouble... they need to change the rules.In order to assure that mortgage originations continue, its become necessary for FHA and Fannie Mae to reduce risk. The FHA proposes to increase the net worth requirements of FHA-approved lenders, strengthen lender approval criteria, and make lenders liable for the practices of their correspondent mortgage brokers.Lender Approval1.FHA-approved Mortgagees must assume liability for all the loans they originate and/or underwrite2. Mortgage brokers will no longer receive independent approval for origination eligibility. The FHA-approved mortgagee will have to assume responsibility and liability for the FHA-insured loan underwritten and closed by the approved mortgagee.3. FHA has required approved mortgagees have a minimum net worth of $250,000. To assure financial vialbility in the future, the proposed rule would require mortgagees maintain a minimum net worth of $1 million in the first year and at least $2.5 million within three years.New Credit Policy Rule Changes1. Mortgagees will be required to submit audited annual financial statements to the FHA.2. Proposed rules to establish new requirements for seasoning, payment history, income verification, and demonstration of net tangible benefit to the borrower3. A cap maximum on LTV at 125 percent.Appraisals Rules May Change Too1. An appraisal will be required in all cases where a borrower wants to add closing costs to the transaction.2. Mortgage brokers and commission based lender staff are prohibited from ordering appraisals.Fannie Mae Also Changes The Rulesloans for those who can afford it and prove they can keep itData now shows that buyers with lower FICO scores/excessive debt defaulted at rates nine times higher than those with solid FICO scores and more manageable debt load. So beginning Dec. 12, Fannie Mae will reject borrowers who have at least a 20% down payment but a credit score below 620.Whats it Mean For Buyers and Sellers.1. Many buyers that were pre qualified may now find they no longer qualify for the price range they had been shopping.2. Tighter financial requirements may mean they have to settle for less house.3. Buyers expectations may have to adjust downward, given stricter financing rules.4. Seller pricing strategies will adjust, buyers will have more trouble meeting new debt-to-income requirements.5. We should see more private equity come into the market to fill the vacuum and possibly more seller financing.6. The higher end may suffer as buyers that could have stretched into more home, no longer can.7. It will hurt the younger person with 20% down, but no credit history.* Some of these rules may be applied at this writing. The FHA and Fannie Mae web site will have updates and changes to proposals.*Photo thanks to Queens University CanadaThanks for Readingwww.yourpropertypath.comRelated ArticlesFHA Losses: What it MeansMortgage Bankers Weekly Update: Loan Apps DeclineNAR: Existing Home Sales ReportShould You Stop Paying Your MortgageRead more…
Posted by Howard Bell on December 27, 2009 at 12:02pm
30-Year and 15-Year Rates Still at Incredibly Low Levels30-year fixed-rate mortgage: Averaged 5.05 percent with an average 0.7 point for the week ending December 24, 2009, up from last week when it averaged 4.94 percent. Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 5.14 percent.The 15-year fixed-rate mortgage: Averaged 4.45 percent with an average 0.6 point, up from last week when it averaged 4.38 percent. A year ago at this time, the 15-year FRM averaged 4.91 percent.nt.Five-year indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages ARMs: Averaged 4.40 percent this week, with an average 0.6 point, up from last week when it averaged 4.37 percent. A year ago, the 5-year ARM averaged 5.49 percent.One-year Treasury-indexed ARMs: Averaged 4.38 percent this week with an average 0.6 point, up from last week when it averaged 4.34 percent. At this time last year, the 1-year ARM averaged 4.95%.Freddie SayzAlthough interest rates for 30-year fixed rate mortgages are above 5% this week for the first time since the end of October, they are still around 0.5 percentage points below this years peak set in. ARM rates increased by a lesser amount as the market consensus calls for no rate hikes by the Federal Reserve in the immediate future. Meanwhile, the housing market continues to show improvement. Total existing home sales jumped 7.4% in November to an annualized pace of 6.54 million units, which was the most since February 2007. Moreover, the number of unsold existing homes was the lowest since December 2006 and the number of unsold new homes was the least since April 1971, which may leave future room for new constructionThanks for Readingwww.yourpropertypath.comRelated ArticlesFHA Has New RulesMortgage Bankers: Weekly Update Loan Apps DeclineLoan Modification: A PrimerRead more…
Regardless of your political leanings and regardless of your economic philosophies, much of the country will see continued rise in foreclosures for 2010, if we stay on the path we are currently on. A jobless recovery, isn’t a recovery!
