If you are facing imminent foreclosure, you should know that you have options. There are ways that you can stop foreclosure and save your credit rating. Just one of those ways is a Colorado Springs short sale. A short sale is an agreement made between you and your mortgage company that allows you to sell your property for less than what you owe on it.
A short sale is a tool that helps minimize loss for all parties involved. The mortgage company can recoup a good portion of the defaulted debt while the homeowner can protect his or her credit rating from foreclosure. During Colorado Springs short sales the mortgage company allows the homeowner to sell their home through a real estate agent at a discounted price. The monies earned from the sale go directly to the mortgage company, and the remainder of the debt is either forgiven or charged back to the homeowner.
Before a short sale can occur, however, the mortgage company has to agree to it. So, if you are thinking about trying to avoid foreclosure through short sales in Colorado Springs, you need to sharpen your negotiating skills. Following are a few tips that will help you negotiate a short sale with your mortgage company:
• Keep the lines of communication open.
It is a natural reaction to want to avoid your debtors when you start to fall behind on payments, but you can’t. You need to communicate with your mortgage company from the onset of your financial problems if you want them to agree to a Colorado Springs short sales later.
• Learn all you can about short sales.
Knowledge equals power, especially when dealing with lenders that aren’t very forthcoming with information. If you know the ins and outs of short sales, you will be able to hold a conversation with your lender without feeling like you are being led around in circles.
• Ask a real estate agent to help you.
An agent can help by giving you vital information about your local housing market. You can use this information to customize your Colorado Springs short sale offer. For example: If similar homes are selling quickly in your neighborhood, you can pass this information along to your lender. They might be more open to a short sale if they think that it will be finalized quickly.
• Keep it professional. Put all offers in writing even if they are made over the phone. Be sure to take notes and write a letter after the conversation stating all that was mentioned in the conversation and send it to your mortgage company.
If the thought of negotiating a short sale in Colorado Springs by yourself sounds daunting, then find a good Short Sale Service to do the work for you. We offer a Full Service Short Sale package that covers everything from putting your home on the market and finding a buyer to negotiating the entire short sale on your behalf. And it won't cost you one red cent out of pocket.
So you've heard about short sales. Now you'd like to find out if you might qualify for a Colorado Springs Short Sale yourself. Here's a quick litmus test:
No Ability to Pay Current Mortage
This is really the very first criteria the bank looks at. If a small adjustment on you payment would help ensure you could pay the mortgage, they might consider a loan modification instead. If you can't make the payment regardless of how they might restructure your loan, then a short sale becomes an option.
The bank will want to look at all of your current financial information, like pay stubs, bank statements and a list of all your current expenses. They'll compare that information to your current payment and see if they think you could make the payment by using a formula. If they see that your debt load and expenses far outweigh your income, they'll open the door for a Colorado Springs short sale.
Lack of Equity
Is your home worth less than what you owe? If you have enough equity in your home to sell it, cover all the transaction costs and still break even or make money, then the bank won't consider a short sale. It only makes sense for them if you have to take a loss to get the home sold. They view the mortgage repayment as your responsibility, so if there's any way you could pay off the entire loan in a sale, they will expect you to do so.
Valid Hardship
Is there a good reason you are having difficulties making your payments? Do you have unexpected medical bills, sudden job relocation or termination? This is another way the bank determines your ability to pay back the loan. They'll require a handwritten hardship letter explaining why you can't make your payments anymore. It doesn't have to be 10 pages long or a sad story, just a simple explanation of your situation.
Desire to Resolve Situation
If you care about your financial future and your ability to get credit or even a home in the future, then a Colorado Springs short sale is a much better alternative to foreclosure. It will take some work on your part and the process can take a few months. And while there's little work in a foreclosure, you'll receive constant harassment from the banks, their lawyers and you'll find it next to impossible to get a home loan in the next 6 years.
If you're willing to roll up your sleeves, organize your house and get your life back on track, you can be in a much better place within 9 months. And within 2 years, you may start to get qualified for a mortgage again. There are rewards to stepping up and taking action to resolve your current hardships. And while some effort will be required on your part, you can set yourself up for a much happier life in the near future.
