Jun

11

Beware of the Loan Modification Predators

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It is pathetic to know that companies are still preying on the desperate . First, they helped them get loans they could not afford, and now many of these same thieves are taking advantage of people who are facing foreclosure for whatever reason.  As with any business dealings , it is critical that you check out the company that you are seeking to do business with .  If at any time, you don’t feel like they are being up front or clear (preferably before you give them a check), don’t feel pressured to stick with them because they are your only hope.  If they are selling you on the fact that they are your only hope, I would be even more skeptical.  

That said, I want to share with you a few of the top scams that have been used to take advantage of hard working people who are trying to get a loan modification in Phoenix Arizona, Las Vegas, California, or Florida (some of the hardest hit areas ).

Loan Modification Scam #1 – No Job Required
You have to be able to prove to the mortgage company that you can pay the mortgage on the new terms or you won’t be approved . Of course, if you have a source of income that doesn’t require you to work like annuity payments, social security, disability, or structured settlement payments, then you could try to use that income to qualify.

Loan Modification Scam #2 – Payment Quotes Over The Phone
There is no way that any loan modification advisor can tell you what the underwriter will adjust your payment to be without them having a complete file .  If you get a price quote over the phone, hang up right away – it is a scam .

Loan Modification Scam #3 – A Guarantee That You Will Get a Loan Modification
The only guarantee a company can make is that they will give you your money back if you do not qualify.  Even then, I would recommend paying a portion and not all of the money up front until they can tell you more.  

Many people don’t realize that sometimes they can get their loan modified themselves and sometimes faster than a third party. The reality is that if someone is working through a third party company , the banks know that a third party is getting paid. They are in the business of helping homeowners avoid foreclosure . I believe it is always worth looking into how you can do your own loan modification first before paying thousands of dollars and getting the same answer.


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Jun

10

Where Is the Tampa Real Estate Market Going?

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There’s been a lot of gloom and doom  about the real estate market in Florida. The reality is that the highly educated residents of Tampa may wind up better off down the line than anyone expects now. Still, the present indicates a high unemployment rate and an overvalued market . This article seeks to explore in detail the present and future of the Tampa real estate market.

The state of Florida had an unemployment rate of 11.8%, while unemployment in Tampa was slightly higher at 12.3%, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. This is a contradiction of the information gathered by The New York Times, which reported in its article “The Jobless Rate for People Like You,” that the unemployment rate for all women and men with a college degree or higher was 4.5%. The American Community Survey in 2007 discovered that 31% of those living in Tampa have a bachelor’s degree or higher. So why the high unemployment rate? One can only guess that many of the jobs lost were hospitality jobs, because the hospitality industry has been hard-hit by the recession. Florida received a mere 29,321 stimulus jobs, which is low when one considers the high unemployment rate as well as the high rate of foreclosure in the state. It will be interesting to see how Florida’s economy seeks to develop beyond the hospitality sector as the recession continues.

According to CNNMoney.com, Florida has one of the highest foreclosure rates in the nation, at 18.81%. This no doubt contributed to the 14 banks that failed in 2009. One of the most disturbing things is that homes in Florida are considered to be overvalued by as much as 33.7%, according to MSNMoney.com. What makes Florida’s real estate market different than, say the real estate market in California, is that it seems as though no vicinity has been differentiated or spared from the overvalued market or rate of foreclosure. While Brentwood and Beverly Hills in Los Angeles stayas strong markets, no suburb of Tampa seems to be doing any better than another.

One of the reasons for this has to do with the high rate of foreclosure, and what’s been termed by the media the “shadow inventory” being held onto by banks. This shadow inventory is an assembling of foreclosures that banks are hanging onto, hoping that the real estate market will improve to the point where the banks can recover a greater portion of their investment in the resale. Eventually the banks won’t be able to hold out on the inventory, and the market will once again be overwhelmed with foreclosures.

Another troubling issue looming on the horizon has to do with option adjustable rate mortgages, or option arm mortages.  These are loans in which the lendee only needs to repay a portion of the interest.  In the meantime, the interest compounds on the principle until the new principle reaches a certain ceiling. Once that happens, the loan recasts and a new payment schedule is created that accurate reflects both the interest and the new principle. This inflated payment is often unaffordable to the person who has taken out the loan, and has for years only budgeted to repay a portion of the interest. Studies have shown that as much as 88% of option arm mortgages made have yet to recast and reach their balloon payment.

