Hot CoCo - Contra Costa Real Estate and Relocation

Clayton, CA 94517 Market statistics, sold data and housing trends

Catherine Myers, Walnut Creek, CA Real Estate (Alain Pinel Realtors) — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 14:40:54 -0500

Clayton, CA a fabulous small city nestled beneath our gorgeous Mt. Diablo State Park . So much to offer in Clayton. I know, because it is where I call home myself!

Just in the last month or so in Clayton we've seen our own Oktoberfest, Labor Day soapbox derby, a weekly Farmer's Market and our bi-weekly Music in the Grove. Our walking trails are consistently voted TOPS, and Clayton itself is on the list of America's BEST CITIES to live in! Oh, and you'll often horses and riders walking thru town (or tied up behind the local saloon), coyotes roaming around and wild turkeys galore - seemingly unaware Thanksgiving is, oh, but a month away! For dining, playing, relaxing and living, you couldn't find a better place than Clayton, CA.

Check out www.CNNMoney.com for more on the Best Places to Live 2009 featuring CLAYTON!

So, now that I've talked about how great Clayton is to live... what about the homes for sale in Clayton?

There are some really good housing opportunities now. Prices have come down from the highs a few years ago and you can get a lot of house for your money here in Clayton as compared to neighboring Walnut Creek. Schools are TOP NOTCH and both the elementary school and middle school in Clayton are California Distinguished Schoools, the best in the area. The widely respected API score at Mt. Diablo Elementary School is 911. Huge gains. Diablo View Middle School is also distinguished with an API score of WELL over 800 and is the newest of middle schools in the entire district. Beautiful joint use gym, and a campus less than 15 years old offers air conditioning and all the latest technologies. Parental involvement at our local schools assure the success of our schools.

So, now let's talk housing stats, and market trends. Take a look, and contact me for more information, the full report on Clayton or other nearby cities, and what it all means:

Search homes for Sale in the Clayton, CA and Concord, Pleasant Hill, Walnut Creek areas:

Contra Costa County, Clayton Homes for sale, Real Estate Expertise

SHORT SALES: Congressional call to action!

Catherine Myers, Walnut Creek, CA Real Estate (Alain Pinel Realtors) — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 10:44:14 -0500

Fellow REALTORS and industry leaders, please help!

We need SHORT SALE REFORM NOW! Our banks and servicers are being strangled by their investor guidelines. We need to jump into action together! We need to write to our law makers - locally, statewide and nationally - to let them know they must aid in the reform of the Short Sale process.

Homeowners are left in agony when short sales are seemingly arbitrarily denied. Or a small $$ difference closes the file. Or a cash contribution requested is impossible. Worst is the MONTHS it takes to get an answer from most major lenders, only to be told they will now turn your deficiency balance to a collectable debt! Their systems are broken. Contact with anyone above a clerk level is almost impossible and they are overwhelmed, in part, due to their own ineptness (I mean how many times can you lose the same document?) ENOUGH IS ENOUGH! Bank of America and Countrywide are two of the WORST offenders!

Banks make decisions in these short sales that make NO business sense! These banks ask for impossible terms from their borrowers when in a foreclosure, these same borrowers would walk scot free! These sellers are very often not even treated with respect from the same banks who gave them the loan in the first place! These people in many cases are losing everything - and they are up against the impossible to do the "right thing." If banks would rather just foreclose, please just let us all know so we stop even trying!

I saw just today a blog featured on the Active Rain main page saying to stay away from Short Sales! The moratorium is going to be lifted on foreclosures soon, and soon these short sales will be competing against even MORE REO's.

I can track several of my files from the failure of a short sale to the foreclosure and ultimate sale which led to losses of 50k or 100k or MORE for these banks. IT MAKES NO SENSE!

ESPECIALLY for these banks who have benefitted from our tax payer dollars... they are not helping their borrowers and worse, they are contributing to bigger losses for themselves, and in some cases, larger liabilities for deficiency and taxes for their borrowers. There are class action lawsuits forming. There will be lawsuits looming.

Banks should be held to a strict , across the board standard of approving short sales.

One major bank, Wachovia, has taken all their portfolio loans and streamlined the process. They're keeping it local, they're approving within a week and we can close in 30 days. THEY KNOW the losses to their bank will be much greater with a foreclosure - especially in this time of unprecedented decline of values month over month. Use them as a model!

PLEASE! Write to your legislators NOW. Ask your clients to do it. Tell them they must STREAMLINE the short sale approval process. Give these banks and servicers permission to ignore investor guidelines in some cases as long as certain basic criteria are met! Offer the same tax advantages offered as a foreclosure to the write off of bad debt of a short sale.

HELP HOMEOWNERS NOW. They want to do the right thing! They want to avoid foreclosure! They want to buy a house sooner than would be allowed in a foreclosure! They want to maintain their credit score as much as possible! They want to help the bank minimize their losses!

BANKS! Treat short sales like an REO. Get us a value with a BPO. Tell us what is acceptable and we'll sell them!! Let's turn over this short sale inventory as quickly as the REO inventory is selling and we'll be able to turn our housing market around. There are buyers who want these short sales, but they are not willing to wait the MONTHS it takes for these banks to make decisions. Sellers need to be rewarded for keeping the liablity on themselves, keeping the maintenance up, doing all the disclosures and aiding the bank in minimizing their losses. Plus it keeps our neighborhoods cleaner, more stable and in the longer term values up! Sell now in a short sale vs. months from now in a messy foreclosure!

DO IT PEOPLE! Please:

http://www.congress.org

You can look up your local, statewide and national lawmakers on the site above. You can even write a letter to them right on the site, and print and mail, or for a small fee send thru the site and write on the soapbox to get other people involved too!

We can turn this market around if only we could sell the inventory! Have you had enough?? I have!

The funny things agents say on the MLS (are you good at problem solving?)

Catherine Myers, Walnut Creek, CA Real Estate (Alain Pinel Realtors) — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 19:04:23 -0500

This, I noticed today , on a new REO listing that just came up in my town. We all know the problems these days with keys that "walk away," or, doors that get left unlocked, but here is one agent's warning. Maybe its been a bad day, but I found this hilarious:

"DO NOT LEAVE ANY DOOR UNLOCKED-Do not steal the key from lockbox; Do not forget to replace

lockbox face-- Back door is tricky,so if you are not good at problem solving, don't open it!

