About Short Sales

for everything you need to know about short sales, REO and bank owned properties.

What Does Commitment and Foreclosure Have In Common; You’d Better Have a Commitment To Preventing Foreclosure

February 18th, 2010

If you need to stop a foreclosure there are several ways to go about. Some homeowners can qualify for a loan modification, which is one of the most common ways. If you are facing foreclosure don’t be discouraged because you are not alone; one and ten homeowners are in the same boat. Number one piece of advice; don’t give up and don?t give in because the banks are in just as bad as shape and it is in their best interest to work with you. Understanding the process can save your home from being foreclosed on and keeping the 800 pound gorilla off your back.

Refinance. The truth is lenders will work with you if they see that you are being truthful with them and that you are able to make your payments. This is probably the toughest method and requires that you stay after the bank until they get your loan finished. The obvious requirements are having equity in your home, a job with steady income and of course the ability to pay meaning your bills are less than your income. In some cases payments could be higher but a fresh start is better than the alternative. This is not the best route for most, but it is a route.

Enlist the support of your family and friends. Sometimes bringing in the family is a viable alternative especially on a short term solution. Let’s face it, we don’t like admitting to family that we have fallen behind, but usually they are the most willing to help. Don’t let pride get in your way of asking for help. Here is the best advice when doing business with family, be sure to treat it like you are dealing with the bank and make sure you do all the proper contracts just in case things go sour.

Try bankruptcy to stop a foreclosure in progress, but this can become an expensive alternative. The amount of payments which need to be made to satisfy the creditors and bankruptcy costs make this an option for those who have a large amount of disposable income. Let’s face it if disposable income is available your family wouldn’t be in this situation.

Wholesale your property. If you have equity and can sell you property to a wholesaler and start over this is probably the best option in a soft market as most everything is selling for 60-75% on the dollar. It is very hard to sell retail when nothing is selling for retail and credit is hard to obtain. It maybe that you can get out of your property and you can pick up a better deal with lower payments.

Work with a credit counseling service or loan modification service to prevent the foreclosure. As stated earlier, the banks do not want your home as they will lose more money by not working with you. But if they see that you have gone the lengths to hire a service to help you with your workout the may take you more seriously. The loan modification services know all the tricks and rights to getting the banks to do what they legally have to do.

Going into foreclosure does not have to be an option. With some determination and the right guidance you may be able to avoid it all together. In this market it seems that almost anything is possible but it does take longer to get things done because the banks are up to their ears in paperwork. If you are not good at treading water, you’d better learn because the process is not something that happens very fast.

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How Buying a Short Sale House Works

February 17th, 2010

The state of the real estate industry has influenced many people. The housing crisis has resulted to bargains and availability of homes that are offered in the market. The results of the near foreclosure state of some houses has inspired the rise of the number of houses offered for short sale.

Short sale happens when the seller of a house agrees to get a lower offer compared to the house’s market value solely to shed the mortgage problem. Although it may appear like a desperate move, there are sellers who still exercise proper screening and judgment when they sell the home. Sometimes, the short sale is inspired not because of the mortgage problem but because of the market situation in the area. If the costs of houses in the area have noticeably been reduced, the other homes will be influenced and a possible short sale can happen. The short sale considerably impacts the cost of the other houses in a certain community. If the position is true for almost all of the homes, the values of the homes are now worth less than the amount owed.

Although entering into a short sale may sound great because of the low price, you have got to consider some risks that you are taking before jumping into the sale.

It’s critical to know the genuine scenario before getting pumped up about getting a very nice home at a low price . It’s good to ask for your real estate counsel or an agent’s assistance to get the public records of the property you are inquisitive about. The records will reflect the individual that is holding the title and how much is still owed to the property lender. The records will also show if there have been warnings of foreclosure to the property. Pre-foreclosure can happen in a 30 day period or even less. Hence, it is crucial to know these details to avoid future issues with the property you wish to buy. The info that you will gather could affect the amount that you’re going to offer for the short sale. These risks identify the viability of the sale and you can present these to the seller or the lender. You just have to be sure to hire a professional agent who can expedite the method and get the best favorable results and best protection for your side.

