Short Sales

FANNIE MAE ISSUES NEW GUIDELINES TO PUNISH STRATEGIC DEFAULTERS

Home Rescue Institute – June 28th, 2010 FANNIE MAE ISSUES NEW GUIDELINES TO PUNISH STRATEGIC DEFAULTERS New FNMA guidelines support the CHRE Short Sale philosophy FNMA recently announced new policy changes designed to discourage "walk away" or "strategic" defaults while encouraging homeowners to pursue alternatives to foreclosures (loan modifications, short sales, deeds-in-lieu of foreclosure).

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Why Foreclosure Prevention Is a National Priority by Ed Haldeman, CEO Freddie Mac

The following article was published on June 28, 2010  Freddie Mac CEO Article.  Mr. Haldeman discusses the importance of avoiding foreclosure if at all possible and the alternatives to foreclosure.  The article particularly discusses why short sales are many times a better answer for EVERYONE over a foreclosure.  Click the link above to read the entire article.

Anthony & Stephanie Porvaznik Testimonial

My wife and I have purchased and sold 4 homes since 1998, and this one was by far the most difficult and stressful transaction to date.  We did not want to pursue a short sale after a mandatory job transfer from Northern Virginia in 2007, and we stubbornly held on to the house in hopes of selling for the amount of the mortgage, against Cathy’s advice.  After a year on the market with the house unoccupied, we decided to lease, and Cathy advertised and secured a qualified renter within 30 days of the rental listing.  For two years Cathy managed the property and always kept it rented.  Whenever there were maintenance issues, Cathy immediately took care of them.  As we approached the 3 year mark after our transfer, we decided to list the house as a short sale. 

In the summer of 2009, Cathy started the very arduous short sale process of our home in Dominion Valley, and it turned out to be no small task.  The decision to short sale was very difficult for us personally, but Cathy made the process as painless as possible.  Cathy’s knowledge and tenacity in dealing with the mortgage company in the short sale process is very impressive.  Cathy kept us informed at every turn and guided us through the process; we could not have done it without her.  The countless calls and emails to the mortgage company as our representative were invaluable, and Cathy’s knowledge and persistence paid off in a successful short sale.  We not only had a true professional in Cathy as a Realtor, but we made a great friend along the way, and we are very grateful.  I would proudly recommend Cathy to anyone requiring real estate services.   

Sincerely,      

Anthony and Stephanie Porvaznik

WP Article – Short Sales to the Rescue?

March 13, 2010 the Washington Post has a very good article by Tracey L. Longo (special to The Washington Post) explaining new guidelines for short sales.  Those of us dealing with short sales are anxious to see if these new guidelines actually happen and if the process of short sales actually becomes “shortened” (no pun intended) from the long and arduous path they have taken in the past.  Check out the article at:  http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/03/11/AR2010031104518.html

Update on Helping Our Neighbors Seminar

The Helping Our Neighbors Seminar on February 20, 2010 at DVCC Country Club was EXTREMELY well received by all who attended.  Those in attendance asked that a webinar be scheduled so that others in DVCC may receive this timely and useful information.  Keep checking this site as we will post a webinar soon.  The webinar can be tapped into from the convenience and privacy of your home.  We will be arranging that soon!

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Home Rescue Institute Testimonial

Recently a Dominion Valley resident attended the Home Rescue Institute “Helping Our Neighbors” Seminar and said the following about this event.  Click below to see his comments.  The next seminar will be held on Saturday, February 20 from 9:30-11:30 a.m. in the Waverly Room located in Dominion Valley Country Club.  This seminar will provide very useful information about the market historically and currently in Dominion Valley.  We will also discuss information about refinancing, loan modifications, short sales, foreclosures and bankruptcies.  How short sales, foreclosures and bankruptcies can affect security clearances and credit ratings.  And how we can do our part in helping to stabilize our market in our neighborhood.  Register by clicking the Home Rescue Icon on the right side of the website.  Here is what Val and Lisa had to say about this event:

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Article – Homeowners Walk Away & Deficiency Judgments

The following article written by Jerry Boutcher of the Home Rescue Institute discusses recent media attention to the idea of homeowners “walking away” from their properties and banks pursuing borrowers who have conducted a short sale on their home or who have gone into foreclosure.  He logically discusses these topics in a clear way that makes sense.  Read on . . . .