Got Denial? Countrywide sends out 19,000 short sale denial letters "in error"

Catherine Myers, Walnut Creek, CA Real Estate (Alain Pinel Realtors) — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 10:37:49 -0600

Yup, they did. 19,000 denial letters in error.

I thought it was strange when one client got a denial letter a MONTH AFTER we closed escrow! Of course I got worried they used some fine print and denied it after close, refused funds and refused to reconvey. But then, another client got the letter dated the same date, and then another... so what's up?

Countrywide admits over 19,000 denial letters were sent out in error.

How does such a thing happen? Is there a single "button" one pushes to deny over 19,000 customers the help they are desperate to receive. Heck, now they've got some emotional distress. Think of all those customers frantically calling realtors this week, and frantically calling Countrywide this week.

And they say "ooops." Well I guess that's par for the course huh?

Anyone remember that little thing called the DO NOT CALL LIST?

Catherine Myers, Walnut Creek, CA Real Estate (Alain Pinel Realtors) — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 11:37:09 -0600

Remember that Do No Call list "thing?" Well I do!

The reason I bring this up today is that I listed my own parent's home last fall. We took it off the market, withdrawn temporarily, and on Saturday it "expired." Unfortunately for them, I had not taken their phone number out of the MLS so they have been bombarded with phone calls to list their home. Some blatantly deceptive, some straight forward, either way - people, they are on the DO NOT CALL LIST!

At this point I'm really mulling over whether they should all be turned into to the do not call registry. I know there are a lot of agents desperate for business (or so it appears from the sheer magnitude of calls and desperation displayed on their answering machine), but do it right! Do it legally, and remember to check the registry before you call - as you may be unlucky enough to be calling an agent's family member :)

What would you do? I follow the rules, I really do expect others to do the same, is that too much to ask?

Countrywide: Technical Difficulties? All Day? Sure....

Catherine Myers, Walnut Creek, CA Real Estate (Alain Pinel Realtors) — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 13:22:51 -0600

You know, when you want to call a company and register a complaint, most legit companies have a mechanism to do that. Well I've been trying to call Countrywide all day. At every number I can find for their "complaint" line, it eventually ends me up to a recording saying they can't help me right now, call later (technical difficulties). The recording has been saying that all day long.

Do Federal Lawmakers know this? Should we (collectively as an industry) make a complaint to the Office of Thrift Supervision? The FDIC? Who? Who really looks into company complaints these days? Anyone? Or is just the wild west and we all just fend for ourselves?

Countrywide I think makes stuff up everyday. One day we're waiting to be assigned "Phase One" of their short sale process, the next month we're "assigned an assigner." And then 2 weeks later we're in "preliminary review." Here we are 6 weeks after submission and we're still nowhere. At all. Then they tell me they no longer "escalate" files, but then yesterday they told me it was escalated.

Its not ok.

Anyone have an inside track to Countrywide top management, I can't find a list of their Board or Head Honchos on their site. Or is it all just Bank of America now. If you dont' want to post their "special number" publicly, feel free to email me direct.

Wells Fargo: "they don't talk to us" & "giving us the run around"

Catherine Myers, Walnut Creek, CA Real Estate (Alain Pinel Realtors) — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 21:21:11 -0600

Here is an email I received this evening. Unfortunately it is not unusual and I frequently get emails, calls and comments on my blogs from frustrated homeowners seeking HELP from their lenders. Here's one that clearly wants to keep their home. I don't know their situation, but surely if Wells Fargo has had their package since December, Wells Fargo would be able to tell them definitively if they can help or not, right? Well, at least you'd think so.

SO now, intead of saving their home, they want to do a short sale. Unfortunately, they are not in an area I serve, but I will try to help them find someone who can help.

"I am interested in doing a short-sale. I have talked with my lender, but they are giving us the run around. Wells Fargo said they had our file in their Loss Mitigation department since December 1st. Every time I call they say they don't have any information for us. We are going into the fourth month behind on our payment. They said they have started the Pre-foreclosure process. I asked them can we qualify for the Help for homeowners program, or any program that would help us keep our home. They say we are looking at the situation and leave it at that. Every time I call they loss mitigation department they never give me any information. I don't know how to proceed. I always here the saying, "talk to your lender", but they don't talk to us. Do lenders talk to you?"

Anyone at Wells Fargo care to comment?

Predatory Lending - Call to Action

Catherine Myers, Walnut Creek, CA Real Estate (Alain Pinel Realtors) — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 21:16:28 -0600

Today, while perusing the www.NACA.com website I came across a couple of areas I thought were interesting enough to pass along.

First of all, NACA is the Neighborhood Assistance Corporation of America. NACA is a HUD certified counseling agency and provide non-profit advocacy. For those who have not heard of NACA before, here is a brief description of what they do from their overview page:

The Neighborhood Assistance Corporation of America ("NACA") is a non-profit, community advocacy and homeownership organization. NACA's primary goal is to build strong, healthy neighborhoods in urban and rural areas nationwide through affordable homeownership. NACA has made the dream of homeownership a reality for thousands of working people by counseling them honestly and effectively, enabling even those with poor credit to purchase a home or refinance a predatory loan with far better terms than those provided even in the prime market.

They also have some interesting things on their website.

Their main page has a list of lending executives who have refused to cooperate with them in structuring agreements to help homeowners. If you're curious how the CEO of JP Morgan Chase lives, how much he makes and his contact info - check www.NACA.com
They encourage speaking out to your local politicians and they have a page on their site for you to look up your local lawmaker contacts: POLITICIAN SEARCH
They fight against predatory lenders and ask you to provide your story so that they may track trends and identify companies who have been preying on consumers: PREDATOR WATCH
See their CALL TO ACTION. They want banks to stop foreclosures and help homeowners by modifying their predatory and subprime loans. JOIN THEIR CALL TO ACTION

I've had some clients have good luck with NACA and it might be solution for your clients, or for you as a borrower if you're experiencing difficulties keeping up on a sub-prime loan.

