Help for Our Idaho Clients Seeking Loan Modification or Worried about Foreclosure

Beginning September 1, thanks to a new law, Idaho homeowners will enjoy further protection when seeking loan modification. With a loan modification you take the mortgage you now have and change the interest rate and payment requirements.According to the Better Business Bureau,

"The new law also allows homeowners to request a meeting with their lenders to discuss foreclosure prevention options."

“Homeowners in foreclosure or in danger of foreclosure should familiarize themselves with the rights this new law affords them,” Attorney General Wasden said. “To help homeowners and lenders understand the law, my office created a webpage dedicated to mortgage loan servicing and foreclosure issues. It is available at www.ag.idaho.gov.”

According to the news release, the law requires lenders to notify homeowners whether they qualify for a loan modification within 45 days of a modification request. Lenders may not proceed with a trustee’s sale during the 45-day period. Homeowners also will receive written notice of the date and time of a future trustee’s sale if a scheduled sale date is postponed.


This is good news. Imagine your frustration if, while trying to avoid foreclosure and all its implications, you request a loan modification and never hear back from your lender. Foreclosure proceedings appear to go on without your knowledge or understanding. What a feeling of helplessness!

Please take a moment to read the entire press release, courtesy of the Spokane Better Business Burea, which includes names of real estate reports that are offered for homeowners in distress, phone numbers for help obtaining a mortgage modification [(888) 995-HOPE.]and more.

For more information about avoiding foreclosure, exploring alternatives or short sales, please visit Spokane's Best Short Sale site or request a copy of Nine Alternatives to Foreclosure.

Spokane: Lower Home Prices for Buyers

"A survey of 58 real-estate markets in Washington state found that Spokane was the most affordable and Mercer Island the most expensive."

Click here for the full article.

We Can't Make Our House Payment. Is Foreclosure Our Only Option?

Have you had time to visit our Spokane Short Sale Help and FAQs page? We offer some of the most useful resources in the industry!

Our team has been trained to successfully negotiate short sales and we're ready to answer questions like the one above.
So what IS the answer?

Absolutely not. The truth is, the bank really doesn't want your home back! You may not have to lose it. Know your options before you make a decision. Let us review each of these options with you.

Option #1 – Work with your current lender

Option #2 – Work with a new lender

Option #3 – Bankruptcy

Bankruptcy should be a last option and a professional opinion should be obtained before moving forward in this decision.

Option #4 – List the home to sell

Option #5 – Give up and let it go


For more specifics on each option, click here.

American Express Report: Consumers think it's a good time to buy

Excerpt from the report:


"To sell their home in the current market, 44 percent of homeowners note that they would be interested in including appliances, while 28 percent would consider offering to make requested repairs or allowing an allotment for repairs."


Click here for the full article or to access the report.

Put your garden space to work...for the earth!

We love how hard this gardener worked to make her wonderful outside space earth-friendly.

Ms. Ten Eyck had learned water-saving techniques in the desert—and put them to use with a new palette of Texas native plants, which could tough it out with minimal water (and fussing) in her new clime.

As a homeowner, it's easy to overlook landscaping or to be content with a postage stamp-sized lot of grass. But when you think of the benefits of planting and cultivating native flowers, plants and grasses, it's a wonder more of us don't do it!

Ms. Ten Eyck stuck primarily (but not entirely) to Texas or Southwestern species for her yard, focusing on small trees, shrubs and flowers that need little water. What She Planted: Possumhaw trees (Ilex decidua) show off red berries above striped slender trunks for much of the winter and the purple wisteria-like blossoms of the Texas mountain laurel (Sophora secundiflora) flamboyantly and fragrantly announce the arrival of spring.

Read the whole article (Wall Street Journal) here.

Just Listed: Classic, Updated 4 Bdr Rancher

National Real Estate Market Update!

We love answering the question, "Hey guys, how's the market?"

The housing market continues its gradual recovery without the aid of the tax credit. Sales are slower but growing. Although it will likely be uneven at times, slow growth is believed to be the trend moving forward. This is as true in Spokane, Washington as anywhere.

Home Sales: The Good News

Home sales continued to rebound in September, increasing 10% compared to the previous month. This builds on August’s gain of 7.6% that followed a large drop caused by the expiration of the federal tax credit in July. Sales are expected to gradually grow as the market moves toward recovery without government stimulus. The recent foreclosure moratorium has opened up opportunities for short sales.

Although it could make the near-term “choppy at times,” industry experts expect the overall trend to continue growing slowly.

Home Price: It's All About Your Perspective

After four months of prices remaining on par with year-ago levels, September showed a slight decline. Last September distressed properties were 29% of all home sales; this September that number rose to 35%. *The larger proportion of distressed sales, which are typically discounted, helps to explain the decline.*

Housing Inventory: Important but Oft-Overlooked Indicator

There are fewer homes on the market again in September, representing 10.7 months of inventory. While still at a relatively high level, months of inventory shrank by nearly a month in September from August’s 11.6 and nearly two months since the 12.5-month supply in July. This continues to represent an excellent opportunity for buyers and investors who have not yet taken advantage of the abundant opportunities of the market including record low rates, an ample but shrinking selection of homes, and highly affordable prices.

