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Ilyce Glink's Blog

Welcome to Ilyce Glink's blog! Here you'll find Ilyce's latest insights on personal finance advice, real estate advice and consumer issues. Come back often for timely and interesting posts on a wide variety of topics.

 

Thursday, October 02, 2008

Renters Renting in a Foreclosed Home


If you're a tenant in a property that is foreclosed on, what are your rights? I recently answered this question from a reader, and it appears that the answer is different across the country.

I received this email from a reader in Michigan today:

Cynthia writes: I recently read one of your responses to a renter who is currently renting a home that was foreclosed on. We are dealing with this issue more and more.

I am in Michigan and when a tenant signs a Lease with a homeowner, when that home gets purchased, normally the new owner is aware there is a tenant and the tenant has rights. The grey area here is what happens when a bank purchases the home and there is a legally binding Lease Agreement?

We are pushing for Tenant rights here to be spelled out. Who becomes responsible for paying the security deposit back? Tenants here are being told to continue to pay the rent even when a foreclosure notice has been posted on the home.

This is a huge mess that has put all these questions into the "grey" area. I did not see any of these things addressed and don't know what the entire content of the senders' letter was. I think there is a grey area here and when you purchase a foreclosed home or a home at auction the general word here is "Buyer Beware", as you are purchasing a home and any leins or contracts that are attached to it. What is your thought on this?


My thoughts are that I don't know how this is handled across the country. From what I've been hearing, tenants may have 30 days to get out of the property. What happens to their security deposits, last months' rent, etc? My guess is it goes into the large black hole of bankruptcy, or foreclosure, depending on what happens to the landlord. In other words, the tenants get the very short end of the stick.

In some places, I've heard that tenants have to be out within 24 hours of a foreclosure sale. Foreclosure can shut off all rights the tenants have in a property, wreaking havoc with their lives. Lenders, for whatever reason, would rather sell a vacant property than one with tenants in it.

I'd like to know what happens to tenants in a foreclosure situation in different parts of the country. Please weigh in with your knowledge and thoughts.

We'll also be working here to compile some information. As soon as we have it, we'll post it.

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Wednesday, October 01, 2008

New Videos on Shorts Sales and Foreclosures Published

We've begun to upload the first of 27 videos about buying and selling homes in a tough market. We've published two videos on short sales. Take a look:

Video #1: What is a Short Sale?



Video #2: Short Sale or Foreclosure? Will You Save Money?



Subscribe to the ExpertRealEstateTips' YouTube Channel to be the first on your block to know when we post new videos.

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Monday, September 08, 2008

Buying a Foreclosure? Check out Ralph Roberts Book

I've had Ralph Roberts, a noted Realtor in Michigan who has purchased more than 2,000 foreclosed properties in his career, as a guest on my show several times. I think he's smart, and his book is a good place to start for anyone interested in buying foreclosures.

Check out his website, www.ralphroberts.com.

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Friday, September 05, 2008

Today on the Clark Howard Show, September 5, 2008

Today on the Clark Howard Show we discussed the following:

* Delinquency and Foreclosure Rate Increase in Latest MBA Survey. The delinquency rate, which includes all loans that are at least one payment behind but doesn't include loans that are in the process of foreclosure, now stands at 6.41 percent, up 1.29 percent from a year ago. The survey reported that 2.75 percent of loans were in foreclosure an increase of 1.35 percent from a year ago.

These are the highest rates recorded since the survey started.

"The national foreclosure numbers continue to be driven by the hardest hit states continuing to get much worse. The increases in foreclosures in California and Florida overwhelmed improvements in states like Texas, Massachusetts, and Maryland," said Jay Brinkmann, MBA's Chief Economist and Senior Vice President for Research and Economics.

* The unemployment rate rose unexpectedly to 6.1 percent, a high for this cycle. The job loss was a worse-than-expected 84,000. Some economists think we're now certainly heading into a recession and expect to see job losses of 100,000 or more this fall. In any case, job losses will take some of the edge off of inflation -- at least for the moment. And, at least gas prices are falling.