If you don't register your CAC card by March 2nd, you may not be.
The Air Force is working implementing a new Defense Biometric Identification System (DBIDS) starting on 3/2/09. It's a scanning device that checks your CAC card to verify your identity. Peterson AFB had some early trials on this new system and experienced some traffic backups (as expected.)
The biggest help to make your entrance onto Peterson AFB is to have your Military ID card ready in hand when you drive up to the gate (if you aren't already in that habit.)
What happens if you don't register by Mar 2, 2009?
You'll be sent to the Visitor's Center to get access to base. Not a deal-killer, but will certainly add some time to your entrance.
So if you're planning on making a house-hunting trip to check out Peterson AFB real estate for a Colorado Springs Military Relocation, make sure you're registered with DBIDS (especially if you want to make those in-processing appointments on time!)
Contact me if you'd moving to the area and would like to use Colorado Springs PCS Services to make this your smoothest PCS yet.
Today's real estate market can be complicated. The declining markets have made it a real challenge to sell your home and the current economic climate can make for a seemingly impossible situation. Most people are only aware of 2 different ways to get out from under your home. If you have equity, then you could do a traditional sale, if not, then foreclosure looms around the corner as a second option.
There's another way to sell your home if you don't have equity. It's called a short sale and can be one of the best ways out of your current situation. Banks approve short sales throughout the U.S., so you could certainly do a Colorado Springs short sale once you learn the basics.
Not Enough Equity in Your Home
With our declining real estate market, most people that purchased a home or refinanced since 2004 do not have enough equity to sell their home. If they're upside down, owing more for their home than it's currently worth, then a traditional sale is out of the question. And even if your home is worth current market value, the transactions themselves can be expensive. That's where a Colorado Springs short sale comes into play.
With a short sale, the bank will let you sell your home for a loss and potentially forgive the difference that you owe. They can reserve the right to ask you to pay back the difference, although it's a point you can often negotiate. It also damages your credit, but not nearly to the extent that a foreclosure would. It's a way of minimizing the damage and moving on from your current situation and most importantly, a short sale gives you back control of your situation.
Acquire a Buyer and Written Contract
Your very first step is to find a buyer for your home. You have to have a written offer to take to the bank. You can do this the traditional route, by hiring a Realtor and putting your home on the Multiple Listing Service. In fact, most banks recommend using a Realtor to make sure the transaction is done correctly. At this point, don't worry about their commission. In this particular case the bank usually pays them at closing.
Send the Contract and Short Sale Package to Your Lender
Once you have an offer, you submit it to the lender along with your short sale package. If you found a good realtor with short sale experience, they should organize your package and submit it to the bank for you. There's a lot that goes into this package, like your financial information, the offer, a title report and an estimated closing statement.
It's a lot to put together, so you may want to start this process early. The bank won't even consider your Colorado Springs short sale until they have a complete package. Usually they'll provide a checklist of everything you need to send them. Once they have the package, they'll assign a loss mitigation specialist to your file.
The Bank Reviews Your File
At this point the bank will review your the offer, you package and the market value of the property. The bank's job is to get the most amount of money they can for the loan. Or rather, to minimize their loss as much as possible. So they'll compare how much they'll get by accepting a short sale by how much they'd get with foreclosure. And foreclosures can be very expensive. The bank will have to hire a lawyer for the 6-12 months it takes to complete foreclosure proceedings, hire a Realtor themselves, clean the property and try to sell a vacant home that hasn't been cared for in months.
Once they've made their analysis, the bank will then either approve the Colorado short sale, make a counter offer or simply reject it altogether. They may counter the buyer or even ask you to bring money to the closing table. If your using a Realtor or Negotiation service, they will handle this for you.When you receive final short sale approval, the bank will set a deadline for closing.
Finalize the Paperwork
Now that you have approval, the closing process is nearly the same as a traditional sale. At this point, you'll sign over the deed to the new buyers as well as any paperwork the bank requires. This will include documents for any mortgages or liens you have on the property and any agreements you made with the bank during negotiation.
