Home Buying and Selling Real Estate

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Is it Smart to Rescast a Mortgage?
2011-01-14 06:00:00
Because the article carried the wrong calculation as an example, The New York Times has since removed its initial example of how to recast a mortgage, but I can give you the example here. The article talked about how recasting a mortgage can be beneficial to homeowners who, for a variety of reasons, cannot refinance. To recast means you recalculate a mortgage payment based on your original rate and term of loan. For example, say you have a loan balance of $148,037.73, with interest at 7%, which you originally took out 15 years ago. If you paid a lump sum of, say, $20,000 toward that loan and recast the mortgage, your new payment over the remaining 15 years would drop by $179.76 per month. That would save you $32,356.80 over the remaining term, resulting in an actual savings of $12,356.80 (after you deducted the principal amount you used to reduce the balance of your loan). More Articles by Elizabeth Weintraub: How to Assume a Loan Reasons to Get a Second Mortgage How to Refinance ...
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The Unemployed Can Get an Extra Free Credit Report
2011-01-12 06:00:00
Most people know that they can get a free credit report by going to annualcreditreport.com. It's the only place online that is totally free, without some kind of catch. In fact, if you order only one report from one credit bureau, and do it every four months, you can actually get 3 reports a year. But most people just order all 3 at the same time. However, if your reports for the year have already been issued, you can get an extra report for free if you're unemployed. It's a good idea to check your credit report before job hunting because the likelihood is your potential new employer will check your credit. The problem is getting that free credit report as an unemployed person isn't as easy as getting the consumer version, says creditcards.com. You have to contact each credit bureau individually and apply separately. More Articles by Elizabeth Weintraub: Buying a Home Subject to an Existing Loan How to Do a Lease Option Sale Benefits of an FHA Loan Technorati tag: free credi...
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Tips for Buying a Cheap Foreclosure
2011-01-10 06:00:00
Buyers tend to lean toward foreclosures for one reason and one reason only, and that is to buy a cheap foreclosure. Because it's the cheap price on that foreclosure that makes up for the hassle of dealing with the bank, the asset manager, the confusing bank addendums and the foreclosure bank's 'as is' policy. At least in theory that's how it's supposed to work. But not every foreclosure is a cheap foreclosure. I'm seeing movement, though, toward banks pricing their foreclosures more in line with the comparable sales. Of course, many of those comps are foreclosures . . . read more about cheap foreclosures. More Articles by Elizabeth Weintraub: How to Make a Foreclosure Offer The Drawbacks to Buying a Foreclosure Should You Buy a Foreclosure or a Regular Home? ©Big Stock Photo Technorati tag: cheap foreclosure At the time of writing, Elizabeth Weintraub, DRE # 00697006, is a Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate in Sacramento, California. Tips for Buying a Cheap Foreclo...

New Law Prohibits Short Sale Deficiency on California First Mortgages
2011-01-07 06:00:00
Section 580e has been added to the California Code of Civil Procedure, effective January 1, 2011, which prohibits banks holding a first mortgage from approving a short sale and then pursuing the seller for a deficiency. SB 931, which was signed into law on September 30, 2010, makes lenders accept the short sale proceeds as payment in full for a first mortgage secured by one to four units, providing the lender approves the short sale. Fortunately, I had 3 pending short sales in Sacramento that were set to close by the end of December. These were 3 short sales in which the bank issued approval letters containing deficiency verbiage. The solution? Roll those short sales in January by requesting an extension. We got the extensions. The bank didn't know about Section 580e. We'll see how long these short sales continue to get approved before the banks find some legal way to get around this new law. If you're contemplating doing a short sale in California, and you have one mortgage, y...
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Buyers Should Not Rely on Per-Square-Foot Pricing
2011-01-05 06:00:00
The home price per square foot averages in a neighborhood are sometimes used by home buyers to establish value. Most buyers believe if the average per-square-foot price for any given month is $300, then they can take a 1,000 square-foot-home and come up with a value of $300,000. But that's not how it works. For one thing, if four homes sell in May and 25 homes sell in June, the June average price-per-square foot will be much more accurate than the values in May. The May numbers will be skewered because fewer homes were sold. On top of that, smaller homes command higher per-square-foot costs than larger homes. Throw into the mix that buyers might not know the difference between median prices and average prices, and it's even more confusing . . . read more about Home Price Per Square Foot. More Articles by Elizabeth Weintraub: How Much is That Home Worth? What's a Comparative Market Analysis? The Best Time to Buy a Home ©Big Stock Photo Technorati tag: home price...