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Tuesday, August 19, 2008

How Can You Protect Yourself from Mortgage Fraud?



The FBI recently released tips on how to protect yourself from mortgage fraud:



- Get referrals and check licenses for mortgage and real estate professionals. FBI says most of them are honest, but it pays to check.

- Don't just rely on your real estate agent for home prices in your area. Do your own research into what homes have recently sold for and what tax assessments have been.

- Watch out for "no money down" loans. FBI says these are gimmicks used to put people into homes they cannot afford.

- Don't let anyone talk you into lying on your mortgage loan application. Many cases of fraud came from real estate agents or mortgage brokers encouraging borrowers to overstate their incomes or to lie about the sources of their down payments.

- Never sign a document with blank lines. If you're unsure have an attorney look at it for you.

FBI also warns you to watch out for scams if you're facing foreclosure. Never sign your home over to someone else - even if they promise it's only "temporary." In many cases the scammers have sold the home out from under the homeowner.

Check out also these stories on mortgage fraud:
http://www.thinkglink.com/Mortgage_Fraud_080414.html
http://www.thinkglink.com/Top_States_for_Mortgage_Fraud_080626.html
http://www.thinkglink.com/Mortgage_Fraud_798.html

And on foreclosure:
http://www.thinkglink.com/Prevent_Foreclosure_791.htm
http://www.thinkglink.com/Stop_Foreclosure_790.htm
http://www.thinkglink.com/Deed_in_lieu_Of_Foreclosure_Will_Hurt_Credit_Rating.htm

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Thursday, August 14, 2008

Foreclosures Increase By 55 Percent In A Year



RealtyTrac reports today that the number of foreclosures increased by 55 percent in July, as compared to one year earlier.

Foreclosures rose by 8 percent from June 2008.

Banks foreclose on properties when home owners fail to make mortgage payments.

Which states have the most foreclosures? Nevada, California and Florida. Arizona holds fourth place.

In Nevada, one in every 106 properties received a foreclosure notice. In California, it's one in every 182 properties. NPR reported this morning that Riverside and San Bernardino were especially hard hit.

In Florida, one in every 186 properties was foreclosed and in Arizona it's one in every 195.

Nationwide, the Cape Coral-Fort Myers, Fla., area posted the highest rate among the 230 metro areas that RealtyTrac monitored.

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Wednesday, July 30, 2008

Buy a Foreclosure and Profit

The foreclosure numbers look awful. As many as 1 in 22 families in Nevada received some sort of foreclosure notice in June 08. The states that are in the worst shape, foreclosure-wise, including Nevada, California, Arizona, Ohio, Michigan, Texas, Georgia, Illinois and New York.

Bank REOs have grown dramatically. But that's an opportunity for you, the future foreclosure investor.

Are you making money in foreclosures? If you are, share the love. Please share your stories of what you look for when you're buying a foreclosure.

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posted by Ilyce Glink at 1:20 PM 1 comments

1 Comments:

Here in Northern Virginia we have foreclosures that are listed in the upper $200s to mid $300k range, that were sold for mid $50s in 2006. Most of them need a little TLC, but they already have built in equity. With a little sweat equity, people could be profiting very well from these properties.

posted by Anonymous Laura Rubinchuk | July 30, 2008 3:29 PM   | more stuff

 

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Friday, July 25, 2008

'Extreme Makeover' Home Foreclosure

Homeowners in Atlanta's Lake City area may soon lose their home to foreclosure.

They were among the first to get their home remodeled on the TV show "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition," according to Atlanta area media.

Apparently they took out a $450,000 mortgage on the 5,500 square foot home to finance a construction business.

The woman who owns the home said they'd come to an agreement with their lender but the lender would not confirm that.

I think greed got them. What good fortune it is to have a home built or remodeled for you free of charge. They should have been content with that.

