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foreclosure: What's it Really Like to Buy A Foreclosure? A Realtor's Search for a New Home - 09/22/11 02:32 PM
"The first rule of Fight Club - Don't talk about Fight Club"
I'm about to break all the rules about client confidentiality and fiduciary responsibility. Realtors aren't supposed to talk about contracts in detail, as it's a breach of trust with their clients. Well, it seems I just found a loophole! I'm in the process of buying a house myself. A foreclosure to be exact, and over the next few weeks I'm going to go into detail exactly how the negotiation, inspections, qualifying and closing actually workson my transaction. I've been quietly looking for months to try and find a home … (1 comments)
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foreclosure: Video Blog- The Cold Hard Facts about the Foreclosure Freeze - 10/17/10 01:44 PM
Wondering what this whole robo-signing scandal really means here in Maryland? Watch this video to find out and let us know what you think! … (0 comments)
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foreclosure: Missed a Mortgage Payment in Southern Maryland? You're Not Alone - 06/10/10 04:36 PM
According to the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), 10% of homeowners missed at least one mortgage payment in the first quarter of 2010, a new record from the previous quarter's 9.5% (see the full article at USA Today).
The 10% figure already accounts for 'seasonal adjustments,' such as heating costs and holiday expenses that tend to increase mortgage delinquencies during the last quarter of the year; many of the homeowners who were behind catch up in the following spring. Without the adjustments, the percentage dropped like would normally be expected.
What's Happening With Foreclosures Not surprisingly, 4.6% of homeowners were in foreclosure … (1 comments)
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foreclosure: More Proof That Bank of America Sucks - 01/26/10 10:57 AM
Sadly, I'm starting to sound like a broken record when writing posts about Bank of America. It appears they have, once again, foreclosed on the wrong house.
Bank of America Strikes Again According to a South Coast Today article (see Couple claims Bank of America seized the wrong house), homeowners Charlie and Maria Cardoso filed a lawsuit against Bank of America/Countrywide for foreclosing on their home. Now, you may think that this was just another mistake due to some sort of miscommunication between the homeowners and the bank - but you'd be wrong. The truly frightening aspect of this particular … (3 comments)
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foreclosure: The Wile E. Coyote method of renting foreclosures - 12/04/08 01:50 AM
\I had a conversation with a fellow Realtor recently about the concept of banks renting their REO foreclosures rather than selling them outright, and you would have thought I had grown a third head! "Banks can't do that!" I was told, followed by a rather lengthy explanation.Believe it or not, the fact of the matter is that banks CAN in fact rent out their foreclosed homes, and some banks are starting to do so! I think back to the old Road Runner and Wiley Coyote cartoons, where some (seemingly) brilliant idea brought the Coyote one step closer to victory, until some … (1 comments)
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foreclosure: Fannie & Freddie Takeover-How Does This Affect Your Clients? - 09/07/08 10:37 AM
There's been quite a few stories this evening about the Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac Takeover this evening. The first question on many people's minds is: What Does This Mean To Me?
I'm not going to muse on the repercussions of holding their stock (ask the wall street analysts, but it doesn't look good), but I do want to look at what this means for ordinary folk like you and I that may have a mortgage backed by the lending giants.
You see, the purpose here is to PREVENT Fannie and Freddie from going under. They've lost over 3 billion dollars in … (6 comments)
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foreclosure: Buying A Charles County MD Real Estate Foreclosure?: Get It Inspected! - 08/21/08 01:22 PM
There seems to be a common misconception about buying a real estate foreclosure in Charles County. Banks are trying to get as much money as possible for the real estate they own, but they typically demand that their homes are sold "as-is".
This does NOT mean that you should skip the home inspection! Quite the contrary, if you're trying to buy a primary residence, the inspection is absolutely crucial!