Once you have finished closing, you'll have a fresh start on your finances and your life. A Colorado Springs short sale will bring a quicker resolution to your situation and usually on much better financial terms for you.
Here's a great Colorado Springs short sale home just minutes from Peterson AFB.
It has a lot to offer with large neighborhood trees and a giant back yard. As a 3 bedroom/3 bathroom home it's a perfect fit for the First-Time Home Buyer. Inside you'll find upgraded countertops and new paint. If you're looking for a home near Peterson AFB, this is it. The Peterson North Gate is less than 5 minutes away...also making it a great fit for Schriever military members, too.
It's priced to sell fast, so get inside to see it today!
Great Home Just Minutes from Peterson AFB
Location: Cimmaron Hills
Great family home minutes from Peterson AFB. Large, spacious backyard with mature landscaping. This 2 level house has 3 bedrooms on the main floor and a great family area in the bottom level. Large garage easily fits 2 cars. Perfect for first time and starting families.
Jamie is a residential Colorado Springs real estate and Colorado Springs Military PCS specialist, providing buyer and seller services for Peterson AFB real estate, Fort Carson real estate, Schriever AFB real estate and Air Force Academy real estate.
Welcome to another installment of the Peterson AFB Real Estate Minute!
Today I'd like to cover the topic of New Homes.
I've blogged a few times about the Banning Lewis Ranch Community. Why? It seems a lot of my Colorado Springs Military Relocation clients gravitate to that community. After looking at all the resale homes (previously owned) they start to see the same thing over and over again. And it's true. You can get some great deals and great housing in the Powers Corridor and Briargate neighborhoods.
What differentiates Banning Lewis is the Community aspect. They have a ton of trails and park space in their first small subdivision (North Tree.) They also mandate front yard landscaping and varying the models and exterior finishing of homes (stucco, stone, siding) so each street looks like a symphony of colors and textures. And of course, there's the Ranch House itself, with an great outdoor fireplace and lounge, Jr Olympic-sized swimming pool, picnic area with large gas grills and brand new tennis courts.
To top it all off, this community has a D-49 Charter School for kids K-8.That makes it pretty darn appealing for anyone with kids. If you're in the market to buy, now's a time to get some great deals out there, too. It's definitely a buyer's market when it comes to new homes.
A quick word of advice if you want to go look: take a Realtor with you (if you're seriously considering a home.) The builder reps in Banning Lewis are all wonderful people (I've become friends with quite a few from all the time I've spent out there.) Just realize that ultimately they represent the Builder's best interests. Take someone with you who represents you and your family's interest.
So that's it! The reasons why Banning Lewis Ranch has been such a popular choice for my clients that have been looking at Peterson AFB Real Estate.
Jamie is a residential Colorado Springs real estate and Colorado Springs Military Relocation specialist, providing buyer and seller services for Peterson AFB real estate, Fort Carson real estate, Schriever AFB real estate and Air Force Academy real estate.
In the land of news and media, most stories that grab the headlines are doom and gloom. So it's nice to share a story with a happy ending.
A few months ago I was working with a young couple who were looking to buy their first home. And like a lot of buyers in the Colorado Springs Real Estate Market, they selected several Short Sale and Bank-owned properties. One of the major challenges of our current MLS search system is that it won't flag these homes. So if you're a buyer looking online, you just see a great deal...not that it's a Short Sale.
The challenge of writing a buyer contract on a Colorado Springs Short Sale is the waiting period involved. After the seller accepts your offer, the bank can take anywhere from 2 weeks to 4 months to approve it. And there's no guarantee that they will.
However, if you can be a little patient (and don't need to move into a home right away), you can get a great price on a nice home.
Knowing the challenges and the opportunities involved, my buyers decided to make an offer. After the bank busted our initial time table of 3 weeks for an answer, the buyers decided to give them 7 more days. And at the end of that week, the bank came back and approved a sale that was about $20,000 less than the exact same model down the street was selling for. And the bank paid for their closing cost to boot!
My clients moved into their home a few weeks ago (which was very well maintained) and are absolutely thrilled with their first house.