Remodeling a Home Without Permits Can Cause Problems for Home Buyers
2011-01-03 06:00:00
Home buyers have good reason to be concerned about buying a home that was remodeled without permits. When I bought my home, I was living in Minnesota and my husband had already transferred to Sacramento. I insisted that he go down to the city building department to verify that our home's square footage matched city records and the city had a permit for the addition. Most of the homes in my neighborhood were originally 2 bedrooms when they were built, and, over the years, owners added extra bedrooms, baths and family rooms. Some owners did not pull a permit, and that can mean . . . read more about Remodeling Without Permits. More Articles by Elizabeth Weintraub: Pet-Friendly Home Remodels Home Remodeling Trends Garage Design and Remodels ©Big Stock Photo Technorati tag: remodel without permit At the time of writing, Elizabeth Weintraub, DRE # 00697006, is a Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate in Sacramento, California. Remodeling a Home Without Permits Can Cause Proble...
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Beware of Deficiency Judgments After a Short Sale or Foreclosure
2010-12-31 06:00:00
Nary a day goes by when I don't receive an email or phone call asking me whether a lender will file a deficiency judgment after a foreclosure or ...Read Full Post
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Foreclosures on Rise for 2011
2010-12-29 06:00:00
Despite all of the glass-is-half-full mentality you'll hear from real estate optimists, the market is not expected to recover in 2011, reports the Wall Street Journal. Part of the predicted foreclosure increase is probably due to the delays caused by the Robosigning fiasco, which caused banks to put put off processing foreclosures while they investigated their internal foreclosure procedures. But other reasons are high unemployment and rising interest rates, especially for those borrowers with adjustable-rate mortgages. Some homeowners are finding their unemployment checks are running out and they still can't find work. It looks like foreclosures will continue to dominate many metro areas, and the upcoming year might be worse than 2010. More Articles by Elizabeth Weintraub: The Three Basic Types of Foreclosures Buying a Foreclosure Flipper How to Find a Foreclosure Agent Technorati tag: foreclosures At the time of writing, Elizabeth Weintraub, DRE # 00697006, is a Broker-Associ...

The Problem With Home Buying Before Short Selling
2010-12-27 06:00:00
I get calls from a lot of underwater sellers who ask about buying a new home before selling a short sale. It's a perfectly reasonable question. Seems to make sense to a lot of people. But it's not as easy as one may think because there are basically 3 ways to buy before a short sale, two of which automatically disqualify a seller from buying. The first thing to think about is why would a short sale lender let you do a short sale if you could qualify to buy a new home? . . . read more about Buying a New Home Before Selling a Short Sale. More Articles by Elizabeth Weintraub: Do You Need a Lawyer to Do a Short Sale? Top 10 Reasons for Short Sale Failures How to Do a Bank of America Short Sale ©Big Stock Photo Technorati tag: buy home sell short sale At the time of writing, Elizabeth Weintraub, DRE # 00697006, is a Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate in Sacramento, California. The Problem With Home Buying Before Short Selling originally appeared on About.com Home Buying / Sel...

Is 2010 The Year That You Will Cancel Halloween?
2010-10-29 07:00:00
I wonder how many households in this tight economy might decide to cancel Halloween this year. I realize there are millions of children in the U.S. for whom Halloween is a ...Read Full Post

