Even with the increase in foreclosures and recession threats, Dallas remains as one of the safest real estate investments for your future compared to Miami, Las Vegas, Orange County or Phoenix that have experienced major declines in the real estate market. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23500987/(Click Here for Article on Real Estate Depreciation)
Dallas is considered one of the most diverse economic major cities in the U.S., including its continued low cost of living, diverse climate, flat land, job opportunities, family oriented, business oriented, and busines development growth, almost everyone is migrating or desiring to relocate to Dallas. The United States Census recently reported that Dallas is a great place to raise a family, retire, relocate a company. The US Census reported that Dallas-Fort Worth was the most popular major city for relocation and population growth in America! Something we Texans already know!
Real estate investments in Dallas have edged up roughly 3% in the first three months of 2008. http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/bus/stories/040408dnbusdfwlistprices.29f82aed.html (Click Here for Article on Dallas-Fort Worth Home Price Appreciation)
Sine the sub-prime mortgage explosion, first time homeowners are finding it difficult to to secure financing for a new home forcing them to their only option which is renting. And since the population of DFW is growing, renting is becoming more of a reality right now and rental rates are increasing with limited vacancy which is great for investors.
Investing in the Dallas-Fort Worth real estate market looks goof for now and the future. With a decrease in rental property vacancies, increase in rents, and steady appreciation looks to provide an annual return on investment in the 15-20% range.
There is no doubt that we can say that real estate investment in Dallas is one of the safest and economical investments currently in our country.
linda luna
luna@greatdfw.com
Monday, April 7, 2008
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
REALITY OF A REALTOR...REASON WHY YOU SHOULDN'T GIVE A REALTOR THE RUN AROUND...
I came across this video clip of a Realtor who has gone from making $130 a year to $40,000 a year due to the decline of the real estate market. My point of this video is to create the awareness that buyers should work with only one realtor that he/she can depend on. Many buyers will contact realtors and will have 3-5 realtors show them properties, and although a buyer may not have a buyer/rep agreement with an agent, most agents will assume that the buyer is solely working with them and in good faith will not ask a buyer to sign an agreement but then later realize a buyer just used the realtors time to show properties knowing they were not going to consider using that realtor in the first place, so please respect the realtor that is taking the time to show you homes, send you properties, speak with you over the phone, etc and use that agent because she/he is a professional and as you will tell from this video, Realtors are human too and their lives are depended on closings and they don't deserve meaningless phone calls, showings, wasted time, etc... so please, use ONE realtor and let her/him do all the callings and showings for you, because he/she will get the job done :-)
SHORT SALES...BEST ROUTE FOR BUYERS AND SELLERS..
I came across this great informational video clip regarding short sales (link below)
If you are facing possible foreclosure on your home, consider a short sale and keep your credit clean...Buyers, if you are looking for a really good deal, then consider a short sale verses a foreclosure. When a home forecloses, Banks usually relist the bank owned property at or above market value since they have already lost more money foreclosing, because they are trying to get as much as possible back. With a short sale, a lender will consider a payoff amount much lower than market value verses foreclosing and risk having another home on their hands, this usually allows a buyer to walk into a nice line of equity upon purchase. The downside to short sales is that it is not a short sale, meaning, it can take up to 30 days for a bank to finally accept or respond to your offer and another 30 - 60 days (or more) before it will close.
If you are facing possible foreclosure on your home, consider a short sale and keep your credit clean...Buyers, if you are looking for a really good deal, then consider a short sale verses a foreclosure. When a home forecloses, Banks usually relist the bank owned property at or above market value since they have already lost more money foreclosing, because they are trying to get as much as possible back. With a short sale, a lender will consider a payoff amount much lower than market value verses foreclosing and risk having another home on their hands, this usually allows a buyer to walk into a nice line of equity upon purchase. The downside to short sales is that it is not a short sale, meaning, it can take up to 30 days for a bank to finally accept or respond to your offer and another 30 - 60 days (or more) before it will close.
