Why do So many Believe that a Lawsuit will Stop a Foreclosure - 05/25/11 11:40 PM
Virtually every day, I receive a call from a real estate professional or home owner that inquires about filing "the lawsuit" to stop a foreclosure.  It seems that many believe the separate lawsuit (or a lawsuit in the even of a non judicial foreclosure) will stop the foreclosure process.  Where does this come from??
The theory is that a lender may have violated the Truth in Lending Act (TILA) Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) or various other federal and state laws and that this will remove a property from foreclosure.
This would rarely be the case.  If a home owner … (6 comments)

MLS and "Re-Listing" Issues - 05/25/11 02:02 PM
Many real estate investors contractually arrange to be able to immediately list the property for sale (at a higher price). Legally, there is no problem with this (if done correctly). For example, I recommend stating that the seller is a "contract buyer".  This removes the property from the stigma of being a short sale since the contract buyer is paying cash and re-selling as the "B" buyer in an A to B to C transaction.
 
This has served investors well. However, a problem has developed with the MLS. The MLS in some areas (and presumably more in the future) will … (1 comments)

Things a Listing Agent Should Never Tell a Short Sale Lender.. - 05/22/11 04:47 PM
There is a disturbing trend in short sales....an investor puts a property uder contract and begins to market tghe property for future sale.  Listing agent discovers that there may be a higher offer. They then tell the short sale lender!
This is a mistake for valid legal reasons.  The listing agent's duty is to the home owner.  In telling the short sale lender that there "may" be a higher offer, you are breaching that duty to your client!  If the short sale that you submitted is rejected, you are now liable to yoru client because you had no duty to disclose … (2 comments)

Real Estate Investment Considerations for New Investors - 05/22/11 05:17 AM
With the tremendous number of investment opportunities available today, many investors find themselves wondering where to begin. Some investors discover that it may not make sense to invest in their own market, so they investigate opportunities in other states. Other investors find that there are so many investment opportunities specific to their area, that they become overloaded with information and confusion sets in. Whatever the case, investors intuitively know that there are good investments to be made right now. What is really interesting, however, is the vast universe of information and opinions that exists concerning where and what kind of investment … (0 comments)

Housing Prices Drop for the 57th Consecutive Month... - 05/22/11 04:44 AM
Zillow announced last week that home values have fallen for a 57th straight month. This is clearly not good news for anyone but, it has hit beneficiaries of the $8,000 tax credit for first-time homebuyers particularly hard.  The Wall Street Journal, announced that the first time home buyers (that purchased as a result of the Obama tax credits) have “lost twice as much to falling house prices as they gained from the incentive”. The initiative began as an incentive for first-time buyers, then it was expanded to include a $6,500 credit for existing homeowners who made a new purchase. The program … (0 comments)

Housing Prices Drop for the 57th Consecutive Month... - 05/22/11 04:41 AM
 
Zillow announced last week that home values have fallen for a 57th straight month. This is clearly not good news for anyone but, it has hit beneficiaries of the $8,000 tax credit for first-time homebuyers particularly hard.  The Wall Street Journal, announced that the first time home buyers (that purchased as a result of the Obama tax credits) have “lost twice as much to falling house prices as they gained from the incentive”. The initiative began as an incentive for first-time buyers, then was expanded to include a $6,500 credit for existing homeowners who made a new purchase. The program … (0 comments)

Interesting Statistics on Foreign Real Estate Investment and Cash Buyers - 05/21/11 03:55 PM
The National Association of Realtors (NAR)reports that foreign clients and investors spent $41 billion in the United States last year, and that does not include the additional $41 billion that “individuals with visas to stay for more than 6 months” spent in the same period of time. To put that into perspective, these figures represent approximately 8 percent of the entire U.S. housing market in the one year period from March 2010 to March 2011. There is an interesting twist to these figures. Historically, foreign investment in US real estate was in the higher end of the markets - by a … (2 comments)

Judicial Over Reaction to the Foreclosure Crisis - 05/20/11 01:20 AM
This comes from the son of an Appellate Court Judge so I tend to be defensive of the judges...However, this seems wrong!!!
A judge in South Carolina has placed all foreclosures in that state on hold as of this week so homeowners could "mitigate their losses and perhaps modify their loans". Do you know who this really helps? JUDGES - all it does is reduce their case load. But it's their JOB to review these cases individually rather than to make blanket decisions, and this judge is simply lazy and derelict in her duty. This damages the real estate market by … (3 comments)

Hypocrisy in the Obama Real Estate/Tax Position - 05/20/11 01:17 AM
Here is the hypocrisy in the Obama administration policies on real estate (okay, actually there are many, but here is ONE): they induced tens of thousands of families to purchase real estate by incentivizing them with a federal tax credit. Many home owners received an $8,000 federal tax credit as an inducement to purchase a home. The administration ran around patting itself on the back about how successful the program was etc.
Now they want to eliminate the mortgage interest deduction on taxes. Lure them in with tax incentives and then take the incentives and much more away with significantly higher … (4 comments)

Compliance Guidelines when Purchasing or Selling a Real Estate Note - 05/20/11 01:15 AM
Many real estate investors are turning to purchasing a note as it becomes more and more difficult to purchase short sales. As in many aspects of life, there are advantages and disadvantages to this. One such example of a potential pitfall is RESPA. RESPA was enacted in 1974 as a means of proper disclosure to the consumer. It also eliminates kickbacks in real estate financing transactions. RESPA compliance alone, can determine the enforceability of your note. Here are a few key issues to consider: 1. RESPA requires a HUD disclosure booklet, so include one in every transaction in which you are … (1 comments)

Some FHA Flipping Guidelines - 05/01/11 11:27 PM
 
 
Lending institutions such as Bank of America, Wells Fargo and Chase, along with the government entities that insure their home loans (i.e. Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, FHA), have their own set of guidelines for flipping properties. The guidelines change frequently and there is a tendency for a difference between the external guidelines that a lender or servicer employs and the internal review process that a lender utilizes.
The FHA wants two appraisals (the 2nd must be paid for by the seller) as well as a detailed list of improvements made to the home.  Of course, this only applies if … (3 comments)

 
Deigs1cropped Rainmaker_large

Paddy Deighan, J.D. Ph.D

Paddy Deighan J.D. Ph.D 1-949-701-2192

Encino, CA

More about me…

Address: 216 W Euclid Ave, Haddonfield, NJ, 08033

Office Phone: (877) 557-9669

Cell Phone: (949) 701-2192

Email Me

Author Bio: Paddy Deighan earned his Juris Doctorate and PhD Paddy consults with home owners on all of their distressed property needs tags ---->


Listings

Links

Archives

RSS 2.0 Feed for this blog

Find CA real estate agents and Encino real estate on ActiveRain.