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Thursday, July 10, 2008

Celebrity Foreclosure: Former Cincinnati Bengal Chris Henry


Chris Henry, a former Cincinnati Bengal football player, lost his Florence, Ohio, house to foreclosure in May after not paying the mortgage. He bought the home as a rookie in 2005. The home was worth $360,000.
The football team released him after he was arrested several times.
His lawyer recently said Henry is completely broke, according to the Cincinnati Enquirer. The paper reports that he earned $2.5 million from the Bengals.

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Friday, July 04, 2008

Looking for a Foreclosure?


There's a new website that provides access to complete street addresses of more than 1.2 million foreclosure properties in the U.S. It's ForeclosurePoint.com. The free membership service also provides default filing dates, estimated property values, estimated opening bids for properties at auction, satellite images and other property details.

If you're looking for a foreclosure, you'll want all the information you can get. Don't forget to check for liens and you may want to hire an attorney to help make sure you're not surprised by anything after you close.

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Thursday, June 26, 2008

Jazz Singer Anderson Faces Foreclosure


Ernestine Anderson, a renowned jazz singer, is apparently behind in payments on her Seattle home, reports the Associated Press. She has missed more than $30,000 in payments.
Anderson owes $450,000 on the home, which used to belong to her parents. The home is located in a ZIP code where more than 200 homes face foreclosure, the AP reports. The home is supposed to be auctioned off on July 11.
Anderson, 79, used to sing with Quincy Jones and Ray Charles. She released more than 30 albums and received four Grammy nominations.

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How Many Foreclosures?

"The damage has been as bad as anyone imagined so far," writes Demos senior fellow James Lardner. "Foreclosures, after roughly doubling in the past year, are running at a rate of close to 25,000 a week. That's an alarming figure in itself, and it points toward the loss of more than 2 million homes in 2008 and 2009 - a number very close to estimates made by consumer groups (and widely dismissed by lenders) in early 2007."


-- From a new Demos report, "Beyond the Mortgage Meltdown: Addressing the Current Crisis, Avoiding a Future Catastrophe," announced June 25, 2008 at a National Press Club event in Washington, DC.

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Monday, June 23, 2008

Pacman Jones Loses Home to Foreclosure


Former Tennessee Titan football player Pacman Jones, who recently said he wants to be called Adam, will lose his Nashville area home on June 27, when it's put up for sale by his lender.
The home will be sold in a foreclosure sale at the courthouse.
Jones failed to meet the terms and conditions of his mortgage with U.S. Bank, reported the Associated Press.
Jones bought the home for $1.5 million in July 2006.

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Friday, June 13, 2008

Beware of Those Who Promise to Save Your Home from Foreclosure

The Department of Justice today announced that eight people were indicted for $35 million of mortgage fraud in Maryland.

You can likely find their names on other sites. I won't list them out here. What's more important is to understand what they allegedly did so that if you're facing foreclosure you won't fall for a similar scam.

"The indictment alleges that the defendants used a 'foreclosure-prevention' scheme to cheat homeowners out of the remaining equity in their houses by transferring their homes to straw buyers," said U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein. "The defendants then defrauded lenders by inducing them to make new loans based on inflated appraisals and fraudulent credit applications."

So if someone asks you to sign over your home to someone else watch out. It's pretty likely that regardless of the promises the person offering to help you makes, you won't get your home back.

Apparently in this case, those who were indicted today promised to help people get their homes back in a year if they signed them over to a third party. During that year the defendants promised to help people fix their credit and get better mortgage loan rates.

What they did instead was apply for mortgage loans using faulty information such as appraisals that were too high and inaccurate credit applications.

If you're facing foreclosure call your lender and talk about your situation. Try also the National Foundation for Credit Counseling (nfcc.org).

If you have the urge to use a company to help you save your home call the Better Business Bureau and see if any complaints have been filed and call your state government as well. Do an online search and see if the company or any of its officers have been in the news.

