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Agent Genius, the first multi-author real estate Magazine designed by and for real estate agents nation wide. Unlike other real estate blogs that blog at the consumer, we write beside the consumer in a Real Estate Magazine style format...
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All Things Real Estate ‘Mortgage’
Who enforces the HVCC?
3, Jul 2009
The Home Valuation Code of Conduct (HVCC) between lenders and appraisers went into effect June 1st. There’s been many comments about how real estate transactions have been affected in the last month. But when there’s a problem with someone not following HVCC guidelines, where is a complaint filed?
NOWHERE!
That’s right, nobody currently enforces the HVCC. An entity called the Independent Valuation Protection Institute (IVPP) handles complaints. According to the code:
An Independent Valuation Protection Institute (Institute) shall be created as approved by the parties. Subject to section IX, when the Institute is established, the lender will provide information to appraisers and borrowers regarding the availability of the Institute’s services, which are expected to include: (1) a telephone hotline and email…
Beware the Bandwagon!
26, Mar 2009
First come the radio spots, then TV commercials, then infomercials – the first indication that a new industry has been born from a changing economy. The housing crisis and woes faced by a plethora of borrowers about to lose their homes has begat the newest craze – Loan Modification Services.
Opportunity or Opportunistic?
We are now seeing a proliferation of firms that charge fees for what they promise will be quick results to negotiate with lenders to get affordable loan terms. Unfortunately, some less-than-ethical folks see this crisis as a way to scam desperate homeowners with false promises of modifying loans. In many cases, the firms take the homeowner’s money but never deliver the services promised.
Considering jumping onboard?
This offers an…
The Best Canceled Listing Agreement EVER
6, Mar 2009
Our team has been averaging about 10 new listings a month. Because of our Certified Distressed Property Expert designation, about 1/3 of them are short sales or pre-foreclosures of some sort.
Talk about being waist-deep in the personal lives of our Sellers… Job losses and illnesses and interest rate increases that lead to financial instability and stress that then even lead to illness and divorce (in some cases) are a large chunk of the lives of these Sellers that we work with.
Sometimes, I hate listing these homes. I feel so bad for the situations that these people are in. Regardless of “WHY” it is happening (poor buying decision, downsized employment, increased rate, cheating spouse, cancer) … losing your home…
- In: Highlights| Mortgage| Mortgage| Point & Purpose| RE Moments| Real Estate
- Tags: foreclosure
Who Are the Bad Guys?
4, Mar 2009
Sign Of The Times – Foreclosure Courtesy of ResPres
Foreclosures Aren’t New
REO properties have been part of the real estate landscape for many, many years. Foreclosure loomed large in melodramas in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Typically a rascal with a handle bar mustache offered to postpone the seizure of the family homestead in exchange for the the virtue of the heroine ( Wow- talk about loan workouts and modification!). But melodrama aside, most people were not involved in the drama of foreclosure and bank owned real estate.
Even so, these properties have been a part of the real estate landscape for many years, peaking in times of economic distress, and diminishing in times of economic plenty. From…
- In: Economy| Mortgage| Real Estate| Subprime
- Tags: Business, foreclosure, investing, Loan, Mortgage, Real Estate, Real estate owned
Good News from Fannie Mae
2, Mar 2009
Fannie Mae has announced effective March 1st, 2009 New Policy Changes which prevent modification of Commissions by lenders as a condition of approval on pre-foreclosure sales… (Short Sales)
Servicing Guide, Part VII, Section 504.02: Contacting Selected Borrowers Effective March 1, 2009, closing of pre-foreclosure sales may not be conditioned upon a reduction of the total commission to be paid to real estate agents to a level below what was negotiated by the listing agent with the borrower, unless the fee exceeds 6 percent of the sales price of the property in aggregate. Servicers are reminded that they must continue to obtain any approvals that may be required by interested third parties in connection with pre-foreclosure sales.
This is great news…
Bailout interim boost. What do YOU think?
26, Nov 2008
This is an email I received from a friend of mine, Christy Quick. What do you think?
So I’ve been thinking so much about all the bailout programs and how it will probably take so long before the actual implementation will have an impact on the general public. I have given this a lot of thought and I have a suggestion that may help the situation. This may sound incredibly simpleton, but I want to get your thoughts on my idea. Here goes:
So what if mortgage lending institutions stopped reporting to the credit bureaus? Say they could make it retroactive that anyone that’s had a foreclosure in the past 18 months or are currently late on their mortgage payments…
Fox News – My 1st Time on a National Show
2, Nov 2008
Russell Shaw on the Big Screen…
Discussing the Arizona real estate market- who’s buying, what they’re buying, inventory levels, pricing, foreclosures, and homeowners being underwater, all on Fox Business News
A Fundamental Breakdown
10, Oct 2008
Photo Courtesy
There are likely going to be more than 12 Steps to this cycle.
