San Diego-based research firm DataQuick just released a figure that in California, Bank of America’s notices of default on homeowners has increased by 182.4% from July to August. That’s 6,478 more homeowners now in danger of being kicked to the curb.  This increase in foreclosure activity is not confined just to California. It is however, mostly in states where a court order is not needed to take back a home. These are the so-called non-judicial states, such as California and Nevada. You can bet many other big banks will follow suit.

Having revised some of its repossession practices, I suppose BofA feels it deserves to own more of your homes! If you have found yourself in such a predicament you must get moving now to find alternatives.  Put on your thinking cap and try to work out something that keeps you from losing it all. If you still have substantial equity in your property but can't get a loan or a refinance, talk to several investors on equity sharing or some such arrangement. If you are upside down in your mortgage and behind on your payments but don't want to move, there is help available with Bella Homes.

While I understand the need to clean up outstanding defaulted loans if the real estate market is to get over its long slump, it is a shame that more isn’t being done by the banks to alleviate the necessity of evoking the foreclosure proceedings.  

2011 is shaping up to be the worst year on record for new-home sales.

On pace to post the lowest annual sales since the Commerce Department began keeping data in 1963, nationally in July, new single-family homes sold at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 298,000.

The slump is pushing the key home-building industry into its fifth year of decline and keeping the U.S. economy from rebounding.

Builders' hyperactivity in the past years and the loss of hundreds of thousands of people's homes to foreclosure has left a big supply of properties on the market. It is a supply glut that is continually increasing even without a great many new homes being built.

Many economists don't see a significant rebound occurring until housing is fixed. The housing market's malaise is reflected in more than construction employment. It filters through to every business and every person and as witnessed by the collapse of many foreign economies, the effect is worldwide.

It is a lousy market. It is not getting any better and it could get a lot worse. There is a chance of a recession and that will probably drag housing prices down at least another 10%. Companies focused on legitimately helping property owners cope with the foreclosure mentality of banks are creating a nice niche market for themselves and will see a significant growth in their businesses.

 New home sales slower pace may be a kind of self-inflicted wound. The big companies are not dropping their prices. Sales of foreclosed homes are keeping prices low, and builders can't compete with those discounted levels. The home builders either don't want to, or can't, compete with the resales right now.

Although sales are bad, from a historical perspective, the number of homes available for sale also is very low. This will help recovery in the coming years----not months. Because as long as we have unemployment hovering above 9%, the sales rate is not likely to increase, and therein lies recovery.

Yes you can fight and win. Though it is not an easy battle by any means,

 and many homeowners don't come out with a satisfactory solution, you can fight your bank against foreclosure
and win a loan modification.

I found this article that I thought might give you some added drive to continue.

If you don’t want to do it yourself, check out this alternate solution.

“Seattle woman wins foreclosure fight against Bank of America

By VANESSA HO, SEATTLEPI.COM STAFF

Updated 01:10 p.m., Thursday, September 1, 2011

 A Seattle-area woman whose foreclosure battle with Bank of America went viral with grassroots videos, media interviews and thousands of supporters has prevailed, saying Thursday she had been granted a loan modification after 18 months of massive effort.

"It's been a tough road," Vera Johnson said Thursday. She said the terms weren't exactly what she had hoped for, but was grateful that she can now plan for the future.

"I was feeling like I was in the middle of a bridge that was burning on both ends," she said. "I feel like it's a compromise, a compromise victory. I hate to look a gift horse in the mouth and fight them any more."

A 42-year-old small-business owner, Johnson had sought the modification for her White Center home last year, after going through a divorce and knowing she would struggle with her mortgage. But despite meeting Bank of America's eligibility requirements, she was continually stymied.

She repeatedly explained her case to a series of loan officers, faxed and FedExed the same documents, sent in partial payments and got nowhere.

The banking giant rejected her payments, insisted she resend duplicate documents, and failed to call her at pre-arranged times. Then it threatened to take her home and business - the verdant, neighborhood-beloved Village Green Perennial Nursery - if she didn't come up with nearly $15,000. 

Johnson took her fight to the media. She protested at the bank in videos uploaded on YouTube. She started a change.org  petititon against the bank, which garnered 16,000 signatures.

"We are in a system where we're all looked at as account numbers, profits, risks, losses—anything but people," she wrote on the petition.

The West Seattle Blog documented her plight. She was poised and well-spoken on MSNBC. The Seattle Times discovered that Bank of America really did have a document it had been beefing over with Johnson. The bank also told the Times that it would assign a single point of contact for Johnson - and any other customer.

On Thursday, Johnson said she had been hoping the loan modification would have had a lower interest rate. But she was glad to have her home and business.

Calls to Bank of America were not immediately returned.”

