Posts Tagged ‘Short sale’

Save On Your Next Home Through Foreclosure Auctions

With the prices of new homes and condominiums becoming too high for real estate investors and homeowners who are still recovering from recession, other markets are now much more attractive as alternatives. Already, the market is flooded with foreclosure properties where homeowners missed their mortgage payments and collection attempts have failed. Since banks are eager to liquidate these properties rather than have to maintain them, one can easily get their dream home and only pay a substantially lower fraction of the home’s actual market value. Finding a foreclosed home is easy, but you will need to educate yourself about the potential homes that you will be looking at, as well the things you need when attending foreclosure auctions. Your next home could easily come at a bargain, but to get the best deals, it is always best to structure your search.

We have covered a few basic things about buying a foreclosure, and they are essential to consider in your research. Of course we strongly recommend you learn more about them. We believe you will find them to be very helpful in a lot of ways. Once your knowledge is more complete, then you will feel more self-confident about the subject. But we have saved the best for last, and you will understand what we mean once you have read through.

The first thing on your list of things to do is to locate properties that are being auctioned off, along with the dates that the auctions will take place. Your search can be narrowed down with factors such as the home’s starting bidding price, the area it is in, as well as the kind of home. Limiting your search early can help save time early on as foreclosed property lists can be extensive. You can try searching through online listings as well as classified ads in your local newspaper for properties that are nearby. You can also try informing local real estate agents about your interest in being foreclosed properties. Once you have selected the property you plan to bid on, you should receive a packet information that contains what you need to know about the property such as a title report, a description of the property, financial information, and a survey. This can tell you about any pending payments, unpaid taxes and liens that you might become responsible for, should win the bidding process.

Make sure that you have the basics, such as your ID and a cashier’s check before attending the auction. The cashier’s check is meant to cover either the initial deposit if you are declared the winning bidder (usually about 5% of the property’s current market value) or the total market value of the property itself, depending which state the property is located. Although the starting bid can vary, it is usually 20% of the home’s market value. Most of the time, you are likely to save much more than the actual market value of the property, which is why foreclosed properties are so popular.

In mere seconds you can uncover a few possibly shocking pieces of information concerning foreclosure attorney that we think you will really like. But never think this is all there is, quite the contrary we do have to admit. It is just that people make honest mistakes because they are misinformed, but we can help you steer clear of that pitfall, altogether.

Short Sale Nation?

Foreclosure, short sale, loan modification, why are all of these terms becoming so common, and what do they mean to an individual home owner?

Values on homes are down thirty, forty, even fifty percent or more in various locations from their values at the peak of the market and unemployment in California is easily in the double digits. Across the country, over one third of mortgage holders owe more than their properties are worth. About one in every eight of all mortgages are behind on payments, says the Mortgage Bankers Association.

If you are aproaching the point of defaulting on your home loan, you basically have three options: a short sale, loan modification or a foreclosure. Many professionals these days are advising a a short sale, because they offer an upside to Realtors, agents, lenders and buyers. But that then begs the question, is a short sale best for you or for them?

A lot of the time, a short sale is not really the best solution, although others involved in the process may want you to believe it is.

Why might this be? Let’s take a look. So you are struggling to make mortgage payments. What happens should you suddenly stop paying?

Right off the bat, it will damage your credit. Your credit score is a key point to future lenders who will decide at some later point if you are worthy of making a loan to, and could force you into working with private money loans if you should need a loan. Also, it’s also being used by employers who may be making a decision on whether or not to hire you. Ruining your credit is not something to rush headlong into.

Your FICO, or credit score is figured using outdated and patented formulas using information collected throughout your life as a borrower. These credit scores are basically an indicator of how likely an individual is to default during the first two years of a loan, and are used by almost everyone who extends credit.

Other companies have their own formulas that do pretty much the same thing. On another popular credit score scale, which runs from 500 to 990, stopping payments on all your loans will drop you into the low 600s.

If your credit is in under 680 based on one of the major credit reporting agencies these days, finding a loan of any kind can be very hard (except for the more expensive money offered through private hard money lenders). When sitting down to make your decision on which way to go, a short sale of your home will not save your credit, contrary to what many may want you to believe. So is there really a beneift to going through a short sale?

The largest benefit is getting the debt you owe forgiven (be sure to read the fine print), and keeping your credit report foreclosure free. A short sale will impact your credit about the same as a foreclosure, but by short selling your home, you will be allowed to get another conventional home loan in as little as two years, rather than 3 or more with a foreclosure.

A better option is to look at loan modification. Oftentimes, this is a difficult process to work with the banks on, but if you desire to stay in your home and save your credit, a loan modification may be the best solution to look at.

You will want to do your own due dilligence before deciding on what course of action you are going to pursue. Depending on what state you are in, there will be different ramifications for the various options. Seek out a good real estate professional and/or real estate attorney, make an appointment, and talk about all your options before you make a choice. This is a large financial decision, it is important to get it right!