Refinancing Options If Your Under Water

Click on the title to link. We do not do either of these loans; you would have to go through your current mortgage holder. But they are resources for you if it is a last option, and you want to view these as last resorts.

The 6 Phases of Foreclosure

Click on the title to link. Hopefully none of you actually need this, but this is a good summary of the foreclosure process.

Should You Take A Lowball Offer?

Click on the title to link. The simple answer to this articles question is, "It depends." There are many factors that will ultimately help you decide if you should take a lowball offer. You have to examine every aspect. If you are in this situation, we would be happy to chat with you about some of these factors and help you reach a logical conclusion.

10 Step to Short Sale Buying

If you have thoughts or concerns about buying a short sale home then this is a great article for you to check out. Click on the title to link.

Mortgage Relief? Hardly.

Click on the title to link. This is another article very similar to the one we posted previously about how mortgage "relief" is really releaving few. It is worth another look, so check it out.

24% of Mortgages "Underwater"

Click on the title to link.

An Invisible Threat to Home Values

Click on the title to link. This is a good article for those looking at buying a house right now.

Are You Underwater?

Click on the title to link. This article says that 1 in 4 homeowners is "underwater".

Is Housing Doomed?

Click on the title to link to this article. We have said many times before...unless the housing market is stable then we cannot claim we are out of this recession. This article is a great summary as to why we are not even close to a housing recovery and, thus, why we will not be out of this recession anytime soon (despite what the "experts" say).

Another Housing Slump?

Click on the title to link. This is one of the reasons we believe that if the Feds do not extend the First Time Buyer tax credit the market will fall off a cliff. It will not be a gradual decline. It will be steep and fast. Again, we are not big on the government poking their big nose in, but they got one out of however many right; and it is an important one at this point.

What Are Short Sales?

Click on the title to link to a video. This is a good summary explanation for you.

Should You Buy A Foreclosure?

Click on the title to link. Although the points in this article are mostly valid and good, buying a foreclosure is a wise move as long as you know what you are getting into. That is, that you are going to have to be patient with the lender and just know you may not get all your "demands" met because they don't roll that way. But, by all means, take advantage of a good deal when at all possible.

Loan Modifications

Click on the link to watch a video about loan modifications from the perspective of someone who went through it. Our caution to you is that it worked for him, and very well may not work for you. What is so stupid about this current set up is:
1. You have to be late on your mortgage in order to even be considered. That makes absolutely no sense, but that is the way it is.
2. Even if you are late they do not have to do anything. It is up to their discretion.

Millions More Foreclosures Coming

Click on the title to link. This is nothing new, but another article on the continued wave of foreclosures that will keep rolling in. This will keep the real estate market in check.

The Next Stage of the Housing Crisis

Click on the title to link. This really is not anything you have not heard on this blog for some time now. But this is a good article about the next stage of the housing crisis. Yes, there are many good things going on with house right now. But it is not a full picture because there is alot of bad things on the horizon that is not being talked about. So read this article so you are informed of reality, and then call us with questions. 830-9685.

Mortgage "Relief" Frustration

Click on the title to link. Did people expect a government originated "rescue" program to be smooth and easy? It is so rediculous what they want you to do to actually, possibly qualify for these "programs". Mainly, you must become late on your mortgage. So I guess those paying the mortgage, but struggling greatly, are screwed. It is like most government programs...good idea on the surface, but horribly executed and thought through.

Housing Update

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

As the Real Estate Market Turns (Down)

Click on the title to link. Anybody reading this blog should not at all be suprised about this.

What Are Short Sales?

Click on the title to link to this informative video. Remember, we are always here to answer questions and walk you through.

Mortgage "Vultures"

Click on the article to link.
This is an article we found today. It is very interesting, and we really enjoyed reading it. The premise is as follows:

1. With the housing market crash and the resulting sky-rocket in foreclosures, opportunistic investors were preparing to buy mortgages in bulk from banks and lenders who had these toxic assets on their books. We are talking $.50 on the dollar here. These folks would, certainly for a profit, hope to "renegotiate" with borrowers in an effort to save their home while receiving a nice profit due to the price at which they bought the mortgage (this is one option and example). Another option is, if the home was already vacant, they could sell it at a discounted rate and still profit because of the amount they bought the mortgage for. This process would have stabilized the housing market much faster.

2. However, what actually happened is the government stepped in and started pumping money all over the place to try and stabilize the market. But what this did in reality is change banks willingness to sell these assets because it held out hope that the government would step in to rescue them. Why sell things one a fire sale when the government may come in a save your butt?

3. What this has now done is created an unhealthy situation where banks will not sell, people then just fall into foreclosure, investors cannot buy loans cheap, investors cannot sell the homes for cheap, which slows down the recovery of the real estate market.

The last three paragraphs of the article are a perfect summary of the effects that the government intervening has had on the economy, especially real estate:

The private market for delinquent mortgages once held the potential for a market-based solution to the country's housing woes. It was no magic bullet, to be sure. But by fostering an environment where private capital could seek out advantageous investments, housing markets would have started down the path towards true price discovery.

As it happened, however, massive government intervention into the market via TARP, the foreclosure moratorium, the PPIP, and other programs forestalled the inevitable, pushing the date of the eventual recovery years into the future.

This is good news for banks that survived the maelstrom of financial market turmoil, albeit based largely on trumped-up earnings and unrealistic asset prices still on their balance sheets. For homeowners, consumers, and the public in general, however, true hope for a legitimate stabilization in housing markets, and the economy in general, has been pushed further along the curve.