How is the Government Helping the Housing Market?
2010-10-27 07:00:00
Everywhere I go, I hear agents talking about President Obama's plans to rescue homeowner's in foreclosure. But when I talk to struggling homeowners who can't seem to get a loan modification, their lives are not filled with hope. Do you believe the government is doing all that it can to help the housing market recover? Is the government doing too much or not enough? Under the Treasury's Hardest Hit Fund, 17 states and the District of Columbia are slated to receive up to $4 billion to distribute among targeted unemployment programs and to help eligible homeowners make their mortgage payments. The Emergency Homeowner's Loan Program, which is supposed to start toward the end of the year, provides interest-free loans of up to $50,000 to eligible homeowners who don't live in the states covered under the Hardest Hit Fund. But the qualifications for that program are so stringent and selective, few homeowners will probably qualify. Does anybody know of a single homeowner who qualifie...
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How Long Should It Take to Sell Your House?
2010-10-25 07:00:00
How long does it take to sell a house is a loaded question. That's because selling quickly depends on a lot of variables, some of which a seller or the listing agent cannot control. You've also got market conditions to consider. I generally ask sellers that question when I take the listing. For example, I listed a fixer upper last month. Within a week, we received 12 offers and sold for almost 25% more than the last comparable sale. We closed with an all-cash offer two weeks later. The sellers relied on their agent's advice, thank goodness . . . read more about How Long Does it Take to Sell a House . More Articles by Elizabeth Weintraub: Should You Fix Up Your Home or Sell As Is? Learn How to Price Your House 10 Ways for Sellers to Attract Home Buyers ©Big Stock Photo Technorati tag: how long sell house At the time of writing, Elizabeth Weintraub, DRE # 00697006, is a Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate in Sacramento, California. How Long Should It Take to Sell Your Hou...

Robo-Signing Foreclosure Investigation in Full Swing
2010-10-22 07:00:00
Regardless of whether you feel empathetic toward those who are losing their homes in what is now being called Foreclosure gate, the fact that attorneys general of every state in the country have joined forces to investigate the foreclosure procedures initiated by mortgage providers is huge news. The term being bantered about is robo-signing, meaning the individuals responsible for signing documents to seize homes in foreclosure didn't read or verify the documents that they signed. In some cases, apparently documents were notarized without the notary present at the time of signatures. Some critics say so what? Borrowers had stopped making their payments. Others, perhaps those who care about the foundation on which America was built, say laws were put in place to be followed, and big banks are not above the law. More Articles by Elizabeth Weintraub: Why You Can't Buy That Bank Repo Tenants' Rights in Foreclosures Who Will Save the Abandoned Foreclosure Pets? Technorati tag: fore...
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How to Tell if Your Housing Market is Improving
2010-10-20 07:00:00
Is your housing market improving? And if your housing market is not improving, how much of a difference does that make to a first-time home buyer? I'm not certain that buyers really care if they are buying a home during a recession. I suspect most home buyers buy a home because they need to or want to. They're not paying an inordinate amount of attention to market activity. Home sellers, on the other hand, are very concerned about the way the market is moving . . . read more about 10 Ways to Know if the Housing Market is Improving. More Articles by Elizabeth Weintraub: How to Ask Your Parents for Money to Buy a Home 10 Reasons Not to Buy a Home 5 Things to Check Before Selling Your Home ©Big Stock Photo Technorati tag: housing market improving At the time of writing, Elizabeth Weintraub, DRE # 00697006, is a Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate in Sacramento, California. How to Tell if Your Housing Market is Improving originally appeared on About.com Home Buying / Selling...

What Causes Short Sales to Fail?
2010-10-18 07:00:00
You might think that more short sales fail than succeed, and you might be right. I don't know of anybody who is actively tracking precisely how many short sales close and how many blow up. But I do know that if the sellers qualify for a short sale and the short sale is priced properly, it's probably going to go through. In my market, almost half of the homes for sale now are short sales . . . read more about 10 Reasons Short Sales Fail. More Articles by Elizabeth Weintraub: Can You Do a Strategic Short Sale? The Benefits of a Loan Modification Over a Short Sale The Pros and Cons to Short Sales vs. Foreclosures ©Big Stock Photo Technorati tag: short sales fail At the time of writing, Elizabeth Weintraub, DRE # 00697006, is a Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate in Sacramento, California. What Causes Short Sales to Fail? originally appeared on About.com Home Buying / Selling on Monday, October 18th, 2010 at 05:00:20.Permalink | Comment | Email this

