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One in 240 California housing units was in foreclosure in April 2011, according to Realty Trac, a statistic that places California foreclosures about 2.5 times higher than the national average.  Those statistics alone make the state a ripe market for loan modification scammers.

The Lawyer’s Committee is starting to file complaints against Nathanson Law Center and other alleged loan mod scammers.  The suit claims that the defendants lured desperate homeowners into paying up-front fees to secure them loan mods, and then did little or no work to follow up on their promised services.  While homeowners were offered 100% guarantees that their funds would be returned if a modification could not be obtained, the defendants later refused to turn their fees.  Many of the victims lost thousands of dollars – or worse, their homes. 

If you believe you have been the victim of a loan mod scam, you are encouraged to call (888) 995-HOPE or visit www.preventloanscams.org and click “Report a Scam!”  Victims are being represented free of charge

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Tuesday, Sept. 20, 2011 Released by California Association of Realtors

View a video of C.A.R. Vice President and Chief Economist Leslie Appleton-Young discussing the 2012 Housing Market Forecast.

SAN JOSE (Sept. 20) – California home sales and median price are predicted to improve only slightly in 2012, as the continuation of the tepid economic recovery, uncertainty about the future, and funding challenges for residential mortgages are expected to keep the market moving sideways, with little foreseeable momentum in either direction, according to the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®’ (C.A.R.) “2012 California Housing Market Forecast” released today. 

The forecast for California home sales next year is for a slight 1 percent increase to 496,200 units, following essentially flat sales of 491,100 homes this year compared to the 491,500 homes sold in 2010.

“Despite the run of unforeseen global events in the first half of this year that slowed the overall economy, 2011 home sales are projected to essentially remain unchanged from last year,” said C.A.R. President Beth L. Peerce.  “Looking ahead, the fundamentals of the housing market – such as low mortgage rates, high housing affordability, and favorable home prices – are expected to continue, but at this point, a strong housing recovery will depend on consumer confidence, job creation, and the availability and cost of home loans.

“Discretionary sellers will play a larger role in next year’s housing market,” said Peerce.  “Those who held off selling in 2011 may list their homes in 2012, thereby improving the mix of homes for sale compared with the last few years.  Additionally, distressed sales will remain an important segment of the overall market as lenders continue to work through the foreclosure process.”

The California median home price will increase 1.7 percent in 2012 to $296,000 in 2012, according to the forecast.  Following a double-digit increase in the median price in 2010, the median home price will decrease a projected 4 percent in 2011 to $291,000.

“2012 will be another transition year for the California housing market, as the continued uncertainty about the U.S. financial system, job growth, and the stability of the overall economy remain in the forefront for all market participants,” said C.A.R. Vice President and Chief Economist Leslie Appleton-Young.  “An improvement in job growth, consumer spending, and corresponding gains in housing are essential to a broader recovery in the economy, but would-be buyers will remain cautious as they weigh these myriad uncertainties against the clear opportunities presented by today’s very affordable housing market.

“The most likely scenario is for the modest recovery to continue, and this should push sales up slightly next year by 1 percent and maintain levels that are significantly higher than those recorded during the depths of the housing downturn.

“The wild cards for 2012 are many, including federal, fiscal, monetary, and housing policies; the contentious political climate during an election year; and the strength of the U.S. economic recovery,” said Appleton-Young.

Appleton-Young will present an expanded forecast Wednesday afternoon during CALIFORNIA REALTOR® EXPO 2011 (http://expo.car.org/), running from Sept. 20-22 at the San Jose McEnery Convention Center in San Jose, Calif.  The trade show attracts nearly 6,500 attendees and is the largest state real estate trade show in the nation. 

Don’t miss “Why Lenders Can’t Lend:  The Economic Perspective” during CALIFORNIA REALTOR® EXPO 2011.  C.A.R. Vice President and Chief Economist Leslie Appleton-Young will moderate a panel of renowned economists as they delve into the front- and-center issue facing the market and REALTORS® next year.  The panel is scheduled to be held Thursday, Sept. 22, from 2 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. at the San Jose Convention Center.
2012 FORECAST FACT SHEET

f=forecast

Leading the way…® in California real estate for more than 100 years, the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® (www.car.org) is one of the largest state trade organizations in the United States, with more than 160,000 members dedicated to the advancement of professionalism in real estate. C.A.R. is headquartered in Los Angeles.

Foreclosure filings rose in August, as more homeowners fell behind on their mortgage payments.  

Filing were up 7% compared to July, but were still 33% lower than a year ago. 

According to Realty Tract’s report, 228,098 homes in the US received some kind of foreclosure filing in August.  Foreclosure auctions and bank repossessions, which come later in the process, both fell slightly. 

The increased in default notices may signal that lenders are starting to finally push through foreclosure paperwork that was previously delayed by “robo-signing”. 

The good news is that bank repossessions have been falling.  Lenders repossessed 64,813 homes in August, a six-month low and a 37% decline after they hit a peak in September last year. 

Meanwhile, foreclosure auctions were scheduled for 84,405 homes, the lowest number in more than three years. 

Nevada, California and Arizona housing markets are the hardest hit by foreclosures. 

Information from CNNMoney.com

Related articles

• Foreclosure filings jump 7% in August from July Foreclosures fall over the year, but monthly figures signal trouble ahead (lonerangersilver.wordpress.com)
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One in 240 California housing units was in foreclosure in April 2011, according to Realty Trac, a statistic that places California foreclosures about 2.5 times higher than the national average.  Those statistics alone make the state a ripe market for loan modification scammers.