MORTGAGE RATE FORECAST FOR APRIL 2008
(courtesy of huliq)
In the beginning of March, mortgage rates for a 30 year fixed rate mortgage averaged 6.13 percent. Throughout the month mortgage rates slightly increased before the Feds lowered interest rates in the middle of the month and rates began to fall for the first time since February which helped the 30 year fixed rate mortgage average5.83 percent at the end of the month.
During the month of April the Bush administration is expected to pass a mortgage aid package program that would benefit homeowners and lenders alike. The program is based on home equity, allowing lenders to refinance homeowners who owe more than the homes value for what the property is currently valued at in exchange for the financial backing of the federal government on the forgiven equity.
If the mortgage aid package is enacted upon early enough this month it could push mortgage rates down up to a quarter of a percent by mid month. Accompany this with the possibilities of another rate cut by the Federal Reserve towards the end of the month and you might see mortgage rates falling slightly under 5.50 percent for a 30 year fixed.
April is also when single family homes begin to pick up a head of steam for a lot of cold weathered states around the country. Homebuyers are still skeptical about home values which have lead to a lot of “bargain hunters” making offers well below the asking price. Although this data likely will not affect April’s mortgage rates, it may be a month where we begin to see home values finding their equilibrium.
Barring any major crisis throughout the month, 30 year fixed mortgage rates for the month of April should average anywhere between 5.625 percent and 5.75 percent, with the high at 6 percent and a low at 5.45 percent.
In the beginning of March, mortgage rates for a 30 year fixed rate mortgage averaged 6.13 percent. Throughout the month mortgage rates slightly increased before the Feds lowered interest rates in the middle of the month and rates began to fall for the first time since February which helped the 30 year fixed rate mortgage average5.83 percent at the end of the month.
During the month of April the Bush administration is expected to pass a mortgage aid package program that would benefit homeowners and lenders alike. The program is based on home equity, allowing lenders to refinance homeowners who owe more than the homes value for what the property is currently valued at in exchange for the financial backing of the federal government on the forgiven equity.
If the mortgage aid package is enacted upon early enough this month it could push mortgage rates down up to a quarter of a percent by mid month. Accompany this with the possibilities of another rate cut by the Federal Reserve towards the end of the month and you might see mortgage rates falling slightly under 5.50 percent for a 30 year fixed.
April is also when single family homes begin to pick up a head of steam for a lot of cold weathered states around the country. Homebuyers are still skeptical about home values which have lead to a lot of “bargain hunters” making offers well below the asking price. Although this data likely will not affect April’s mortgage rates, it may be a month where we begin to see home values finding their equilibrium.
Barring any major crisis throughout the month, 30 year fixed mortgage rates for the month of April should average anywhere between 5.625 percent and 5.75 percent, with the high at 6 percent and a low at 5.45 percent.
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
TOP TIPS TO AVOID REAL ESTATE RIP-OFFS
(courtesy of homevestors)
According to the FBI, Real Estate Fraud is one of the fastest growing white-collar crimes in the United States. It is costing countless people their single most valuable asset. Hardworking Americans are losing what they’ve spent a lifetime to achieve. And the crime doesn’t discriminate. It’s called real estate fraud, and it’s hitting people across all socio-economic backgrounds. Welcome to a national epidemic, where stealing homes is not about baseball. Instead, a series of circumstances have collided to make the American Dream of homeownership a series of broken dreams that are making headlines across the country.
Foreclosures across America are up approximately 87 percent over last year as a result of loose lending practices. The fallout from subprime mortgages has strapped millions of homeowners with more home than they can afford. Appreciating real estate is often an oxymoron. And, as the saying goes, what goes up must come down.
While the Center for Responsible Lending estimates that 2.2 million American households will lose their homes to foreclosure and risky lending practices, there are other homeowners who should be safe, but aren’t. There are tragic stories of homeowners with properties chock full of equity falling prey to predators trying to strike it rich on their front porches. With everyone looking like a possible target, there’s a national alarm going off. And the number one weapon of defense for consumers is education – information that can help save you from a home invasion of the worst kind.