NACA's call to action:

". . . NACA calls upon these companies to follow NACA's lead - the lead of a non-profit company that is dwarfed by their size and reserves. Do the right thing. Here, the right thing is to modify these loans - before families lose their homes - to rates that borrowers can afford. The right thing for these lenders to do is to modify these loans so that borrowers pay the rate at which they were qualified because this will allow them to stay in their homes. The right thing is for these lenders to throw away their predatory re-set rates, that force borrowers to pay abusive interest rates and force them to take multiple jobs to keep a home. Stop this greed and profit, and keep people in their homes. Modify every loan back to the rate at which these borrowers were or should have been qualified, and everyone wins. People can keep their homes and avoid financial ruin, and lenders can still receive payments on mortgages that borrowers can actually afford."

Wells Fargo / Wachovia unveiling new loan modification program - will it help?

Catherine Myers, Walnut Creek, CA Real Estate (Alain Pinel Realtors) — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 10:29:36 -0600

For Wachovia customers in danger of losing their homes, Wells Fargo is announcing a new program to help Wachovia customers in danger of losing their homes in foreclosure. As outlined in an article today in Forbes, it is noted they will provide a reprieve thru the end of February for almost 500,000 borrowers possibly eligible for a modification program.

"Wells Fargo said 478,000 Wachovia customers, with loans totaling about $120 billion, will have access to the program, though San Francisco-based Wells Fargo said it was unsure how many customers would take part.

The customers within this portfolio that are being referred to foreclosure or are in foreclosure will receive an extension until Feb. 28 so they can apply for the modification program."

Believe it or not, as a REALTOR, I want nothing more than for homeowners to KEEP their homes. I have been begging these companies to help their borrowers so they don't need to do a short sale, and they don't foreclose on their dreams.

Is this a "meaningful" loan modification program from Wachovia? Only time will tell. I hope that if you hear of any success stories, you'll come back and tell them, I think we've all had enough bad news, I want to hear a success story!

If they do what they say:

"The modifications can include extending loan terms to 40 years, reducing interest rates, charging no interest on a portion of the principal for a set period of time or even permanently reducing the principal of loans in areas where housing prices have significantly declined."

It sounds promising...

Walnut Creek, CA Median Pricing Chart by zip code

Catherine Myers, Walnut Creek, CA Real Estate (Alain Pinel Realtors) — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 13:10:54 -0600

I have access to some fabulous Contra Costa County statistics and beautiful visual charts, so thought I'd share some local Contra Costa cities and their median pricing by zip code.

Here is Walnut Creek:

Your call is very important to us, ya right! The mortgage companies do NOT CARE

Catherine Myers, Walnut Creek, CA Real Estate (Alain Pinel Realtors) — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 21:11:31 -0600

I was listening to talk radio this afternoon on the way to an appointment to show homes. Gil Gross of KGO 810 Radio was talking about mortgage companies... he was talking about REAL PEOPLE trying to call the mortgage companies for help. You know, all that stuff you hear on the news, "the banks are here to help," "we'll modify loans," "we'll help you stay in your homes."

____________________________________

Here is recap:

Friday January 23 , 2009

2 PM: Congresswoman Gets the Runaround on Bank Help Lines...

In a revealing example of what she says the average homeowner faces, a California Congresswoman spent more than two hours on the phone trying, without success, to find someone at the Bank of America who could help a struggling constituent modify his mortgage payments. ABC News "Nightline" cameras were rolling as Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-Ca.) was repeatedly put on hold for long stretches, disconnected, transferred to extensions that did not work and ultimately switched to a recording which directed her to the bank's website.

Guest: Congresswoman Maxine Waters, D - Los Angeles.

Click here to listen to the entire hour for up to 7 days after the intial broadcast.

_______________________________________________

Do any of you in the business actually believe that your call is very important to them? I don't. Yes, I know , I know... there are some isolated incidents of a bank actually helping. There are rare times you hear a success story but for the most part, what this talk radio host was talking about today - is happening all over the place.

He talked about those evil words you hear just before being put on hold forever, or to be put into voice mail jail - a place where there is no way out except to hang up and call in again. "Your call is very important to us." Yup, those are our banks. Your call is very important to us. If it was important, you'd probably be answering, and if it was really important, you'd probably have solutions.

If you want to hear this broadcast, click here and start at about 8 minutes in.

He talked about and with Maxine Waters, a congresswoman from Southern California. She had been called by many of her constituents, they complained of long hold times, and quite frankly the inability to actually talk to a person who could help them. So, KUDOS TO HER, she took it upon herself to pick up the phone, with a news crew from Nightline by her side and call the banks herself, on behalf of these people, REAL PEOPLE begging for help from these banks. They filmed her as she called, sat on hold, was hung up on, routed to nowhere and quite frankly being given the run around. I think I heard at one point she was on the phone with Bank of America up to 2 hours. She named Bank of America as the worst (I already named them myself as the worst company to conduct a short sale with). Not sure when the Nightline episode aired, or will air - but I'm checking on that.

I tried to call into the radio show to tell them my side, that I do short sales, and sometimes I do short sales for those same people who tried and failed to get help from their banks. No help. No contact. No sympathy.

Think of this absurdity - I had one short sale that these folks had been denied a loan modification because they "didn't make enough money" to repay no matter what they did to their loan. But guess what, they then initially denied their short sale because they made "too much" money. I fought that and its absurdity, and ultimately that sale was approved. But those people wanted to stay in their home!

So now as an example... this home, my clients bought for over 500,000 will now be sold to a perfect stranger at 335,000. Why couldn't something have been done to keep these owners IN THEIR HOME! Why? Many people I work with could afford their homes at the price we are now selling them for in a short sale, but the banks have flat out refused to help. No principal reduction. But sure, we'll approve a sale to a stranger, but it can't be those same people. Why? I know, there are economics at work here I assume that I can't pretend to understand. . . but as a REALTOR my priority is to have people retain their homes, maintain THEIR American dream. Sadly, for many this year, even a loan modification won't help as millions are predicted to lose their jobs and this economy continues this maddening decline.

Fellow agents, borrowers, homeowners... when do we revolt? When do we stand up and say enough is enough?! These companies are being "bailed out" with BILLIONS of OUR dollars. Is it helping the consumer? Not yet from what I can see. Will it ever? Even if it will it will be too late for many. Its sad to say that these companies do not care, in fact, they can't care - they just have too much on their plate, they are in crisis mode. They can't care. They don't care. Most have their hands tied by guidelines that make no sense in our world today. They're strangled in red tape, and our homeowners are suffering.