And by all means don't sign your home over to someone else.

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Tuesday, June 10, 2008

Listen to Ilyce on Dave Baker's Radio Show

Ilyce made a guest appearance on Dave Baker's radio show this past Saturday. We've posted the audio here: http://www.thinkglink.com/radio.asp

They discuss selling a home and have some laughs along the way.

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Friday, June 06, 2008

Sprewell Loses House, Yacht


In mid-May former National Basketball Association star Latrell Sprewell lost his Milwaukee home to foreclosure, reported the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.


Sprewell owed more than $320,000 on the home valued at almost $670,000. He bought it for $405,000 in 1994. The foreclosure went through after Sprewell failed to appear in court.


In January the U.S. Marshals Service auctioned off Sprewell's $1.5 million 70-foot yacht after he failed to make several $10,322 monthly payments, reported the paper.


In addition last September the state of Wisconsin filed suit against Sprewell for more than $70,000 in back taxes, reported the paper.

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Michael Jackson Almost Lost Neverland

Apparently Michael Jackson just missed losing his Neverland Ranch to foreclosure. E! News reported in mid-May that real estate investment firm Colony Capital bought the mortgage in an effort to save the Santa Barbara, Calif., property.

It cost Colony $23.5 million. After buying the loan, the firm immediately set up talks with the singer to figure out a payment plan. Colony's action prevented Neverland from being auctioned off after Jackson fell behind in making payments.

Maybe it's time Jackson grows up...

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Jose Canseco Loses His Home to Foreclosure Too



When I was growing up in the late '80s Jose Canseco was revered for being one of the Oakland A's powerful baseball sluggers along with Mark McGwire and Walt Weiss. These days he's more famous for selling out. He's been on VH1's The Surreal Life and published a book about steroid use in baseball. Despite seeming to be willing to do anything for a buck, he's still had money problems.

In early May, he lost his 7,300-square-foot Encino, Calif., home to foreclosure. He attributed some of his financial woes to several divorces that cost him $7 million to $8 million a piece. At the time of the foreclosure he owed the bank more than $2.5 million on the home.

A Reuters story quoted him as saying: "I do have a judgment on my home and it to me is very strange because it didn't make financial sense for me to keep paying a mortgage on a home that was basically owned by someone else," he said. Isn't that true of all mortgages?

You have to wonder if the steroids didn't somehow have a lasting effect on him...

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Thursday, June 05, 2008

Numbers of Foreclosures and Delinquent Loans Increase


Home owners missed payments on almost 6.5 percent of home loans on one to four unit residential properties during the first quarter of 2008. Almost 2.5 percent of all home loans were in foreclosure during the same quarter, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Both delinquencies and foreclosures increased from fourth quarter 2007, albeit slightly.

"Delinquency rates normally peak at the end of the year and drop to their lowest point for the year at the end of the first quarter," the MBA explained. These numbers buck that trend but not by much.

Both the delinquency rate and the foreclosure rate are the highest they've been since 1979. Subprime loans represent the majority of these delinquent and foreclosed loans.

And the states with the most troubles are CA, FL, AZ and NV. The four of them combined represent:

  • 62 percent of all foreclosures started on prime ARM loans, and 84 percent of the increase in prime ARM foreclosures


  • 49 percent of all of the subprime ARM foreclosures started in the country during the first quarter, and were responsible for 93 percent of the increase in subprime ARM foreclosures


  • 29 percent of prime fixed-rate foreclosures and 60 percent of the increase in those foreclosures


  • 25 percent of subprime fixed-rate foreclosures and 53 percent of the increase in those
    foreclosures

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Evander Holyfield's Foreclosed Home Set To Be Auctioned Off


Former heavyweight boxing champion Evander Holyfield has something in common with some less affluent homeowners: his home is in foreclosure. His $10-million estate in Fayette County, Georgia, is set to be auctioned off July 1, reports the Atlanta Journal Constitution.