Should You Stop Making Your Mortgage Payment?
2010-10-15 07:00:00
Short sale sellers always ask if they should stop making mortgage payments. I never answer that question because I can't give legal advice. I suppose the sellers' rationale is the lender will be more agreeable to accepting a short sale if the sellers stop making their mortgage payments and the mortgage goes into default. Sometimes that is the case and sometimes it's not, but the thing is there's not a surefire way to find out without stopping the mortgage payments. Some sellers I know stopped making payments on their second mortgage years ago. For those underwater sellers, they realized that the second has no equity and therefore would not spend the money to foreclose. It's not always smart to stop paying on the mortgage. There are advantages to keeping your mortgage payments current. One advantage is on a short sale, if the owners are current and move more than 600 miles away, they might be able to apply for an FHA loan to buy another house. There are also advantages to ...
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Should You Hire Your Agent's Recommended Home Inspector?
2010-10-13 07:00:00
If you don't trust your agent, you might not want to hire your agent's home inspector. However, don't make the mistake of thinking that you can find a better home inspector. Just because a home inspector maintains membership in a home inspector's association doesn't mean the home inspector is competent. Some states don't license home inspectors, and California is among those states. Plus, if your home inspector missed a serious defect during the home inspection, you might have a difficult time recovering damages from a home inspector the agent doesn't know. Some home inspection contracts limit the inspector's liability to the amount the consumer paid for the home inspection . . . read more about Agent's Home Inspector. More Articles by Elizabeth Weintraub: Home Inspection Checklist How to Deal With a Wet Basement Types of Home Inspections ©Big Stock Photo Technorati tag: agent's home inspector As of this writing, Elizabeth Weintraub is a Broker-Associate,...
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Major Banks Halt Foreclosures
2010-10-11 07:00:00
Riding on the foreclosure practice coattails of Wells Fargo, Chase and PNC Financial, the nation's largest bank, Bank of America, went one step further last week and announced it would halt foreclosures in 50 states. The first 3 banks halted foreclosures in 23 states. According to the LA Times, on Saturday, Bank of America put all of its foreclosure activity on hold in every state. The freeze came about due to reports of mishandling of foreclosure documents. The reason that Wells Fargo, Chase and PNC instituted a moratorium on foreclosures in only 23 states is because those 23 states handle foreclosures through a judicial process and not through a trustee's power of sale. A judicial process is more costly and sometimes takes longer. You've got to hand it to Bank of America, though. It's careful enough or smart enough to examine all of its processes to make sure the bank complies with law. You would think that if Bank of America could institute a moratorium like this, other b...
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The Benefits of a Wire Transfer vs. a Cashier's Check at Closing
2010-10-08 07:00:00
Some home buyers are confused about how wire transfers and cashier's checks work. At almost every closing I attend -- and by closing, I mean when the buyers sign loan documents -- clients ask me whether they should do a wire transfer or bring in a cashier's check. Some are astonished to find out that they can't write a personal check at closing. Honestly, there are pros and cons to each, but one thing I know for certain is you don't want to wait until the last minute. Buyers who wait until the 11th hour to deposit funds to escrow almost invariably end up encountering some little problem. And often it's that little problem that can cause a delay in recording . . . read more about Wire Transfer s and Cashier's Check s. More Articles by Elizabeth Weintraub: The Home Closing Process Paperwork to Keep After Closing Buyer's Closing Costs ©Big Stock Photo Technorati tag: wire transfers cashier's checks As of this writing, Elizabeth Weintraub is a Broker-Associate, DRE #00697...

About Approved Short Sales and Wells Fargo Guidelines
2010-10-06 07:00:00
A few weeks back, Wells Fargo announced it will no longer offer extensions on its approved short sales nor will it postpone a scheduled auction for its portfolio loans. So, if a short sale transaction blows up, that approved short sale might not get approved again. Getting a short sale approved is tricky business. You can be dealing with 2 lenders and one of the lenders might not agree to let the seller totally off the hook. The bank might not want to accept an offer because it's not high enough or the seller might not qualify for the short sale. There are a dozen reasons, plus some, why a short sale may be denied. However, after a short sale is approved, it doesn't mean that another buyer can always automatically step right into place and pick up where the last buyer left off. So, an approved short sale notation in a listing might be misleading . . . read more about an Approved Short Sale. More Articles by Elizabeth Weintraub: Waiting for Short Sale Approval Short Sale Offe...
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Why You Want a Home Inspection Contingency
2010-10-04 07:00:00
Years ago, very few buyers asked for a home inspection contingency, but nowadays it is imperative. You want a home inspection contingency in your contract whether the home you are buying is older or newer because even brand new homes can have defects. Probably one of the biggest scandals lately involving new home construction is the problem with Chinese drywall. The sulfur content in Chinese drywall causes respiratory problems, smells awful like rotten eggs and contaminates a home. It can turn appliances, mirrors and wires black. If you're buying a home built between 2001 and 2008 or remodeled during those years, it could have Chinese drywall. Without a home inspection contingency, you could be on the hook because there seems to be little relief available for owners of those contaminated homes . . . read more about a Home Inspection Contingency. More Articles by Elizabeth Weintraub: How to Do a Wet Basement Inspection What to Expect From a Sewer Inspection 6 Things to Look For ...