Please, encourage all your clients to write to their congress and senate representatives. Write to their local officials, write to their Governors, write to Obama. If Maxine Waters called a news crew and was willing to experience for herself what millions of homeowners are experiencing every day - maybe others will too. Maybe if enough notice, something will change.

MORTGAGE COMPANIES! Hear this. You should be ashamed of yourselves! Absolutely ashamed. I know you are following guidelines but its to the point of absurdity. I have hundreds of short sale stories, here are just a handful THIS MONTH:

1. Countrywide said they would foreclose over $70.88.
2. Citibank will foreclose over $15,000 (the property did not appraise and Citi refused to accept buyer's appraisal as value and held firm to a 3 month old value they received)
3. Wells Fargo would foreclose over $10,000.
4. Chase willl let a home foreclose over $2,000.
5. Files that take months to review, and every time a buyer gets tired of waiting, they close the file and start the months ticking all over again.
6. Files that take weeks just to assign someone to look at it (oh but we've been assigned an assignor).
7. House foreclosed 2 weeks shy of a successful closing as negotiator "forgot" to contact attorney.
8. When buyer's appraisal did not come in to value and we needed a new price on the short sale approval letter (even though the net to the bank would not change) Countrywide closed the file 2 weeks before we're closing, first will not wait, we're foreclosing.
9. Home foreclosed due to Mortgage Insurance Co refusing to work with us - home ultimately sold as an REO for 120,000 LESS that the offer we had on the table.
10. On a purchase money first and second (protected against recourse in California) Bank of America makes a borrower sign that by agreeing to the short sale , they have now turned that deficiency to a collectable debt? In a foreclosure thay are protected - so they walk. Bank of America pushes people ON PURPOSE to foreclosure EVERY DAY.
11. Chase going after a destitute seller after closing in a collection action on the remaining balance on their HELOC = bankruptcy for seller.
12. Chase going after people after short sales despite promising no collection activity in writing. Now these people are having to hire attorneys to fight the collections.

People want to maintain their dignity, when all else fails, they want to hold their head up high. At times, their priority is to avoid foreclosure at all costs. But you have to wonder, when it takes 9 months to approve and close a short sale and now they've had up to a year of rolling late payments on their mortgages .. was that the right thing? What can be done to help those people?

I have ideas, but no mortgage companies are asking me. Put me on the Obama taskforce. Make me Secretary of Short Sales - for those who have exhausted efforts to keep their home, or who have run into brick walls, please Mortgage Companies, help them maintain their dignity by avoiding a foreclosure if that is what they wish. If it is not your wish, then foreclose already and stop pretending you're trying to help. These lingering short sales are hurting the individuals involved and hurting our communities. What about some guidelines that allows the banks to quickly streamline these sales? Yah, what if.....

Countrywide Problems - discrepencies abound b/w what they say & what they do

Catherine Myers, Walnut Creek, CA Real Estate (Alain Pinel Realtors) — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 15:34:42 -0600

So, of many of the big lenders, I hear a lot about Countrywide. They're here to help people. They want to work with people. They want to help people avoid foreclosure. Awww, its warm and fuzzy isn't it?

Actually from the Countrywide website their Code of Ethics features :

Doing the Right Thing
We have the responsibility to do the right thing for our customers, shareholders, communities and one another.

Its an untruth (lie) from what I can tell. A PR dream come true, but its going wrong. I, for one, can't stop fighting for my clients. They are NOT doing the right thing for their customers, or the communities.

I do a lot of short sales. Hey Countrywide, those are YOUR borrowers, trying to avoid foreclosure. These are YOUR borrowers who have lost their jobs, their health and their dignity in many cases. These are YOUR borrowers who have jumped thru every one of YOUR hoops to get to a successful short sale. And hey , you know what Countrywide? You are getting market value. You have an asset, that to this point, is well maintained and being marketed properly. Oh, and Countrywide, you have an offer - and this offer is from a buyer who really wants YOUR asset. Did you know you have YOUR borrower, the realtorS, and the buyers ALL JUMPING THRU *YOUR* hoops to get the short sale successfully completed?

Yes, we are. We have, and we continue to do what YOU SAY.

So, why is it that you've cancelled SEVERAL of our short sales in last 2-3 weeks? Yah, would that be the same time frame you are on the news and in the press and telling the government that you're HELPING PEOPLE?! Yes, it would.

Was it too much for you after working with YOUR borrower and their realtor for MONTHS to give a courtesy call before cancelling? To give a reason before you closed the file? Or to at least confirm your closure of the file MADE ANY DAMN SENSE AT ALL?

Here's an example:

You were waiting for the first lender to approve the sale (you are in second position). That's ALL you were waiting for. Nevermind the months you put us thru of needing extra docs, needing docs sent, resent and resent again. Nevermind the explanations and updated statements you needed and always got as soon as you asked. So we sent you the approval to be told you cancelled /closed the file. Why? Because after the MONTHS you put us thru, the buyer walked. But guess what, without ANY glitch at all, we had a back up buyer and submitted you a contract and new updated estimated HUD. NOTHING CHANGED FOR YOU. YOUR NET $$ TO YOU DIDN'T CHANGE. THE TERMS DIDN'T CHANGE. NOTHING CHANGED except the buyer name and you closed the file. Hey geniuses , the other bank is going to foreclose because after you delayed this for months, they're done.

I believe now that for some warped reason, this is your goal.

Is the government bailing you out if you foreclose but not short sale? What is your incentive here?

That is just ONE of a half dozen examples I could give you of what you've done to my clients in just the last 2 weeks. These are YOUR borrowers Countrywide. Do you care? (wait, I know the answer to that, its ok, it was a rhetorical question anyway, no need to answer).

(If you read some of my past blogs, I used to be a big Countrywide supporter, I 've had good luck, things have changed since the bail out plans and new guidelines.)

Buyers Agents: JUST STOP being so flakey!

Catherine Myers, Walnut Creek, CA Real Estate (Alain Pinel Realtors) — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 17:19:07 -0500

This is a post a long time in coming. I'm tired of flakey agents. Let me explain. (and as an addition here since I'm already getting complaints - I realize fully that the BANKS are the ones pushing into these impossible situations - believe me, I know that)

I do a lot of short sale listings. We receive an offer, say from your buyer. We work in good faith with you to get your buyer's offer accepted. Per our MLS rules, we have to take the house off the active market and change the status to "pending, subject to lender approval." As with most "contingencies" most agents stop showing at that point.