Knowing the process allowed me to counsel these new home buyers on what to expect. And going in with reasonable expections, knowing that nothing was guaranteed, they ended up with a great home for a great price.
Jamie is a residential Colorado Springs real estate and Colorado Springs Military Relocation specialist, providing buyer and seller services for both traditional and short sale homes.
The Peterson AFB Aero Club is one of the coolest (and expensive) services on the base. If you have a current pilot's license, you can rent an aircraft for the day or weekend. And if you don't have license, not to worry, the Aeroclub's got you covered.
You can take classes there to get your pilot's license. Rates are very reasonable (compared to their civilian counterpart.) And once you have your pass, you can get all kinds of add-on ratings like instruments and multi-engine.
Best of all, if you're Active Duty, you can get tuition assistance for part of the training (ground school.) I also have some friends that used their VA benefits to get their training and go on to fly for the airline industries (you'll have to get additional training for that!)
Contact me if you have any questions about Peterson AFB Real Estate or want to work with a Military Relocation Specialist as a Buyer's Agent for your move.
Jamie specializes in Colorado Springs Real Estate and Colorado Springs Military Relocation, providing buyer and seller services for Peterson AFB Real Estate, Fort Carson Real Estate, Schriever AFB Real Estate and Air Force Academy Real Estate.
Today we look at Peterson's new BX and Commissary complex. It's a brand new building that opened in June of 2007 and has to be one of the nicest (and cleanest) BX/Commissaries I've ever been to.
As you can see in the picture below, the Commissary aisles are wide open and spacious. They also have one of the largest selections of food in the city...comparable to Albertson's and King Soopers (Colorado grocery store.) This includes a sushi station (prepared fresh daily, of course), a large selection of Natural Meats (no hormones added) and all the frozen foods you could ever ask for. Best of all, it's one of the few Commissaries in the entire Air Force that's open 7 days a week.
Peterson AFB Commissary Hours
Normal Hours
Sun: 0900 - 1900
Mon: 0900 - 2000
Tue: 0900 - 2000
Wed: 0900 - 2000
Thu: 0900 - 2000
Fri: 0900 - 2000
Sat: 0800 - 2000
Early Bird Hours
Sun: N/A - N/A
Mon: 0700 - 0900
Tue: 0700 - 0900
Wed: 0700 - 0900
Thu: 0700 - 0900
Fri: 0700 - 0900
Sat: N/A - N/A
The Peterson BX is large for an Air Force Base and has lots of little restaurants and shops, including the regulars like the Barber Shop and Uniform Sales. Becoming a bit trendier than most other bases, it also sports a Starbucks. Here's a run down of the BX hours and shops.
Peterson AFB BX Shops and Hours
Main BX Store Mon-Sat 0800-2000/ Sun 0900-1900
Food Court Area
Anthony's Pizza Mon-Fri 1030-1900/ Sat 1030-1800/ Sun 1030-1700
Taco Bell Mon-Fri 1100-1900/ Sat 1100-1800/ Sun 1100-1700
Charley's Steakery Mon-Fri 0730-1900/ Sat & Sun 1000-1700
Manchu Wok Mon-Sun 1100-1600
Robin Hood Mon-Fri 1100-1400/ Sat & Sun Closed
Starbucks Coffee Mon-Fri 0700-1800/ Sat 0900-1700/ Sun 1000-1700
Clothing Sales Mon-Fri 0930-1730/ Sat & Sun 1000-1600
Alterations Mon-Fri 0930-1730/ Sat 1000-1600/ Sun 1000-1600
Jamie is a residential Colorado Springs real estate and Colorado Springs Military Relocation specialist, providing buyer and seller services for Peterson AFB real estate, Fort Carson real estate, Schriever AFB real estate and Air Force Academy Real Estate.
Perhaps more prevalent than any other profession is the trap of living a manic lifestyle, running from one fire to another with a bucket of water, trying not to let our business burn down...or drown ourselves in the process of saving it.
I see it everyday...and sometimes I'm really tempted to follow suit.
You see...I've developed a schedule...or just a few habits...that actually skyrockets my business productivity by focusing on myself first.
