Obviously it's time to jump on the Phoenix real estate bandwagon!

As a rule I am a remarkably positive person but I've gotta tell you, it isn't always easy. Where real estate and financing are involved there are plenty of opportunities to be negative, and most media outlets jump right on that bandwagon. That's why I'm so excited when I see even a little glimmer of good news in the media. Today I am grinning ear to ear... this article is GREAT, positive all around, and nothing that rains on my parade. Phoenix Foreclosure Numbers Reveal a City on the Mend

Closing Cost Incentive for Home Buyers!

FNMA is offering a temporary incentive for buyers purchasing a FNMA owned property through their HomePath program. Buyers will receive 3.5 percent toward closing costs for a primary residence with contract dated after April 10, 2011, and closing prior to June 30, 2011.

http://www.homepath.com/incentive/index.html

 

As always, if you have any questions just give me a call .

West Coast Foreclosure Activity Slowed in February

A bit of upbeat news from the foreclosure tracking firm ForeclosureRadar, via dsnews.com. Foreclosure activity slowed across the board in West Coast states.

In Arizona notice of trustee sales  dropped 27.9 percent in February from January. This is the lowest point since August 2009. There was also a large dip in foreclosure sales.

California filings dropped to 2008 levels. On a year-over-year basis filings were down as well, with notice of default filings down 29.6 percent and notice of trustee sales down 17 percent. Foreclosure auctions were down as well, with a 24.5 percent decline in back to bank sales and a 20.3 percent drop in properties sold to third parties.

Nevada filings decreased 25.2 percent from January, also to the lowest rate since the firm began tracking Nevada foreclosures. Notice of trustee sales fell 6.4 percent. Foreclosure auctions fell 48.4 percent and sales to third parties 35.3 percent.

A significant drop was recorded in Oregon, 26.3 percent in notices of default and a 34.5 percent drop in foreclosure sales.

Washingto saw the smallest decrease in notice of trustee sales with a 2.9 percent drop. Foreclosure sales fell as well, with back to bank sales falling 37.4 percent and sales to third parties down 21.1 percent.

I thought you'd like to see this. We can all use a little positive news about the economy but none more than homeowners!

The NFL - Villians or Heros?

This blog has NOTHING to do with mortgages, financing, or even real estate, although these people's finances surely took a hit and it would appear that at least one corporate entity owes them some prime real estate.

How unacceptable was it that the NFL sold tickets for unconfirmed seating at the Super Bowl? This whole debacle was preventable! One man's story is here, and there are at least 400 more just like it. 400!!

If the NFL had not tried to spin this, if only they'd stepped up to the plate (sorry, misplaced sports metaphore) and admitted that they had really screwed up, maybe people would not have been so angry. OK... maybe they still would have been but the rest of us wouldn't have seen it as such a fiasco.

It seems the NFL has now offered seats at the next Super Bowl (probably not PRIME real estate but valuable territory nonetheless) Is this enough? Should these fans be happy? Satisfied? A little annoyed? Or still really ticked off?

Do you believe it was worse than the Great Depression?

Where are we now? In this Reuters peice, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke explains some things, leaves other open to debate.

Credit Repair - It's Easy & It's Free!

Of all the things that you can repair yourself, your credit is not only the most important, but maybe the easiest! That’s not to say that it doesn’t take some time and persistence, but it certainly can be done. And improving your credit score will save you thousands of dollars in the long run.

Your score can improve faster than you may think. Here are a few tips for establishing good and countering bad credit.    

• Pay down current debt. (not always necessary to pay off, just work on paying down)
• Make ALL payments in a timely manner. No Late Payments! (this includes but is not limited to rent, utilities, credit cards, car loans)
• Use credit cards very carefully to establish GOOD credit. (only charge what you can pay off at the next billing)
• Think twice before applying for more credit. The simple inquiry itself can lower your score, and If you are declined it will count as a negative on your credit report.
• Work on removing items from your credit report that you feel were reported in error, or that are not yours. Check to be sure any closed accounts reflect "closed”. Contact credit reporting agencies and the creditor directly. The credit reporting agencies can explain the procedure. The creditor can provide the required documentation.

