Bay Area Bloggers

Don and I have looked at a lot of homes this past month, and at that we've come across a lot of homes for sale that are what we term short sales. These are homes that are on the market but have no equity left. In these cases the lender or lenders have agreed to accept less than what is due on the loan(s), for go the term "short pay' or short sale.

So you may say to yourself: WOW great deal! But is it? From the surface it may look the same as a regular transaction, the seller is still obligated to furnish disclosures and sign off on the contract and other paper work …. But with a short sale now that the reduction in price has dipped into the Lenders pocket…. the lender now becomes the major decision maker. The Lender decides if they are going to accept the asking price or not. Not a Problem, right? Wrong!

The major problem, the time frame, it may take a lender 24 hours to 90 days to decide if they will accept the offer. With that said there are now 2 more problems that surface. In-stead of putting this possible transaction on a fast track to a quick decision….some of these banks are still on their own time schedule, therefore putting the property in jeopardy of going into foreclosure. The Banks are now adding to the problem that they already started!!! Problem number two; remember the buyer has a loan secured but the interest rate has not been locked in…..what happens in that time frame if the interest rate goes up? Or say the buyer’s credit changes for what ever reason……..  The buyer is out a home. All that wasted time, the buyer could have already been in their home. 

This is just one of the many problems that may occur.

But as a real estate agent this is what we look out for.

Deb

*****

Just a quick note! Mortgage loans are pooled together and are then sold to Wall Street investors. They then put forth contractual limitations on “modification of terms and short sales”. A third party then services these loans. The Third party has to work within certain boundaries when it comes to “ work outs ” ( a loan where a home owner may be having problems and they are trying to work things out ) anything outside these boundaries it then goes to the investors for there approval

Hence the long wait

Don

We teach our children not to speak to strangers. But are you aware that with all the new technology their not as safe as you may think! Now anyone can find out where you live just by you giving them your phone number! This gives anyone the opportunity to find out exactly where you live!

How is this possible? Google now has a new feature which enables anyone to type a telephone number into the search bar and hit
enter. What they get is the person's name and
address. Then they are able to hit Map Quest, here they get a map
to the person's house. This is some thing everyone should be aware of! It's a nationwide reverse telephone book.

Just think if a child gives out his/her phone number, someone can
now look it up to find out where he/she lives. The
safety issues are obvious and alarming.
(Note that you can have your phone number removed or
blocked.)

With all the crazies out there this does not give me a harm and fuzzy feeling!!!!

Deb

Don and I see a lot of homes where a little up keep could have prevented huge problems down the road. No one thinks twice about keeping up their cars, tune-ups, oil changes, etc. But when it comes to the up keep of their home some become lax. Is this wise?

It does cost to fix things and in a home it could be hundreds to thousands of dollars. Simple things that were not taken care of early could turn out to be a monumental expense later.

Water damage is a big problem with a lot of homes we see. There’s mold, wood rot, wood fungus, and yes termites.

What to do?? Well first of all make sure you’ve calked around the tub, shower, and sinks. Make sure your faucets and drains are not leaking, if they are get them fixed!!! Keep your gutters clean and during the rainy season make sure all water drains away from the house. You do not want water settling around the foundation of the house, big problems from mold to foundation problems just to name a few. Last but not least get a termite inspection. For a couple of hundred dollars (maybe less depending on size of home), could save yourself even more.

Have any horror stories? We’d like to here from you!

Deb