Local Government and Banks Discuss Short-Sales, Foreclosures and Loan Modifications

The Dulles Area Association of REALTORS® hosted a symposium yesterday with banks and REALTORS® to foster a greater understanding of the mortgage options for troubled homeowners and challenges arising from complicated real property transactions such as short sales. The event was held at George Washington University’s Ashburn campus and featured Congressman Frank Wolf and “top dogs” from HUD, the FHA, Bank of America and the Virginia Mortgage Lenders Association.

I wasn’t sure what to expect of the event because I was afraid politics and “prepared speeches” would get in the way of actually getting things accomplished (or at least discussed openly and honestly). There was a discussion/Q&A session at the end, but not much commenting came from the “top dogs”. And as far as the “advice” given, none of it was anything many of us didn’t already know.

It seems the people near the top of these organizations/companies are out of touch with what’s really going on in real life. Or maybe they do know, but don’t want to admit it or do anything about it.

For example, one agent commented how bank negotiators never return phone calls nor emails regarding the status of a short-sale in process. The response was, “Be patient. We get 180,000 phone calls per day and we don’t have the manpower to support the volume.”

So you want people to sit around for up to 6 months before you bother to get back to them? That’s your advice?! Gee, thanks. I feel much better now

How about this…You received TARP money (aka millions of tax payer dollars) plus you’re saving thousands of dollars by working out a short-sale rather than going the foreclosure route - so hire more (competent) people!

Another example (which I have been fortunate enough NOT to experience) is that the short-sale and foreclosure departments at the same bank don’t communicate with each other. Banks have been known to foreclose on a property in the middle of a short-sale negotiation (with the same bank). It’s 2009 - there are land lines, cell phones, email, IM, text, Twitter, Skype, etc. There is no excuse for such a lack of communication between two departments within the same company.

They defended the new HVCC appraisal guidelines quite a bit even though every agent and most sellers, buyers and those trying to refinance since May 1 have a horror story (or five) to share thanks to the HVCC.

And not too much new was talked about working out a loan modification. Things such as term length increases were number one on the list of possibilities with lowering the interest rate close behind. Either way, you have to prove to the bank that you can’t afford your current (or soon to be adjusted) monthly payment due to some form of hardship.

The point is…there are lots of issues and new problems arising from foreclosures, short-sales and the new appraisal process and not much is being done about it. As a consumer, make sure you’re properly educated and be prepared for hurdles along the way. And if you’re selling your house “short” or buying a foreclosure or short-sale property, make sure you have an experienced agent who knows what they’re doing when it comes to these types of transactions (I may know of one).

Related Articles

A Seller’s Guide to the Short-Sale Process

10 Questions To Ask Before Writing an Offer on a Short-Sale

10 Things to Look Out For With Bank-Owned Property Contracts

Do You Qualify for a Loan Modification?

Welcome to the new Loudoun Foreclosures!

Welcome to the new Loudoun Foreclosures! I hope that you find the site a bit better and more functional than the last one (that was the goal). As time goes on, you’ll see new features being added to the site. If you’d like to see something here that’s not here right now, just let me know.

Thanks for checking out Loudoun Foreclosures and please feel free to share your comments and feedback on or offline.

D

Things look a little weird around here…

If you're reading this post on http://www.LoudounForeclosures.com rather than your feed reader or via email update, you may be saying something like, "WTH happened to the site?" and/or "Why does it look like such crap?!"

Here's what happened… During the process of moving my other blog, Loudoun Scene, from Typepad to Wodpress.org, something in the back end of Loudoun Foreclosures was changed. The result is this ugly looking thing you're looking at right now. I didn't see this happening nor do I have any idea why it happened.

Not to worry! I'm in the process of moving Loudoun Foreclosures to Wordpress.org as well and the issue will be resolved within the next few days. Once the move is completed, I'll publish a post here alerting you of the move so that you can go check out the new (and hopefully improved) version of Loudoun Foreclosures.

Thanks for your patience.

LoudounForeclosures.com Update

You may have noticed that there are some issues with the Category section of the blog, as well as some of the widgets on the very right hand column. I am currently working with Typepad and the makers of the widgets to resolve the problem.

Sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused you and I hope to resolve the issues shortly.

