The Bothell Short Sale Blog

Recent economic upheaval has taken a hefty toll. Looking forward to 2012, it’s impossible to know what’s next and the kind of an impact that an upturn or a downturn at the national level stands to have on your family’s finances.

Regardless of what happens in Washington or on Wall Street, two things are very clear: you are not alone and now is the time to prepare for a new normal.

With a national epidemic of unemployment or underemployment, and 25 percent of the homeowners in the country owing more on their home than they could net for it in today’s market, homeownership for many has become a financial liability. Not being able to make payments on a home that you can’t afford to sell feels like an awful trap, but the fact is, there are solutions—and foreclosing on your mortgage is not one of them.

Loan modification is an option for many and banks are increasingly willing to negotiate short sales. In many cases, they’re offering sizable financial incentives to help financially strapped homeowners to get a fresh start on their lives.

As real estate professional who has achieved the Certified Distressed Property Expert (CDPE) designation, it is my mission to give homeowners the gift of a fresh start. 

Contact me TODAY and let’s get started.

As recently as a few months ago, if you would have told a real estate agent who specialized in short sales that they’d be raving about a lender’s stellar service and rapid approval times—not to mention significant cash incentives for financially strapped homeowners for pursuing a short sale—you’d have gotten some strange looks.

That’s all changed.  And it’s changed faster and to a greater extent than most real estate professionals ever could have imagined.

With a glut of bank-owned properties dragging down the recovery of the real estate market, as well as the national economy, major lenders are more eager than ever before to avoid foreclosure. So they’ve sharpened their focus on short sales. Big time.

The biggest lenders in the country have staffed up to ensure rapid processing of short sale applications. They’ve ponied up with cash incentives at closing for homeowners who pursue a short sale. And they’re proactively reaching out to CDPE agents and putting them in touch with delinquent borrowers.

This is big news and the media has not really caught on to it yet. What’s important for you to know is that whatever you’ve read or heard in the past about long lag times and frustrations with short sales is probably no longer the case.

As a member of the CDPEAdvanced community, I’m tapped into major lenders and on top of major developments affecting short sales and bank-owned properties.  I invite you to visit my website to learn more and feel free to contact me any time if you or anyone you know is struggling with an unmanageable mortgage.

Does it feel like trust is one of the major casualties of the economic meltdown of 2008 – followed by the “Great Recession,” the “Jobless Recovery” and now the threat of a “Double Dip Recession?”

Weren’t we assured that home values were destined to go up and up and up?

There have been lots of promises that help is on the way—and lots of warnings of scams and schemes that have only served to confuse the matter. So where’s a homeowner who’s underwater or overleveraged to turn?

Here’s the bottom line: the choices that homeowners make when they feel they are at the end of their rope will have ramifications for years to come on their ability to qualify for credit, their job prospects, their security clearance and their overall finances. When a family’s financial trajectory is rapidly heading in a negative direction, there’s no substitute for the helping hand of a knowledgeable expert who has the integrity, the experience and the training to reverse the course—someone who is tapped into regulatory initiatives and can separate fact from fiction.

It is my mission to serve as a credible source of information and perspective to homeowners who have found themselves in a tough situation and need help sorting through their options. That’s why I sought out the Certified Distressed Property (CDPE) designation—the most renowned and recognized credential in the distressed property field, and it’s why I continue to stay on top of regulatory and industry developments that impact options available to homeowners who are struggling with their current financial situations.

My message to homeowners who do not know where to turn: there is hope. Foreclosure is not inevitable and neither the government nor your bank wants to see that happen. No one expected to find themselves on the brink of foreclosure, but I have worked with countless clients who have managed to turn their financial trajectory around and get on a path of financial recovery. 

It CAN be done! And it would be my privilege to help.

Free Resources at www.DistressedPropertyRelief.com

I just completed a short sale in Newcastle using the HAFA program and it was great. The buyer got a beautiful home for an outstanding price and the seller was able to walk away with no deficiency on a 1^st and 2^nd Mortgage. They also received a check for $3,000.00 for moving expenses provided by HAFA. I feel like HAFA has come a long way and at least in this case, provided the type of help for homeowners facing foreclosure that the program was intended to provide, but rarely did early on its existence.

As with anything there will always be room for improvement and HAFA won’t work perfectly in every situation, but the changes that have been made seem to be a step in the right direction.