The first problem is reduced tax collections. As many states are already noticing, they have brought in far less taxes than ever before due to the recessed economic conditions the country faces. These reduced tax collections will only put greater strains on these States budgets and therefore a reduction of State Government will be imminent. A recent example of this is the 25 states that have run out of unemployment insurance and are now borrowing upwards of 24 billion from the Fed in interest free loans. Even though they are borrowing the money, many states will have no choice but to reduce unemployment benefits to individuals so that they will have money to cover the expected increased number of the unemployed.
Secondly, a reduction of unemployment benefits does nothing to help individuals maintain homeownership. Many, if not all Loan Modifications are now considering unemployment benefits as income. This was a necessary change in strategy because of the Government mandate to keep 500,000 people in their home by end of 2009. In other words, banks and lenders had to lessen their lending guidelines to consider unemployment benefits as income in order to stay in lock step with the White House Mandate to “save” 500,000 homeowners from foreclosure. With less government subsidy in the form of unemployment insurance to individuals we can expect one of two outcomes. Either the government wises up and stops putting these politically motivated mandates on our lending institutions and gives them the autonomy to handle these situations as they deem best or, we can expect more mandates, more government influence, more subsidies and in return higher taxes to pay for it all.
Thirdly, we have got to reduce the Loan Modification Default Rate. It is no surprise to me that people default out of loan mod’s by 73-76% in 3-6 months. I am surprised when people can’t seem to figure out why this is happening. In my experience, the majority of these loan mod defaults is because of reduced or completely eliminated standards in order to be approved for a loan mod in the first place. When we reduce or eliminate any standard to be approved, we deceive ourselves as to the real financial picture of the homeowner and ultimately are only delaying the inevitable. The proof is in the numbers, how can any one call a 73% default rate a success………?
Fourthly, we need to have a reduction of Government interference. To gain a true appreciation for less government influence, I challenge each and everyone who reads this blog to take a very close and critical look at the Community Reinvestment Act of 1977. Back in 1977 Congress passed this act in an effort to reduce discriminatory credit practices against low-income people. It was this Act that introduced Sub-Prime to the country. It has gone through several changes in it’s time, most notably in 1989 when George H.W. Bush, after the S&L Crisis, agreed with Congress that more PUBLIC oversight of lenders was necessary and they introduced CRA Ratings. This allowed special interest groups to basically grade lenders and banks as to how well they provided lending to their local communities. These ratings had consequences so, if your bank got a low grade they were penalized with inspections, fees and direct government interference. Ben Bernanke himself said, “This law greatly increased the ability of advocacy groups….to perform more sophisticated, quantitative analyses of banks’ records, thereby INFLUENCING THE LENDING POLICIES OF BANKS.” Who in their right mind wants an advocacy group or anyone else for that matter greatly influencing your banks lending practices? Does this sound right? Needless to say, the CRA went through a couple more changes, giving more and more power to special interest and in return, forcing banks and lenders to loosen or even eliminate credit standards, remember the NINJA loan, No Income No Job, Accepted. My point is, less government influence because government influence comes with special interest and that is corrupt!
Fifthly, we need to reduce small business operating cost. Small business counts for almost three quarters of business in America. If we can reduce the cost burden on these businesses we leave more money in their pocket. More money in the pocket of a small business gives them financial security and with that comes innovation, higher pay, increased benefits and increased production. I believe that if given a choice, most people would rather have a job than a government check.
Sixth need is a reduction of housing inventory. Price’s will only go up when we have less supply, even if the demand stays the same. You don’t reduce inventory by keeping people who can’t afford the home, in the home. Have we not learned this lesson yet? People who can’t afford the home need to go through a disposition method that gives them an incentive to protect the asset / home and gives them the ability to obtain temporary housing or an apartment. Some banks are doing this now in the form of Cash for Keys negotiations and Short Sales but, in my opinion, it isn’t happening enough.