Where do we go from here? Understanding how corrupt and dysfunctional the housing/ mortgage/lending/ real estate markets were is Step 1. One of the steps (be it Step 2, 6 or 12) is going to have to be – “Re-Creating the Financial Markets into functional systems.”
Take the time to listen to these podcasts
Giant Pool of Money
A special program about the housing crisis produced in a special collaboration with NPR News. We explain it all to you. What does the housing crisis have to do with the turmoil on Wall Street? Why did banks make half-million dollar loans to people without jobs or income? And…
- In: Mortgage| Real Estate
Why Lenders Piss Me Off
30, Sep 2008
Photo Credit
FAIL
The financial market is melting down. LIBOR was up this morning. The “Credit Crunch”. Short sales. Foreclosures. The list goes on and on.
Let’s face it. There is a lot of doom and gloom out there.
6 semester hours of college accounting and 9 hours of economics do not make me a financial wizard. But I can tell you one fundamental problem with the financial system…
Lenders simply don’t have a sense of urgency, nor do they seem to care — at all — about the ramifications of their failure to execute.
I’m not saying that the entirety of the crisis is due to this seemingly complete disregard for fundamental customer service. Nor am I saying every lender…
- In: Mortgage| RE Moments
The Homeowner Rescue Bill Rescues Fannie and Freddie Investors. I don’t see any other groups being rescued.
Normally I don’t find it difficult to disagree with President George W. Bush about pretty much everything (save the curvature of the earth and that humans should breathe oxygen). This time it is different. Bush had to have been ashamed to have signed it. Just look at how it is buried on this page. Arizona Senator John Kyl was one of the 13 dissenting votes. Kyl even called a close Realtor friend of mine here in Arizona to explain why he could not vote for it – that it was simply an awful piece of legislation. It is supposed to help save 400,000…
- In: Media Coverage| Mortgage| NAR| Real Estate| Subprime
Surveying The Shifting Mortgage Landscape
1, Aug 2008
image courtesy of Lone Black Rider
And during the few moments that we have left, we want to have just an off-the-cuff chat between you and me — us. We want to talk right down to earth in a language that everybody here can easily understand.
-Malcolm X
Although the term transparency is uttered ad nauseum and comes in more flavors than Baskin Robbins offers ice cream, ‘clearing the fog’ is paramount to reviving an industry that has used the art of witholding information as a weapon of profitability at the expense of the unwashed…the effects of which we are now witnessing in the form of a sensational, market-wide correction.
The mortgage industry has been a shell game for almost it’s entire existence.…
Do You Trust Your Clients?
11, Jul 2008
…Should You?
Most of us probably have never even thought about asking ourselves these questions, yet we need to know the answers. We expect our clients to trust us, but should that relationship have trust flowing from both sides?
I am guessing most of you would first answer these questions with a resounding “YES”. After all, good customer service is one where we trust our clients and they trust us, right? Aren’t the best relationships built on trust?
Not exactly. When it comes to a real estate related business, trust should mostly be a one way street. There are businesses where trusting your clients is of utmost importance, but overtrusting in a real estate transaction can spell disaster. Just take a…
- In: Mortgage| Point & Purpose| Realtors
Caught In The Middle Of The Foreclosure Mess
11, Jul 2008
Can You Imagine?
Imagine working with folks to help them find a home. You’ve spent weeks with them as you’ve helped them navigate their marketplace, got them a great deal on a home that was headed for foreclosure, and even introduced them to one of your preferred local lenders who worked out their financing. In May, you walked away from the closing table with them after they had closed on their first home, all smiles and laughs. They were ready to move in and all was right with the world … makes you feel really good about being in such a great industry.
Now imagine the feeling you’d have in the pit of your stomach as you listen to their frantic…
Florida Suing Countrywide
2, Jul 2008
…Adds Themselves to the Growing List of States
At the beginning of the month, Countrywide was acquired by Bank of America, but that has not stopped the troubles Countrywide got themselves into. Led by their Chief Executive, Angelo Mozilo (their "perfectly tanned" leader), Countrywide became the Number 1 lender in the nation, and also the Number 1 in scandals surrounding the subprime mortgage meltdown and ensuing credit crunch. Remember that Angelo Mozilo is under investigation by the SEC as well.
The growing number of states that are suing Countrywide are regarding misleading and unfair trading practices. States are even naming Angelo Mozilo in the lawsuits, potentially leaving him open to personal liability should they prove gross negligence.
The Complaint –…
- In: Media Coverage| Mortgage
The Dilemma
As I get ready to head for bed, I can’t help but feel many of you out there are still wondering what may happen tomorrow when the Federal Reserve makes their next rate cut decision. The first thing you need to understand is that what the Fed decides does not directly impact mortgage rates.
When the Federal Reserve decides to make a rate change (or not), this only affects the Federal Funds Rate, which isn’t even consumer related. However, the Prime Rate is almost always the Fed Funds Rate plus 3%, so when they change the Fed Funds Rate, the Prime Rate changes with it.
Since Home Equity Lines of Credit are usually tied to the Prime Rate, those…
- In: Mortgage