Let's get working on that credit report!  By now you know what you owe and that ultimately, and unfortunately, you have to pay it back. That part really sucks doesn't it?

This is probably going to be my longest blog so far, so be patient with me as I walk you through to the best of my ability how to help you pay off your debt and achieve the dream of Home Ownership!

You have debt.  You need to pay off your debt to be financially set to own a home. Simple as that. I have put together a "mock" chart of what you owe, balances, minimum payments, etc.  We are going to work off of that. If you want to follow along with your own bills, make a list on a sheet of paper and write down the information as it pertains to you, using the chart below as an example. Good luck....here we go....

Total Debt: $317,784.46.....WOW! No, not really that bad at all!

First of all take away the fact that you owe $xxxxx amount of dollars on your mortgage. A House payment is a house payment is a house payment. Whether you are renting or have a mortgage. It is there forever more until you move, or sell, or someone is nice enough to hand you a million dollars or the key to a brand new home out of the goodness of their heart. (BTW if anyone ever does that for you, please have them contact me - I'd love to be their friend too!)

For now, I am going to move forward assuming that you are renting, or live with family, etc. We are going to focus on the debt that's making your credit score low and the potential to buy a home even lower.

Ok, so this is what our debt REALLY looks like...

THIS is the debt on your credit report. Let's take care of it. How? I'll show you. Remember, I am NOT a credit counselor, a mortgage lender, and I'm definitely not a credit card company! I am showing you from my own personal experience. I have been to a credit counselor in the past, and this is how they showed me, so I'm passing along my knowledge to you. Let's get started....

1. Make a payment arrangement with Intermountain Health Care. Most Doctors and Hospitals will work with you on the balance you owe. But, treat them like a monthly bill. Be on time! They can and will report you to a credit collection agency and possibly a lawyer if you don't pay. You will notice that I put a dollar amount next to the Words "Due In Full", we are going to use this number as the monthly payment amount due for the Medical bill.

2. Do not look at the interest rates! Most common mistake! People assume that they must pay off the creditor with the highest interest rate first....WRONG! Start with the lowest balance. Then work your way up. I'll show you how in a few minutes...

3. Stick to your budget! Anyone who owns a computer has a program for writing a monthly household budget.  Microsoft Office comes with one, you can make your own if you are just a tiny bit handy with making tables on your word processor or spreadsheet, or you can write one out in a notebook. Whatever is most convenient.  If you prefer, you can click on any of the links below to print out a blank, or use an online program:

http://www.womens-finance.com/worksheets.shtml

http://www.dollartimes.com/download-and-print/blank-budget-worksheet.htm

http://financialplan.about.com/cs/budgeting/l/blbudget.htm

http://quicken.intuit.com/

My favorite is quicken. I use the larger version, QuickBooks, but only because I own a Company. Quicken is very useful. I highly suggest that everyone look into purchasing something similar. You will keep better records of your finances and it is great when tax time rolls around. It is amazing to see how you spend your money when you are putting it in black and white. 

Ok, moving right along...

Now we know that we have monthly payments in the amount of $675.00. Let's get started figuring out how we are going to pay this off!

I am going to use a chart that I made for myself when I was not able to see the "bigger picture" of paying off my debt a certain way. So my trial and error is going to be your success!

The rules are simple...

1. First take the smallest amount owed (in this case First National Bank Visa) and start making your monthly payments. Any additional Money you receive, (Taxes, Christmas, Gifts, etc) put towards that payment.

2. When that is paid off, go to the next smallest balance (Household Bank Credit Card).

a. THIS IS WHERE YOU START SEEING YOUR DEBT DISAPPEAR!

b. The same applies to this card, any additional money goes towards paying it off PLUS the money you were sending as a minimum payment to the 1st debt! Example: The Payment to First National Bank was $45 / month. When you paid that off, you have $45 / month extra - add that to your payment to Household Bank Credit Card of $180. You are now paying $225 / month towards this debt.

c. You see the point, so follow the chart. So forth and so forth....

By the way, you will probably have more than the original balanced owed due to interest, fees, etc. So you may need to adjust your balances accordingly. But you can still get to your goal!

Start with the debt highlighted in RED, make this your primary payoff goal. The items in BLUE will continue to only be normal monthly minimum payments. Once you pay one off, it becomes GREEN for MORE MONEY to use towards the next one, which then becomes RED until it becomes GREEN and so on and so on.

CONGRATULATIONS!!! YOU ARE NOW OUT OF CREDIT CARD DEBT!!!