A recent study in Nevada (a state that holds the nation’s highest foreclosure rate), found that only 5% of distressed homeowners knew they had alternatives to foreclosure, and only 3% took advantage of them. It was also found that 1 in 4 homeowners chose to “strategically default,” or allow their homes to be foreclosed upon on purpose!

Too many homeowners don’t know their options in dealing with foreclosure. In most cases avoiding foreclosure is the best plan to creating financial stability in the future.

Millions of Americans feel alone and trapped by mortgage payments they can no longer afford. In fact, 27% of Americans with mortgages now owe more than what their home is worth. Geting educated on the alternatives to foreclosure can help in making sound decisions when facing foreclosure.

Education is key. The more distressed homeowners know about solutions, the more likely they are to overcome their financial challenges.

I can help with the education part – Short Sale / Foreclosure Resources

Not if I have anything to say about it!

The FBI reported a jump of 71% in mortgage relief fraud investigations from 2008-2009, and expects this number to have grown in 2010.

That’s why I am educating homeowners on the cautions they need to take, and what the government has recently done to protect you from unscrupulous individuals and companies who want to take advantage of their desperate situations.

What you need to watch out for if you are looking for mortgage relief assistance:

1. Upfront fees—just don’t pay them! In fact, they are now illegal!
2. A request to sign over your deed (this only spells trouble)
3. Lots of paperwork without the opportunity for review
4. The claim of government-affiliation

These are just a few red flags you need to be wary of. I’ve created a free report on the homepage of my website that details more of what you need to watch for.

If you are struggling with an unaffordable mortgage and are looking for help, educate yourself. These scammers can be very shrewd and will say almost anything to steal your money.

The Federal Trade Commission has required disclosures of anyone offering mortgage relief services. If you’d like to see an example, check out any of the pages of my website. If a company you are dealing with has not provided these disclosures, please ask why they are not compliant, and proceed with caution!

As a CDPE, you can trust that I have the tools to be in full compliance of FTC regulations, and will always work with your best interests at heart.

If you want viable alternatives to foreclosure, I’m always here to help!

As one of my most popular blog posts on Short Sales, I thought I would re-visit this.

As a homeowner considering a short sale, it is important you understand the process. Following are some of the most common mistakes agents and homeowners make when handling a short sale.

Your Property is Priced Incorrectly

Mistake: Your Property is Priced Incorrectly
This is the most common mistake made with all properties, and the most common reason a property doesn’t sell.

Solution: Agent Providing Understanding and Transparency Your real estate agent will go through a detailed listing price strategy with you, allowing you to see exactly where your property should be priced based on its current condition, sales in your area, and most importantly, how much time you have left to sell.

Straightforward Bothell Short Sale Solutions to Avoid Foreclosure:

The Short Sale Solution

Lenders don’t want to foreclose and own your home and one of the most effective methods of foreclosure avoidance is the short sale. Lenders lose less in a short sale when compared to a foreclosure, and have been working hard with real estate agents to make this option more viable and efficient.

Short sales are increasingly becoming a popular alternative to foreclosure because they help minimize loss and the various harmful repercussions of foreclosures, such as damage to credit, security clearance, future employment, neighborhood value loss and disrepair.

Existing home sales up 12.3% in Dec – The expectation was a 4.7% growth so that is indeed good news, although the median sales price for existing homes fell further to $168k (people are discounting).

The NAR says Distressed homes are 36% of market -That’s a big number, and it is actually even bigger. The NAR number only counts transactions done through Realtors. Thousands of investors are buying property outside the traditional marketplace and that isn’t getting counted.

It’s apparent that distressed home sales will be a huge part of the market in 2011 and short sales will accelerate as banks have to start dumping their inventory of foreclosed homes (the “shadow inventory”).

Short sales are a terrific option for homeowners struggling with unaffordable mortgage payments. In fact, lenders’ losses due to foreclosure are projected to increase at record rates in 2011, giving them more reason to pursue short sales. Lenders are projected to incur losses as severe as 85 percent in foreclosure! Meaning, after deducting the expense of the foreclosure process on a $100,000 loan, they may only get back $15,000!

It’s common sense that lenders will be looking toward the short sale solution. Even though they are accepting less than is owed on the property, they lose far less than in a foreclosure sale.