On a related note…look for some changes coming to LoudounForeclosures.com and LoudounScene.com in the near future. The changes are being made in order to make your experience on the blogs more efficient, rewarding and pleasurable.

-Danilo

Fastest, Easiest Way to Search for Loudoun Foreclosure/Bank-Owned Properties

The best and easiest way to search for foreclosures/bank-owned properties in Loudoun County is by using FranklyMLS.com, a "wiki" style, DC/MD/VA real estate search site created by Frank Llosa.

Here's how you use the site (4 easy steps)…

1. Go to FranklyMLS.com/Danilo
2. Enter "Loudoun bank active" next to "Search for" (located at the top of the page)
3. Choose your price range (or choose "no min" and "no max" for a list of all of them)
4. Click "Go"

Voila! A list of foreclosure/bank-owned properties within your price range in Loudoun will appear on the page. You can sort them from max price to min price or vice versa.

(Click here to see an example of a search for "Loudoun bank owned active" with no min or max price)

Now, let's say you're only looking for bank-owned properties in the 20164 zip code… Just insert "Loudoun bank active 20164" into the search field and you'll get filtered results that are only bank-owned properties in that price range in the 20164 zip code.

You can do the same with any keyword based on your search criteria - "Ashburn", "20148", "detached", etc. It's that simple.

Would you rather just get email alerts than go back to FranklkMLS.com all the time?

No problem. After you've entered your search criteria at the top of the page and clicked "Go", just go to the bottom of the page, enter your email address and click "Sign Up/Retrieve" - you'll get updates on new properties that come on the market as well as properties that had recent price changes. (No, your email address will not be used to spam you or be sold or rented to third parties)

For more information on how to use FranklyMLS.com and its various features, you can also check out this video tutorial.

If you have any questions about how to use the site or about a property you come across, just contact me and I'd be glad to help.

Related Posts

FranklyMLS.com versus new HomesDataBase.com

Foreclosure Eviction Gone Really Bad

There are plenty of horror stories being told amongst agents that work with foreclosed properties and local law enforcement officials that help with foreclosure evictions. But this story tops the list…

A New Mexico couple decided that they didn't want to be leave their home, which was being foreclosed on. They loaded up with guns, ammunition and homemade bombs and fought off Otero County Sheriff Deputies that initially tried to serve the foreclosure notice.

Then they got into a gun battle with nearly 100 members of the New Mexico State Police SWAT team. The story ends with the husband dying and the wife being dragged out of the home by the bomb robot.

If you can't see the video, click here.

Hat tip to The Real Estate Bloggers

Fannie, Freddie Extend Foreclosure Eviction Freeze & Launch Rental Program

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac put a freeze on foreclosure evictions through January 9, but have decided to extend the date to March.

In addition, Fannie and Freddie are launching a program that will allow qualified owner-ocupants and renters the chance to rent the property back from them on a month-to-month basis at market rental rates.

Fannie and Freddie are allowing renters in homes owned by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac that have been foreclosed to remain in the property and enter into a month-to-month lease. The program also allows troubled owner-occupants who have been unable to modify their mortgage a chance to lease the property after foreclosure takes place.

Though I applaud Fannie and Freddie for launching the program that allows renters to stay in the property because their landlords (the owners/borrowers) have been foreclosed on (and I hope private lenders follow suit), I don't necessarily agree with allowing owner-occupants/borrowers to rent the property back after they've been foreclosed on.

That may sound harsh, but hear me out…

Many people are just walking away from the mortgages and homes because they don't feel like paying their mortgage and/or are upside down and don't want to wait for the market to rebound to get their money back - even though they're fully capable of paying their mortgage in full and on time. These people are abusing the system (imho).

Once these people hear that they can walk away from their $3000 per month mortgage and rent the property for $1500 per month without ever having to pack a box or move a thing, what do you think they'll do?

Unless Fannie and Freddie are strict and only give the very "qualified" borrowers/owner-occupants that chance, the program will get abused.

I would like hear what Fannie and Freddie mean by "qualified owner-occupants", something they haven't released details on yet. 

Source: MarketWatch.com and The Wall Street Journal (WJ.com)

Hello world!

Welcome to WordPress. This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start blogging!

Happy New Year and Best Wishes for 2009!

Hope you have a Happy New Year and best wishes for 2009!

Happy Turkey Day!

Next Page »