And, I'll be honest with you - when you're contract with one of my properties, your client sticks it out with us, they'll almost certainly get the house (most short sales are approved). We don't submit multiple offers to the bank (they never want multiple offers, OUR job is to go thru them and get highest and best). If we get a better offer than yours, we offer you the option of upping your offer or taking a chance the lender will want a higher offer (in our contract we reserve the right to submit another offer to the lender, but we hold no duty to the lender to do so).

So when I read things like this on Trulia, written by an agent:

"It is sort of the "wild west" out there right now. If you signed a "Short Sale Addendum" you will notice that the listing agent has the obligation to keep marketing the property and to present any offers that come in to the bank. It is the agent's fiduciary duty to get the highest possible price for the bank, and that means that yes, someone can come in with a higher offer than yours and potentially get the house."

My answer is , IT IS NOT THE WILD WEST! We have no such obligation to keep marketing, we have no such fiduciary to the bank on a short sale. Our obligation is to our seller and to see this short sale thru successfully.

In California, if you are a buyer and you write a contract on a short sale, you also submit a Short Sale Addendum with the contract. That Short Sale Addendum asks you to fill in a date. So what that means is that YOU HAVE A CONTRACT until and unless we don't hear from the bank by that date. Technically, you can't just change your mind. Technically, you should not be writing offers on other properties. Technically, we could go after your deposit - yes even though its not deposited into escrow yet (call CAR legal if you don't believe me).

Think about it, I am working to get your deal accepted in good faith. If you are writing contracts all over town, thats not good faith on your part. P.S. What if our offer was also approved, now your client just bought two houses?

So when I get an email like I did today (this short sale has been in process for less than 3 weeks):

Sorry but the Buyers got tired of waiting for an answer and withdraw the offer. Hope you are able to work with one of the other offers you have. Any questions feel free to call but they are in escrow on another house.

... I just want to scream. In fact, maybe I did a little today. As a listing agent, don't I have the right to expect you'll uphold your end of the contract, just as I am on my end? We picked this offer to work with as it was the highest, best, and cleanest. So now you're telling we can go ahead and select one of those inferior offers - thanks. The bank was working on an approval for YOUR offer.

So buyers agents, please... think before you withdraw offers, write on multiple properties and act flakey. I know short sales are hard. I know not all listing agents operate ethically, fairly and legally like I do. Heck most of them have no idea they're not doing it right! I know what the contract says. If you don't , please ask your manager - or your attorney.

I know I'll probably get reamed for this posting BUT REMEMBER laws are different in all states. In Trulia someone from New Hampshire answered a question for my local (CA) area:

The lender mandates that the broker market the property and submit all offeres until the time the lender signs one of them accepting it.

Sorry, but not true. Maybe your contract in New Hampshire mandates that, but lenders don't.

Short Sale w/ CitiMortgage - need an escalation

Catherine Myers, Walnut Creek, CA Real Estate (Alain Pinel Realtors) — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 12:16:28 -0500

I have a phone to my ear. I've literally been on hold with Citi's short sale dept for over 40 minutes this morning. I need to find a way to escalate beyond the negotiator on the file. Here's the situation. They approved the short sale. BUT, buyer's appraiser could not appraise it at the purchase price. So Citi sent out another BPO agent. Who still came in with a higher value (10%) than appraisal. Well the problem there is that the appraiser took a declining market adjustment. He made a more than 3% per month adjustment on each comp used. I can assure that the BPO did not do that. I've done BPO's. Citi will not show me the BPO. There is a closed comp on the next street lower than the appraised value but it appears that comp was not used. Because of the declining nature of our area, if Citi takes this back in foreclosure, they'll probably net anywhere from 20-30% less than the buyer's appraised value. So, though I know these banks have no logic or sense, there has got to be someone who can look at this critically and realize what is happening.

We have a heartbroken buyer. We have a bank so staunch in their guidelines that 10k (5%) is going to push this into foreclosure. I have shown the negotiator trend reports, comps, the buyer's appraisal and she won't even look at , or consider, them.

I need escalation at CitiMortgage. Does anyone have a recommendation for a direct number? As I type this I'm still on hold.

You should be ashamed CitiMortgage. You have a seller trying to do the "right thing." You have a buyer who wants the house. You have a market that is declining - getting worse month over month. And you will foreclose? Shame Shame. And, if you do foreclose and you come back listed as an REO 20% or more lower than we have on the table now, should I laugh? Or cry? I feel the latter coming on...

Poor WaMu Employees - I took my money out , did you?

Catherine Myers, Walnut Creek, CA Real Estate (Alain Pinel Realtors) — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 20:33:34 -0500

On the news that the FDIC may seize WaMu assets tonight, I took out a substantial chunk of my monies there and moved them to another. Sure, it may have been an overreaction, but I hate the idea of not being able to get to my monies, even if just for a few days .. mortgages , and bills are all coming due next week. So I took out about half of what I had in WaMu....

They asked me when I took it out why.. and if it was from the media and I said yes. They said they had no idea yet what was going on, but they had someone trying to get info for them... she said others had already come in like me withdrawing their money today. I guess it was no accident that the latest announcement I heard on this was just a mere hour or two before closing on the west coast... maybe they make these announcements late to avoid everyone withdrawing at once?

Anyway.. I know , I know... maybe overreaction.. but hey.. I'm safe to pay my bills now next week no matter what.

I see how WaMu handles their short sales and their poorly performing mortgages... how they (dont') help people and how they can hold a short sale file for months before telling us its lost... so its no wonder they're in this mess...

I guess the earlier reports were right, here's the latest: Thursday evening, Washington Mutual was closed by the Office of Thrift Supervision and the FDIC named receiver.

Bank of America is absolutely the worst consumer friendly company!

Catherine Myers, Walnut Creek, CA Real Estate (Alain Pinel Realtors) — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 14:51:21 -0500

I do a lot of short sales. And yes, most companies have their challenges. But none like Bank of America. Here's the situation. Bank of America (B of A) holds the second on a property that we are selling (short pay). WaMu holds the first. Both have had the short sale package since July 14th. Over 2 months! First Bank of America approved this as a "settlement" by mistake. We weren't looking for a 320,000 settlement , we were looking for a short sale approval.

