Banks may warm to idea of principle reductions
by John Gittelsohn and Prashant Gopal, Bloomberg News
Home Equity Loans – Not so easy anymore!
Home Equity Loans are just not so easy for homeowners anymore
Originally Published by Adrain Sainz of the Associated Press
Hocking the house for quick cash is a lot harder than it used to be, and it’s causing headaches for homeowners, banks and the economy.
During the housing boom, millions of people borrowed against the value of their homes to remodel kitchens, finish basements, pay off credit cards, buy TVs or cars, and finance educations. Banks encouraged the borrowing, touting in ads how easy it is to unlock the cash in their homes to “live richly” and “seize your someday.”
Now, the days of tapping a house for easy money have gone the way of soaring home prices. A quarter of all homeowners are ineligible for home equity loans because they owe more on their mortgage than what the house is worth. Those who have equity in their homes are finding banks far more stingy. Many with home-equity loans are seeing their credit limits reduced dramatically.
Foreclosure plague slowing : Filings fall by 8%
The following article that was posted earlier in this month on cnnmoney.com speaks to the fact that in the month of November there was a decrease in foreclosure filings nationwide. This does not necessarily hold true to South Florida. And the questions still persists if this is a temporary lull considering the millions of people who will soon find themselves with no further unemployment benefits as well as no new jobs. So with loan modification plans continuing to be revised by the Obama Administration and hundreds of thousands of people awaiting approval of Short Sale offers by their current lenders we sit and we wait to see what the new year to bring us. I hope that you find the following article insightful and informative.
Report says homeowners whose loan payments are cut by 20 percent or more still falling behind
The following is a recent story that was published in the Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel which talks about the recent studies that were released in a recent Government study which state that upwards of 40% of homeowners who recently had their mortgage payments cut by 20% or more found themselves back into default or delinquency within the next 12 months. The article references the recent Obama plan to assist homeowner’s in getting their mortgage payments reduced but since that plan has only really been in effect for less than 6 months I personally find it hard to understand how the study could even be talking about borrowers who had their mortgages reduced in the Obama plan since all of them must have had their mortgages reduced prior to the plan going into effect. Additionally (like many recent news reports) the story fails to address the issue of the lenders not fully converting the temporary modifications that have been offered to so many people, into permanent modifications that reduce payments and perhaps reduce total amount owed. To find out more on how to avoid foreclosure or to negotiate a Short Sale please contact the Burgess Law Firm to request a consultation. (read more below)
LOCAL INVESTORS SNAP UP APARTMENT COMPLEXES
In a sign that the tide may be turning in the Commercial Real Estate markets a recent article posted last Friday in the Daily Business Review talks about 2 purchase transactions that occured recently in the local South Florida markets. We will continue to monitor the local news wires and media for information on major real estate transactions and keep you posted. If you or your clients are in the need for legal advice in the process of conducting a Commercial Real Estate transaction please call our offices or contact us at the Burgess Law Firm via email for more information.
Citi’s holiday treat: No foreclosures for a month
In a sign of the times, major banks like Citi are offering to “postpone” foreclosure filings for 30 days during the holiday season. But not so fast, don’t get too excited. As we have come to always find out you need to read the fine print. What Citi is actually doing is suspending the foreclosure filings on only the mortgages that are “owned” by Citi and not the loans that are “serviced” by Citi. This can get confusing for many people becuase they do not fully understand that in most cases, just because you get your monthly statement from Citi or because Citi may initiate the collections calls, it doesn’t mean that Citi is the actual holder of the mortgage note. In many cases the actual “investor” or “owner” of the mortgage could be a Pension Fund or Hedge Fund that purchased your mortgage in the Secondary Market and has simply retained Citi to service the mortgage. And unfortunately this is the situation that holds true for most Americans. So be sure to contact your lender and ask the question, “is your company the owner of my mortgage or simply the servicer” and if they are simply the “servicer” push them to tell you who is the Investor or Owner of that mortgage.
The Pre-Foreclosure Decision: Top 10 Questions to Talk Over with Your Attorney
This is a re-post from an article that appeared in a monthly newsletter for the Arizona Area of Realtors earlier this year. What is so good about this article is that it clearly lists some very specific questions that every home owner should be asking when they are considering the decision on either attempting to modify their current mortgage or simply selling the house for Short Sale. If these are questions that you are seeking answers too, please call or contact our offices to schedule a consultation.
Re-Posted from AARNEWS . . .
Fortune magazine says South Florida home prices could drop another 30% in 2010
Fortune magazine says South Florida home prices could drop another 30% in 2010
In a recent article released in their December 2009 issue, Forbes Magazine and Economy.com both say that home prices in South Florida (especially Palm Beach and Broward Counties) could drop by as much as 30% from current values for 2010.
Forbes Magazine recently released their 2010 housing outlook, and quite honestly this could come as a big punch in the gut for many people who believe the markets are improving and are often heard saying that ”prices will come back” and this is big cause for concern to many of the Realtors and Mortgage Professionals that we speak to on a daily basis.
Justices debate mandatory mediation to ease crisis
November 5, 2009
Daily Business Review
Authored by : Vanessa Blum
The Florida Supreme Court was asked Wednesday to adopt statewide mandatory mediation for residential foreclosures to help judges manage the flood of filings clogging courthouses.
The high court heard arguments on a task force report recommending mandatory mediation as part of a streamlined and uniform approach to the foreclosure crisis.
While questioning some specifics of the plan, justices seemed eager to help circuit courts deal with an onslaught of foreclosure cases — many involving unrepresented homeowners with a limited understanding of the legal process.
Record Jump in Foreclosure filings
Foreclosure filings in record jump
Hope Now reports a 20% increase in initial foreclosure filings during March. But there was a steep drop in bank repossessions.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — Lenders continued to rewrite troubled mortgages at a fast clip during March, but the weakening economy still sent foreclosure starts soaring to a record high.
March mortgage workout results announced on Thursday by Hope Now – a coalition of mortgage lenders, servicers, investors and community groups put together to fight the foreclosure plague – were a decidedly mixed bag.