It’s easy to make headlines when you control the data, the definitions and the conclusions. That’s what CoreLogic did last week – as an unwitting disservice to the double dipping real estate market, ethical real estate professionals and the legitimate private investors who are providing necessary liquidity into distressed markets that banks refuse to touch. [...]
Archive for the ‘Everyone’ Category
Extension of FHA 90 day Flip Waiver Likely
Several real estate blogs and news sites have been buzzing about the extension of the waiver of the 90 day flipping restriction for FHA insured loans. It’s important to keep the news in perspective. I have searched the HUD and FHA web sites high and low for an official announcement and have not yet found [...]
Wells Fargo CA Settlement Is Politics As Usual
It’s “politics as usual” in California – more publicity than substance. On December 20, 2011 the California Attorney General’s office announced a settlement with Wells Fargo Bank (WFB) “worth more than $2 billion to Californians with risky adjustable-rate mortgages.” It didn’t say that this value is possibly attained only IF all eligible borrowers complete the [...]
Get The Wells Fargo Bank – California Settlement
Yesterday’s “big news” in California, and even national, real estate news was about the “$2 billion” settlement reached between the California Attorney General and Wells Fargo Bank regarding “pick-a-pay” loans. It made for good publicity but does it make for any benefit to borrowers? Registered readers can get your own copy of the “settlement” (actually titled [...]
It’s OK To Be Unfair When You’re The Bank
A Federal District Court once again affirms what those of us involved with short sales and loan modifications have been experiencing all along: It’s Okay To Be Unfair With Borrowers When You’re The Bank. On December 13, 2010, a federal district court in Oregon found in Vida vs. OneWest Bank FSB that the borrower does not have [...]
California Short Sale Anti-deficiency Law – Will Other States Follow?
What starts in California often spreads east across the country. Will that be the case for California’s new short sale anti-deficiency law? On August 19, 2010, the California Legislature approved Senate Bill 931 (SB 931) which added Section 580e to the Code of Civil Procedure (CCP §580e). It expands existing anti-deficiency laws regarding loans secured [...]
Becoming Liable for the Impossible: FMV Certifications in Short Sales
Are sellers, brokers and buyers in a short sale transaction being set up by the big banks? Most lenders routinely require that the seller, listing agent and often the buyer and their agent sign some kind of certification, representation, or declaration/affidavit that the short transaction is being conducted at “fair market value” (FMV) or “market value” [...]
Short Sales Negotiations – A Navigable Quagmire of Agency, Duty and Compensation
Until two or three years ago, short sales “negotiation” was the purview of a small niche of real estate agents, attorneys and investors. Depending upon the particular market, real estate agents advise me that anywhere from 30–50% of the properties on the market (which includes properties which are not on the MLS) at any given [...]
Freddie Mac: Fighting “fraud” or “crying wolf”?
Here we go again. Freddie Mac is out lumping legitimate resale transactions in with the fraudulent ones in order to deflect accountability for its massive loan losses due to buying loans it had to know were bogus. I’m tired of exposing their fallacies and lack of effective reasoning, but apparently they aren’t tired of exposing themself. Maybe [...]
Flip, Flop or Hold – A Tale of Three Myths
There’s a lot of discussion and warnings in residential real estate circles regarding various forms of “short sale fraud.” Unfortunately, too much of it neglects realistic market analysis and results in labeling legitimate business practices as “fraud.” Usual disclaimer: this is a lengthy post because it provides in-depth analysis of complex issues. It’s not just [...]