So they file their notice of trustee sale. Yes, they are the second. Holding a loan for about 360,000, BEHIND A FIRST that is over 3 million dollars! Yes, B of A is going to foreclose on a second with a 3 million + dollar first. Is there a reason for this? The house is worth right now about 2 million. Huge losses all the way around. So why does B of A want to hold the bag?

The B of A reps in North Carolina's processing center are rude, and plain unhelpful. I was told by a rep one day they'd delay the sale date as they have everything they need for the short sale package. Then the next day, no way will we hold the sale date unless we're done with the short sale. If the short sale review doesn't beat the date, its foreclosed. Period.

Further, they wouldn't transfer me to a manager or a supervisor.

I know Bank of America wants to be the big guy out there, but have they forgotten they're dealing with people? People in great distress and losing all they have? Bank of America is WRONG in their handling of these files.

In another file they approved the short sale... B of A held both the first and second. When we got the letter they said that by the seller proceeding with the short sale, they were now turning any outstanding funds into a collectable debt. Why would anyone do that? My client is working with an attorney on this one as with California's consumer protection and single action rules, its not clear whether they can really conclude a short sale AND then sue for the difference. But who wants to be the test case ?

BANK OF AMERICA - you should be ashamed of yourselves! Its not only your consumer damaging guidelines and procedures - but the manner in which your processing personnel are dealing with people. Its wrong. You're wrong Bank of America and I hope that I will receive that call back on Monday I was promised.

Listings and short sale updates!

Catherine Myers, Walnut Creek, CA Real Estate (Alain Pinel Realtors) — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 00:16:44 -0500

So some say short sales never close, never work and are not worth showing... here are some Contra Costa and Alameda County short sale listings available and some noted successes (for details on any listing go to Contra Costa Real Estate.) Much of a short sale success will depend upon the listing agent and/or the entity performing the negotiations with the lender(s). Do your research! Ask questions! Work with only an agent experienced in short sales.

Concord, CA Short Sales
1669 Thornwood Dr, Concord $449,000 - 3 bedroom, 2 bath
BOTH LOANS APPROVED FOR SHORT SALE. Scheduled to close in September.

3154 Ameno Rd, Concord $275,000 - 3 bedroom, 1 bath
1 offer submitted to two lenders, accepting back up offers.

1195 Liberati, Concord $735,000 - 4 bedroom, 2.5 bath
Available now! Make an offer! Beautiful creekside setting.

Walnut Creek, CA Short Sales
2716 Oak Road #102, Walnut Creek $210,000 - 1 bedroom, 1 bath (Oak Road Station)
1 offer awaiting WaMu approval (appraisal done last week, negotiator notes 3-5 days from receipt there will be a decision)

2716 Oak Road #99, Walnut Creek $299,950 - 3 bedroom, 2 bath (Oak Road Station)
BOTH LOANS APPROVED FOR SHORT SALE. Scheduled to close in September.

2 Oak Treat Ct, Walnut Creek $549,000 - 2+ bedroom, 3 bath (Oak Treat Ct)
Only one short loan! Come see this brilliantly designed urban styled townhome!

1781 Tice Valley Blvd, Walnut Creek $450,000 - 2 bedroom, 2.5 bath
THREE LOANS - ALL SHORT SALES APPROVED - CLOSED ESCROW in July!

East County (Antioch, Pittsburg, Brentwood), CA Short Sales
2385 Boulder Street, Brentwood $450,000 - 4 bedroom, 3 bath
BOTH LOANS APPROVED FOR SHORT SALE. Scheduled to close end of August.

105 Pelican St, Brentwood $210,000 - 3 bedroom, 2.5 bath
We need your offer! Package is ready to go! Just 1 lender involved!

1116 Stonecrest Dr, Antioch $290,000 - 4 bedroom, 3 bath
Make an offer! We're just waiting on your offer to submit the package to the lender! Just 1 lender!

5 Fawn Glen Ct, Pittsburg $425,000 - 5 bedroom, 3 bath (Oak Hills)
WOW, large amazing house, we just need your offer! Package ready to go!

247 Balsam St, Pittsburg $268,000 - 4 bedroom, 2.5 bath (Harbor Lights)
1 offer submitted, but readily accepting back up offers!

San Ramon, CA Short Sales
636 Filbert Ct, San Ramon $550,000 - 3 bedroom, 2 bath (single family home)
BOTH LOANS APPROVED FOR SHORT SALE. Scheduled to close end of August.

2141 No. Donovan Way, San Ramon $665,000 - 4 bedroom, 2.5 bath (Windemere)
Two loans - ONE LOAN HAS APPROVED SHORT SALE, WaMu awaiting appraisal to come back to negotiator.

Danville, CA Short Sales
1131 San Ramon Valley Blvd, Danville $329,000 - 2 bedroom, 1.5 bath (townhouse)
Two loans - ONE LOAN HAS APPROVED SHORT SALE, awaiting approval from one, should be forthcoming.

Martinez, CA Short Sales
209 Village Place, Martinez $194,800 - 1 bedroom, 1 bath (condo)
1 offer submitted to two lenders - accepting back up offers

Pleasanton, CA Short Sales
1731 Germano Way, Pleasanton $2,500,000 - 7 bedroom luxury estate in prestigous RUBY HILL
1 offer submitted to two lenders. Accepting back up offers.

Livermore, CA Short Sales
2 listings coming soon!
One beautiful 4 bedroom home in Springtown.
One beautiful 2 bedroom condo in Copperhill.

Please see the best short sale information site in Contra Costa: Contra Costa Short Sales

Short Sale Support - email community or blogging?

Catherine Myers, Walnut Creek, CA Real Estate (Alain Pinel Realtors) — Sun, 10 Aug 2008 16:32:38 -0500

For those of you who work on short sales, do you ever wish you had a competent group of other professionals to turn to in a pinch? Couldn't our peers be an excellent resource for information on our quest for successful short sale approvals?