What homeowners should do before selling their home…
1 Lease-options are often no option at all:
A common practice in today’s market is a lease-option where a real estate investor
offers to buy your home to save you from foreclosure and lease it back to you. But these deals often spell catastrophe. If you are at risk of going into foreclosure because you cannot make your mortgage payments, don’t be seduced by a lease-option agreement where the monthly lease payment is equal to or of higher value than your current mortgage payment. While it may appear like the investor is there
to help you, it takes only one missed payment on a lease-option contract for him to have legal cause to evict you. Still, part of the attraction to this deal is the idea that you can buy your house back over time. You get to save your credit. And you never have to move out of your home. Yet, unsavory con-artists may
make it an uphill battle. Often presented as a lease with the option to buy over time, the written contract may not actually reflect that a percentage of the lease payment goes directly toward the purchase price of the home. And in the end, the home can only be bought at full price again, placing you, the occupant, at no
advantage from any other buyer off the street. Regardless of your situation, don’t ever enter into a lease-option agreement until you read the fine print on the contract. The better solution if you need out of your mortgage, may be to find a way legally and physically out of the home, itself. And the “short sale” might be your solution. In this case, you negotiate a settlement with your mortgage company. If a settlement is reached, you may list your home with a realtor and sell your home to a buyer or investor and then, you will avoid foreclosure and you can move into something you can afford.
2 Beware of buying on assumption:
If you want out of a house for any reason and someone offers to assume your loan, don’t assume you’re free of obligations. If state compliant legal documentation from the lender approving the assumption and acknowledging the new owner as the lienholder is not signed, legally, your mortgage lender can still recognize you as the responsible party on the loan. And if the house goes into foreclosure down the line or the person who assumed your loan begins to miss payments, don’t be surprised when creditors come looking for you. Another practice is a “Sub-To” scam, whereby a real estate investor agrees to assume your mortgage based on the promise
of future equity sharing on the sale of that home. Meanwhile, the investor will lease the house to another unsuspecting person, collect the monthly payment and pocket the money without making payments to the mortgage company.
In the end, the lender may not care who’s making the payments as long as they are made. But your name and credit are still at stake if things go south.
Having someone assume your loan may provide an immediate solution. But you also need to think long term about your future housing needs or desires down the road. Unless the lender agreed to the assumption and at closing, provided the
proper documentation acknowledging the assumption and new owner as the lienholder, when you go to apply for your next home loan, the lender may think you’re trying to buy a second house. Or, if the payments have fallen behind on your previous
address and the mortgage is still in your name, you could be denied for a loan because of someone else’s track record n mortgage payments in your name.
3 Avoid straw buyers:
Speaking of payments in one’s name, there’s another red flag to look for when the person who makes the offer to buy your home is not necessarily the person seeking the mortgage loan for that amount. While it is hard for a seller to uncover this ploy, this tactic is called using a straw buyer and is a federal crime. It involves a third-party who has good credit and poses as the buyer of the property to the mortgage company to secure a loan and perhaps represents to the lender that they will live in the property in order to induce the lender to offer a lower interest rate. At the end of the day, you’re essentially selling your house to someone with a borrowed identity, while the lender is agreeing to a loan for someone who may never intend to physically live in the home or pay any of the mortgage payments to the lender. The straw buyer may be someone induced to provide their credit and sign owner-occupied mortgage documentation for monetary compensation from a real estate investor. The investor may promise to rent the property to cover the mortgage
payments for the straw buyer. If the house is foreclosed, the lender looks to the straw buyer to recoup the loan, and the investor may try to walk away with the cash.
If caught, however, they all may walk to federal prison for conspiring to defraud the mortgage lender. And the court system is full of cases seeking retribution for the millions stolen from mortgage companies.
4 Do not agree to contract to sell your home for an amount above your asking price if you are asked to refund the difference after the closing or if you are told that the extra money will be used for repairs that have not yet been completed:
It’s natural to want to sell your home for the highest possible price. But steer clear of buyers wanting to roll in socalled home improvement costs thereby creating a higher asking price. This is a red flag and a common scheme to defraud
a mortgage lender. And it may make you an unwilling, but liable, participant in the lender fraud. The key ingredient here is usually a real estate appraiser who will appraise the home for a falsely elevated value. The buyer, a person who never plans to live in the house, will then secure a loan that covers that higher value. But the buyer does not intend to make those home improvements. Instead, the cash difference between your asking price and the total loan amount is divided among the co-conspirators in the fraud scheme. Before long, the house goes into foreclosure, and the lender gains title to a home worth less than the value of the loan.