Sounds like Holyfield has larger financial problems - he owes the mother of one of his nine children $6,000 in back child support.

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Tuesday, May 27, 2008

Foreclosures in Military Towns Rise Four Times National Average


Foreclosures in military towns are up nearly four times the national average according to data compiled by Realty Trac, reports Bloomberg News.
The same subprime mortgages that seemed so appealing to the civilian population drew military families too.
Foreclosure filings in 10 towns and cities within 10 miles of military facilities, including Norfolk, Va., jumped by an average 217 percent from January to April compared to a year earlier, reported Bloomberg.
Here's a list of the 10 communities and the increase in foreclosures:
Columbia, S.C.: 492 percent
Woodbridge, Va.: 414 percent
Triangle, Va.: 363 percent
Oceanside, Calif.: 182 percent
Norfolk, Va.: 155 percent
Havelock, N.C.: 133 percent
Carlsbad, Calif.: 131 percent
Barstow, Calif.: 120 percent
Columbus, Ga.: 102 percent
Twentynine Palms, Calif.: 73 percent

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Monday, May 19, 2008

Watch Out for These Foreclosure Scams


Losing a home to foreclosure can be devastating and it can be hard to keep a cool head. If you don't, you'll be more vulnerable to scam artists.
Some current foreclosure scams include:
-a lease back or promise that you can repurchase your home in the future, if you sell it to the scam artist now
- refinance fraud where the homeowner believes he is refinancing but he's actually signing the property over to a con artist
- filing bankruptcy multiple times to get a temporary stay to delay foreclosure; these ultimately result in the homeowner having damaged credit and still losing his home
These scams were announced last week by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.
If someone approaches you be wary. He or she may have simply found your name or property on a list of foreclosed properties issued by your lender. When seeking help, you should initiate contact. Ask for references, check credentials and with the Better Business Bureau. If you feel you're going to have trouble making mortgage payments contact your lender, who will likely prefer working out a plan with you rather than foreclosing.
If you feel you may have been the victim of a predatory lender, contact an attorney.
For more foreclosure advice, search for foreclosure on ThinkGlink.com. We have articles describing your choices depending on where in the foreclosure process you are.

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Wednesday, May 07, 2008

How Do You Feel About Buying A Foreclosure?


Who's your average foreclosure buyer? A single man under age 35, if you put together a composite of characteristics revealed by a recent survey.

Trulia.com, a residential real estate search engine, commissioned Harris Interactive to poll people about how they feel about foreclosures. More than 2,000 people answered survey questions.

The poll found that 60 percent of single or never married adults would consider buying a foreclosure, whereas only 50 percent of married and 50 percent of divorced/separated/widowed adults would buy one.

More men (57 percent) would buy a foreclosure than women (51 percent).

Nearly 70 percent of adults ages 18-34 would buy a foreclosed property compared with 32 percent of adults older than 55.

Having children makes people more likely to buy a foreclosure (66 percent versus 50 percent of childless households).

Interestingly enough, while young people 18-34 are open to buying a foreclosure, nearly 75 percent of them feel there are negative aspects to buying a foreclosed home. Only 66 percent of people older than 35 feel that way.

And 20 percent of those surveyed feel that having a personal connection with someone who lost their home to foreclosure is a negative aspect.

There's still some stigma attached to losing your home to foreclosure. But is there a stigma to buying a foreclosed home? I don't think so. You're just taking advantage of a good financial deal.