 Please don't make the most common mistake once your card is being paid down or completely paid off...DON'T KEEP CHARGING! We will talk about that more in Part V!

Until then...

Stay Positive!

Sandy

Hopefully by now you have pulled your credit report....AND....talked with a Lender.  But, if you are a procrastinator, my worst fault, you have not. Shame Shame Shame....

I received an email today from a Mortgage Lender I work with and I absolutely had to share this link with you. It will help you understand WHY it is so important to know what is going on in your report.

Here is the link:

Yahoo FICO Score Article

Please let me know if you have any questions, or if you need help reading your credit report!

Stay Positive!

Sandy

Ok, here is the first step. Are you ready? It's really tough...

PULL YOUR CREDIT REPORT!!!!!

How do you know where you stand if you have absolutely NO IDEAwhat's on your credit report? Unfortunately this is how you are measured in the "financial world". It doesn't matter that you are a nice person and always there for your friends and family. It doesn't matter that you would give the shirt off your back for a loan. And no matter what....the bank does not take "pinky promises" to pay back the loan (I already tried)!!

So what is a "credit report"? It is a record of an individual's current and past debt repayment patterns. A credit history helps a lender (ie: bank, car loans, mortgages, etc) to determine whether a borrower has a history of repaying debts in a timely manner. A credit report also includes information found from public records including tax liens and judgments. They also like to see that you are not "maxed out" on all of your cards. Can you keep minimal balances?

There are dozens of sites you can go to for a copy of your credit report, here are a few:

• www.annualcreditreport.com ~ You can pull all 3 Bureau's at once, or pull one bureau every 4 months, it's your choice.  I suggest this site - it's completely free!
• www.freecreditreport.com
• www.creditreport.com
• www.truecredit.com

Ok, print your report out & keep a copy. Most reports are fairly easy to read. You will notice that there is a "Public Records" section also. This section goes through any names that may be listed as "alias", if you are a married woman it will show your maiden name, if you have middle names, same thing there, etc. 

PAY CLOSE ATTENTION TO YOUR CREDIT REPORT!  If there are ANY errors report them to the credit bureaus immediately! You have the right to dispute errors on your report! Follow this link to learn how to dispute items on your credit report:

http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/credit/cre21.shtm

What's a FICO?

FICO stands for Fair Isaac Company, the company that created--and computes--this credit score. Although other companies also compute credit scores, FICO is the most trusted, and most used, score.

"It's asking me if I want to get my FICO score for additional cost....do I?"My opinion....NO!  Get a copy of your credit report first. If there are a lot of problems, let's face it, your FICO is probably low, so don't waste your money. If you have decent to good credit, then you can decide if you want to pay for it, in that case I probably would. It's about $15.00 depending on what site you go on.

I suggest you follow this link and learn about FICO scores and how they are calculated and affect you.  Remember, the better your credit=the higher your FICO score=the better loan you will get!

www.myfico.com

Ok, here is step two....again....very tough....

GO TALK TO A LENDER!!!

You can take a copy of your credit report with you, but most likely they will run a copy for their file from their system. You are probably wondering why I am sending you to a lender since I already told you to run your credit report. The answer is simple....If you have great credit, you already know you can get a loan. But, if you have even one blemish on your report, you need to talk to a qualified Lender/Bank who can help you figure out what steps you need to take to become eligible for the goal you are trying to accomplish - meaning purchasing a home, or any kind of Real Estate. Go over your options with them, that is what they are there for. BORROWER BEWARE: If you see something that says "For this much $ we can fix your credit" Don't do it! I doesn't always work. Sometimes it does, but it's your decision if you want to take that chance. Again....talk to your lender.  Make sure you feel your lender is someone you feel confident in, that you can trust and you know that they are working WITH you and not working for themselves. I can refer you to many lenders, email me for a list sandrambailey@yahoo.com

Ok....what are you still doing here? Go pull your report!

Stay Positive!

Sandy

P.S. My biggest tip to you right now is this:

DO NOT PROCRASTINATE! If you intend on buying anything, especially a home, any time at all in the future, you MUST do this NOW! It is better to know where you stand now and work your way towards your goal! You will regret it later if you don't!

We've all heard the phrase atleast once in our lives "living within your means". The phrase simply means, you spend more than you make.

Anyone that knows me, knows that I am very close with my family, and to this day, my extremely successful Father will still come up to me and say, "Daughter....you're not living within your means".  Funny isn't it?  But he's right.