In the end, just changing one of these 6 points I made would have a huge impact on housing for 2010. I hope we, as a Country, wise up and make the changes necessary before we go down a path of imminent bankruptcy…..it is possible.
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Posted by Howard Bell on December 24, 2009 at 10:24am
Mortgage Bankers Association for the week of 12/23/2009Market Composite Index: (loan application volume) decreased 10.7 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlierRefinance Index: decreased 10.1 percent from the previous week and the seasonally adjusted Purchase Index decreased 11.6 percent from one week earlier.Purchase Index: decreased 13.4 percent compared with the previous week and was 32.7 percent lower than the same week one year agoRefinance Share of Mortgage Activity: increased to 75.9 percent of total applications from 75.2 percent the previous week.ARM Refinance Activity: decreased to 3.8 percent from 4.1 percent of total applications the previous week.MBA outlook: (Excerpted from mbaa.org)In summary the MBAA sees another year of high employment, rising home sales and prices beginning to stabilize. But continued weakness in the job market and excess supply and shadow inventory will slow any recovery in the housing market.The MBAA sees unemployment rate at about 10% at the end of 2010, and core inflation rates of below 2%. Fed rate is expected to remain at its current level throughout 2010.But, property values will not recover until unsold inventory returns to normal levels. Affordability is at record levels, yet there is no strong indication that the demand recovering. People do not yet seem to trust the recovery and many do not have the necessary down payment or can clear tighter loan qualificationsThe MBAA site economic report indicates a fragile recovery, but makes note that without credit the recovery remains tepid at best. The site makes note: Smaller businesses and consumers are heavily dependent on banks for obtaining credit, and there is little evidence that, as yet, banks have loosened the purse strings.Bank loans to businesses and consumers are still falling with few signs of stopping or slowing down. Part of the decline is declining demand, but the fall is too large to be explained by weakness in demand alone. The banks are simply not yet stepping up to fill the vacuum.Thanks for Readingwww.yourpropertypath.comRelated ArticlesFreddie Mac Weekly Mortgage Update: Still Below 5 PercentARM's - How Do They Work?The Coming Mortgage Debt Reduction ProgramsRead more…
Posted by Chris Treece on December 21, 2009 at 6:53am
If you watch teenagers these days they are forever texting each other. I dare not ask what about – but they do spend all day with their fingers on that keypad. Of course I am talking about cell phones and some reports suggest that teens spend more on text messages than on actual calls.Social blogging seems to be the ‘grown up’ form of texting. It certainly has a big following with many of the top web identities having a ‘twitter’ or ‘plurk’ accounts. The difference between texting through a cell phone and social bookmarking is the audience.Cell phone texting is generally one to one. Social blogging is one to many – thousands perhaps for some. Where social blogging is making its mark is in it’s ability to deliver visitors. Twitter allows the ‘twittering’ of posts from blogs via RSS feeds.This becomes an instant message to the world that you have a new post and what the topic is. Those interested can immediately access that post. Is it important? In one way – very!With respect to bloggers, particularly the big namers, getting an early advice on a new post means you can jump in, read the post and leave a comment – at the top of comments. Believe it or not this is important. If your comment is in the first five, every other commenter will most likely read what you have had to say.If your comments are valid there is a good chance they will visit your site. Furthermore, comments near the top are more likely to get a response from the blogger than those lost in the 15 or 20 comments that come afterwards.Social blogging is definitely here to stay. If you can learn to use is effectively you can benefit your site and your reputation.