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Tuesday, April 15, 2008

Foreclosures Increase Almost 60 Percent in a Year


RealtyTrac, the leading online marketplace for foreclosed properties, announced this morning that the number of foreclosures nationwide in March 2008 rose 57 percent since March 2007.
The numbers jumped 5 percent from February to March this year.
The top 10 states for foreclosures were Nevada, California, Florida, Arizona, Colorado, Georgia, Ohio, Michigan, Massachusetts and Maryland.
The situation sounds grim in Nevada, where one in every 139 households received a foreclosure notice last month. That's 3.9 times the national average and the highest state foreclosure rate for a record 15th consecutive month.
"On a year-over-year basis, default notices were up nearly 57 percent and bank repossessions were up nearly 129 percent, but auction notices were up only 32 percent, indicating that more defaulting homeowners are simply walking away and deeding their properties back to the foreclosing lender," said James J. Saccacio, chief executive officer of RealtyTrac. "This deed-in-lieu-of-foreclosure process allows the lender to take possession of a property without putting it up for public foreclosure auction."
If you want to learn more about foreclosures and deed-in-lieu of foreclosure, search for these terms at ThinkGlink.com.
Melanie G. Rogers
ThinkGlink.com

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Friday, April 11, 2008

More Than 1.2 Million Homeowners Keep Homes


Yesterday the HOPE NOW alliance released data on how many homeowners they've helped since July 2007.
More than 1.2 million homeowners have kept their homes so far. Since the start of this year, more than 309,000 loan workouts have been processed.
In some cases, a workout means to change the terms of the loan to enable a borrower to keep his or her home. Other times it means setting up a repayment plan.
Nearly half of all 2008 loan modifications have been for subprime loan workouts, the alliance announced.
If you're having trouble making your mortgage payments you can still call HOPE NOW. Here's some info provided by them:
HOPE NOW urges homeowners facing challenges with the mortgage payments to call their servicer or the Homeowner's HOPE Hotline, 1-888-995-HOPE, immediately to explore what options are available. The 1-888-995-HOPE Hotline is provided by the Homeownership Preservation Foundation.

HOPE NOW efforts and the 1-888-995-HOPE Hotline are free to the borrower. Borrowers should be wary of sources that offer help but require a fee, as there should never be a cost associated with putting the borrower in touch with HUD-approved counselors or their servicers.
Melanie

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Wednesday, April 02, 2008

Would you buy a foreclosed house if you could get a $15,000 tax credit?



U.S. Senate lawmakers announced yesterday that they're working on a bill to help homeowners facing foreclosure. Among the proposed measures - a $15,000 tax credit for people who buy foreclosed or newly built vacant homes.

If you look at this from a capitalist perspective this is a great idea - it will likely push people who were waffling on whether to buy a home or investment property to do it.

Of course a tax credit will not be enough to get people to buy homes in blighted neighborhoods. But it's a start.

A $15,000 tax credit beats other tax credits like those available for educational expenses or for buying a hybrid car.

But I still wonder if it's really the government's job to get involved. Was a lack of government regulation responsible for unqualified home buyers buying homes? It was the mortgage companies not doing due diligence.

Is it the government's job to jump start the housing market? Or is it merely delaying a further slowdown? At some point won't the government run out of bandages?


Melanie G. Rogers

ThinkGlink.com

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Friday, March 07, 2008

Foreclosure Numbers Reach Highest Level

Here's some sobering news: the rate of foreclosure starts and the percent of loans in foreclosure are at the highest levels ever, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. The total delinquency rate, which measures how many people are behind in loan payments, is at its highest point in the MBA survey since 1985.

Almost 6 percent of homeowners were behind on mortgage payments during the fourth quarter of 2007. This does not include homes in the process of foreclosure. More than 2 percent of loans were heading into foreclosure during the fourth quarter of 2007.

Foreclosure has devastating consequences for families. Their credit scores get ruined and so it becomes more difficult to rent an apartment. Some employers now check credit scores during the hiring process so it may be more difficult to find a job.

If you're having trouble making your mortgage payments I urge you to get some help before it's too late. Call the HOPE hotline 888-995-HOPE. While you may feel uncomfortable or embarrassed better to do that than have no place to live.

Melanie G. Rogers
ThinkGlink.com

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posted by Ilyce Glink at 11:30 AM 1 comments

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It looks like this mortgage crisis is going to get much worse before it turns around. The credit card defaults are increasing as well...American consumers are truly stretched to the limit.

posted by Anonymous Justin | March 11, 2008 3:27 PM   | more stuff

 

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Monday, March 03, 2008

The Latest on Housing in the U.S.