It's not something you can change right away, but with the right mind-set and a lot (and I do mean A LOT) of hard work and persistence WE can get there.

Some things that I notice myself doing that are financial no-no's especially in this bad economy...

• Buy 1 for $3.00, but buy 2 and you get them for $5.50 ~ yep....I'll buy the two, but I only need 1
• Children's Place is having a sale - I can buy my kids clothes for NEXT year! ~ Guilty.....
• It's a tax write off if I buy myself 4 brand new outfits ~ When is tax time again?????
• As long as I have enough to pay the minimum amount due, then I'll be fine ~ Sigh....

The list goes on and on and unfortunately on and on and on.... Are you in this boat too? I am not here to preach to you that I am going to turn myself around and be out of debt in a month - no that would take a miracle! But what I will show you in the next few blogs is WHY we live outside of our means, and WHAT we can do to get back to where we need to be....REGARDLESS OF THE ECONOMY!

So what's the big deal if I use the credit card and it's maxed out, right? I make my payments on time. No, I have don't have money in the bank, but I still pay my bills as needed. I MUST have good credit....

This is the reason I want to help you. These are common misconceptions that will not help in leading you to the road of financial freedom and home ownership. 

The Real Estate Market is still a great investment, and with the tax credit being extended, now is the time to buy or invest. The market WILL get better. Will you get better too???? Yes, you will, and so will I - we will work on this together :) But we must apply ourselves NOW!

I am a FIRM follower of Dave Ramsey (mostly recently of course), and I advise you to follow this link and take his challenge...

http://www.daveramsey.com/tools/beat-daves-plan/

Until next time....

Stay Positive!

Sandy

Dear Potential/Confused Buyer,

So you want to achieve the dream of home ownership right? YEAH!!!! Besides being the biggest financial decision you will make, this is also the biggest roller coaster ride you will ever find yourself on.  Lucky for you, I am at the control panel and I'm going to make sure that you don't get thrown off the track!  So, sit back, try to relax, and enjoy the ride.....

The most common thing I hear - What if I'm not ready yet, but I know I want to buy, but I'm just not sure??? Your knees are wobbly and you want to know, but you will never know unless you get on. With so many grants out there right now, especially since they will be ending soon, you need to know where you stand financially. You may be able to get into that home that you were only admiring from afar. My advice? GO TALK TO A LENDER NOW!!!! The only way it will affect you is if you DON'T go talk to them now. You might miss out on a great opportunity.

How will I know what I can afford?

Easy, go see a Mortgage Lender, Bank or Credit Union. Your Loan Officer will be able to tell you how much you will qualify for and they may be able to tell you what program and interest rate you will get. There is documentation you will need to take with you when meeting with your Loan Officer - be prepared and it will be easy for them to help you.  You will need the following:

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  •  
    • 2 months worth of pay stubs for anyone working that will be on the loan
    • If you are self-employed, you will need 2 years of tax returns
    • Do you receive any additional income, such as alimony or child support? You will need to bring bank statements and/or garnishment orders showing you receive that monthly in order to be used as income
    • Make sure you take your Social Security Card and Drivers License/And/Or State Issued ID Card - They will want to make copies
    • When you have been pre-qualified, make sure they give you a pre-approval letter. You will need this when looking for homes.

So that was easy enough right? Ok, now you are ready for the next step. Let's go look at homes! This is my favorite part. I love to show you homes, to see the look on your faces when you find what you love, but please do me a favor - tell me what you want to see. I already know how much you can afford, and I am going to stick within that range for you. But you need to let me know the following:

•  
  •  
    • Is there a specific area you want/need to be in? It may be because you don't want to switch your kids from their school, or you want to be in walking distance to work, etc.
    • How many bedrooms would you like? How many bathrooms? One story, two story? Fenced yard, no yard? Do you see the specifics I need?

Sit down and write me a list of what is important to you. You may have to give and take to get what you want for a good deal. Make sure you think about what's important to you and what you absolutely MUST have. This helps me to narrow down my search and find what you want not what I think you want.

"WOW - this is it! This is the one for us" I love hearing those words. Don't you???? The next step is making an offer. I will help you write an offer for a reasonable amount. We will go over all the paperwork and submit any contingencies that you request. Please know that I will do my best to help you, but if you are asking the sun, moon and stars in addition to low balling the sellers, I need to let you know that your offer is probably going to end up in the trash. Be reasonable, but be firm if needed. In most cases, the seller is going to counter your offer. I will try to negotiate on your behalf to the best of my ability and hopefully we will have a deal asap. Please understand that things take time, so sometimes you can't rush.

