foreclosure: Why Do Lenders Prefer a Short Sale Over a Foreclosure??? - 08/13/11 03:25 PM
Why do lenders prefer a short sale over a foreclosure is a common question asked by buyers and sellers.  The reason all comes down to money.  Any home owner that does a short sale or has a property go into foreclosure ends up costing their mortgage company a lot of money.  When a seller does a short sale, it ends up costing the lender about 20-30% less than if they have to foreclosure. 
Maintaining a foreclosed property is an expensive understanding for a mortgage company.  The legal fees associated with a foreclosure can be costly for the lender.  They also have … (15 comments)

foreclosure: What Is A Short Sale? - 08/13/11 12:54 PM
A home sale is classified as a "Short Sale" whenever it is sold for less than the amount owned on the mortgage and the mortgage lender accepts less than the full amount due on the outstanding balance.  The seller must meet several criteria in order to qualify for a short sale?  Some of those include:
The seller must owe more on the home that its current value The seller must prove that the home cannot be sold for enough to satisfy the current outstanding mortgage(s) owed The seller must demonstrate that they are suffering from a financial hardship which leaves the … (3 comments)

foreclosure: Completed HAFA Short Sales Pass 10,000 Closings - 08/13/11 12:04 PM
According to a recent article from HousingWire, completed HAFA Short Sales have now surpassed 10,000 closings.  Since the Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives (HAFA) program was launched in April 2010, mortgage servicers have now completed 10,438 HAFA short sales through the end of June 2011. 
JPMorgan Chase tops the HAFA closed volume list.  The lender has now completed almost 3,600 approved HAFA short sales through the program. In June 2011 alone, nearly 1,000 were completed.
Wells Fargo comes in second place in completed HAFA short sales.  They have completed over 3,100 HAFA transactions.  Of those completed, nearly 700 were done in June 2011 alone.
Bank … (6 comments)

foreclosure: Freddie Mac to Suspend Evictions Later This Month - 12/01/10 04:17 AM
Freddie Mac announced today that they will be suspending evictions later this month.  The eviction suspension will be in effect from December 20, 2010 until January 3, 2011.  This will be for all single family and 2-4 units homes. 
In a statement released by Freddie Mac, Anthony Renzi, Executive Vice President of Single Family Portfolio Management at Freddie Mac stated "If the property is occupied, our foreclosure attorneys will suspend the eviction to provide a greater measure of certainty to families during the holidays."  Last year many mortgage companies suspended foreclosure proceedings during the holiday season.
 
 
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foreclosure: Fannie Mae's Latest Guidance for Foreclosures, Bankruptcies, & Short Sales - 09/25/10 05:54 AM
Fannie Mae has updated its polices regarding new financing for borrowers with a previous bankruptcy, foreclosure, or short sale.  The waiting period ranges from 2 years from the discharge date of a Chapter 13 Bankruptcy to 7 years from the date of a Foreclosure.

 
 
 
 
All borrowers will now be required to meet the minimum waiting period after the derogatory event in order to be eligible for a new conventional mortgage loan backed by Fannie Mae. 
 
 
 
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foreclosure: Buyer's Agents, Are You Tired of Unresponsive REO Listing Agents??? - 09/18/10 09:11 AM
Buyer's Agents, are you tired of REO Listing Agents not returning your phone calls and e-mails?????  If you are, then do you part to help out.  Learn more about REO's. 
REO Listing Agents get tons of phone calls on their listings.  In the first few days of a property being listed for sale or the days immediately after a price reduction, activity on the property is typically at its peak.  Just like you and I, they only have xxxx number of hours in the day.  Often times, they get more phone calls and emails that can realistically be responded to.  … (7 comments)

foreclosure: Freddie Mac Adds First Look Initiative to It's HomeSteps REO Properties - 09/15/10 06:19 AM
The Freddie Mac First Look Initiative now gives home buyers 15 days of exclusive access to buy a HomeSteps property as their primary residence.  Freddie Mac announced today that it is expanding the Freddie Mac First Look Initiative on its HomeSteps listings.  The First Look Initiative goes into effect on September 17, 2010.  According to Chris Bowden, Vice President, HomeSteps,  "Expanding the Freddie Mac First Look Initiative emphasizes Freddie Mac's commitment to manage its REO inventory to help stabilize communities, foster affordable homeownership opportunities, and responsibly safeguard tax dollars." What is HomeSteps? HomeSteps is the national real estate sales unit of … (4 comments)

foreclosure: Did You Know That You Can Lose Your Home for Not Paying Your HOA Dues???? - 07/11/10 03:14 PM

Being late on your HOA due payments could cost you your home.  I read a very interesting article on this topic today.  Some home owners across the country are facing foreclosure, but not from action by their mortgage company.  Home Owners Associations (HOA's) are the latest to pursue the foreclosure option to attempt to get delinquent home owners to pay up.   Some home owners are viewing their HOA due payments as optional.  Quite the opposite is true though.  If you live in a community with a mandatory HOA, then your dues are just that, mandatory.  Your HOA payments can … (6 comments)

foreclosure: Highest & Best - What Does This Mean???? - 06/18/10 01:38 PM
Highest & Best????

Have you lost out on a foreclosure purchase recently?  If so, chances are that you were asked to present your "Highest & Best offer."  When a property has mutilple offers, the REO seller will often request that buyers submit their final offer. 
Multiple offer situations can be common on newly listed properties and those with a recent price reduction.  A property typically has the most activity in the first 5-10 after it is listed or after it has had a price reduction.  When a buyer is deciding on their final offer, its very important to consider all of the … (2 comments)

foreclosure: Strategic Defaults: Buisness Decision or Ethical Delima????? - 06/13/10 03:44 PM
What exactly is a strategic default? 
A strategic default occurs when a homeowner has the means and capacity to pay their current mortgage payment.  Instead of continuing to make their on time payments, they choose to simply walk away from a home.  There is typically no mortgage payment increase, no job loss, no pay cut, no serious illness, no divorce or any of the other reasons that typically cause a homeowner to unwillingly lose their home to foreclosure.  Owners doing a strategic default do this primarily as a result of their property value dropping. A financial plan if you will.
Homeowner's strategically defaulting on their homes will only … (4 comments)

foreclosure: New Rules for a Prior Preforeclosure Sale or Deed-in-Lieu of Foreclosure - 04/15/10 01:41 AM
On April 14, 2010, Fannie Mae announced that a new waiting period will be established for anyone with a short sale or pre-foreclosure sale.   The waiting period will vary depending on the loan to value of the transaction and whether extenuating circumstances contributed to the borrower's financial hardship.  Loss of employment, illness, death of a wage earner, etc are common examples under which an exception might be granted.  
Both terms of"short sale" and "pre-foreclosure sale" are interchangeable in this announcement.  Fannie has clarified that each have the same meaning of "the sale of a property in lieu of a foreclosure, resulting in a … (3 comments)