Why don’t You Have Your Picture on Your Site or Business Card?

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Enough Said.

How is Your Loan Modification Doing?

If you’re like most, not well. it looks like Lenders are having second thoughts about the program.

Trial loan modifications are being canceled at an increasing rate

Lenders are canceling trial loan modifications at an alarming rate. In fact, the number continues to rise so much that Citigroup has canceled the program altogether.

Citigroup, along with B of A had also been offering principal reductions to try to help home owners in trouble, but that program also seems to be offered at a reduced rate as this housing problem continues to plague, not just the U.S., but the world. Stock markets around the world have been in dive mode – the DOW dropped below 10,000 again today. The reason most often cited is the housing problem here in the U.S. which is not only not improving, but seems to be getting worse. People are not buying – while banks are sitting on cash, and tightening lending guidelines at the same time. The rationale, of course, is the fear of more bad loans.

The government advises home owners who have either been denied a modification, or have had trial modifications canceled mid-stream to keep trying other alternatives before seeking either a short sale, or letting the property go to foreclosure.

Continue reading on Examiner.com Trial loan modifications are being canceled at an increasing rate – Portland Real Estate | Examiner.com

I Just Completed a Short Sale. How Long Before I Can Get a New Mortgage?

As I tell my clients, I am a real estate professional. That means I am an expert in buying, selling, marketing and valuations of residential real estate. I am going to defer to a mortgage expert for this answer.

This answer is by Matt Bukovy, Sr. Mortgage Consultant at Wintrust Mortgage

To qualify for an FHA LOAN after a Short Sale: You must either wait 3 YEARS from the date sale closed and transferred to new owner. There is (theoretically) no waiting period if the borrower had no late payments on ANY mortgage or consumer debt within the 12 month period preceding the short sale AND they are not taking advantage of declining market conditions, but … seriously … that’s exceedingly unlikely.

For CONVENTIONAL LOANS, it’s more complicated:
7 years from date sale closed and transferred to new owner or transferred back to bank for new loans with less than 10% down payment.
4 years from date sale closed and transferred to new owner or transferred back to bank for new loans with 10% down payment.
2 years from date sale closed and transferred to new owner or transferred back to bank for new loans with 20% down payment.
2 years from date sale closed and transferred to new owner or transferred back to bank for new loans with 10% down payment and acceptable extenuating circumstances.

As far as acceptable extenuating circumstances are concerned, they need to be documentable and verifiable nonrecurring events that are beyond the borrower’s control and cause a sudden, drastic and prolonged reduction in income. Death of a wage earner and catastrophic illnesses would count, divorce would not (since that is within the borrower’s control.)

So, as a rule of thumb, since it seems unlikely that someone with a 10 or 20% down payment would be ALLOWED to short-sell, most of the time, it’s going to be three years before you can get an FHA loan, and 7 years to get a conventional one.

If I do a Short Sale, What Will Happen to my Credit?

This is a very important question for anyone considering a short sale to prevent foreclosure. The effect on your credit can affect you life for many years down the road.

There is no clear answer for this question, because each situation is different. There can be little effect and and there can be a dramatic change in scores from beginning to end. Things that can effect how your credit is changed are: How the bank records the sale; How many late payments did you have, if any; did you fall behind on your HOA and did they place a judgement on you. And that is just the short list.

You may want to consider talking to your tax adviser, your lawyer and your real estate professional before move forward with a short sale.

Does ‘For Sale by Owner’ Work?

Maybe. But in this economy, it’s tough. Just ask the owner of a ‘For Sale by Owner’ company that hired a Realtor to sell his poperty.

Founder of “for sale by owner” site calls in broker to get the job done

Mr. Sambrotto apparently spent six months trying to sell his fancy digs himself before turning to a broker. Jesse Buckler, the broker that Sambrotto hired, increased the price and managed to attract multiple offers before selling the apartment for $2.15 million, $150,000 more than the asking price.

Read more…

“$150,000 more than the asking price.” I think that answers that question.

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