Yeah we have a deal - you are a few steps closer to having that home you keep driving past everyday. Yes, I know you drive past it and that's ok - you SHOULD be excited! I'm excited for you!!!

What happens now? I will send over a copy of your purchase contract with all the information over to your Loan Officer. Then they will order the appraisal. The appraisal can take up to 4 weeks. Once the appraisal is complete, we hope and pray and cross our fingers that it comes in for at least the amount you are purchasing it for, if not MORE.

Woohoo! The appraisal came in for what we are purchasing the home for. Awesome! Now we can move forward with the loan process. Your Loan Officer will draw up all the necessary paperwork and will be in contact with you about how much your payments and interest will be and all of that good mortgage stuff.

Guess what? It's time to close your deal! This means everything is complete. We will go to the Title Company and sign all of your papers.

CONGRATULATIONS! YOU ARE A HOMEOWNER!

You have rode the roller coaster of home buying and survived! Do you remember I promised I would stay with you through it all? I never let you get off track, and as your Realtor I never will. I look foward to working with you soon!

Sincerely,

Sandy

For those of you who missed out on the Home Run Housing Grant in Utah last spring, you now have a 2nd chance. If you combine this $4,000 Grant with the $8,000 Federal First Time Buyer Tax Credit you can save up to $12,000 on a new home this year. It's should be a  "No Brainer" for those of you who qualify. The Government wants to stimulate the economy and you want a house. This is your "Bail Out".

Basic Rules of the Program:

1. $4,000 Grant has NO repayment required. Can be used for down payment, closing costs or rate buy-down.
   
2. New Construction Only- Home must NEVER have been lived in. Can be finished, partially finished or presale scheduled for completion by June 30, 2010
3. Grant Commitment Limit- If eligible home is fully constructed, the commitment expires 10 calendar days after date of issuance. If home is in the construction process, the commitment expires June 30, 2010.
4. Must be the buyers Primary Residence!! Not good for investment properties or 2nd homes
5. There are 1940 Grants left at this time. 1st Come 1st Served.
   
6. This program is for ALL qualified buyers, not just 1st time buyers.
7. To apply for the Grant your loan must be fully approved by the Underwriter (another good reason to get PRE-APPROVED)
8. There are some income limits, call me or your Realtor for more information
9. Program expires December 1, 2009
10. Funds may be taxable. Talk to your Tax Professional about this.
    

Don' Be a Fence Sitter! We may never see this "Perfect Storm" for buyers again in our life time. And really we don't want to, because it would mean we were in another recession. But right now we have Low Interest Rates, Great Tax Incentives, Low Housing Prices and High Inventory. This is a True Buyers Market.

We have already established that you are going into foreclosure. So what now? What is the process once I realize that I am headed down the foreclosure path?

A Notice of Default has been filed with the County you live in and you will receive a copy by mail. You have approximately three months (in most cases) to come up with all the payments you have not made and any additional fees they have tacked on. Let's face it, if you are already this far down the road, that probably is not going to happen. Unfortunately.

A notice placed in the newspaper for a certain amount of time (usually 3 - 4 weeks). This will include your name, and anyone else who is on the legal deed of the property, the amount owed, the address of the property, date and time of sale, etc. It is public information and will run in the newspaper for your County as a Notice of Trustees Sale. If you did not see it in the newspaper, don't worry, they will send you a copy of the notice in the mail so you will be aware of the sale date.

Buying at the Trustees Sale

Have you ever heard the phrase...."They sold it on the Courthouse Steps" and thought that it was slang for the auction that happened inside? In a nice, secluded room, very professional? Wrong! Trustees Sales literally happen ON THE COURTHOUSE STEPS! Funny isn't it?

If you are interested in buying a property that is going to a Trustees Sale, there are a few things you need to know.