However, on a more positive note, the Housing Opportunity Index reports that as much as 78.5% of mortgages made in Tampa during 2009 have been affordable to those taking out the loans. On a more positive note, as much as 78.5% of mortgages made in Tampa during 2009 have been affordable to those takin gout the loans, according to the Housing Opportunity Index, or HOI.  The HOI was created by Wells Fargo and the National Association of Home Builders to gauge the affordability of mortgages by region, and it takes into factor the amount a family can afford to spend on their mortgage and still be able to live comfortably. Today the HOI is higher than it has ever been since 1991.

So while the economy may continue to falter, in the end we shall recover strongly and be the wiser for our experiences. Predatory lending should continue to be sharply curtailed, and the new workforce should be educated to meet the demands of the new creative and information-based industries being created. The housing market may never recover to the point of wild speculation that occurred before the recession, but it will recover nonetheless.

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Author: Lisa Brown is a Sales and Marketing Associate for Almost Home USA (Corporate Housing Tampa), a corporate housing company whose goal is to provide such excellent experiences that clients feel almost home.

 


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Jun

9

Problems People Have Buying Foreclosed Property in Redlands

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The major miscalculation most individuals make when purchasing  Redlands foreclosures is getting in over their heads financially, claims Leo Nordine, owner of Nordine Realtors in Hermosa Beach.

“If you can not afford to get a 30-year fixed, you just cannot afford the house. I can’t tell you how many houses I have sold far more than once because the buyer didn’t do their homework and ended up losing the house to foreclosure two years down the road,” said Nordine, who has specialized in foreclosure property since 1990.

Thinking about getting  Redlands foreclosures? Here are five ideas from Nordine:

Understand the industry. Subscribe to ForeclosureRadar. The map-based system makes it possible for subscribers to track foreclosures through California and the West Coast with 60 criteria (lender, value and map, for instance). The site has a foreclosure learning center and offers a three-day trial (free) or even a monthly subscription ($49.95). “You can target properties and look up the sale date and other information,” Nordine says. “You can know about the property details prior to the listing agent.”

Buy smart. “The inexpensive stuff is bottoming out. The high end is still going down. So Redlands is really a superior place to obtain appropriate now because it is at the bottom. Brentwood, in my opinion, is even now going to drop,” he adds. Nordine says South L.A., Riverside, North Long Beach and East L.A. are excellent bets for foreclosure bargains. “Those are places that are fairly safe for investments, simply because you aren’t going to invest in and watch the price drop 10% six months later,” he claims.

Be prepared to beat the pack. Good  Redlands foreclosures garner multiple offers, so write a clean “as-is” offer that enables for the seller’s “choice of title” and “choice of escrow.” Sellers are drawn to offers that require reduced work for them, Nordine says. So be ready to jump through all the hoops. “If the property is owned by Chase, and Chase requires pre-qualification by a Chase loan rep, as an example, get the pre-qualification right away. If they want proof of funds or a credit report, have that documentation ready to go,” he says.

Leave attachments at the door. “It is a tough market with many folks trying to find deals, so it’s easy to get discouraged, Nordine says. “But if you’re thorough and keep trying, you will eventually discover a very good foreclosure.”

Get the big picture. With fewer disclosure requirements on most foreclosures, Nordine says it is crucial to do your due diligence on the history of the house and get data concerning the property, past and present. Keep an eye out for outstanding liens, loans, fees and tax debts that could reassign and become your own personal post-sale headache.


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Jun

8

What To Comprehend About Flipping Real Estate…

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If you are interested in Flipping Real Estate, then this is the guide for you. Flipping can be a life-defining process that makes some people very happy and fills their lives with joy. This does not mean that everyone will feel that way. The most introductory idea of flipping is when someone buys a house, fixes it up, and sells it at a higher price. It requires a lot of attention and careful preparation.

If you love home repair, interior architecture and design, and following the real estate market, then flipping houses might be the perfect job for you. And it IS a full-time job. The problem with many people who want to get into flipping is that it requires are large start-up cost. You must actually purchase the property in order to resell it!

You have to know when the market is going to be high or low. If you do not know this, then flipping is pointless. You want to buy the property when you can get it at its cheapest, and sell it when people will buy it at its highest. You have to follow the market intimately to predict trends. You also will have to know when a house can be fixed for a good profit and when it cannot.

Remember, too, that if the house does not sell right away you will still have to pay for it. Taxes and upkeep of the house you live in and the house you mean to sell can break the bank for some people. In the current economy, houses can be on the market for months or even years at a time. This job requires a great deal of consideration before you start.