Sometimes questions for experienced short sale agents come up like:

1. Who can you escalate to at a certain bank?

2. What is the procedure and recent timelines for certain lenders now?

3. How do you make lemonade out of lemons? Ever get a "sour" rep on the phone? How do you turn it around?

4. What do you do when a lender requests a note from your client, and they say no?

5. What do others do to get more listings? (if you've decided to actively work this niche)

6. What to do when you hit dead ends?

7. Any tips and tricks as far as lender email format? How to get to a negotiator when you only know their name?

8. Successes with delaying foreclosure sales?

For agents just starting on their journey in short sales, they might wonder:

1. How do I become the knowledge base for my clients?

2. What do I need from my sellers in order to start a short sale package?

3. What do most banks need?

4. Are there generic forms that can be used for the financial data?

5. Which banks have their own forms for clients to complete?

6. What are the typical timeframes for each bank and is there anything we can do to shorten it?

7. How do we keep our clients happy (and calm) during the process?

8. Where should our clients plan to go and when? Leave the homes vacant or not?

Anyway, you get the gist... I love the blogging platform. I love coming here and searching for help in active rain - there is always someone who knows more than you. But in blogging you do have to be proactive and come seek your answers and proactively try to answer others seeking help.

I also love the email list platform, and to that end I also started a realtown group that can be configured to deliver instant emails for those quick answers, or you can visit the group online to read postings at your leisure.

Want to join in? Just click: SHORT SALE STRATEGIES

You can sign up for instant emails, digest (once a day), or to view only online. Its an easy and quick registration if you're not already a part of realtown.

Join us for discussion and support. For those quick answers, or more lengthy discussions. We're just starting out so we need to grow for it to be the lively format I envision. Join now and help us grow and mold this list to what we need to get our business done, and to serve our clients in the best ways possible.

Bank of America Short Sale Approval in TWO Weeks? Its not what you think . . .

Catherine Myers, Walnut Creek, CA Real Estate (Alain Pinel Realtors) — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 11:39:02 -0500

I was surprised, out of the blue, to get a short sale "approval" letter for a property who's package only got into processing with them 2 weeks ago.

This is a second loan on this property. A little over 300k is owed on it.

I was surprised that the letter said:

"Bank of America agrees to accept $320,000 in certified funds as settlement in full of this loan. Upon the bank's receipt of the payment of $320,000 the bank will release the the lien on the above property."

Yes, don't be blinded by the approval part of this letter, take note that this is NO settlement at all.

So I called and the rep said, we have a new guideline. "In non-deficiency states we are no longer accepting short sales for anything less than 85% of the full loan value." Period. This is important.. not only as it may signify the death of many short sales around the country (in non deficiency states), but that their expectation is (per the rep) that the first loans, upon foreclosure, will have to buy them out to release the lien.

So helping people with short sales just got that much harder in California... for anyone with a Bank of America loan (presumably a second loan or heloc product). Bank of America is going to force the hand of many, many borrowers. If this is true, and is becoming the new, true guideline, many will be now going to foreclosure instead of settling the debt thru a short sale as for most, there is just no room to pay the second 85% of the loan value. The other option is to force folks into promissory notes in order to accept the short sale ... for some that will work, for others, with true financial devastation and hardship, the idea will be overwhelming...

Thoughts??

Washington Mutual Alert- They've crossed the line big time !

Catherine Myers, Walnut Creek, CA Real Estate (Alain Pinel Realtors) — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 19:34:38 -0500

So as you may have read over on Mike Mueller's blog entry (WaMu Locks Single Mother Out of Her Own Home), today I had a horrible phone call, the kind you don't want from a client. Someone had changed the locks on her house! We are in the middle of short sale negotiations right now. We are close, they've ordered an appraisal , we're getting there and wow, what a shock to get this call from my client.

For those of you who are, or have ever, done a short sale with WaMu, you know they are notoriously slow to react, slow to process and just in general, nonsensical in some of their decision making. This one takes the cake.

Mike Mueller made a phone call and within 20 minutes I had a guy from WaMu's Florida Property Preservation Team on the line. He told me I'd have a call back this afternoon from their servicing company (Fidelity) to get me access again. I said NO WAY are you providing me access, you are getting me a key, period. Further , I will recommend my client changes the locks again to secure HER property until such time that it is theirs (if short sale fails), and THEY will get the bill for the lock change.

I told him that not only did I suggest that my client file a police report, but to file a formal complaint with the DA or whoever will listen. She also consulted with her attorney today. IT IS AGAINST the law to change the locks on someone until it is YOUR house. She has personal property in that house. Think of the liability they now have if anything is missing. They trespassed. Heck, without a key, they probably also broke in and entered.

Both WaMu and Fidelity apologized. But this is not the end. We have done everything in good faith to get this short sale done. And to help THEM avoid a foreclosure on this property. What they did with the locks was illegal. The problem is they're probably getting away with it all over. And if the house was vacant and unattended they probably never get caught. But this time they did. Shame on you WaMu and Fidelity.

On another note - Wells Fargo Short Sale

Catherine Myers, Walnut Creek, CA Real Estate (Alain Pinel Realtors) — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 16:48:34 -0500

So on Countrywide, if you've been following along, things have slowed down again. In fact, the one that I got a call from a negotiator right away.. has stalled, and strangly this one , with a new offer we had just sent over , the first is NO LONGER SHORT! So its only the (also Countrywide) second that will be short. You'd think a negotiator would want to just get this off her desk and be done.. But we'll see...

But on another one... 30 days start to finish I just got an approval of a Wells Fargo (ASC) short sale. Right now, it is the second slowing us down (Carrington). The Wells loan even had MI that they got approval, and approved it with no note to seller, nothing. Just ready to go , well except we need that darn approval from the second. So we wait on Carrington - but I thought it was good enough news to share , that Wells was attentive, quick, to the point and got it done!

One of short sales most asked questions . . .

Catherine Myers, Walnut Creek, CA Real Estate (Alain Pinel Realtors) — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 14:39:00 -0500

HOW MUCH DOES IT COST TO DO A SHORT SALE?

That is a question we're asked alot. The answer is NOTHING. At least not monetarily. We treat these sales as a typical real estate sale whereas we're basically paid nothing unless and until the deal closes.

So we sign you up as a typical seller. We complete, and you sign, the listing agreement and its ancillary documents, the statewide disclosures as is typical, and then we'll give you a few other pieces to complete specific to the short sale. But we don't get paid unless we close the deal. In fact, we don't take all deals, it has to make sense for the bank (and for us) and if there are issues we can't help you overcome, we may decline the opportunity.