1. Find out what the property is worth. Obviously you do not want to take the time or pay the money to do an appraisal to get the value of the property. The next best thing is to call a Realtor. Ask them if they can tell you what comparable properties are going for in that area. This will help you when the opening bid starts and you want to make sure you stay within a certain amount to obtain equity (if available).
2. You will need to find out, if you plan to place a bid, the amount required to be considered a qualified bidder. The last auction I acquired information on required that a bidder have certified funds of a minimum of $5,000.00. Certified Funds being, cash, cashiers check, etc. Personal checks MAY be accepted for the balance of the amount, but you would need to know before the auction.
3. In addition to the final bid price, is there a buyers premium? That means YOU the winning bidder has to pay additional fees for the auction. It could be to pay the auctioneer, etc.
4. Financing and payments. If you are the winning bidder, you will have approximately 24 - 48 hours to pay the remaining balance of the bid. I suggest that if you plan on using a bank for financing, have everything in place prior to the auction. 
5. Be prepared. Who is foreclosing? Example: If it is the 2nd Lien Holder, you may need to pay the 1st Lien Holder - WOW, didn't know about that! Are there delinquent Property Taxes? You need to pay those - yep....YOU.  Definitely things to consider....
6. Be aware. Just because a property is going to Auction does not mean it will actually be available. A Realtor may have the home listed and have an offer that came in, or the Property Owners may, by some leap of faith, come into some money and are working on payments, or maybe they are doing a loan modification. There could be a number of reasons that the Property has been put "on hold" for auction purposes. This can be unfortunate for you if you really wanted that property, but great for the owner who doesn't end up losing their home.

Here is what I recommend to anyone interested in purchasing at a Trustees Sale...

Talk to a Realtor. Hire a Realtor to work for you. NO, the Trustee is NOT going to pay a commission to your Realtor. YOU will have to pay it. I cannot tell you what the percentage will be, or what the rate they may charge you is because they may vary. But, can you really do it without them? That is a decision and a chance you will have to take on your own.  But let's look at what they will do for you - in an extremely timely manner....

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  •  
    • Pull Comparable Properties to show you what the home would list for in that area.
    • Check Title records to make sure there are no liens, property taxes, etc. And if there are, they will make you well aware before you go to the auction.
    • Help you determine if this is a good property. Are there Easements? Problem with the foundation? Anything that they may be able to find they will tell you. (Please note, we probably did not build the home ourselves, so we don't know everything)

Whether you decide to use a Realtor or try to go it alone. BE DILIGENT. Please do your homework before you go. Remember, just because it is at auction doesn't mean it's a great deal. Ever heard the phrase "Buyer Beware"?

If you need more information, please do not hesitate to contact me! I am not an expert in this area, and all of the information I provided is public information. No secret knowledge here :)  But I would love to help you and if I can't - then I will find someone who can!

Best of luck - and stay positive!

Sandy

I am going to TRY and take you through the process of foreclosures the best that I can. I'm also going to try and explain them in the way that I wish I would have been told. Why does everyone need to be so complex? So, let's start from the beginning and see if we can cover some ground.

Okay, so I don't know if I should, but I am going to assume that everyone reading this understands how the home buying process works.  So we know that when you apply for the loan to purchase the home, the mortgage, the property we purchased has just become the collateral. This is the main reason for an appraisal, to evaluate how much the property is worth and how much the bank/mortgage lender is going to loan/mortgage the property for.

Alright, the unthinkable happens and you can't pay your mortgage anymore. You try, but times are trying and you just can't make it work. What do you do? You call a Realtor and try to sell your home. No one calls, no one is interested. Uh Oh! Ok, now what? You lower the price in hopes of grabbing attention from possible buyers. Still no luck. Why is this happening to you? Ok, let's call the Bank/Mortgage Company - can we do a Short Sale (See my blog about Short Sales)? Great, they are willing to take less and hopefully not come after you for the difference. Remember, while all of this is happening, you are still only paying a portion of your mortgage payment, and now there is interest, penalties, etc. that are piling up making it harder for you to continue making payments at all.

So what happens when you are so behind, you can't come up with money to pay the bank, you can't borrow the money and you can't sell your home? Foreclosure. That means that the bank has taken possession of the property for non-or-deficient payment. Now, unfortunately, you probably have 30 days to vacate the property and find somewhere to go.

The next step. The bank will post a notice in the newspaper for a bank/trustees sale. It is not guaranteed that there will be any bids on the property, in which the bank keeps possession and more than likely will list the property for sale with a Realtor.

Foreclosure affects the entire family. Sometimes it cannot be avoided, most of the time it can. It is a very sad situation for everyone involved. As a Realtor, it is hard for me to show foreclosed homes. When I walk in, the first thing that I imagine was a family in their cozy home, decorated just perfect....and then the looks on their faces when it was all gone.

 For more information on foreclosures and foreclosure assistance, please follow the links below:

National Association of Realtors - Protect Your Home

Foreclosure Prevention and Response Program

The Foreclosure Process - How it works

My advice? Don't let it get this far. Call your Bank/Mortgage Lender NOW and ask what can be done. As I said in my Short Sales Blog - ask if they will do a Loan Modification. It doesn't hurt to ask and you will never know how far they will go to help you if you don't.