AVOID requesting your credit report from advertised services, there are usually strings attached. Only one credit report is truly free: http://www.annualcreditreport.com/. You are entitled to one free report a year (you can pay for additional reports). It will include information from the three major reporting agencies, Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion.

AVOID credit repair and counseling companies. Some are very expensive, some disreputable. You can usually improve your credit score on your own. It takes a little effort but is worth every minute, and it's free.

Feel free to contact me if you have any questions.

Where do you stand? Very interesting survey!

     Very interesting survey called
     Financial Capability Study,

     compiled by FINRA, and
     regarding our fianacial habits.

     It's organized by state so one click
     will tell you where you stand.  

    FINANCIAL CAPABILITY STUDY

A couple of important industry updates you should know about!

1.) INTEREST RATES
     Due to volatility in the market, mortgage interest rates are up again, a 1/2 point in the past 10 days!

2.) CONDOMINIUM PROJECT APPROVALS
     According to HUD National Homeownership Center reference guide, FHA has announced the extension of most condominium project approvals previously scheduled to expire on December 7, 2010. The condominium look-up page - HERE -  now reflects the extended expiration dates.
     You should be aware however, that FHA approval is just one determination in the process of approving a mortgage for condominiums. The largest stumbling blocks right now seem to be capital reserves and certifications. Many condominium associations do not have adequate funds in reserve, and the certifications must be complete and ACCURATE!

In your opinion, who benefits most from deducting mortgage interest, and should the soon-to-expire deduction be extended? Do you believe having this deduction in place helps the real estate market? I'm curious to know how many of you have calculated your taxes both with and without the deduction.

Are You On the Fence?

I'll keep this short and to the point. Mortgage interest rates have been trending upward for a while now. If you've been on the fence, GET OFF QUICK! There's no predicting what will happen next.

Do You Like Surprises ?

Very little about this business surprises me anymore. But surprised I was!!

It’s very well known that Homeowner's Associations are struggling. You don’t need to be a rocket scientist to figure that out, it’s all over the news and obvious in some neighborhoods. This whole foreclosure and short sale circus has really taken a toll on their budgets and in many cases there is no recovering those lost funds. (Ok, I know there probably isn’t one of you that’s not thinking “well payback’s a ..#&%*!, those weren’t weeds they were wildflowers”) And believe me, I’m right there with you! HOA management is not at the top of my Christmas card list. But, and this is a BIG but, no matter how nice your property may be, its value is fundamentally dependent on the condition of your community… the HOAs job.

HOAs have been frantically scrambling to reclaim dues that owners of short sales and foreclosures have been unable to pay, for years in some cases. When these homes are sold, the HOA submits an invoice theoretically directed at the Seller. Sometimes that seller is the owner who clearly has no disposable cash, sometimes a bank and your guess is as good as mine when it comes to banks paying… well, anything. How many buyers are aware that those delinquent HOA dues, certainly not their responsibility, could come down on their head like a ton of bricks? In the case that prompted this blog, over $3,500 worth. Odly, this isn’t the surprise I was talking about.

As I’m sure you can guess, this was not anywhere near OK with the buyer. But the HOA wasn’t budging. It was paid in full or the property wasn’t closing. So here’s the thing… there really are some surprises left in this business. After a few unproductive phone calls and one desperate e-mail, the manager of the HOA called me back! Well, that was surprising! Surprise turned to genuine shock when she then agreed to bring our plea to the board, and I nearly fell out of my chair when she called back the next morning with a completely reasonable mediation, an amount acceptable to both the HOA and the buyer.

This world is full of surprises, some good, some very bad. But today I can honestly say that I LOVE surprises!

A Warning About Your Credit Report

You know, you wouldn’t think being vigilant would be a bad thing. You’re SUPPOSED to keep an eye on your bank accounts and your charge cards, correct? As a courtesy, you’re even warned of possible misuse or fraud, it’s called “red flagging”. When this happens, you need to immediately call the bank and discuss the charges or accounts in question. You are advised to file a dispute of anything that you feel is suspicious or in error. It's hard to imagine circumstances under which you would not want to dispute fraud… except one.