How to Put a Home For Sale Online
2009-09-23 07:00:00
Even if you have no graphic design experience or the first clue about putting your home for sale online, you can do it. I wouldn’t go so far as to say a monkey can post a home listing on the Internet, but using some of the free programs available, it’s pretty much “fill in the blanks.” Then presto! You have created a four-color digital flyer. Some of the free online software will even post the listings to all the popular Web sites for you. This is a far cry from having to learn Photoshop. Besides, when you use Photoshop, you might be tempted to color the sky a deeper blue or erase telephone poles from the photo — not saying that I’ve ever done that — because it would be misleading and untruthful. Just saying the temptation might exist . . . read more about how to submit a Home for Sale Online . More Articles by Elizabeth Weintraub: Home Showing Tips Home Marketing Tips Home Marketing Mistakes ©Elizabeth Weintraub Technorati tag: home for sale online
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You Might Not Want to Tell Your Agent Your Highest Price
2009-09-21 07:00:00
Many first-time home buyers form a unique bond with their agent and will automatically tell the agent the highest price they will pay. In some ways, a buyer's top price might not be a secret as the preapproval letter is often written by the lender at the buyer's highest price. That's because some home buyers stretch themselves to the max and go for the maximum loan allowable. Other buyers may be more prudent. These buyers are generally more cautious and don't want to buy the biggest house they can find. These buyers instead prefer to develop a negotiating strategy and may offer an initial price that is much lower than they expect the seller to take . . . read more about Telling Your Agent Your Highest Price . More Articles by Elizabeth Weintraub: Top 5 Lowball Offer Mistakes Two Offers at the Same Time How to Tell If You're Ready to Make an Offer ©Big Stock Photo Technorati tag: tell agent highest price

Should You Show Your Home By Appointment or With a Lockbox?
2009-09-18 07:00:00
Home sellers, not the listing agents, decide whether a home is shown by appointment vs. lockbox. At first glance, most people would say, “Hey, let my agent show the home.” That’s because agents are handsomely rewarded to market and sell real estate. Sellers also say the listing agent is the person most informed about the home, and the agent has intimate knowledge, which can be passed directly to the buyer or the buyer’s agent if the listing agent is present. Moreover, lockboxes can be a nuisance, are sometimes envisioned as an invasion of privacy, and security issues can sometimes arise. Thieves have been known to cut off lockboxes and steal the keys, although breaking into a lockbox is generally a rare and isolated circumstance. On the other hand, some studies have shown that homes without lockboxes take longer to sell, sometimes twice as long. And whether a seller incorporates a lockbox into the marketing plan is often contingent on local custom. In buyer’s markets that a...
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Reasons to Do a Short Sale
2009-09-16 07:00:00
For some financially strapped and upside-down home sellers, there are good reasons to do a short sale over a foreclosure. I find that most short sale sellers, once they understand the benefits of a short sale, would prefer to do a short sale instead of letting the property go to the bank. It's about maintaining a sense of control, too. Well, unless your loan was originated by Countrywide, which is now Bank of America. Lord help those sellers. Bank of America short sales are generally a nightmare, second only to original Countrywide loans, which are the devil incarnate . . . read more about good Reasons for a Short Sale . More Articles by Elizabeth Weintraub: Profits to a Seller on a Short Sale Will a Short Sale Ruin Credit? Qualifications for a Short Sale ©Big Stock Photo Technorati tag: reasons to do a short sale