The Lawyer’s Committee is starting to file complaints against Nathanson Law Center and other alleged loan mod scammers.  The suit claims that the defendants lured desperate homeowners into paying up-front fees to secure them loan mods, and then did little or no work to follow up on their promised services.  While homeowners were offered 100% guarantees that their funds would be returned if a modification could not be obtained, the defendants later refused to turn their fees.  Many of the victims lost thousands of dollars – or worse, their homes. 

If you believe you have been the victim of a loan mod scam, you are encouraged to call (888) 995-HOPE or visit www.preventloanscams.org and click “Report a Scam!”  Victims are being represented free of charge.

Related articles

• Foreclosure Rescue Scams (arizonaconsumerlaw.wordpress.com)

Governor Brown signed Assembly Bill 771, on September 1, 2011.  This bill prevents home buyers in a common interest development, such as a condominium or townhome, from being charged excess document fees. 

Current law requires this information come from the Homeowner’s Association “HOA” and prohibits it from charging fees in excess of what is “reasonable,” not to exceed the actual cost of processing and producing these documents.  HOA generally have provided the document for approximately $75 to $250.  In the past HOAs have been delegating document preparation to third party vendors or contractors who, under a 2007 court decision, are exempt from this fee limitation.  This delegation of responsibility by HOAs sometimes resulted in home purchasers being forced to pay additional fees, as much as $1000, for other documents which were “bundled” with the required documents. 

AB 771 addresses this by specifying that only fees for the required documents may be charged when such documents are provided, effectively prohibiting any “bundling” of fees for other documents with these fees.  The bill also creates a new form detailing which documents are required, and requires the provider to disclose the fees that will be charged for the documents before they are provided.  The seller of the home must complete this form and transmit it to the prospective purchaser along with the required documents.  This will eliminate any uncertainty for the prospective purchase as to exactly which documents are being provided and the precise fees being charged in those documents. 

Image by HeatherMG via Flickr

Protect your home and family now!

California residents must have carbon monoxide detectors in their homes as of July 1, 2011.  This timeline applies only to single-family homes that have appliances that burn fossil fuels (wood, gas and oil) or homes that have attached garages or fireplaces.  For all other types of housing, such as apartments and hotels, detectors should be in place as of January 1, 2013. 

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Despite the rising number of renters in the U.S., it is cheaper to buy a home rather than rent one in 72% of the 50 largest cities according to an index released by Trulia.com. 

Trulia’s rent vs. buy index compares the median list price with the median rent on two bedroom apartments, town homes & condominiums listed on Trulia.com as of 1/10/11. 

In 36 out of 50 of the country’s most populous cities, buying a two-bedroom home is less expensive than renting one.  These cities also include many areas that have been hit hard by foreclosures, such as Sacramento.

A price-to-rent ratio of 1 to 15 means that it’s much cheaper to buy than to rent in a particular city.  A ratio between 16 and 20 means that it’s more expenseive to rent than to buy, but depending on the family’s situation, buying could “make financial sense” the side siad.  Any ratio above 20 indicates that owning is much more costly than renting in a city.

Top 10 cities to buy vs. rent:

Source: Trulia

In 10 cities, renting is cheaper, but buying might make more financial sense, according to Trulia. These cities include Los Angeles, Boston, and Fort Worth, Texas.

The index considers the total cost of homeownership compared to the total cost of renting. Calculations for the total cost of homeownership include mortgage principal and interest, property taxes, hazard insurance, closing costs at time of purchase, homeowners association dues, and private mortgage insurance. The homeownership cost calculation also includes tax advantages from mortgage interest, property tax and closing-cost deductions.

Calculations for total rental cost include rent and renters insurance.

The total cost of homeownership was highest, compared to the cost to rent, in New York; Seattle; Kansas City, Mo.; and San Francisco.

Top 10 cities to rent vs. buy:

Source: Trulia

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Effective January 1, 2011, California first trust deed mortgage holders who consent to a short sale of residential property (up to 4 units) are prohibited from seeking a deficiency judgment for the difference between the mortgage balance and proceeds realized through the sale. 

Senate Bill931 was passed by legistature in August and approved by the Governor on 9/30/10 to help strapped homeowners.

See the complete article at Realty Times 

Image by quaziefoto via Flickr

 

A lot of people are trying to save money for their Retirement years and have questions concerning how to go about saving and paying off their debts to prepare for retirement. 

The following information was given by Steven Zeller, a Gold River, CA, based investment adviser regarding credit card debt and publised by RISMEDIA:

If you are heavily in debit, he would not encourage anyone to go into bankruptcy proceedings if he or she can help it.  It creates a lot of stress and is not the best for your self-esteem.

If you have multiple credit cards to payoff, I would begin paying off the credit cards, starting with the smallest one first, until they are all gone for good.

It may be painful at first, buy you will increase your cash flow over time by eliminating the monthly payments.

He also stated,  ”At the end of the day, if you pay into an IRA and Roth IRA instead of paying down your credit card debt, you will still have debt. ”

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There is a new bill introduced in the U.S. House which would give lenders a 45 day deadline to respond to short sale requests to the borrower. 

This is a bipartisan bill (H.R. 6133) – Prompt Decision for Qualification of Short Sale Act of 2010 which is sponsored by Reps. Robert Andrews (D-New Jersey) and Tom Rooney (R-Florida).

The length of time it has been taking lenders to process the short sales has caused buyer’s to walk away.  Many lenders are taking from 90 days to several months without a decision made on the short sale.    The following states have the highest number of short sales:  California – 28%, Nevada 32%, Arizona 24%, and Florida 27%. 

Realtors across the country strongly support this bill and are urging Congress to pass the legislation quickly.  The National Association “NAR” of Realtor President Vicki Cox believes that quicker attention to the short sales process is vital to help homeowners who are underwater and their communities, as well as the nation’s economy.