5 Do not agree to terms outside of the contract:
The media increasingly reports about people who didn’t know what they were signing, didn’t read through all the papers, didn’t involve a real estate attorney, or didn’t do in hindsight a number of things they wish they would have done. What they were told and what they agreed to in ink were different things. Before they knew it, they were living a nightmare. Getting everything in writing on your contract is only part of the job when selling your house. You also want to make sure that if an addendum or exhibit is added to the contract, this addendum or exhibit must be acknowledged in writing before the signature line of the contract. Without this acknowledgment, any addendums to the contract risk getting mysteriously left off what is provided to the lender. If a buyer wants to make an offer on your house but asks to leave certain terms out of the contract, it is a signal he may be hiding something from the lender. When you sign on the dotted line, you need to make sure all of the terms for the transaction are above your signature. That leaves no question about the full scope of the offer between buyer and seller for the mortgage lender approving the loan.
6 Be careful when selling your property:
Whether your home is on the market or not, make no decision lightly. Your home maybe the largest, most valuable asset you own. It’s called a nest egg for a reason. You don’t want to gamble with it or risk losing it altogether. If you’re even considering selling your home, you only want to deal with professional realtors or reputable people. Take every step with caution. Know what to expect ahead of time. Never be afraid to ask your realtor or your selling person questions. Clarify anything you do not understand when researching selling your home. And remember, if a deal sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Your best professional ally in the process is a good real estate attorney and professinal realtor. An attorney will help make sure the legal terms of a contract on your home meet your needs. An attorney and realtor are skilled at the buying and selling process. An attorney knows what is legal and what is questionable when it comes to selling one of your most prized possessions. He or she also limits the chance for last-minute surprises in the selling process. But hiring a real estate attorney to represent
you does cost money. And if you can’t afford it, you should still have your realtor to review a contract when an offer is made to buy your home.
7 Look out for people who offer to save you from foreclosure. Work with your lender first:
Maybe you don’t want to sell your house but you’re feeling pressure like you have to. It’s the old theory that having something is better than having nothing. In other words, get out from under a rising debt before you’re thrown out.
But is it too early to think this is the only option? If you are unable to pay mortgage payments and are falling behind in your financial commitments, your first goal should be to try and work with your lender. It’s in your lender’s interest not to lose money, and it’s in your interest not to lose your house. Negotiations may be possible and mutual interests are often met by working together to find a solution. Depending on how far behind you are in payments, lenders often risk more hassle and possible monetary loss by foreclosing and gaining title to your property. The time it takes for the lender to market and sell it to another owner may be over-burdensome to the lender. The better choice might be to work with you on a payment plan for you to catch up. If an agreement cannot be met and you continue in financial distress, only then should you entertain other options. Of course, people may offer some of those options before being asked. And their intentions may or may not be good ones. Today, preforeclosure lists are public knowledge on courthouse steps across America. Internet companies devoted to circulating these lists have sprouted. Anyone can use that knowledge as a reason to knock on your door and offer to rescue you from potential disaster. These people are uninvited guests until you decide otherwise. You want to check their references, talk to past customers, and find out if any complaints have been made about them to the Better Business
Bureau. Do they have your best interests in mind? Even under threat of foreclosure, you only want to surround yourself with legitimate, ethical business people.
8 Demand references from mortgage companies and real estate agents:
If you’ve decided to move forward and sell your house, the choices are overwhelming with who to work with in the process. That’s why you have to do your homework.