"Let me be clear: I oppose any bailout," said U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson this morning before the National Association of Business Economists.
Did I read that correctly? It sounds like Paulson may be OK with the market solving this problem.
It makes those of us who believe Larry Kudlow's creed - I believe that free market capitalism is the best path to prosperity - pretty happy.
Still, even if Secretary Paulson feels this way, it doesn't mean Congress won't try to fix things.
A few points to note: 93 percent of homeowners pay their mortgages on time every month and only 2 percent of homeowners are facing foreclosure, per Secretary Paulson this morning.
So while this is a crisis, we can take some solace in knowing that most households remain stable.
Secretary Paulson spoke of two other conclusions - 1) that solving the mortgage crisis is the joint responsibility of industry, government and homeowners. And 2) talk of homeowners facing foreclosure is often combined with discussions of homeowners who are upside down in their mortgages. That is, their mortgages are higher than their home values. He said while this is a dilemma, it does not mean that those homeowners will necessarily lose their homes.
He's right - home values will continue to change and at some point should turn around positively again. If people can continue making their mortgage payments on their current loans they should be OK.
To see the full text of Secretary Paulson's speech, visit the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Web site: http://www.treas.gov/press/releases/hp856.htm
Melanie G. Rogers
ThinkGlink.com

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Tuesday, February 12, 2008

More Sleepless Nights


Last month I blogged about the National Foundation for Credit Counseling's Mortgage Reality Check. They've released the latest results.

Things are not getting better.

- 78 percent of the respondents said they had trouble sleeping because of worry about their current financial situation, the possibility of losing their home or car, or their ability to use credit. This is an increase of 16 percent over the November and December 2007 findings.

- 69 percent of consumers taking the poll said they do not believe that refinancing their home will resolve their financial dilemma. This is an increase of 8 percent.

- More than half of the respondents, 59 percent, owe more on their home than it is worth, up by 11 percent.

- The category reflecting how many people had skipped paying some bills in order to pay others grew by 10 percent.

- NFCC said the number of survey participants who fell into the most distressed category - the RED one - "immediate advice or assistance is recommended" increased by 12 percent since January

Results come from more than 4000 surveys taken at the Web site http://www.housinghelpnow.org/

Often, when something's causing anxiety it's better do something about it. Ask questions and educate yourself. Sell whatever it is that is causing you financial pain. Even if you have to take a loss you will stop the bleeding. And when all else fails get a sleep mask and ear plugs.

Melanie G. Rogers
ThinkGlink.com

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posted by Ilyce Glink at 3:35 PM 1 comments

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I am talking to homeowners everyday who no only think refinancing won't help them, but neither will a loan modification. Almost all of them owe more than their home is worth today.

posted by Blogger Carrie Newhouse | April 06, 2008 7:35 PM   | more stuff

 

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Project Lifeline Buys Home Owners 30 Days


Can't pay your bills? Call the government. It'll take care of you.

Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and Housing and Urban Development Secretary Alphonso Jackson announced Project Lifeline today. It's a program designed to help homeowners facing foreclosure.

Six mortgage lenders have agreed to stop foreclosure proceedings for at least 30 days against home owners who haven't been paying their mortgages. The lenders are Washington Mutual, Bank of America, Citigroup, Countrywide Financial, JP Morgan Chase and Wells Fargo.

Project Lifeline works like this. Lenders will actively contact borrowers who are at least 90 days behind on their mortgages. They will give borrowers options to work out new loan terms with the goal of preventing foreclosure.

Interestingly enough, the Wall St. Journal quoted Secretary Paulson saying borrowers have to bear some responsibility too. If your lender contacts you and you don't respond, the government can't help you.