Good luck and stay positive!

Sandy

To all my friends, clients and the confused....

So you want to sell your home, right? You owe more than what you can sell for, don't you? Scary words for someone to hear when getting ready to sell your home.

So what are your choices? What can you do? You don't want to risk going into foreclosure or file bankruptcy and risk losing everything. So what happens????

A Short Sale. A short sale is when you need to sell your home, but unfortunately, you end up selling for less than what you owe on the mortgage. Granted, the lender must approve the short sale because they are the ones taking less than what is owed. It is possible that the lender may say no to the short sale. They may decide that a foreclosure would be more beneficial to them financially. Tough to hear isn't it?

So here's what you need to do:.

1. Talk to a Realtor. A Realtor who is experienced in Short Sales can help you with more than you could imagine. They have been through this before and will know what to help you with. It is a face-to-face that you will appreciate having. Also, this person will be able to list your home and upon selling will be a major contact for you with your lender.  They will also provide you with a CMA (Comparative Market Analysis) and help you price your home according to other homes that have sold in your area that are comparable to yours.
2. Call your lender/mortgage holder. Let them know you are interested in doing a "short sale" and you need to speak to someone who is capable of giving you a firm decision on whether they will do that or not. 
3. Talk to an accountant. There may be taxes you will need to pay at the end of the year on the sale.
4. You will need to get the following paperwork together for your lender:

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  • Letter of Authorization (Including Name, Phone Number, Address, Realtor name & phone, etc); this gives them permission to contact the Realtor you are working with and to discuss your personal information pertaining to this situation.
  • An Estimated Good Faith Estimate - Your Realtor can help you with this. It will show what you hope to get out of the sale of your home so the lender will be able to see what the proceeds may be. This will weigh their decision on the sales price decision. If you are lucky enough, (cross your fingers), you may end up not needing a short sale if you work this out with your Realtor and you end up breaking even or even slightly ahead.
  • Hardship Letter - This says "I can't make my payments anymore, I lost my job, I had to go to the hospital", etc. Plead your case the best you can. There are people still out there with compassion, they may try to work with you.
  • Proof of Income & Assets & Bank Statements
  • Listing Agreement - When you list with your Realtor they will give you a copy of this. It shows the price the home will be listed for sale and the terms and commission of the sale. FYI Commissions are negotiable when working with a short sale - the bank will negotiate that, not you.

A Short Sale is in no way easy for anyone involved. It is tedious and can take more time than a normal sale. But, it is better than a foreclosure on your credit. You may want to talk to your lender about what they will report on your credit if it sells as a short sale. You can request they not put anything adverse on your report, but the decision is theirs to make unfortunately. Also, ask your Realtor or Lender if your State is a non-recourse or a recourse state. (Thanks Carol!)

So, you have sold your home as a short sale. What happens now? Do you still owe the bank the difference, or will they write it off and forgive the debt - only to put it against you on your credit report? The answer is this....I don't know. That is something that you have to negotiate with your lender. Most of the time they will not come after you for the balance because they have accepted that they are selling it at a price that is less than what is owed. Make sure that your Realtor gets it in writing that they are not going to file a judgement against you for the balance. That is a definite requirement for your peace of mind.

Finally, I just wanted to put this out there. I cannot tell you what the exact qualifications are, or if it's even possible in your particular situation. Talk to your lender about doing a loan modification. This may help you out and help you stay in the home you love so much without having to sell. I personally do not know much about this, but I have worked with an agent who recently helped her clients to NOT lose their homes by getting a loan modification. Talk to your realtor and your lender and see what they can do and if this may be an option for you.

I hope that this helps in whatever situation you may be in right now. If you need assistance in finding a Realtor who specializes in Short Sales, please contact me. I am part of a network of over 150,000 Real Estate Professionals and I am positive I can find you a great Realtor with the expertise you need!

Please follow these links for great information on short sales

National Association of Realtors Field Guide to Short Sales

Good luck and stay positive! :)

Sandy

I put this on my facebook page from a post a friend of mine had. I believe in this with all my heart - we must NOT text while driving. It is so painful to think that life can be taken in a second. THIS is an instance where it can be prevented.

This is very graphic, you may want to be alone when you watch it - I wouldn't suggest you watch it with your children, unless you want to teach them a lesson.

God Bless!

Here is the link:

DO NOT TEXT AND DRIVE

If this does not show up, please go to my facebook page (link is on the right of this blog) and view the video.

Sandy