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Fewer Americans are willing to purchase a distressed home compared with six months ago, according to a new survey.Now is not the time for Americans to start getting cold feet about buying foreclosures.Not that their reasoning isn't 100% sound. Buying a foreclosure carries plenty of risks, and in some markets it will put you in competition with investors who are way out of your league.But if foreclosure filings stay on track, more than 4 million U.S. households will have been at risk of foreclosure at some point this year, with many of those homes also set to hit the market in 2010 if they're not already on it.Meanwhile, a survey by RealtyTrac and Trulia.com finds that Americans are growing increasingly uncomfortable with the idea of buying a foreclosure, with 43% of respondents indicating that they are somewhat likely to consider purchasing a foreclosed home, compared with 55% interviewed six months priorTheir biggest concerns? The hidden costs of buying a foreclosure (69%), the risks involved with the process (48%) and fears that the home will lose value (35%).However, the survey doesn't dash all hopes for keeping foreclosure listings at a reasonable level.Among the 23% of respondents who said they would consider buying a second home or investment property, 92% are at least somewhat likely to buy a foreclosed property."The most active and qualified buyers in today's market are highly interested in foreclosures, which is not surprising given the discount that often comes with a foreclosure purchase," said Rick Sharga, senior vice president of RealtyTrac.The National Association of Realtors estimates that distressed homes generally sell at 15% to 20% below the sale price of traditional homes. However, the survey found that two out of three respondents expect a savings of at least 30%, with 43% of those in the Northeast even expecting a discount of up to 50%.And it's not just investors who are showing an interest in foreclosures. Among those who are hoping to take advantage of the $6,500 move-up homebuyer tax credit, 88% said they would be at least somewhat likely to consider a foreclosed property. And more than half of renters (57%) also said they were at least somewhat likely to purchase a distressed home in the future.
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Thousands of delinquent homeowners won't need to worry about eviction -- at least not until January.Maybe the banks that put foreclosures on hold during the holidays really are doing the homeowners a favor. Maybe it really is out of a sense of holiday goodwill.But, chances are, public relations plays a big role in the decision, too.Citigroup announced yesterday that it will put foreclosures and evictions on hold through Jan. 17, and Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae also announced today that they won't evict any of their borrowers facing foreclosure for the next two weeks."No family should have to face the prospect of being evicted during the holiday season," said Michael Williams, president and chief executive of Fannie Mae.
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Posted by Howard Bell on December 19, 2009 at 8:12am
Mortgage Bankers Association for the week of 12/16/2009Market Composite Index: (loan application volume) increased 0.3 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier.Refinance Index: increased 11.1 percent from the previous week and the seasonally adjusted Purchase Index increased 4.0 percent from one week earlier.Purchase Index: decreased 0.1 percent from one week earlier. The unadjusted Purchase Index decreased 3.6 percent compared with the previous week and was 15.4 percent lower than the same week one year agoRefinance Share of Mortgage Activity: increased to 74.4 percent of total applications from 72.1 percent the previous week.ARM Refinance Activity: decreased to 4.1 percent from 4.7 percent of total applications from the previous week, which is the lowest share since mid-June 2009.MBA outlook: (Excerpted from mbaa.org)In summary the MBAA sees another year of high employment, rising home sales and prices beginning to stabilize. But continued weakness in the job market and excess supply and shadow inventory will slow any recovery in the housing market.But, property values will not recover until unsold inventory returns to normal levels. Affordability is at record levels, yet there is no strong indication that the demand recovering. People do not yet seem to trust the recovery and many do not have the necessary down payment or can clear tighter loan qualifications The MBAA site economic report indicates a fragile recovery, but makes note that without credit the recovery remains tepid at best. The site makes note: Smaller businesses and consumers are heavily dependent on banks for obtaining credit, and there is little evidence that, as yet, banks have loosened the purse strings. Bank loans to businesses and consumers are still falling with few signs of abatement. To be sure, part of the decline stems from declining demand, but the magnitude of the fall is too large to be explained by weakness in demand aloneThanks for Readingwww.yourpropertypath.comRelated ArticlesReverse MortgagesARM's - How Do They Work?Relocation TipsHow to Spot a Predatory LenderRead more…
Posted by Howard Bell on December 19, 2009 at 8:12am
