Aloha form the Big Island oF Hawaii!
It's been extremely slow in the real estate market since August of 2007. Most of the inexperienced and unethical realtors and loan officers have gone by the wayside. The bad news is that a lot of experienced andhonest people have been forced out of the business altogether. The good news is that like any other market correction this will pass and the strong will survive.
This was all caused by greed from lenders, realtors, speculators and consumers. Euphoria caused housing prices to skyrocket along with uncontrolled "stupid" lending practices. People were able to buy homes that were too expensive for them. They were allowed to buy these homes with little or nothing down. They were not asked to prove they could afford these homes. They were not asked to prove they had money in the bank. It was a free for all and multitudes of people jumped on board. They took out loans that were adjustable or interest only or loans that even added to the principle of the loan as the payment was not sufficient to even pay interest. These loans were fully disclosed to the buyers and the consequences were spelled out in the paperwork that they signed. They wanted instant gratification and didn't think of the future ramifications if interest rates went up or home values went down. Guess what? both of these things did happen. Now these same people are crying "foul". They claim they were lied to or misinformed and want relief form this mess. Many are simply walking away from their responsibilites as they have no vested interest in these homes. I really can't blame them. They put little or nothing down on the house and now the affordable payment has now ballooned into an unaffordable payment.
The lenders do not want to foreclose on these homes. The losses are just too great. I would encourage these people to be more proactive. A friend of mine called her lender just to see what was going on. She had a 30 year fixed loan at 6.5%. That's right a fixed loan. she told the lender that because of the slow economy and other matters that her budget was getting tight. After some basic questions by the lender they lowered her 6.5% rate down to 4.5% for 5 more years. I have heard from other consumers that some lenders are offering the same relief. You have ot be current on your payments and have a good payment history, but there is some relief out there that is not govenment sponsered (nor should it be). The lenders would rather take in a couple of hundred dollars less each month then lose tens of thousands on a home all at one time. Many will work with consumers to save the house. Many borrowers will not even try as the house they bought with nothing down is now worth less than they owe and don't see the point. No more gratification, I guess.
I built my house at the height of the market and yes, it is worthless than I paid. My mother told me long ago "you haven't lost anything until you sell it". The market will come back and we are in a great location. We live in one of the most desireable places on earth and compared to most other coastal or metroploitan regions we are still very well priced. This market will come back with a vengence.
I'm going to be here, are you? Mahalo!
Clayton S Adams
Wetern Pacific Mortgage, Inc
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