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Freddie Mac this week launched a series of videos aimed at helping consumers separate foreclosure fact from fiction.  Each 90- to 120-second video, which can be viewed on Freddie Mac’s YouTube Channel dispels one of five common myths that may prevent homeowners from keeping their homes if they face foreclosure. The video series is based on content from Freddie Mac’s “Get the Facts on Homeownership” education and outreach materials.

The five myths the video series focuses on are:

Myth 1: If my house is foreclosed, I can never buy a house again — the foreclosure will stay on my record forever.

Myth 2: I should stop paying my mortgage so I can get assistance with my mortgage payments.

Myth 3: If I’m late on my monthly payments, I’ll lose my house.

Myth 4: I am getting many offers for help from a variety of people. They are probably all scams.

Myth 5: My lender is not responding to my inquiries, so I should just give up and face foreclosure.

More information at: ttp://freddiemac.mediaroom.com/index.php?s=12329&item=30554

Other articles relating to the Sacramento and Placerville, California regions at: www.sierraproperties.com

The number of U.S. homes in some stage of foreclosure fell drastically last month, reaching a 36-month low, RealtyTrac reports.

Source: “Foreclosures Plunge 27%-Biggest Drop on Record,” CNNMoney.com (March 10, 2011) and“Foreclosure Activity Slows Sharply in February,” Associated Press (March 10, 2011) 

Other articles relating to the Sacramento and Placerville, California regions at: www.sierraproperties.com

 

California Association of Realtors is sponsoring SB 458 (Corbett), a re-introduction of SB 1178 (Corbett) from 2010, which proposes to extend anti-deficiency protections to cover the refinance of purchase money mortgages that include debt incurred to acquire, construct or improve the home for homeowners facing foreclosure.

A loophole in the law has allowed California homeowners, already facing the possibility of foreclosure, to be sued by their lender for the difference between the value of the foreclosed property and the outstanding balance on the mortgage loan.  SB 1178 would have closed that loophole and expanded anti-deficiency protections to consumers who have refinanced their original mortgage loans and now are facing foreclosure.

During the 2010 legislative session, C.A.R. sponsored SB 1178 and urged REALTORS® and their clients to call their senator to vote “yes” on SB 1178.  Although this bill was approved by Congress, it was ultimately vetoed by Gov. Schwarzenegger. 

Other articles about real estate in the Sacramento and Placerville, California regions at: www.sierraproperties.com

Ten percent of real estate professionals say they’ve had sales canceled because appraisals came in below the price the buyer agreed to pay, according to a National Association of REALTORS® survey conducted in January. What’s more, another 15 percent say contracts had to be renegotiated because an appraisal came in too low.

Home builders say low appraisals are killing deals for them too. One-third of home builders say low appraisals have jeopardized sales for them (up from 26 percent in 2009), according to the National Association of Builders.

When appraisals come in low, sellers have to drop the sales price or buyers have to come with more cash, or the deal gets killed.

Foreclosures and a new appraisal rule for lenders are other factors contributing to low appraisals, housing experts say. A new appraisal rule that went into effect in 2009 aims to lessen lenders’ ability to influence appraisers but has led to more outsourcing of appraisals to firms that may not be as familiar with the neighborhoods in that area.

We haveexperienced this problem here in the Sacramento and Placerville, California regions. Many times the appraiser is from outside our county and unfamiliar with the subject market or perhaps is not experienced or qualified? 

More information at source of this article: “What’s Behind Home-Sales-Scuttling Low Appraisals?” USA Today (March 1, 2011)

Make your home stand out in a crowded real estate marketplace. Housing experts offer some tips for sprucing up a home to get it ready to sell.

1. Create curb appeal. Here are some easy, big impact ideas: Paint the front door, pick a new color for the exterior trim, fix any old shutters, and make sure the path from the driveway is clear to the front door. Also, remove any overgrown plants and replace them with low-growing shrubs and perennials.

2. Fix the flaws. Fix everything, they say, including broken joints, cracks in walls or the foundation, and recaulk the bathroom tub, if needed. “If the little things are not done, people will think, what else is not done?” says Steve White, the owner of Handyman Connection in Elmsford, N.Y.

3. Paint. “Paint is the greatest single thing you can do and it’s the most cost effective,” says David Sanders of Sanders Properties in Nyack, N.Y. “Use light, cheery colors. People don’t want to walk into a dark, dreary room.”

4. Add some new bling. Interior designer Nancy August from Piermont, N.Y. says just swapping out the home’s hardware for new can quickly freshen up a home. For example, new hinges, doorknobs, drawer pulls, and light switches and fixtures can quickly transform a dated room, particularly in a dated bathroom.

Great points that we encourage in our Sacramento and Placerville, California regions.

More info. at source: “How to Sell Your House in Any Market,” Gannett News Service 

The U.S. Treasury Department has approved CalHFA’s plan to use nearly $2 billion in federal funding to help California families struggling to pay their mortgages.