By "WE" I mean the U.S. taxpayers!!!!!

This is the number of homes listed for sale by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the Federal Housing Administration. All resulting from the record numbers of people defaulting on government-backed mortgages.

The “robo-signing” scandal that slowed new disclosures, will in the coming months, very likely increase the number of government-owned properties. According to RealtyTrac, one out of every five of the 3.65 million homes for sale at the end of July was a foreclosure.

With 248,000 foreclosed homes already owned and so many more moving toward default, Fannie Mae (FNMA), Freddie Mac (FMCC), and the Federal Housing Administration are looking for ways to unload them without swamping the already depressed real estate market. Trouble is, they haven’t figured out how to do that. So they’re asking you and me for ideas about how to solve the problem.

If you want to tell them your idea, you have until Sept. 15 to submit it to reo.rfi@fhfa.gov. The government’s call for ideas is a sign it is deluged with repossessions.

While shielding the market from a flood of government homes might be good for property values and the economy, it’s not such a great deal for taxpayers. Who bears the costs when government-guaranteed loans go bad and who pays for maintenance on vacant homes the feds take over? You and I of course!

You can help keep homeowners in their homes by referring them to the following website. They offer a solution that will keep the house out of foreclosure and therefore out of adding to the numbers above. Foreclosure prevention.

Many millions of homeowners are upside down in a mortgage loan (meaning they owe more on their mortgages than the home is worth in the current economy). This number will grow in the coming months because home prices are still falling in many areas of the country.

What Does Upside Down in a Mortgage Mean?

If you’re not familiar with the term “upside down” in a loan, or how the situation arises in the first place, here’s a quick overview. Let’s say you purchased a $500,000 home in 2006, in a city that was experiencing a big real estate bubble (fast rising prices).

With the fast decline in home prices in the last few years, you find that your home is only worth $220,000 in the current market, but you still owe around $400,000 on the house. Since you owe more than the home is worth in the current economy — you are upside down in a mortgage loan. This is also referred to as being “underwater” in the loan. They both mean the same thing.

So What Can You Do?

Some homeowners are trying to refinance their mortgage loans in order to take advantage of low interest rates. But they are hitting roadblocks because they are upside down in a mortgage. Lenders will require you to have a certain amount of equity (ownership) in your home, before they’ll approve you for a refinancing loan. But when you are upside down, you actually have negative equity — you owe more than the property is worth. This is why so many people are being turned away when trying to refinance. They lack the equity needed to get approved.

So, are there any ways to refinance when you are upside down in a mortgage loan? Yes, look into the federal government’s recently announced “Making Home Affordable” program. Your mortgage loan must currently be owned by Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae to qualify. You can look up your loan through the Fannie or Freddie websites. This is the page for a Fannie mortgage search, and this is the Freddie look up.

Another great program we recommend is from Bella Homes, a mortgage buyer. You must be upside down to qualify for their program. They currently operate in all states except California. Homes and commercial properties are accepted. This is an excellent solution if you don’t want to move. Learn more about it here, Bella Homes.

Bella Homes, LLC is the result of a collaboration of some of the best legal minds in the nation and is founded upon the fundamental principle that families, not banks, should own homes. We proudly stand out as an ethical and legitimate alternative to those less credible companies whose predatory tactics do nothing but exploit the homeowner' financial predicament.

We are committed to helping troubled homeowners remain in their homes and secure them for long time use. Our program, which addresses a number of financial crises, is compliant with both state and federal law, is endorsed by the legal community and is highlighted by the following:

• We help troubled homeowners whose homes are upside down with little to no equity

• For qualified homeowners, we will purchase their home from them for the amount of the first mortgage and second mortgage and other liens and then lease their home back to them for a period of three to seven years.

• This lease will include an Option Memorandum, granting the homeowners an exclusive option to repurchase their home.

• Our goal is to purchase the mortgage from their lender at a discounted rate. If we are unsuccessful in doing so, we will conduct a forensic audit of their mortgage to determine if their mortgage is illegal. If that is, indeed, the case, we will then file a lawsuit against the lender to prevent them from proceeding with foreclosure.

• Once we successfully purchase the mortgage from the lender, we will, at the end of their lease, sell their home back to them at 90% of the fair market value at that time and credit them at closing for 60% of the rent paid. If they are unable to obtain a mortgage, we will also provide them with owner financing through one of our subsidiaries at the time they exercise their exclusive option to repurchase their home. Based on the foregoing, the property owner’s new monthly payment and mortgage balance will ultimately be 40% to 60% lower than their current monthly payment and principal balance.

• If, by the end of the lease, we are unsuccessful in purchasing their mortgage from their lender, we will then deed their property back to them.

To learn more about our unique program please visit us here. Bella Homes