It can be a job of happy thrills and challenged, though. Some people have gotten quite rich from it. If you like painting and installing pieces of a house, if you like all the little projects with the lights and wiring and heat, then this could in truth be your calling. It requires more than just a passion, though. You need to understand everything about a house from the ground up. You need to know how it was built as well as how it will sell. The smallest details could be major deal-breakers for some buyers.

There are other types of flipping, too. These mainly concern the ‘not for profit’ flippers who will fix up occupied and/or abandoned houses in a town. Charitable groups can do it and towns or cities may also use some of their money for this plan. By doing so they make the area less likely to have crime and raise the property value.

By doing this, the quality of many people’s lives can greatly improve. It makes a town look nicer, the people prouder and less likely to have problems with their houses in the future. The only problem with a big renovation like this is the fact that once the property value is increased, the people who are living there may not be able to afford to keep living there.


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Jun

7

Short Sales Can Be Used To Stop a Foreclosure

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There are many property owners who are in adversity that are stopping foreclosures using a process referred to as a short sale.  If a property owner is facing a hardship and their house is being foreclosed on, a short sale can offer the means in which the homeowner can avoid a foreclosure.  It is a good option that a homeowner facing foreclosure should speak with their lender about.

Exactly what Short Sale?

A short sales is a procedure in which the loan provider agrees to permit a home to be sold for under the property owner owes on the home.  As a result of selling the home for for less money it allows the home to be sold quickly and there by stopping the foreclosure.

It is important to remember that not every home is eligible for a short sale and not every loan provider will accept a short sale offer. However, that being said many times it is in the loan providers greatest interest to accept the short sale offer.

Short Sale Advantages:
Even though the profits of a short sale will not line the property owners pocket book,  there are several advantages.  The advantages of short sale may include:

  • A short sale is definately not as big of mark on your credit rating.
  • Allows you to purchase a home possibly after 2 years

Short Sale Downfalls:

  • Some short sales have no strings attached, but a few have additional conditions in which the property owner must meet.
  • Several lenders make the property owner make up the difference between what they owe and the selling price.

Stopping foreclosures is something that lots of homeowners are facing in this current market.  Using a short sale to provide a way out is a viable solution if the homeowner has a true hardship.  Picking up the phone and contacting your loan provider about this alternative could be worth the call.

Jun

6

Can the bank I have a mortgage with go after my other assets if my home goes into foreclosure?

Filed Under Home Foreclosure | 5 Comments

WebDisMe asked:

I have several properties and stocks (not in retirement plan) in Connecticut. If one of my homes goes into foreclosure can the bank go after my other homes even though those homes have outstanding mortgages with other banks? Or can they go after my stocks?

Stacy


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Jun

6

The Benefit of Using the Internet to Locate a List of Foreclosed homes

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Buying real estate property from lists of foreclosed homes in the present scenario of rising default properties makes a very sensible investment for many buyers in the market. Properties that have been foreclosed can be good for buyers and sellers alike. In the case of the seller, they can rid themselves of problematic houses (and get some of their money); the buyer, in turn, can purchase a house at a gigantic discount, well below market value. Real Estate Investors have seized the opportunity bank owned properties offer for years. Through the advances in internet services that provide listing for foreclosed properties, it has become increasingly easy for anyone to find the home they want at an affordable price.

List of Foreclosed Homes

When a homeowner can no longer afford to make monthly payments, the bank or financial institution that financed the loan will repossess, or reclaim the property. After they have taken back the property, they will want to get their money back. Most of the time, they will not want to make a lot of money, they are only interested in selling the property again. Because of this, foreclosed houses are easy to get at discounted prices. This is an ideal situation for an investor of real estate or a person looking to get a deal on a house. Foreclose listings include detail information about foreclosed properties for sale. If a person wants to purchase a foreclosed house, then they should begin by looking at lists of foreclosed homes. A plethora of lists of foreclosed homes exist. Certain listings are outdated and offer little help. This especially true of the free foreclosed home listings, which have been made publicly available after the savvy home buyers and investors have picked over the available inventory using paid listings.

So how do you locate a List of Foreclosed homes that will actually help you?