Don't believe me? Well, would you buy a car without knowing it runs? Buying a home without an inspection is the same concept. Does the furnace … (0 comments)
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foreclosure: How Do I Low-Ball a Foreclosure? Very Carefully! - 08/20/08 02:24 PM
Trying to buy one of the multiple foreclosures (REO, or Real Estate Owned) for sale in Waldorf, MD or Charles County MD? Most folks who are trying to buy a foreclosure are looking for a great deal, and while there are some deals to be had, it seems like there is just as much overpriced junk that needs to be reduced in order to sell.
In comes the concept of the low-ball offer. Low-balling is where you offer considerably less than the asking price on a home. It's easy enough to write (You always have the right to offer as much … (0 comments)
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foreclosure: CHARLES COUNTY, MD FORECLOSURE LIST UPDATE (5/9/2008) - 05/08/08 01:44 PM
Foreclosures are up slightly in Charles County, and here is the latest list of properties available on the market that are bank-owned. It includes foreclosures in Waldorf, La Plata, White Plains, Newburg, Hughesville, and all of Charles County!
Bank Owned Homes For Sale in Charles County
If you have any questions, or would like to be added to our automatic daily updates, please give me a ring or drop me an email and let me know!
… (0 comments)
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foreclosure: Wacko Jacko Foreclosure! - 02/29/08 10:57 AM
I can't say that I'm terribly surprised, but Michael Jackson's famous Neverland Ranch is about to hit the auction block unless he can pay off roughly $25 million that he currently owes on the property.
The property itself is 2,500 acres, so if it were to be sold at auction, the starting price tag of $25,000,000 would be roughly $10,000 per acre! At that price it would be a STEAL for a developer or perhaps another eccentric celebrity with money to burn (Britney Spears, perhaps?). Who knows if Jacko can pay off the lean in time, we'll see soon. (Bubbles the … (0 comments)
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foreclosure: Courthouse Auction Blues - 02/22/08 09:56 PM
The Washington Post just posted an article titled: "Foreclosure Auctioneer's Lonely Task". It's an interesting read, even if it's a bit theatrical. There was a quote in there that I found particularly striking:
"Banks don't want your house; they want your money. They want to work with you so you can keep your house. With the market like it is, lenders don't want to foreclose on you."
If this were genuinely the case, why is there such an onslaught of REO homes nowadays? I think it's a genuine sentiment, but the current mortgage problems like this are occurring anyways, … (7 comments)
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foreclosure: PROJECT LIFELINE- A Viable Mortgage Relief Solution, Or Another Government Gimmick? - 02/12/08 04:33 PM
Project Lifeline has been formally announced, and it's being touted as another way for homeowners to avoid foreclosure. Like it's counterpart, Hope Now, Project Lifeline is another "relief" program designed to soften the economic impact of the sub-prime mortgage crisis.
Here's what was announced on the AP News Wire:
Homeowners threatened with foreclosure would in some instances get a 30-day reprieve under an initiative the Bush administration announced Tuesday.Dubbed "Project Lifeline," the program will be available to people who have taken out all types of mortgages, not just the high-cost sub-prime loans that have been the focus of previous … (3 comments)
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foreclosure: Dogs Abandoned in the Foreclosure Fallout - 02/03/08 01:13 PM
\Foreclosure Dogs are becoming big news. Man's best friend is quickly becoming an expendable commodity to some as people are losing their homes to the credit crunch. Regardless of what the circumstances were for the foreclosure, it's not the pet's fault, and now many of them are finding themselves facing euthanization.
The Washington Post recently ran an associated press article about the growing number of cats and dogs abandoned because of foreclosures.
The house was ravaged _ its floors ripped, walls busted and lights smashed by owners who trashed their home before a bank foreclosed on it. Hidden in the wreckage … (8 comments)
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foreclosure: Charles County Maryland Foreclosure Report February 2008 - 02/03/08 12:02 PM
Charles County has seen an upswing in Bank Owned (REO) properties for sale in the past month. In my last report, I indicated that there were 55 current foreclosures on the market in Charles County. That number has now crept up to 69.