Affordability

Housing remains at near-record affordability levels, and prospective home buyers stand to benefit from the lowest mortgage rates in decades, as well as advantageous home prices. Housing is approximately 60% more affordable now than during the height of the market.

Look for more updates about Boise real estate trends. Educate yourself and you'll be ahead of the game!


[Many thanks to Keller Williams and the National Association of Realtors for this information]

Options for Spokane Real Estate Investors

As a follow up to our last post about Fannie Mae's "end of year" incentives for home buyers, let's talk about property investment.

Not only is it the perfect time to buy a home, but it’s also an excellent time to purchase an investment property. If you already own and are not interested in moving – or you can’t because of the 3-year occupancy requirement to keep your home buyer tax credit – but still want to take advantage of the market, investing can be a great way to do so.

In the current lending situation, lenders often require investor buyers to have six months reserves of mortgage payments and a 25% down payment. This stipulation keeps many would-be investors out of the market.

Here are some little known tips to help investors purchase, regardless of the tighter lending environment:

1. Investors can purchase a Fannie Mae HomePath investment for 3% down.
2. Any investor, not just veterans, can purchase a Veterans Affairs(VA) foreclosure with VA’s Vendee Financing for 5% down.
3. Investors purchasing a VA foreclosure with Vendee Financing can use 75% of anticipated rent to offset the monthly payment if the investor has experience managing rental properties.

Contact us right away if you want to learn more about taking advantage of this incredible investment opportunity.  There are abundant foreclosures in the Spokane area.

End-of-Year Bonus for Home Buyers (Thank you Fannie Mae)

Like a car dealership at the end of its model year, Fannie Mae is offering special incentives exclusively for owner occupants that purchase property from its sizable inventory of foreclosures, also known as HomePath properties.

Owner occupants that purchase a Fannie Mae HomePath property by December 31 will receive up to 3.5% toward closing costs and a home warranty. These incentives for foreclosures are unheard of – banks typically sell foreclosures “as-is” without incentives, warranties, or repairs. This could help buyers to view a HomePath property more like a traditional sale, not a foreclosure, during their search process.

Owners and investors (see our next blog post for more info) can purchase HomePath properties for 3% down and no mortgage insurance. For homes that are not in tip-top shape, Fannie Mae also offers the HomePath Renovation financing, which works similarly to FHA’s 203(k) mortgage by allowing the cost of light renovation to be included in the mortgage. Furthermore, owner occupants get a 15-day “first dibs” on HomePath properties through the First Look program.

Fannie Mae is also offering agents an additional $1500 for representing owner occupants who purchase these properties, helping to compensate them for the extra paperwork and other potential obstacles that come along with foreclosure transactions.

Buyers should be sure to take a second look at Fannie Mae’s HomePath properties before settling on “the one.” It could mean not just a great deal but an excellent one.

To see Fannie Mae’s HomePath homes, check out HomePath.com

Sources: The Wall Street Journal, Inman News, Keller Williams Research

A Glimmer of Hope? Mortgage Payments Improving

Fannie Mae says serious delinquencies on home mortgages fell this summer for the fifth month in a row.

Read the Wall Street Journal article here.

Five Flooring Choices to Make a Home Seem Larger

Thanks to Scott Levit for this excellent post, which we've copied below.

Debbie Gartner of Floor Coverings International in Westchester/Western Fairfield wrote a concise post recently on how choosing the right flooring can improve the apparent size of a seller's home. This piece is adapted from Garner's post...

Here are 5 subtle tips for your sellers that will help stretch smaller spaces.

1. Use lighter colors. Lighter makes the space look larger. The same goes for walls.

2. Use wider planks. Wider makes the space look larger. The same goes for tile; larger tiles make the space look larger. (Conversely, parquet hardwood makes the space look smaller, so stay away from this and from small tiles).

3. De-clutter. The more open space readily visible (be it floor or walls), the larger, cleaner, and neater the space will look. Remove some of the knickknacks and maybe even a piece of furniture that's not necessary.

4. Use same flooring material and color across rooms. Whenever possible, continue that same surface across rooms. By continuing the same surface, you connect the space and it just looks larger. Be it hardwood, tile, or the wall color cafe au lait, try to be consistent and make the rooms appear seamless.

5. Lay your floor on a diagonal. Whether you have tile or hardwood, this will make you space look larger as it carries your eye along the longest length (In trigonometry -- remember that? - the hypotenuse is the longest side of the triangle). It will also make your space look more visually intriguing. Note that occasionally when the space/room is very rectangular, a straight lay across the longest length is a better option, but most often, a diagonal is the better choice.

Pay off Your Mortgage in Half the Time?

You could!