Foreclosed Property List Are Now Available

You can find online lists of foreclosed homes from varying companies. These lists will do you a lot of good whether you’re an amateur investor or merely interested in buying a home at a good price. Housing lists consist of a large database of homes for as little as $10,000. You will be provided with the description of the property, the property’s price, and be told how to contact the real estate agent. Accessing a listing of foreclosed homes online is more beneficial than investing in print lists. If subscribing to an online service, you are able to search foreclose properties from across the country. Also, online services will have the most current listings available.

You can find pages of foreclose listing services by just searching online for “foreclosed homes.” Membership fees are required by some online services before access is granted. However, fees are very reasonable and worth the investment. There are also services that will allow you to have Free membership for fourteen days. 14 days is enough time to see if you like the service and if it will likely provide discounted homes in your target areas.

Get Your List of Foreclosed Homes In Your Area


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Jun

5

Should you buy a property without a broker

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Just what do you actually believe that  any customers are actually wanting from his or her real estate broker? Our own understanding is certainly that the potential customers believe that all the majority of most of the issues or expectations are generally aimed on the actual real estate agent getting the proper real estate asset, not to mention facilitating along with the actual negotiations on prices and after that arrangements of the particular purchase. Eventhough this situation may very well sound hassle-free, generally there will most certainly be many subsets that will create up a majority of these wide-ranging pretty important areas.

For instance, in order to be in a position to identify that best suited real-estate, the real estate agent should have not just to be able to be aware of explicitly just what specifically the actual consumer’s requirements and wants seem to be, the agent definitely really needs to possess a great working understanding of the actual search area which includes real estate properties for sale along with real estate properties that may have also been sold. By simply remaining educated of the actual specific place and being familiar with the particular consumer’s expectations, the agent may easily expedite tracking down the home and property. Identifying everything that the new buyer is definitely seeking for can be the key element, and in addition truly being the very good listener who could ask the type of correct questions can find out your current capacity of knowledge the customer’s preferences.

Some other criteria enter in to really being capable to with success help out the purchasers try to find the perfect real estate property, which includes simply being in a position to point out, in an a reasoning way, both equally the benefits and then the disadvantages of a real estate property, as well as developing confidence with the purchaser as a result of a good sincere and objective strategy. Home buyers recognize the value of very hard work and integrity, and also some people may positively stay along with somebody that they have faith in for a longer time when compared with somebody they do not. Definitely, assisting your customers to recognize the total procedure of locating as well as purchasing some sort of property or home can certainly be really beneficial for potential customers, specifically first time buyers. Therefore based upon on the actual level of competence of the buyer, you should certainly be capable to properly evaluate the particular important information procedure.

Relating to assisting to discuss terms and conditions as well as purchase offer, understanding of the particular place, earlier sales, real estate property features comparable to some other properties, what is today on the real estate market for purchase, duration of time property or home has been offered for sale, and various other real estate market circumstances will certainly all help when analyzing the purchase offer. Without the benefit of this kind of information, the particular agent will be of very little help to the particular buyer when ever it comes to the identifying a target price tag and offer. Needless to say even along with the background understanding crucial to recognize current market prices, on that point there is normally no alternative for very good settlement skills. Truly being capable to guess the perfect offer selling price and also, if needed, the actual correct counter offer is a skill level which usually can be very helpful to new home buyers, because this can potentially save them signifigant amounts of money that might otherwise be lost.

Try to remember, knowing any buyer, discovering what exactly they need, good awareness of the actual local area, really hard work, negotiating practical experience, and reliability will definitely greatly enhance your probabilities of retaining prospective buyers.For the buyer\real estate buyer, planning to purchase the Texas land for sale or luxury house for sale in Texas ,using a brokers or even an agents  representation  in locating that unique real estate property shouldn’t cost any  broker’s fee. All of the  services are actually paid from the actual seller, despite the fact that brokers job is to specifically legally represent the buyer, additionally, the obligation is always to help the buyer obtain the real estate property for the best price possible .


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Jun

4

Home owner foreclosure help ? Who Knows ?

Filed Under Home Foreclosure | 3 Comments

,,,,,, asked:

Is Obamas plan only for people still in their homes or does it apply to all in foreclosure ? Even those that have left their homes and are renting now ?

Caffeinated Content for WordPress


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Jun

2

How do I pay for a home purchased at a foreclosure auction?

Filed Under Home Foreclosure | 2 Comments

fildawg asked:


In my county (Fulton County, Georgia), when a home is auctioned off for tax reasons, payment must be made within an hour of the auction close. The payment must be made in cash or certified funds. How would I pay for a home purchased as a bank foreclosure? Same? It seems difficult to show up with hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash.

Daria

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