Your credit history, tax records, home improvements and house inspections offer a transparent look at what kind of potential client you are to real estate agents and mortgage bankers. Your background check on them is that same checklist
in return. Ask for several references and then follow through on checking each one. You should also verify that these parties are licensed to practice in the state or city where you live. This information makes up their resume. It’s your decision to
work with them for this very important job: Selling your home. If you’re not completely satisfied with their abilities, keep on “interviewing.” The job is still open. What else homeowners should do today…Obtain your personal credit report.
This should be done every year and/or when you make significant purchases to ensure that no false loans exist in your name.
The Federal Trade Commission estimates that more than 9 million Americans have their identities stolen each year. With those odds, you and your good credit score are things to protect. Don’t wait until the day you plan to sell your home and
try to qualify for a loan on your next home to find out that a stranger has erased years of your good credit. Make sure that you are listed as the only owner of your home or land. If you have questions about this, you can contact the customer service department of your title company. Check your tax bill. Each tax bill you receive will verify the homeowner’s name or names. You can verify this information with the tax assessor’s office, in the real property records or with your local real estate attorney. Shred documents and mail that contain personal information before throwing them away. Imagine the kind of personal information that exists in your trash. Would you want someone having access to credit card statements, banking statements, Social Security Card number and the wealth of things in your name that could be used
to steal your identity? A shredder sold at any office supplies store is your answer.
As the king or queen of your domain, your home is valuable and needs protecting. Whether you’re happy where you are and never plan on moving, or you’re considering selling your home, you don’t want to become a victim of real estate fraud. These tips can help ensure you, your credit, and your castle from predators looking to cash in at your expense.
According to the FBI, Real Estate Fraud is one of the fastest growing white-collar crimes in the United States. It is costing countless people their single most valuable asset. Hardworking Americans are losing what they’ve spent a lifetime to achieve. And the crime doesn’t discriminate. It’s called real estate fraud, and it’s hitting people across all socio-economic backgrounds. Welcome to a national epidemic, where stealing homes is not about baseball. Instead, a series of circumstances have collided to make the American Dream of homeownership a series of broken dreams that are making headlines across the country.
Foreclosures across America are up approximately 87 percent over last year as a result of loose lending practices. The fallout from subprime mortgages has strapped millions of homeowners with more home than they can afford. Appreciating real estate is often an oxymoron. And, as the saying goes, what goes up must come down.
While the Center for Responsible Lending estimates that 2.2 million American households will lose their homes to foreclosure and risky lending practices, there are other homeowners who should be safe, but aren’t. There are tragic stories of homeowners with properties chock full of equity falling prey to predators trying to strike it rich on their front porches. With everyone looking like a possible target, there’s a national alarm going off. And the number one weapon of defense for consumers is education – information that can help save you from a home invasion of the worst kind.
What homeowners should do before selling their home…
1 Lease-options are often no option at all:
A common practice in today’s market is a lease-option where a real estate investor
offers to buy your home to save you from foreclosure and lease it back to you. But these deals often spell catastrophe. If you are at risk of going into foreclosure because you cannot make your mortgage payments, don’t be seduced by a lease-option agreement where the monthly lease payment is equal to or of higher value than your current mortgage payment. While it may appear like the investor is there
to help you, it takes only one missed payment on a lease-option contract for him to have legal cause to evict you. Still, part of the attraction to this deal is the idea that you can buy your house back over time. You get to save your credit. And you never have to move out of your home. Yet, unsavory con-artists may
make it an uphill battle. Often presented as a lease with the option to buy over time, the written contract may not actually reflect that a percentage of the lease payment goes directly toward the purchase price of the home. And in the end, the home can only be bought at full price again, placing you, the occupant, at no
advantage from any other buyer off the street. Regardless of your situation, don’t ever enter into a lease-option agreement until you read the fine print on the contract. The better solution if you need out of your mortgage, may be to find a way legally and physically out of the home, itself. And the “short sale” might be your solution. In this case, you negotiate a settlement with your mortgage company. If a settlement is reached, you may list your home with a realtor and sell your home to a buyer or investor and then, you will avoid foreclosure and you can move into something you can afford.