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U.S. Representatives Help with Short Sales

If you are having problems getting a short sale approved and foreclosure is looming, your U.S. Congressman and Senators may be able to intervene and assist in stalling the foreclosure and allowing the short sale to complete it’s process.  Typically there will be a privacy policy that the buyer and seller must sign from their representative’s website.  This is to be used as a last resort if you, your realtor, or short sale negotiator is having difficulty getting an extension on a foreclosure while the short sale is going through the normal process.  Contact your local U.S. Congressman or Senators to see if they have a program in place to assist their constituents. 

Be prepared to have to give them solid background information regarding the short sale.  They will typically only get involved as a last resort when all other negotiating methods have failed.  Your agent or short sale negotiator should be able to make the necessary contacts to see if there is a program set up with your personal representatives.  But you as the owner will need to get involved in filling out the necessary privacy release and making contact with their office as the homeowner.

How Will a Short Sale Affect My Security Clearance?

The following article is written by Jerry Boutcher, President of the Home Rescue Institute.  Mr. Boutcher has successfully negotiated hundreds of short sales.  In this article he addresses the security clearance issue.  There is a sample letter he has shared with Keller Williams agents that employees with security clearances can use when addressing the issue of short sales with their employers and the affect of the short sale on their credit report.  Please feel free to email me at Cathy@cathyshometeam.com or call me at 703-608-6342 for a copy of this sample letter.

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FAQ Regarding $8K Tax Credit & $6500 Repeat Buyer Tax Credit

The following link has some frequently asked questions regarding the $8K and $6500 tax credit for home buyers that has been passed by the U.S. Congress on 11/5/09.  These questions and answers have been provided by the National Association of Realtors (NAR) and can assist buyers regarding specific areas of this bill.  A prior blog to this site explains the basic parameters of the bill.  These are more specific Q&A.  Click on the link to view the Questions and Answers.

Frequently Asked Questions About Tax Credit Bill

Keeping the Buyer in the Deal!

Keeping the Buyer in the Deal by Cathy Strittmater

Most buyers in this market know if they have a seasoned realtor who is representing them that contracts for home purchases on short sales many times take longer to go to closing than a “normal” sale or a bank owned (foreclosed) property.  The reason for the delay is because the seller is selling his home “short” of the mortgage payoff and must get his/her lender(s) to approve the sale of the property.  In today’s market a short sale approval from the bank(s) can take as little as 30 days or as long as 150 days.  Settlements can occur usually in as little as 45 days from date of ratification to as long as 180 days from date of ratification.  So how do you keep the buyer in the deal?

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September Newsletter/Hot Topics

 

HOT TOPICS

Neighbors and Clients,

Some of you may have read the article in Saturday’s Washington Post that was the tale of a family purchasing a home in today’s market.  While rather long . . . it was an interesting article. 

We are seeing much the same thing happen throughout Northern Virginia . . . even in the outlying counties of Prince William and Loudoun Counties.  Homes that are priced well and in good condition are receiving multiple offers.

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Vickie and Dick Dziarnowski

The biggest tip we could give to people who want to buy a home in a short sale is to find an experienced real estate agent who specializes in this area. An experienced short sale agent will give you a much better chance of successfully negotiating and coordinating with the lenders. We were lucky enough to find such an experienced short sale agent in Cathy Strittmater. We signed a contract in November 2008. However, in June of 2009, after a series of dedicated negotiations, the seller’s agent was unable to get the seller’s lenders to agree on the short sale. It looked like a dead deal after the 2^nd trust holder refused to accept the 1^st trust holder’s offer. The short sale ended up being negotiated by Cathy, as the buyer’s agent, with both the 1^st and 2^nd trust holder. She was able to negotiate an agreed upon amount paid to the 2^nd trust holder when the sale stymied by 1^st and 2^nd trust holders differing on the amount of payoff for the 2^nd trust holder.