Let me get off the subject for just a minute and tell you a little about what’s been going on in the credit reporting industry. There are three major credit reporting services. Each seems to operate a little differently, which in itself isn’t a problem, until you need something corrected. Mortgage regulations have tightened up in almost all areas including entries on your credit report so correction of errors is critical, and of course there is a fee for each supplement or correction. In the recent past, documentation could be sent to correct the records for all three agencies at once, but lately that hasn’t been the case. Each agency is requiring different documentation, and every time you send in separate documentation there is another charge. Hmmmm, who’s idea was that?

OK, so back to you being vigilant. Here’s where things have gotten very sticky. A new mortgage regulation requires that there be no DISPUTES on your credit report. The scenario goes like this: Someone uses your charge card fraudulently, your bank informs you and advises, wisely I might ad, that you dispute the charges. While you do the right thing and fill out the paperwork, your bank reports to the credit agencies that you are disputing your account. Still not bad, right? Now you’ve found your dream home and applied for a mortgage. Very exciting! You are told that the dispute must be removed from your credit report. OK, no problem, it’s been settled and that can be done. You send in the required documentation, you speak directly with the credit reporting agency, you pay your fee, and, oops, not enough. There are different requirements for one of the three reporting services. You take a big breath and request the new documentation from your charge card company, it’s sent to credit reporting, you pay your fee, and that’s it. Except that the third reporting service still refuses to remove the dispute. Keep in mind, every time you send in separate documentation there is another charge. This one had us shaking our heads. A “reality check” pow-wow with our mortgage Underwriter produced an acceptable solution. But do you really think you should have had to jump through so many hoops? Not I. Something is definitely amiss when credit reporting services can bring your life to a screeching halt, and all because you’ve done the right thing.

Here we go again!!

OH NO here we go again. If you're currently in the market for a mortgage, or if you are a Realtor you need to know this. As of Monday11/1/10 the minimum credit score for FHA was increased from 620 to 640. The new minimum will apply to purchases, refinances, streamlines and 203K loans. As of today this only affects FHA, not Conventional, VA, or USDA.

On a more positive note. Interest rates are still favorable, so much so that even people who've owned their home for less than a year are considering a refinance. Definitely worth checking out!

Phew... it wasn't scary after all

What a weekend! I’m always amazed at the creativity of small children and their parents. I love Halloween, always have and still do. It’s like throwing a huge block party without a clue who’s on your guest list. If only for a few hours, your neighborhood becomes one big, very happy, very friendly family.

If you're anything like me you make a fair attempt to keep up with whatever is going on in your neighborhood. Between work and a house full of kids this isn't always practical, but the past weekend presented an especially eye-opening opportunity to do just that. Whether you were on the hunt for goodies with the kids, or joking with the neighbors while you handed out treats, (most of my duties were of the "hunting" variety this year) you can't help but notice that your immediate community is dotted with a lot of new neighbors, and more than a few For Sale signs. Correct me if I’m wrong, but this wasn’t always the case. Just a short time ago, if a neighbor moved in or out we all noticed, or at the very least were aware of it. Not so much anymore. True?

I’ve gotta tell you, it really was a pleasure seeing all the new folks, though I was a little embarrassed that I hadn’t met them before. But I couldn't say the same about all the For Sale signs, they were the scariest thing I'd seen all evening, that is until I actually gave it some thought. Remember back to that time when you  noticed your neighbors moving? Remember around the same time, news reports about first-time-buyers being priced out of the market? Again… Not so much anymore. I guess I’ve formed a new opinion about all those For Sale signs. A lot of my clients now are first-time-buyers. No longer blocked out of the market, they’re thrilled, and life is good for them.

My take-away from the Halloween weekend? The bag of tricks that our real estate market has become is not all horrifying, dig around a little and you’ll find some very sweet stuff in there.

Do you have a sweet story or a scary tale to share about real estate in your neighborhood? I'd really love to hear it!