Mortgage Rates Follow Bond Yields Higher30-year fixed-rate mortgage: Averaged 4.94 percent with an average 0.7 point for the week ending December 17, 2009, up from last week when it averaged 4.81 percent. Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 5.19 percent.The 15-year fixed-rate mortgage: Averaged 4.38 percent with an average 0.6 point, up from last week when it averaged 4.32 percent. A year ago at this time, the 15-year FRM averaged 4.92 percent.Five-year indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages ARMs: Averaged 4.37 percent this week, with an average 0.6 point, up from last week when it averaged 4.26 percent. A year ago, the 5-year ARM averaged 5.60 percent.One-year Treasury-indexed ARMs: Averaged 4.34 percent this week with an average 0.5 point, up from last week when it averaged 4.24 percent. At this time last year, the 1-year ARM averaged 4.94 percent.Freddie SayzMortgage rates followed bond yields higher once again this week amid signs of an improving economy, said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac vice president and chief economist. On the consumer side, retail sales jumped 1.3 percent in November and consumer sentiment, as measured by the University of Michigan, rose above the market consensus forecast to the highest reading since September. Industrial production also showed large gains in November.Interest rates on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages have remained below five percent over the past seven weeks and are contributing to a wave of refinance activity. Roughly three out of four mortgage applications were for refinancing during the first two weeks of December, according the Mortgage Bankers Association .Thanks for Readingwww.yourpropertypath.comRelated ArticlesShould You Stop Paying Your MortgageStock Market Views On The Housing RecoveryThe Coming Mortgage Debt Reduction ProgramsRead more…
According to a recent article in Managing REO-With the passage of the Protecting Tenant at Foreclosure Act, the expansion-minded TenantAccess is increasing its capacity to service all of the United States.The company, a subsidiary of FirstService Corp., recently hired 348 property managers to be in charge of maintaining buildings, paying bills, collecting rents and communicating with tenants. As a vendor to property owners, including government agencies, TA’s forte is rehabilitating, leasing and managing homes.“We originally started with 5,000 potential managers and have selected 7% from this group,” said Paul Hayman, president of Austin, Texas-based firm.“Although we have selected the bulk of our property managers, we anticipate a continuous process of selection as we meet the expanding needs of our clients to provide rental and property management services throughout the U.S.”Just completed second assignment from them, and have been told they just secured a new client, and will hit the ground running in January. Still not sure of all the in's & out's. So far tenants have been Section 8 subsidized.Assignment #1, meet with the tenant and she tells me "Oh by the way I was already offered $3500 to move, and I'll be out by January 10th" She also wanted to know if she could get more. First of all her portion of the rent is $135/month, secondly the other unit is still occupied by the previous owner. I'm thinking $3500 CFK's??? It's a bonanza for someone paying $135. I would've offered $900. Sec 8 would've relocated her & paid expenses anyway.Anyone else receiving assignments yet?
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Posted by Dawn Barrier on December 17, 2009 at 12:00pm
Ok, I have to give credit to Robin Rowland for tipping me off to this originally. I made a few calls and here is what I've found out.....Bank of America has contracted withREDCto process their Fannie Mae Short Sales using the REOtrans/Equator portal.They also will be working some of Wells Fargo short sales, Metlife short sales and GMAC short sales as well.The idea is to help speed the process up, but hey we all now how that is!There will be an additional 12 page welcome package to fill out and have sellers sign...UGH more paperwork! But hey if it moves a Bank of America Short Sale down to 60 days WHOA HOO!!I wouldn't count on that just yet, but maybe they can prove me wrong. This is a case where I would love to have them prove me wrong! LOL!Oh, and it is supposed to get even better for the seller .....Debt to be considered Paid or Settled with the Deficiency FORGIVEN!!I can't wait to see one of the Short Sale Approval letters to see if it is true.They are only doing Fannie Mae and they have to be assigned from the bank. They have a way to check your loan to see if they can request it go thru them.They are only processing Nevada Short Sales, Arizona Short Sales, California Short Sales and Florida Short Sales that are Fannie Mae.
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Posted by Dorit Katz on December 17, 2009 at 7:11am
Now throughout the years, agents have all felt unappreciated by one buyer or another and we have cut our commision or bought that home warrenty to make a deal work. Well, now a new gimmick has come to the forefront. It's the first one I have heard of, but I am sure it won't be the last.My office had a deal going on a short sale. Yes, it was the typical short sale with all the bumps along the way and aging a another year by the time it was done.The bank in this case, insisted on clearing a certain amount and would not budge from that amount. The buyer had to agree to pay the agents' commission because there were not enough proceeds on the bank's end. The buyer agreed. As closing approached, we find out that there are $46,000 owed in arrears. The title company gave an amount of 21K. Now of course the buyers are having an attack because it means that they need to come up with 46K not 21K (remember the bank already gave their accepted amount without taxes included). We got the bank to agree to pay for part of the taxes and we think, "Whew, now we can close."Not so fast. The buyers and their lawyer arranged a closing, but without informing the seller's agent (that would be us) as to the date and time. Next thing we know, we find out about the closing that just took place. We got no commission check; remember it is being paid by the buyers, thus it was not a set sent check from the bank. The buyers now want to renegotiate down the commission and their lawyer is holding onto the commission check til a deal is made. Know we all know there is a name for buyer's and lawyers like this, but this is a public forum so use your imaginatian.We notified the bank who is actually not releasing the lien until the commission is paid. Nice bank.So there you have it; we will eventually get our check (hopefully soon and in full).