Cathy had gone "above and beyond" to negotiate this short sale for us. She had always maintained a positive attitude even in light of some pretty stressful situations. Her great communication skills between the listing agent, sellers, and us created a team effort to get the sale accomplished. She was always prompt in responding to our inquiries. We were informed every step of the way throughout the whole process.. She also got us a quick rental of our investment property in just one week after we closed on the deal in August. Purchasing this property through the short sale process had been a long and difficult journey for us. We were just so grateful that we had Cathy by our side. Cathy, thank you so much for a job well done!

Vickie and Dick Dziarnowski

Washington Post Article about Short Sales 7-11-09

The following informative article was published in the Washington Post recently about short sales.  The article was written by Renae Merle.

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Real Estate Attorney Sizes Up Short Sales

From New Jersey Business News

A very good explanation of a short sale in question/answer format:

 

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Short Sale vs. Foreclosure

The sad statistic is that 75% of the homes that go into foreclosure, the homeowners never even try to sell the property short to avoid the foreclosure.  Banks have become much more open to approving short sales.  Where the average used to be 120-180 days for approval, now banks are approving short sales in as little as 30 days (on rare occasions even sooner) with the average being 60 days for bank approval.  So buyers can now close on short sale properties usually within 90 days and home sellers can get out from underneath a home they can no longer afford.  It depends upon the banks involved and also if there is only one or two trusts on the property.  Some banks are quicker with the process.  And some are still considerably slow . . . but still quicker than they were one year ago!

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Making Home Affordable Plan – Short Sales

U.S. Department of the Treasury Secretary Geithner just announced new details on the expansion of the Making Home Affordable program to include short sales.  Under the plan, incentives would be provided for mortgage servicers and borrowers to pursue short sales. Financial incentives include $1,000 to servicers for a successful short sale, and borrowers may receive up to $1,500 to assist with relocation expenses.

 

It appears that President Obama is creating more ways for families to avoid foreclosure.  This new expansion to this program will assist families who have no alternative than to sell their home short of their mortgage payoff.  For those who must sell their homes due to a hardship, job transfer, etc., it now may be easier to get short sales through the banks since banks will be incentivized to do short sales.

A foreclosure is very costly for a bank to perform.  The average foreclosure costs $50K to the bank.  Statistics reveal that homes sold short more frequently garner the bank more money than homes that are sold in foreclosure. 

Also, the time to get a short sale approved is beginning to decline.  It used to take on average of 60-90 days to get a short sale approved.  Now the time has decreased to 45-60 days.  Buyers are more willing to wait out this time than they are 90+ days for approval.

If you are in a distressed situation and need assistance to see if you qualify for a short sale, please contact us at 703-608-6342.  We are Certified Distressed Property Experts (CDPE’s) and have gone through extensive training in knowing how to navigate the short sale process.

We have been successful in getting approvals for short sales, some in less than 30 days!  Please call us to see if we can help!

Our first goal will be to try and see if we can help you keep your home.  But if that is not feasible or what you desire, we can explain the short sale process in detail and put your mind at ease regarding the process.

Call us to tap into our short sale expertise @ 703-608-6342 or email us at Cathy@Cathyshometeam.com today!

What is a Short Sale?

What is a “short sale?”

A short sale is the process through which your mortgage company agrees to settle for less than what is owed to them. They do this as an alternative to the expensive and time consuming process of foreclosure. Each mortgage company has their own set of processes through which they decide whether or not to accept a short sale, and while there are many similarities, each has its own requirements for approval. As a third party mediator, we have a distinct advantage in negotiating with your mortgage company.

What are the advantages of a “short sale?”

· Sell Your Home Quickly and Easily For Top Market Value

· Pay Absolutely No Commissions & No Closing Costs

· Avoid Foreclosure & Bankruptcy

· Save Your Credit

· Potentially Walk Away From Your Home With No Debt and No Tax Consequences

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