The speechwriter who wrote Secretary Jackson's speech must have been feeling really nostalgic. It's all about heart:


"History will judge our efforts, but we will also be judged in our hearts. At this decisive moment, let us remember that the people who need us are our friends and neighbors, the people we see at the grocery store, and the people picking up their kids from school, the people we work with, the people with whom we share our lives. Their homes are usually their most important investment and the fulfillment of a dream. When we save a family from foreclosure, we strengthen our communities and neighborhoods."


Melanie G. Rogers
ThinkGlink.com

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posted by Ilyce Glink at 1:06 PM 1 comments

1 Comments:

"If your lender contacts you and you don't respond, the government can't help you."

My question is, will the lenders be contacting homeowners offering help before or after they contact them through the collections department with threats of foreclosure and lawsuits?

A lot of homeowners in foreclosure, once they are getting 30 calls a day from collection agents, simply don't answer the mortgage company's calls anymore. Then if the loss mitigation department calls to offer programs to help, the homeowners will just assume it's another collection call and ignore it.

Then the banks and government will be completely off the hook for providing help to homeowners. After all, they called to offer specialized programs...

posted by Anonymous foreclosurefish | February 13, 2008 2:39 PM   | more stuff

 

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IRS Issues Guidance on Mortgage Debt Forgiveness


This morning, the IRS finally issued guidance on how homeowners who completed a short sale, and had their mortgage debt forgiven by lenders, can file their returns. Here is the actual news release from the IRS:

WASHINGTON -- Homeowners whose mortgage debt was partly or entirely forgiven during 2007 may be able to claim special tax relief by filling out newly-revised Form 982 and attaching it to their 2007 federal income tax return, according to the Internal Revenue Service.

Normally, debt forgiveness results in taxable income. But under the Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act of 2007, enacted Dec. 20, taxpayers may exclude debt forgiven on their principal residence if the balance of their loan was less than $2 million. The limit is $1 million for a married person filing a separate return. Details are on Form 982 and its instructions, available now on IRS.gov.

"The new law contains important provisions for struggling homeowners," said Acting IRS Commissioner Linda Stiff. "We urge people with mortgage problems to take full advantage of the valuable tax relief available."

The late-December enactment means that reporting procedures for this law change were not incorporated into tax-preparation software or IRS forms. For that reason, people using tax software should check with their provider for updates that include the revised Form 982. Similarly, the IRS is now updating its systems and expects to begin accepting electronically-filed returns that include Form 982 by March 3. The paper Form 982 is now being accepted, but the IRS reminds affected taxpayers to consider filing electronically, which greatly reduces errors and speeds refunds.

The new law applies to debt forgiven in 2007, 2008 or 2009. Debt reduced through mortgage restructuring, as well as mortgage debt forgiven in connection with a foreclosure, may qualify for this relief. In most cases, eligible homeowners only need to fill out a few lines on Form 982 (specifically, lines 1e, 2 and 10b).

The debt must have been used to buy, build or substantially improve the taxpayer's principal residence and must have been secured by that residence. Debt used to refinance qualifying debt is also eligible for the exclusion, but only up to the amount of the old mortgage principal, just before the refinancing.

Debt forgiven on second homes, rental property, business property, credit cards or car loans does not qualify for the new tax-relief provision. In some cases, however, other kinds of tax relief, based on insolvency, for example, may be available. See Form 982 for details.

Borrowers whose debt is reduced or eliminated receive a year-end statement (Form 1099-C) from their lender. For debt cancelled in 2007, the lender was required to provide this form to the borrower by Jan. 31, 2008. By law, this form must show the amount of debt forgiven and the fair market value of any property given up through foreclosure.

The IRS urges borrowers to check the Form 1099-C carefully. Notify the lender immediately if any of the information shown is incorrect. Borrowers should pay particular attention to the amount of debt forgiven (Box 2) and the value listed for their home (Box 7).

For more information, visit the IRS website, http://www.irs.gov/.

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posted by Ilyce Glink at 10:48 AM 0 comments

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