Re-Create The Dream

1. Short sales can take up to 9 months to complete, which is why we recommend to short sale before April 2012. After 2012, homeowners may face a huge tax liability for short sales & foreclosures that close after 2012.

2. Get paid up to $25,000 by your mortgage lender. Some banks are now offering homeowners incentives as high as $25,000 to complete a short sale.

3. Full SETTLEMENT on your current loan. SB 931 and SB 458 passed into law in 2011 prohibit all lien holders on your home from pursuing a homeowner for any deficiency judgments after a short sale. As such, when the short sale is completed, the entire debt is eliminated for good.

4. Buy a new home RIGHT AFTER the completion of your short sale. FHA has announced a new program that allows a homeowner to complete a short sale and repurchase right away if certain conditions are met. We work with experienced lenders who help our clients evaluate their options.

5. Eliminate debt, save thousands a year. Selling your home not only eliminates all of your negative equity, but also saves most homeowners thousands on annual payments and allows them to start rebuilding equity within years.

Get started before it’s too late for some of these benefits.

Todd & Nancy Moeller at 714.276.7006

ww w.TheMoellerTeam.com

Year-end data from CoreLogic shows home prices fell by 4.7 percent over 2011. It marks the fifth consecutive year the company has recorded an annual decline in residential property values.

CoreLogic performed a separate calculation, which illustrates just how big an impact distressed sales are having on home prices. The company excluded all short sale and REO transactions from 2011 and found that when the distress factor is taken out, prices declined by just 0.9 percent.

Commenting on the company’s latest results, Mark Fleming, CoreLogic’s chief economist said, “While overall prices declined by almost 5 percent in 2011, non-distressed prices showed only a small decrease. Until distressed sales

in the market recede, we will see continued downward pressure on prices.”

Montana tops CoreLogic’s list of states with the highest appreciation last year (based on overall prices, including distressed sales). There, home prices rose 4.4 percent.

Rounding out the top five list for price gains are Vermont (+4.0 percent), South Dakota (+3.1 percent), Nebraska (+2.5 percent), and New York (+1.7 percent).

At the other end of the spectrum, Illinois takes the top seed for the highest level of depreciation in 2011 (also including distressed sales), with an 11.3 percent decline.

The hard-hit states of Nevada (-10.6 percent), Georgia (-8.3 percent), and Ohio (-7.7 percent) also landed on the list, with Minnesota (-7.5 percent) capturing the No. 5 spot for home price depreciation last year.

At the national level, CoreLogic says home prices ended 2011 down 33.7 percent from their peak in April 2006.

Here again, the company illustrated the weight of distressed sales, noting that when short sale and REO transactions are factored out, the home price decline from April 2006 through December 2011 narrows to 24.0 percent.

The five states with the largest declines from the peak (including distressed transactions) are Nevada (-60.0 percent), Arizona (-51.9 percent), Florida (-50 percent), Michigan (-43.7 percent), and California (-43.5 percent).

The Obama administration has announced changes to its flagship foreclosure prevention initiative – the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) – which officials say will expand its reach to more distressed homeowners.

Among the changes, borrowers who are struggling because of debt beyond their mortgage will be eligible for a secondary evaluation with more flexible debt-to-income criteria, and eligibility will be extended to investor-owned homes that are used as rental properties.

The administration is also giving principal reductions a bigger role within the program, tripling incentives for investors that agree to write down an underwater borrower’s principal and offering these same incentives to the nation’s two biggest mortgage investors – Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Fannie Mae issued new guidelines to its servicers Wednesday, introducing an unemployment forbearance program which provides servicers the flexibility to assist borrowers who have a financial hardship due to job loss, including those facing imminent default. With unemployment forbearance, the servicer reduces or suspends monthly payments for a specified period for a borrower who is unemployed. With the new guidelines, the servicer can approve an unemployment forbearance term of six months without obtaining Fannie Mae’s approval, provided that all borrower eligibility requirements are met. If during the final month of the initial unemployment forbearance period, the borrower remains unemployed, the servicer must determine if the borrower is eligible for an extension no more than six additional months. Forbearance extensions may be recommended on a case-by-case basis and must be submitted to Fannie Mae for review and a final decision. The new directive from Fannie Mae mirrors the unemployed forbearance guidelines issued by Freddie Mac last week. Fannie Mae says the program “simplifies and streamlines the use of forbearance options” for the GSE’s servicers. The new guidelines prohibit the servicer from proceeding with foreclosure during the forbearance period. Servicers are required to implement Fannie Mae’s unemployment forbearance policies and procedures no later than March 1, 2012, for borrowers who become eligible for such assistance on or after that date. However, the D.C.-based GSE is encouraging all servicers to adapt their processes to the program guidelines immediately.

This was written from our Broker Mike Hickman.  Please read!

Do you find yourself getting ready for 2012 by setting things straight, throwing out the old, making amends, paying off debts, setting new goals for health, wealth and yourself personally?  Well, you aren’t alone.  It’s the time of the year to reflect back on the predictions and forecasts made for 2011 and who and what is in the forecast for 2012.  I mean, who would have ever dreamed Time Magazine would name, “The Protester”, as its person of the year. One word: Unpredictable.  The same reigns true in our industry today.

Given the recent report by one well known source that there is less than three months of shadow inventory, another source reporting less than five months, and still another stating that the inventory is at 15 months, what lies ahead again looks unpredictable. We’ll let you know a year from now how those reports or predictions play out.

UCLA’s prestigious Anderson School of Business predicts appreciation next year and as much as a 35% increase in the median sales price. Our very own Chapman University predicts slow job growth in Orange County in 2012; their view however, is favorable for an improving housing market.

Back to the front lines. Us. We know that people are still suffering and in great numbers.  I wonder if Chapman and UCLA know or took into consideration that there are 6,444 distressed properties within a 10 mile radius of the City of Irvine? The common theme in both reports: Unpredictability.  I agree.

As we put 2011 to rest and yes, R.I.P. forever, I suggest we take a long look at what is predictable and leave the rest to the pundits, the forecasters and the team that selected, “The Protester”, as Person of The Year for Time Magazine.  I know with 100% certainty the following:  there will be about 32,000 homes sold in 2012 in Orange County.  Buyers need to buy, sellers need to sell and they will need us more than ever.

What will you do to make your business predictable? How will that benefit the clients you serve? And ultimately, improve your performance in the year ahead? As always, I welcome your thoughts.

Here’s to a fresh start for us all in 2012.

–Mike

This is a beautiful 5 bedroom 2.5 bathroom home that has just been upgraded.  Freshly painted in the exterior and interior, brand new kitchen, new carpet and new pool equipment.  Entertaining guests is no problem with this 5 bedroom 2.5 bathroom spacious home. In ground pool/spa, BBQ and fire pit are bound to please all your  guests. Just minutes from Los Coyotes Country club, 5 freeway and Fullerton Municipal Airport.

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Please call Sean Drumm at 714-322-3255 with any questions.