2 Beware of buying on assumption:
If you want out of a house for any reason and someone offers to assume your loan, don’t assume you’re free of obligations. If state compliant legal documentation from the lender approving the assumption and acknowledging the new owner as the lienholder is not signed, legally, your mortgage lender can still recognize you as the responsible party on the loan. And if the house goes into foreclosure down the line or the person who assumed your loan begins to miss payments, don’t be surprised when creditors come looking for you. Another practice is a “Sub-To” scam, whereby a real estate investor agrees to assume your mortgage based on the promise
of future equity sharing on the sale of that home. Meanwhile, the investor will lease the house to another unsuspecting person, collect the monthly payment and pocket the money without making payments to the mortgage company.
In the end, the lender may not care who’s making the payments as long as they are made. But your name and credit are still at stake if things go south.
Having someone assume your loan may provide an immediate solution. But you also need to think long term about your future housing needs or desires down the road. Unless the lender agreed to the assumption and at closing, provided the
proper documentation acknowledging the assumption and new owner as the lienholder, when you go to apply for your next home loan, the lender may think you’re trying to buy a second house. Or, if the payments have fallen behind on your previous
address and the mortgage is still in your name, you could be denied for a loan because of someone else’s track record n mortgage payments in your name.
3 Avoid straw buyers:
Speaking of payments in one’s name, there’s another red flag to look for when the person who makes the offer to buy your home is not necessarily the person seeking the mortgage loan for that amount. While it is hard for a seller to uncover this ploy, this tactic is called using a straw buyer and is a federal crime. It involves a third-party who has good credit and poses as the buyer of the property to the mortgage company to secure a loan and perhaps represents to the lender that they will live in the property in order to induce the lender to offer a lower interest rate. At the end of the day, you’re essentially selling your house to someone with a borrowed identity, while the lender is agreeing to a loan for someone who may never intend to physically live in the home or pay any of the mortgage payments to the lender. The straw buyer may be someone induced to provide their credit and sign owner-occupied mortgage documentation for monetary compensation from a real estate investor. The investor may promise to rent the property to cover the mortgage
payments for the straw buyer. If the house is foreclosed, the lender looks to the straw buyer to recoup the loan, and the investor may try to walk away with the cash.
If caught, however, they all may walk to federal prison for conspiring to defraud the mortgage lender. And the court system is full of cases seeking retribution for the millions stolen from mortgage companies.
4 Do not agree to contract to sell your home for an amount above your asking price if you are asked to refund the difference after the closing or if you are told that the extra money will be used for repairs that have not yet been completed:
It’s natural to want to sell your home for the highest possible price. But steer clear of buyers wanting to roll in socalled home improvement costs thereby creating a higher asking price. This is a red flag and a common scheme to defraud
a mortgage lender. And it may make you an unwilling, but liable, participant in the lender fraud. The key ingredient here is usually a real estate appraiser who will appraise the home for a falsely elevated value. The buyer, a person who never plans to live in the house, will then secure a loan that covers that higher value. But the buyer does not intend to make those home improvements. Instead, the cash difference between your asking price and the total loan amount is divided among the co-conspirators in the fraud scheme. Before long, the house goes into foreclosure, and the lender gains title to a home worth less than the value of the loan.
5 Do not agree to terms outside of the contract:
The media increasingly reports about people who didn’t know what they were signing, didn’t read through all the papers, didn’t involve a real estate attorney, or didn’t do in hindsight a number of things they wish they would have done. What they were told and what they agreed to in ink were different things. Before they knew it, they were living a nightmare. Getting everything in writing on your contract is only part of the job when selling your house. You also want to make sure that if an addendum or exhibit is added to the contract, this addendum or exhibit must be acknowledged in writing before the signature line of the contract. Without this acknowledgment, any addendums to the contract risk getting mysteriously left off what is provided to the lender. If a buyer wants to make an offer on your house but asks to leave certain terms out of the contract, it is a signal he may be hiding something from the lender. When you sign on the dotted line, you need to make sure all of the terms for the transaction are above your signature. That leaves no question about the full scope of the offer between buyer and seller for the mortgage lender approving the loan.