Further, when entering into a short sale it is very important to consider the situation of the home and impute the price tag that may be sustained for repair and maintenance. You should be careful not to sign any document waiving your right for pest or construction inspection. These are contributing factors that may also have an effect on the price that you are going to offer.

Going through the specific steps of entering into a short sale is very important to guarantee that you will get the best advantages of owning a home in the location that you want as a minimum possible price possible . The discount that you enjoyed can be used for some other purposes to boost on the home that you purchased.

Need to buy or sell a home in the Bothell, WA area? Check out Bothell, WA Homes.

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Short Sales May Stop Some Foreclosures According to St Louis Mortgage and Lending Experts

February 13th, 2010

The national real estate and housing scene has been horribly plagued with home values sharply dropping, unemployment rates skyrocketing and foreclosures being somewhat of the norm.

The bitter truths have shown that a meager 4 percent of homeowners on a national basis that faced foreclosure within the last year did receive mortgage assistance.

This has made the Obama administration to look continuously for a solution for the remaining 96 percent of homeowners already in foreclosure. This obviously doesn’t include future foreclosure victims in 2010 and 2011.

Demographics are showing that approximately two million homes and other real estate elements are falling into foreclosure or are bank-owned with more losses coming.

The government overall has been unproductive at saving homes from foreclosure. Sadly, the worse is yet to come according to Citigroup experts. Most financial analysts predict that there will be an increase of 8 million or more foreclosures in 2010 to 2011.

Which brings us to the subject of short sales. There was approximately 500,000 home sales in 2009 that were filed as short sales. The National Association of Realtors said this was close to 10 percent of homes sold for the entire year.

What seems to have caught many by surprise is the about face attitude banks have adopted in that they are now readily accepting short sales in an increasing amount.

Comparative reports show that in the first 6 months of 2009, short sales tripled to 40,000 which were far lower in 2008 as previously discussed by the St. Louis Refinancing Group.

This is later contrasted by the Office of Thrift Supervision and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency reporting 25 foreclosures started or completed for each filed short sale.

“It’s really finally dawning on banks that they’re better off with a short sale,” said Richard Green, director of the Lusk Center for Real Estate at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles. Mr. Green continues: “I think banks were in denial.”

Most homeowners don’t know this but there are a few benefits in doing a short sale. You remain in control of the sale as like any other home sale. And you can spare yourself the social stigma of having a foreclosure on your credit report.

But what if one wants to purchase another home. Would a short sale derail this future action? If payments were never 30 days late and no pay back was required by the lender, Fannie Mae guidelines may allow you to buy another home immediately or no longer than 3 years.

On the other hand, if your payments are in arrears yet a short sale is granted by your lender, you may qualify to buy another home with a Fannie-Mae backed mortgage within two years, regardless of whether the home is your primary residence.

But what if you were a victim of foreclosure? Do not despair. Even with restrictions in place, you may qualify to by another home within 5 years and if there’s no restrictions in place, within 7 years.

And for those who are investors and do not occupy the home, the wait to buy with a Fannie Mae insured loan is 7 years.

With political pressures escalating from demanding consumers in the mortgage arena, the Obama administration has had no choice but to champion the short sale as a feasible alternative to foreclosure.

In addition, the Treasury Department has recently laid out finalized guidelines for carrying out short sales under the Making Homes Affordable program.

Under the new Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternative (HAFA) program, the administration is urging participating servicers to follow through with short sales as an alternative to foreclosure.

The HAFA program was a vital implementation for current homeowners that did not qualify for loan modifications under the Home Affordable Modification Program also known as HAMP.

Looking to find the best deal on a St Louis Home Loan, then visit www.StLouisRefinancingGroup.com to find the best advice on a St Louis Refinance or Mortgage Loan for you.

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