According to this Wall Street Journal article,"a growing number of homeowners are choosing to pay down their mortgages at a faster rate--even if it means a substantial jump in their monthly payments."

It represents a "shift" in borrower thinking from even just a few years ago.

The articles lists some lifestyle recommendations for those who might consider the increased payments.

"Mr. Walters [chief economist at online lender Quicken Loans] says you shouldn't take on a 15-year fixed-rate mortgage unless you have substantial savings, including at least a year's worth of living expenses in liquid accounts.

Also, he recommends having a debt-to-income ratio below 35%. So if you have a gross salary of $5,700 per month, for instance, your monthly debt--including any mortgage payments, taxes, insurance, homeowners-association dues as well as auto and student loans and credit-card debt--would have to be a max of $1,995 to get a 35% ratio.

Link here.

Comprehensive Short Sale Help from a Spokane Short Sale Expert

Well, we did it.

We built a simple, easy-to-use but still useful short sale site. Introducing SpokanesBestShortSales.com.

Included in the site is a simple explanation of a short sale; approval letters from short sale transactions we've successfully closed; expectations and a timeline for sellers listing a short sale; the short sale offer process; FAQs for real estate agents...

...and much more.

A Brief, Excellent Overview of Short Sales

This is a monthly service provided by Keller Williams Realty. Considering our expertise in closing short sales, we felt this was particularly appropriate.

March showing job growth

The Employment Security Department is reporting a slight rise in the jobless rate for March. Presumably some of these jobs are temporary census jobs. (Employing census workers contributed to a huge jump in employment numbers nationwide.) Nevertheless, it's still good news.

From the press release:

March job gains marked the second time in three months the state has posted positive job numbers. That’s on the heels of 13 consecutive months of job losses stretching from the end of 2008 to the end of 2009.

In addition, mortgage delinquencies fell in March for the second month. (Hat tip: Wall Street Journal (requires subscription).)

For some commentary on this data, try Barbara Kiviat's post at TIME.

This could be a minor but important indicator of the housing market. Buyers and homeowners are starting to remodel again. Even where there is less demand, that decrease is, er, decreasing.

The article in RIS Media cites data from the most recent American Institute of Architects’ Home Design Trends Survey.

You might enjoy reading the lists the five most popular bathroom and kitchen remodels, too.

In fact, here are the five most popular kitchen products and features:

-Recycling center, a designated place to put cans, papers, etc., which could be in the form of a nook or even part of the lower cabinetry
-Larger pantry space
-Renewable flooring materials
-Renewable countertop materials
-Computer area/recharging stations, dedicated to such tasks as recharging laptops, cell phones and PDAs.

Three Things You Can Do With the Extended Home Buyer Tax Credit

1. Talk to your parents about selling their house. If (you or) your folks, like many of ours, have owned their home for years and years, they are in a unique situation to sell, actually make a profit and still find another house at a great price.

2. Stop sweating over that short sale. Are you one of the thousands of buyers taking advantage of the tax credit and trying to get your short sale closed? You aren't alone! Now you don't have to worry about getting it closed before December 1.

3. Buy. These tax credits are sweet, but they won't last forever. It's hard to imagine a better time to buy. When you're at the bottom, there's nowhere to go but up.

Western Home Sales Up Last Month

The Spokesman Review attributes the increase to dropping home prices and first-time home buyers eager to capitalize on the tax credit before the looming December deadline.

Read the article here.

Apprentice Winner and TV Host Joins Keller Williams

From the Keller Williams Press Release...

Kendra Todd, a nationally recognized author, lecturer and TV Personality, has joined Keller Williams Greater Seattle as the head of their Luxury Homes Division.

Todd, who won the popular NBC series The Apprentice, was the first woman and youngest contestant to ever win the hit reality show. During her tenure with the Trump Organization, she was involved with the sale of a $100 million Palm Beach Estate in Florida, the highest U.S. residential real estate transaction on record.

Currently, Todd hosts the critically acclaimed HGTV series, "My House is Worth What?" and serves as the Yahoo Finance real estate columnist with over 400 million registered users.

"We are thrilled to welcome the Kendra Todd Group to our firm" said Andrew Greenwell, Team Leader & CEO of Keller Williams Greater Seattle. "Her experience as an entrepreneur and insight into the luxury real estate market will prove to be a tremendous asset to our company," he said.

OPT OUT of those Annoying Credit Card Offers

If you would like to "opt-out" of receiving pre-approved credit card offers for 5 years you can call 1-888-5-OPTOUT (567-8688) or visit: www.optoutprescreen.com.

You do have to provide your name, address, birth date and Social Security number to process the request but the information stays confidential.

Here are three other websites that you can go to for removal of your name from direct mailing, "resident" and "occupant" mailings and coupon packs:

www.dmaconsumers.org/cgi/offmailing
www.advo.com/consumersupport.html
www.coxtarget.com/mailsuppression/s/DisplayMailSuppressionForm