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So what do you do if you pull up to your next property and see this……………
If you said have it towed or call a junk yard/dump you’d be dead wrong. Apparently no one wants this heaping pile of junk. In fact all of the junk yards within a 30 mile radius of the property wanted to charge me between $900-$1400 just to take it in……plus the tow. Try explaining that to your AM. You’ll probably get as far as I did which was “let’s try and figure something else out” which is AM code for “take care of it or we’ll find someone that will.”So after some crafty detective work I found out that the reason for the high cost was the labor involved with breaking the thing down. I guess because the way these campers are built, stripping the metal is a daunting task worthy of charging a fortune. Long story short I had one of my contractors unbolt the cab from the frame on site and strip it down into 3 sections: chasse, scrap metal and wood. They hauled away the now well sorted out piles of junk and a tow truck came and took the chasse which would now be accepted by the junk yards for free.The end result………..$200 for the tow and $240 for my guys to break down and haul away the scrap and saving my client $755 in the process. Yes...I do feel like a hero thank you very much.I’m sure some of you have had this same pleasurable experience but this was a first for me. Gotta say though, this is why I love what I do. Sometimes we get so far outside of the box I’m not sure what profession I’m in. Good stuff, right! Of course the easy ones are nice too!
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Posted by Dawn Barrier on December 16, 2009 at 4:00pm
The suit was filed on behalf of homeowners facing foreclosure who say there has been no progress made with regard to negotiations with their lender."And that's why what we're calling for in this lawsuit," explains attorney Matthew Q. Callister. "(It) is an automatic stay of any further Bank of America foreclosures until such time as every Southern Nevadan avails himself of his right under federal law to have that fundamental 'good faith' negotiation."The class-action suit against Bank of America represents about 30 people so far; it alleges that the bank has failed to act in accordance with a section of the government's Making Home Affordable program, saying the lender has "refused to evaluate loans" and "failed to suspend foreclosure proceedings."Many of the customers' stories are similar; they attempt to negotiate with their lenders but are passed around to different representatives. In some cases they think the negotiations are going well yet come home to find a foreclosure notice on their home.This is an open class-action complaint.Read the whole article at:Channel 3 News...Local attorney files suit against Bank of AmericaIt will be interesting to see what happens with this!Blog Disclaimer-This is a personal blog. All information is provided for informational purposes only and is Not legal advice, consult an attorney or financial expert for legal advice
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I was talking to a loan officer yesterday, he just finished a training on the new RESPA rules and he told me that now to give pre-approvals for buyers they must have an executed contract of sales, because they must have all the information on the specific property they are purchasing in order for them to give the buyer a Good Faith Estimate. We couldn't discuss all the changes and how them will affect our business. I have to read more about and maybe go to one of the seminars myself. I know some banks and outsourcers if the REO lisitng is under contract and it doesn't go to settlement they will automatically re-assign the listing to another agent. If we take offers only with a pre-qual letter from a lender and then once they have the executed contract the loan is not approve, we will loose the listing and maybe even credibility with out asset managers.How do you think the new RESPA laws will affect out REO business?
