Real Estate Information

April 13, 2012 Bank of America Changes their Short Sale Process

Friday, April 06, 2012

by Randy Lewis

On April 2, Bank of America announced the latest round of changes to their short sale process. The changes, aimed at streamlining and expediting the process, include new requirements for initiating a short sale.

Beginning April 13, 2012, Bank of America will require the following five forms to be submitted to initiate a short sale:

Bank of America Third-Party Authorization Form
IRS Form 4506-T – Request for Transcript of Tax Return
60-day Estimated HUD-1 (or HUD-1 with closing date if shorter than 60 days)
Signed Purchase Contract including Buyers Acknowledgement and Disclosure
Bank of America Short Sale Purchase Contract Addendum

If you currently have a short sale file with Bank of America, you will need to complete any outstanding tasks before April 13.

I don’t want anyone to be taken by surprise. Feel free to post any questions regarding short sales or contact me if your questions require specific confidential answers.

Bye for now.

Add Comment

Bank of America Changes their short sale

What is HAFA?

Friday, April 06, 2012

by Randy Lewis

Questions always arise and I hope this helps with your HAFA Short Sale questions.

Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives (HAFA) Program (If you qualify, you are released from your debt and receive $3,000 relocation costs)

If you can't afford your mortgage payment and it's time for you to transition to more affordable housing, the Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives (HAFA) program is designed for you. HAFA provides two options for transitioning out of your mortgage: a short sale or a Deed-in-Lieu (DIL) of foreclosure. In a short sale, the mortgage company lets you sell your house for an amount that falls "short" of the amount you still owe. In a DIL, the mortgage company lets you give the title back, transferring ownership back to them.

In either case, HAFA offers benefits that make the transition as favorable as possible:

You can get free advice from HUD-approved housing counselors and licensed real estate professionals.
Unlike conventional short sales, a HAFA short sale completely releases you from your mortgage debt after selling the property. This means you will no longer be responsible for the amount that falls "short" of the amount you still owe. The deficiency is guaranteed to be waived by the servicer.
In a HAFA short sale, your mortgage company works with you to determine an acceptable sale price.
HAFA has a less negative effect on your credit score than foreclosure or conventional short sales.
When you close, HAFA provides $3,000 in relocation assistance.

You may be eligible for HAFA if you meet all of the following criteria:

You live in the home or have lived there within the last 12 months.
You have a documented financial hardship.
You have not purchased a new house within the last 12 months.
Your first mortgage is less than $729,750.
You obtained your mortgage on or before January 1, 2009.
You must not have been convicted within the last 10 years of felony larceny, theft, fraud, forgery, money laundering or tax evasion in connection with a mortgage or real estate transaction.

*Eligibility criteria are for guidance only. Contact your mortgage servicer to see if you qualify for HAFA.

HAFA^SM is available for mortgages that are owned or guaranteed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (see Look Up Tools) or serviced by over 100 HAMP^SMparticipating mortgage servicers .

The sooner you seek help, the more options you'll have. If this is the first time you've worked with your mortgage company, they will want to ensure that you have been considered for other options to keep your home before they move forward with HAFA. When it's time for HAFA, be prepared to provide the following:

If you've already received an offer, be prepared to submit these additional forms:

Alternative Request for Approval of Short Sale (Alternative RASS)
Executed sales contract

If you have additional questions about getting mortgage help, contact me at 602-352-3600 and contact one of the HAFA housing experts at 888-995-HOPE (4673). These HUD-approved housing counselors will help you understand your options, design a plan to suit your individual situation, and prepare your application. Research shows that homeowners who work with housing experts like these are more successful and have better long-term outcomes. There is no cost to you for this valuable, around-the-clock service. Help is available in more than 160 languages.

Click here to watch a video ›

Please let me know if you have any thoughts or questions.

Add Comment

Short Sales and Selling a home in Arizon

2012 Phoenix Real Estate Outlook

Monday, December 12, 2011

by Randy Lewis

It appears that additional recovery efforts are coming our way for Arizona real estate in 2012. There is a trend towards more short sale approvals from lenders due to more streamlining of their processes. This reduces the number of trustee sales and foreclosures. A greater percentage of properties that do go to trustee sales will likely sell to third parties as the lenders are motivated to reduce the number of bank owned real estate. We have a shortage of available home listings for sale right now and many of our listings receive multiple offers and buyers that are willing to pay over appraisal amount. This is the law of supply and demand. The market is weighted towards a sellers market but our market is sensitive to many outside factors that could change that on any given day. We spend a lot of time and money to market all of our listings as though they were luxury homes so that may explain why we receive multiple offers on almost all of them. There is no quick fix for our economy but there is light at the end of the tunnel.

Add Comment

Phoenix Real Estate outlook

Should I Buy a Home Now?

Monday, August 17, 2009

by Randy Lewis

I’m often asked if this is a good time to buy a home. Some clients are concerned that home prices may fall further than they have already. They are assuming that the best course of action is to wait for the bottom in the market and then buy. The problem with this approach is that you don’t know where the bottom is until you see it in the rear view mirror, meaning until you’ve missed it!

Home prices are one factor in determining your cost of ownership, but so are interest rates and financing availability. Even though interest rates have gone up in the last six months, they are still near historic lows. Since your monthly mortgage payment is a combination of paying down your principal and paying the interest owed, if home prices come down a little further but interest rates go up, it could cost you even more to service a mortgage on an identical home!

While a home is a major investment, it is also the center of your personal life. It’s important to live in a home that reflects your taste and values, yet is within your financial “comfort zone.” To that end, it may be more important to lock in today’s relatively low interest rates and low home prices, rather than to hope for a further break in prices in the future.

Please give me a call if I can be of any assistance in determining how much home you can afford in today’s market.

Add Comment

Should I Buy a Home Now?