Increasing Foreclosures
REO properties are rising because of the fallout from the credit crunch, obviously. Foreclosures negatively affect the value of homes and force the overall value of homes in a region to decrease. As the number of foreclosures goes up, the cost of buying falls, plain and simple.
Some (not all) of the foreclosures that are on … (0 comments)
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foreclosure: George Bush and Short Sale Forgiveness - 12/21/07 03:42 PM
Are you in the midst of a short sale, or about to do one, and worried about the associated tax burden that goes along with it? There's so good news for you, thanks to a bill signed yesterday, the first GENUINE relief for homeowners trying to avoid foreclosure.
Yesterday, President Bush signed H.R. 3648, The Mortgage Forgiveness Act of 2007 into law, sparing homeowners the federal tax burden associated with canceled mortgage debt.
Prior to this action, forgiven mortgage debt due to foreclosure, short sale, or deed in lieu of foreclosure, was considered taxable income. … (6 comments)
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foreclosure: Understanding the Housing Slump - 12/14/07 02:23 PM
There was an interesting news piece this morning on NBC 4, talking about how the Maryland housing market is going to continue like this for the next year. The report was based off of anticipated loss of tax revenues due to the housing slump, and stated that the market is not about to improve in the near future. This got me to thinking about what exactly it's going to take in order to see any sort of market improvement. In order to see a turn-around, we need to understand what is causing this mess in the first place. Overpriced Mark-Ups … (0 comments)
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foreclosure: Considering a Short Sale? Here's What You Need to Know! - 12/09/07 02:58 PM
A lot of people are facing some very hard decisions right now. Being Foreclosed on is a process that can be embarrassing, humiliating, it destroys good credit records, and is often a very traumatic experience for good people swallowed up by bad loans.
There are options to avoid situations like this if you find you are behind on your mortgage, however, and one of those options is to consider doing a Short Sale.
A Short Sale is a process by which the homeowner agrees to sell their home prior to foreclosure at a price that is less than … (2 comments)
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foreclosure: MORTGAGE SCAM ON NBC NIGHTLY NEWS! - 12/02/07 11:21 PM
I'm so relieved to see this story making national news!! It seems that Joy Jackson, aka "Night Rider" to all her friends back at the strip club, was recently featured on MSNBC Nightly News (video link). In addition, there seems to be a growing number of people interest in her and her partners current whereabouts. Funny how people frown upon $800,000 weddings when the bride may have cheated them out of their home equity. I highly doubt her proceeds as an, ahem, "entertainer" managed to pay for Ms. Patti LaBelle's presence there! (I also heard she gave away a Porsche, and … (6 comments)
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foreclosure: Avoiding Foreclosure- Why It Matters and What you can do to save your home! - 11/28/07 02:51 PM
Are you falling behind on your mortgage payments? Are you at risk of losing your home because that pesky arm has made your payments impossible? There IS hope for people out that who are at risk of losing their home. If you're worried about foreclosure, here's a few important things to do to help you avoid foreclosure. 1. Don't Ignore the Problem If you find that you are unable to make your payments you need to approach the problem in a proactive manner. Avoiding the issue until the bank starts calling is NOT the … (2 comments)
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foreclosure: Foreclosure Buying Tips- What You NEED To Know! Part 2- Foreclosures & Auctions - 11/24/07 03:07 PM
This is part 2 of a 3 part series on how foreclosures work and how to find the best home to fit your needs at the best price. There's really no great mystery to it, but there is a process to it and I'm here to do my best explaining how each step works and how you can capitalize on it as a consumer to keep a little more cash in your pocket.The 3 steps are this:
Pre-Foreclosure ForeclosurePost Foreclosure REO(Real Estate Owned) I will be posting this as a 3-part series, so I will break explain Post-foreclosure and REO … (0 comments)
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Southern Maryland Real Estate~ Jonathan Benya
Waldorf,
MD
More about me…
Keller Williams Southern Maryland
Address: 3261 Old Washington Rd, #2040, Waldorf, MD, 20602
Office Phone: (301) 632-5454 x 272
Cell Phone: (301) 653-8113
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