Things to Know About For Sale Signs in the Yard
2009-09-14 07:00:00
All the home sellers I know long for the day when their For Sale Signs will be topped by those coveted sold signs. I use For Sale Sign modifiers in Sacramento. For example, when the seller accepts an offer and goes into contract with a buyer, I often place a "pending" sign on top of the sign post. Then, after the contract contingencies are removed, I trade out the pending sign for a "sold" sign. Those signs stay in place until the transaction closes escrow. This causes confusion for some passersby because I remove the "sold" sign on the day the escrow closes. I keep that sign in my personal inventory. The company that installed the For Sale Sign panel comes out a day or two after closing to remove the panel and post. Sometimes I get calls from people asking me if the escrow blew up because the sold sign is gone . . . read more about For Sale Signs. More Articles by Elizabeth Weintraub: Should Sellers Use a Security Alarm? 5 Steps Before Home Selling Top Home Selling Mistakes &...
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Should Home Buyers Make a Request for Repair?
2009-09-11 07:00:00
A deal killer in many home buying transactions is when buyers make a request for repair. Helping buyers make sense out of a home inspection is part of the invaluable service a real estate agent can provide. Yet few new agents know what a polarized receptacle is much less how to interpret a home inspection report. This means agents who have completed a few hundred home inspections are going to be far more valuable to a buyer than a new agent. Agents are not home inspectors, though, and cannot explain a home inspection report. That’s the job of the home inspector. Agents can, however, help guide buyers to make the right decisions. Left alone, many buyers freak out over home inspections. They will gasp, “The door between the kitchen and garage is not fireproof — we’re all gonna die.” This is where experienced agents can help to bring buyers back to earth and refer them to specialists who are trained to explain building code and its rationale . . . read more about a Request for ...
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There May Be Solid Reasons Why Your Home Isn't Selling
2009-09-09 07:00:00
When 30 to 60 days go by without an offer, it's normal for sellers to ask why their home isn't selling. When homes don't sell, there are a host of reasons to explore apart from price. I mean, price plays an important factor; it's just not the only factor. Because, believe it or not, some homes simply take longer to sell than others. Especially upper-end homes. Some buyers lie in wait for such a home to come on the market and jump on the chance to buy these estates when they first hit MLS. In fact, some homes never make into MLS before they are sold, there's that much demand for them. Most agents, myself included, maintain lists of buyers to call when these opportunities arise. These million-dollar buyers are in no rush to buy, but if the home of their dreams becomes available, they are ready to drop serious cash. Your home doesn't have to be worth a million to be desirable. It could be a $100,000 bungalow. If it's desirable, buyers will fall over themselves to acquire it...
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A Photo Gallery of Homes in Portland, Oregon, known as Nob Hill
2009-09-07 07:00:00
I discovered a little pocket of delightful homes in Portland , Oregon , while on vacation. These homes are located in the Alphabet Historic District in Northwest Portland, dubbed Nob Hill. My husband and I grabbed a long weekend right after the 4th of July and flew to Portland. It's a quick flight, about an hour from Sacramento. Besides touring the sights in Portland, we also walked through a few neighborhoods. I always feel the need to look at real estate, even on vacation. I constantly hear about how progressive Portland is as it's sometimes held up as a model to follow, especially concerning its infill projects and neighborhood developments. I hope you'll be as intrigued as you look through the photo gallery of homes in Nob Hill, the Northwest area of Portland . . . read more about Homes in Portland. More Articles by Elizabeth Weintraub: Photo Gallery of Homes in Land Park Photo Gallery of Homes in Mendocino Photo Gallery of Homes in East Sacramento ©Elizabeth Weintrau...

Should You Buy a Newer or Older Home?
2009-09-04 07:00:00
The debate continues regarding newer vs. older homes. Some first-time home buyers have told me that they absolutely, positively, will not buy a newer home as they prefer only older homes, homes that are classic. Other groups of home buyers believe that only a newer home offers them the amenities they seek, and this group wouldn't dream of buying an older home. Each group thinks they are right. But I've also represented buyers who had insisted on an older home in the beginning of their search yet ended up buying a brand new home. There are pros and cons to each . . . read more about buying Newer vs. Older Home s. More Articles by Elizabeth Weintraub: Buying New Construction Home Improvement Mistakes Best Time to Buy ©Elizabeth Weintraub Technorati tag: newer vs older homes