Are you ready for my big secret?
It's 3 simple things:
1. I sit and do nothing for an hour every morning
2. I take extra care of the only thing I really own
3. I'm a master of sleep
I'll elaborate a little more on each of these.
Meditation
Every morning the very first thing I do is meditate for an hour. At this point most of you are already saying "Are you crazy?! I don't have time for that!" Hear me out on this. During my sit, I clear my thoughts and boost my energy. By the time I'm done, I have a very clear picture of exactly what steps I need to take to make the most progress in my day.
How would your business take off if you focused on the important tasks and stopped spending so much time worrying about things out of your control? How would your bottom line grow if you could pull yourself out of the weeds everyday and look around to see what direction would make you the most profit?
That's what I get out of meditation. The hour I spend sitting gives me at least 3 times that in high production activities.
You can start by spending a little quiet time in the morning to take stock of where your at. Look at your goals. Do something quiet where it's just you. If you feel like meditating, then give it a try. I started with 10 minutes at a time. After a while it felt good to do a little more. And the effects are cumulative. The more days you stick with it, the bigger the effect it will have on your life and your business.
Exercise
The second habit I've established is taking care of my body through consistent exercise. It's the next part of my day. When I first started my business, I was so focused on getting it off the ground that I didn't take time to workout. About 3 months later I was completely dragging. I went from whistling in the morning and bouncing up the stairs to crawling up them and contemplating the virtues of an elevator.
That's when I decided to incorporate a consistent workout regimen. I started with walking a little bit everyday. If I didn't feel like walking, I did it anyway...and just walked slower, but walk I did. As my legs and lungs started building endurance I wanted something more challenging. So I started running. Like walking, it was a little bit at a time. Then I ran a little longer. Now I go trail running in the park three times a week.
Want to know the best part about that? My business endurance has grown in lockstep with my exercise endurance. I'm now more focused and more energized than I ever have been before. That translates to more blogging, more prospecting and more closings.
Sleep
This is the final piece of the puzzle for me. I make sure I get 7-8 hours of sleep everyday. This is probably the biggest challenge for our profession. If you allow it, you'll have clients calling you all the way to 10pm and beyond (I have some colleagues that actually encourage that kind of thing!)
Every now and then I'll make a phone call after 8pm, but it's a rare practice. My clients understand that I work hard for them all day...and I need rest if I'm gonna work hard for them the next day. The way I see it, if you stay up late to work, then you're stealing from tomorrow's productivity. Do that often enough and soon you don't have any productivity left when you get up! You'll just be sitting at your desk...staring at the computer, getting absolutely nothing done.
The other sleep hurdle for most people is getting their mind chatter to slow down long enough to drift into a restful slumber. That's where the other two habits really help. Meditation clears the mind enough to keep the chatter down and exercise tires my body enough to crave the night's rest.
How Do I Find the Time?
To make this work, I wake up between 5am and 6am everyday. And I'm in bed between 9pm and 10pm. It's a matter of drive and discipline. I have enough drive to accomplish my goals that I make myself have the discipline to wake up on time and more importantly, go to bed on time.
Finally, it's a matter of my business's bottom line. Say what you will about the schedule I keep, but its designed to give me the best chance to grow my business and increase my bottom line. Since I've started these habits, my productivity is through the roof! And it's important to me that I keep it there.
I make the time to take care of myself, so I can be at my peak for my business, my family and my friendships. And if I feel really good while I'm doing...then double bonus!
How do you live and work at your best?
I'd like to hear how you find balance in your busy life. My way is certainly not the only way...just the one that works best for me. How do you live your life and your business?
Disclaimer: ActiveRain Corp. does not necessarily endorse the real estate agents, loan officers and brokers listed on this site. These real estate profiles, blogs and blog entries are provided here as a courtesy to our visitors to help them make an informed decision when buying or selling a house. ActiveRain Corp. takes no responsibility for the content in these profiles, that are written by the members of this community.
So you've heard about short sales. Now you'd like to find out if you might qualify for a 
In the land of news and media, most stories that grab the headlines are doom and gloom. So it's nice to share a story with a happy ending.
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