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Ahh to be in the days when Ned Flanders talks about trying to help people out of their foreclosure messes, having time to dig into the why and wherefores..Today has been long as I closed on a perfect sale, clear title on my sellers property, buyers with no contingency and 810+ scores, 20% down..and it still took 4 hours. The appraiser made just a little tiny note that the underwriter questioned..at the last minute..two months after the appraisal. They sure don't like to lend like they used to... The pendulum seems to have turned on the well heeled, my fha people fly through closings as they buy their first homes, with seller paids and tax credits dancing in their dreams..mip up front of course...but I digress.Closing finished, my 61 year old, injured seller calls. A nof letter has been received. He never knew that after three months of missing payments, he could lose his house. He broke his back at work, never been late in his life. Time for the talk. HAFA assistance offered. right. maybe after they have lost his paperwork 5 times..they will tell him that his disability may be temporary, his wifes part time job needs clarification, and after he turns it in, someone will review it and get back to him in a couple weeks. He cries on the phone. Can I buy his boat? And the banks play on..I figure I am here, in this position because some fate dictates it. I will take over talking to his bank tomorrow, maybe he can heal a bit with the stress off just a little...and if I cannot slash his price enough for a short sale, leaving him nothing when he walks, it will become an REO..just another statistic. I will watch a proud man move into rent subsidized housing, and thank our ever benevolent society for providing for ...lip service.I have negotiated short sales. I know I am good at it. What a paradox though, somewhere we separate in our minds the loss mitigation people from the asset managers..one gives to us and one taketh away..Like I said, long day.
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Posted by MeLisa Minter on December 15, 2009 at 2:16pm
Ok Gang,I listened to the Blog Radio on 12/18 and even punched in to ask Jesse a question about signing up with all the Asset Management Companies. After listening to the show, I took Jesse's advice about utilizing Linked In and Facebook to our advantage.I was already doing something similar, which is how I found this group. Anyway, I typed in the name of a Mortgage Servicing Company that I've done Short Sales through. I proceeded to pull up their Linked In Employees and low and behold, I see two employees,(one an Asset Manager the other an REO Attorney), that I am connected to by the second degree. It seems that one of my good friends is the first connection with one person and the other person is connected to me by a group that I joined on Linked In.So naturally, I email these two contacts by using the "Request and Introduction" Method. I included an attention grabbing subject line, and introduced myself and informed them how we were connected. I proceeded to let them know that I am a member of Realty Pilot, the most innovative BPO/REO Traffic Controller, and that it is free to Mortgage Companies/Mortgage Servicing Companies Asset Managers.I then explain to them how they can be of assistance in helping me connect with some of the Asset Managers in their organization and introduce them to Realty Pilot and my REO Services.After I completed the mesage, I clicked on the "Notify Friend Button, so I could send "1st connected firend" a courtesy notice stating that I contacted one of her linked in connections.I know what they say about the Six degrees of Separation, and it seems that it can definitely be beneficial if you work it right.It's going to be interesting to see the type of results that we will get from this.
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Well, here we go again! I just had an inspection on an REO property - I verified with the listing agent that all utilities were on - the inspection was scheduled and even the inspector called the listing company and was told that all utilities were on. My buyer, inspector & I arrived as scheduled and the gas was not on! Now my buyer will have to pay an additional $100 for a trip fee since the inspector was not able to complete the inspection. This happens so often and is so unnecessary. So to all asset managers and banks (especially Fannie Mae) will you please list your properties with agents who will do their job instead of playing a numbers game on how many listings they can get! This is very frustrating and wastes everyone's time as now I have to submit an addendum to extend our inspection time so that we are within contract, make another trip to the property to make sure gas is on before I call the inspector back out so we don't have any surprises again. OK, I have vented again!
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I picked up the newspaper this morning and here is yet another article on how the plight of the homeowners has become a volatile political issue. On Friday (Dec 11, 2009) "the House passed a series of new financial regulations; it narrowly defeated a provision that would have allowed bankruptcy judges to modify the term of mortgages. THE MEASURE WAS STRONGLY OPPOSED BY THE BANKING INDUSTRY."What? Did I read that correctly? I thought they were reaching out to the homeowners, sending representatives from companies like Titanium to help these homeowners get their paperwork in, working with them so they can stay in their homes, and they are lobbying to prevent loan modifications?After a few choice words from the President that did not speak favorably about the financial institutions that got us into this mess in the first place, the article stated that the President will meet on Monday with representatives from Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, and Goldman Sachs.Good Luck Mr. President.Any comments about the Loan Modifications?
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