A short sale does require some work on your part. There is more paperwork. We'll need some specific items from you before we'll even list the property. This saves us all time. I'm going to be bold here and say that my belief is that one of the top reasons for a short sale failure is the listing agent. We want to save everyone the trouble by having your entire package DONE , up front and in advance. Then, when we get an offer for your property we are ready to submit right to the lender without delay. As a seller you must know, is your agent experienced in short sales, or are they handing off the negotiations with the bank to a third party? There are good third parties out there, but you need to keep abreast of YOUR sale.

Sometimes offers don't come in right away... and sometimes the banks take their time looking at the short sale request files. What that means is that we'll ask you to continue to send us your pay stubs as you get them, as well as your bank statements. Its not unusual for a loss mitigator/short sale specialist at your lender to come back after 2 months and say they're ‘missing' updated items. By being proactive, we'll always have what they need to complete the file. Our goal is to NEVER be the reason for any delays.

So, if you want to explore the option of a short sale in Contra Costa (and parts of Alameda) County, call us for detailed information on what you'll need to gather and complete for us. Then, when we come with the bulk of the paperwork for you to complete, you'll be ready with YOUR documents.

Catherine Myers, REALTOR
Contra Costa County
Walnut Creek, Concord, Clayton, Pleasant Hill, Martinez, Antioch, Pleasanton, San Ramon, Danville, Brentwood and surrounding areas.

925-683-2125

Contra Costa Homes and Short Sales for sale

Contra Costa Short Sales

Anatomy of a recent Countrywide Short Sale (updated)

Catherine Myers, Walnut Creek, CA Real Estate (Alain Pinel Realtors) — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 12:51:05 -0500

So, we're not there yet, but what a relief that a big lender like Countrywide has made it a mission to streamline the process. In case you didn't see my post on June 29th, let me recap and let you know where we are in case you're following along:

June 14th: Submitted authorization to communicate in anticipation of offer(s) on property.

June 17th: Called. Confirmed authorization received and went thru "telephone intake" with CW rep. They asked me questions about the sellers financials, situation, hardship and then questions about the buyer's offer. We passed and we were sent on to the short sale department. Only then do they want you to submit your package to the short sale dept. This included an estimated HUD from the title company for the offer we were submitting, their hardship letter, financial statements, bank statements, pay stubs and buyers offer, deposit check copy and pre-approval letter.

June 20th: Called. Confirmed package received and it is "in processing." Advised it would take up to 2 weeks to process and then will call for appraisal access.

June 23rd: Called. CW advised that package is complete and that an appraiser will be calling for access within 5 days.

June 26th: CW appraiser called client directly for access the next day 6/27.

June 27th: CW appraiser completes appraisal at home w/ client.

July 7th: Called. Shows appraisal was back on 7/1 but no negotiator assigned yet. So Rep put it up to management to assign negotiator within 3-5 business days, then negotiator will have up to 10 business days to review file.

July 9th: Assigned negotiator on 7/8. Day 1 of her review period starts today. Has August 9th to review file. NEW company policy (as of this week!) shows the negotiator has up to 30 days to review file.

So, we keep plugging away. I asked the rep I talked to today for some information.. He said that the negotiators go thru 200-400 files a month. And CW in general is handling 27,000 new short sale applications each month. And we wonder why its a slow process?

Short Sale Support Phone Numbers for Countrywide:

For reference: Countrywide Short Sale Support: 866-880-1232 and Countrywide's fax: 888-491-4947

Who's watching the short sale store? (Part One)

Catherine Myers, Walnut Creek, CA Real Estate (Alain Pinel Realtors) — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 14:13:37 -0500

I know any of you who also work the short sale market have probably experienced the same frustration. You're cruising along thru the bank's short sale process... things are ok... they have verified they have what they need... they order BPO.... they get it back... they assign a negotiator... then ... what??? They have lost your packet and you need to resend the whole thing? How does that happen? Then you call the next day and they say, oh no we're not missing everything just these few things. So you send them. Takes a week to get in. Oops, well that wasn't all we were missing and oh by the way, we need more pay stubs, and that hardship letter needs to have a current date. Well, gosh darn.. it was current when we submitted the package 4 months ago. So you start to get a little upset cuz guess what? The trustee sale is now scheduled for next week. Do they care? No. Do the people you talk to on the phone even understand the significance? I don't think so.

In normal life, you could ask for a supervisor, the manager, the boss or the owner. But in these situations, a "supervisor" seems no more versed in this process than the people you talk to every day. Then, in fact, you run the chance of making them mad and having your whole file lost - again.

Just who in these big banks are responsible anyway? Is there anyone actually "in charge" of these departments, or are they just running themselves? A sea of cubicles run by people who probably don't own homes themselves and probably do not understand the process beyond the guidelines they have tacked up above their desk.

Oy vay, it is frustrating. I'm not saying that the worst offending banks seem to start with "W" but you might say that ... :)

Just venting I guess... feel free to share in the misery here.

Countrywide Short Sales - a breath of fresh air

Catherine Myers, Walnut Creek, CA Real Estate (Alain Pinel Realtors) — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 19:54:33 -0500

Yes you read that right, Countrywide has made some tweaks in their short sale procedures and so far, so good! I submitted two short sale packages less than 2 weeks ago on two different homes, and here's how its gone:

1. Telephone intake to see if client qualifies, they ask me questions on income, hardship and any other loans on the property.

2. They qualify, so it gets sent over to short sale dept.

3. ONLY THEN, do they ask you to submit package, and they will tell you exactly what they need, and guess what? Its not EVERYTHING. No tax returns, no mountain of paperwork. Packages averaged 50-60 pages long.

4. Appraisal gets scheduled - and was done on these two properties within 10 business days!!!

5. Then I get assigned negotiator.

Ok, so with this new procedure this is as far as I've gotten now, but in order to streamline it, they are only giving it to a negotiator when they have the package complete and the appraisal done. Therefore the negotiator just negotiates the sale, no order appraisals, completing incomplete packages or other nonsense.. they get it , they work it out.

So I'll keep you all posted on the progress of these two sales as we go. . . but I am happy, seller is happy. Countrywide says now 2-4 weeks to get assigned negotiator and 45 -60 days total processing time. Not bad if they keep to that schedule as I have some others in since February and we're still messing with them (Countrywide and others).

So far Carrington has been the worst with losing paperwork or just overall not knowing how to read the notes in their own system.

Any other success stories out there? or other tips you'd like to share?

I've got short sales now with Countrywide, ASC, Wells Fargo, Bank of America, Carrington and WaMu and just about to open one with Downey.