The Helping You Keep Your Home focuses on assisting low and moderate incomefamilies stay in their homes, when possible, and leveraging additional contributions from mortgage servicers.

Primary objectives for the Keep Your Home California programs include:

• Preserving homeownership for low and moderate income homeowners in California by reducing the number of delinquencies and preventing avoidable foreclosures
• Assisting in the stabilization of California communities

Each of the Keep Your Home California programs is designed to address one or more aspects of the current housing crisis by doing the following:

• Helping low and moderate income homeowners retain their homes if they either have suffered a financial hardship such as unemployment, have experienced a change in household circumstance such as death, illness or disability, or are subject to a recent or upcoming increase in their monthly mortgage payment and are at risk of default because of this economic hardship when coupled with a severe decline in their home’s value.
• Creating a simple, effective way to get federal funds to assist low and moderate income homeowners who meet one or all of the objective criteria described above. Speed of delivery will be balanced with fulfillment of the specific program’s mission and purpose.
• Creating programs that have an immediate, direct economic and social impact on low and moderate income homeowners and their neighborhoods.  

Other articles relating to the Sacramento and Placerville, California regions at: www.sierraproperties.com

Developers and builders expect baby boomers to re-emerge in the real estate market soon, but they say boomers likely will come with a simpler agenda when it comes to what they’re looking for in a home.

“We have an opportunity to rethink a lot of the things we’ve done” in designing communities and homes that are intended for that age group, says Douglas Van Lerberghe, a land planner in Denver, who spoke during the National Association of Home Builders conference in Orlando, Fla., last month.

Housing experts predict retiring boomers will want a greater variety of housing styles, smaller homes, and developments that are restricted to older buyers.

Other high priorities they expect from this age group:

▪ Younger boomers will want to continue to work so homes close to job hubs will be important and home offices in floor plans.
▪ Walking trails are a No. 1 amenity desired by this age group.
▪ Gated access to communities and security is important.
▪ Expanded storage into garages.

Source: “Boomers Set to Reshape Housing Market, Again,” Chicago Tribune 

Other articles relating to the Sacramento and Placerville, California regions at: www.sierraproperties.com

However 27% of homeowners with mortgages owe more than their homes are worth. That’s up from 23.2% a quarter earlier. That will surely lead to higher foreclosure rates soon. That’s because being underwater is second only to unaffordable payments in leading to foreclosure, according to Zillow’s chief economist, Stan Humphries.

Additionally, the report found that more than one-third of all homes were sold at a loss in December. That trend has been on a steady uptick for the past six months, as homeowners try to find ways around foreclosure or out from under their homes.

The so-called “robo-signing” events of the fall also forced the number of underwater mortgages higher.

When banks’ foreclosure paperwork came under scrutiny, many halted all repossessions until they could straighten things out. With foreclosures no longer being cleaned out of the system, more homes stayed underwater rather than moving on to foreclosure. 

Portion of article by: Ken Calhoon, Real Estate Broker, Placerville, California

A Weichert, REALTORS® survey of 1,261 home buyers who made purchases between July 1, 2010, and Dec. 31, 2010, reveals that 28 percent were motivated by “favorable financing,” down from 31 percent in 2009 but up from 14 percent in 2008.

While 26 percent of those polled in 2005 said the desire to own a home and stop renting were motivating factors, very few respondents said the same in 2010. The survey reveals that 12 percent made home purchases because they had to relocate, 28 percent because they wanted a bigger home or more living space, and 11 percent because of potential financial growth.

Dominick Prevete, regional vice president for Weichert, says, “The takeaway is that home buyers who still see long-term potential financial growth in housing are more motivated today by the value presented by very low interest rates and discounted prices than they were five years ago. I think we are back in a period of a more realistic view of home ownership.”

Source: “Survey: Affordability Top Reason for Home Buying in 2010,” The Wall Street Journal, M.P. McQueen 

Other articles at: www.sierraproperties.com

Analysts are blaming the housing sector for the slow economic recovery.

Analysts say the real estate market often leads to economic recoveries. However, “I expect housing will not provide as much support to this recovery has it has in previous ones,” says Eric Rosengren, the president of the Boston Federal Reserve Bank.

Joel Naroff, president of Naroff Economic Advisers, says 2011 would be a “transition year” for housing with the market “not going anywhere.”

Housing construction has leveled off but some are still skeptical whether the real estate market is in true recovery mode yet. Housing starts for December are expected to fall 2.2 percent to a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 543,000 after rising 3.9 percent to a 555,000 rate in November.

Building permits have reached their lowest levels since April 2009. Most experts blame the low building permits on the upswing in foreclosures.

The National Association of REALTORS® will release its December existing-home sales report on Thursday, which experts say will help shed more of a light on how the real estate market is really doing. Economists are expecting existing-home sales to rise.

Source: “Housing: U.S. Economy’s Achilles’ Heel,” MarketWatch (Jan. 16, 2011)