6 Be careful when selling your property:
Whether your home is on the market or not, make no decision lightly. Your home maybe the largest, most valuable asset you own. It’s called a nest egg for a reason. You don’t want to gamble with it or risk losing it altogether. If you’re even considering selling your home, you only want to deal with professional realtors or reputable people. Take every step with caution. Know what to expect ahead of time. Never be afraid to ask your realtor or your selling person questions. Clarify anything you do not understand when researching selling your home. And remember, if a deal sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Your best professional ally in the process is a good real estate attorney and professinal realtor. An attorney will help make sure the legal terms of a contract on your home meet your needs. An attorney and realtor are skilled at the buying and selling process. An attorney knows what is legal and what is questionable when it comes to selling one of your most prized possessions. He or she also limits the chance for last-minute surprises in the selling process. But hiring a real estate attorney to represent
you does cost money. And if you can’t afford it, you should still have your realtor to review a contract when an offer is made to buy your home.
7 Look out for people who offer to save you from foreclosure. Work with your lender first:
Maybe you don’t want to sell your house but you’re feeling pressure like you have to. It’s the old theory that having something is better than having nothing. In other words, get out from under a rising debt before you’re thrown out.
But is it too early to think this is the only option? If you are unable to pay mortgage payments and are falling behind in your financial commitments, your first goal should be to try and work with your lender. It’s in your lender’s interest not to lose money, and it’s in your interest not to lose your house. Negotiations may be possible and mutual interests are often met by working together to find a solution. Depending on how far behind you are in payments, lenders often risk more hassle and possible monetary loss by foreclosing and gaining title to your property. The time it takes for the lender to market and sell it to another owner may be over-burdensome to the lender. The better choice might be to work with you on a payment plan for you to catch up. If an agreement cannot be met and you continue in financial distress, only then should you entertain other options. Of course, people may offer some of those options before being asked. And their intentions may or may not be good ones. Today, preforeclosure lists are public knowledge on courthouse steps across America. Internet companies devoted to circulating these lists have sprouted. Anyone can use that knowledge as a reason to knock on your door and offer to rescue you from potential disaster. These people are uninvited guests until you decide otherwise. You want to check their references, talk to past customers, and find out if any complaints have been made about them to the Better Business
Bureau. Do they have your best interests in mind? Even under threat of foreclosure, you only want to surround yourself with legitimate, ethical business people.
8 Demand references from mortgage companies and real estate agents:
If you’ve decided to move forward and sell your house, the choices are overwhelming with who to work with in the process. That’s why you have to do your homework.
Your credit history, tax records, home improvements and house inspections offer a transparent look at what kind of potential client you are to real estate agents and mortgage bankers. Your background check on them is that same checklist
in return. Ask for several references and then follow through on checking each one. You should also verify that these parties are licensed to practice in the state or city where you live. This information makes up their resume. It’s your decision to
work with them for this very important job: Selling your home. If you’re not completely satisfied with their abilities, keep on “interviewing.” The job is still open. What else homeowners should do today…Obtain your personal credit report.
This should be done every year and/or when you make significant purchases to ensure that no false loans exist in your name.
The Federal Trade Commission estimates that more than 9 million Americans have their identities stolen each year. With those odds, you and your good credit score are things to protect. Don’t wait until the day you plan to sell your home and
try to qualify for a loan on your next home to find out that a stranger has erased years of your good credit. Make sure that you are listed as the only owner of your home or land. If you have questions about this, you can contact the customer service department of your title company. Check your tax bill. Each tax bill you receive will verify the homeowner’s name or names. You can verify this information with the tax assessor’s office, in the real property records or with your local real estate attorney. Shred documents and mail that contain personal information before throwing them away. Imagine the kind of personal information that exists in your trash. Would you want someone having access to credit card statements, banking statements, Social Security Card number and the wealth of things in your name that could be used
to steal your identity? A shredder sold at any office supplies store is your answer.
As the king or queen of your domain, your home is valuable and needs protecting. Whether you’re happy where you are and never plan on moving, or you’re considering selling your home, you don’t want to become a victim of real estate fraud. These tips can help ensure you, your credit, and your castle from predators looking to cash in at your expense.
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