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Wow the market here is showing signs of life. Properties under $250k that are priced well are getting 3 to 5 offers on them. The last four offers i wrote on for clients had multiply offers. Inventory in the price range is scarces. Interest rates last week dipped below 4%. Their have been several articles written about vacation home market and South Lake Tahoe. This is a good sign that our market may have it the bottom. I'm looking forward to a busy summer. Today we hit 82 degrees. Summer is here! Scott Pearce Chase International South Tahoe Realty. www.SoLakeTahoeHomes.com 530-318-1030.
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South lake Tahoe, CA – Many people are concerned about a potential lawsuit after a short sale. Many people ask us, “My lender just lost $150,000. Aren’t thing going to be angry that they are losing that much money? Won’t they sue me?” The good news is that very few people will get sued. The vast majority of all short sale sellers will be released from the debt as a condition of the short sale. We have reviewed hundreds of short sale approval letters and are familiar with the laws in different states. We estimate that 85-90% of all short sales will be approved with the deficiency being waived. But, what about the remaining people? There are several reasons they are unlikely to be sued. Remember, in most cases they can’t collect any money without getting a judgment first. Reason #1: It costs $1,000 or more to file a lawsuit in most states. Between the attorney fees and court costs, it will cost a lender $1,000 to $5,000 to convert the debt into a judgment. The $5,000 number is for people who fight them in court. Reason #2: You can’t squeeze blood from a stone. Most people short sell their house because of financial problems. The banks know this. They have learned from past experience how hard it is to collect money from someone who is having financial difficulties. This is why the vast majority of all short sale sellers will never be sued by their lender after a short sale. Thinking about a short sale? I can help you short sale your property and never pay the bank another penny. Send me an e-mail at scott-pearce@live.com. I will contact you for a free consultation. When we talk, I will explain how the process works in detail and answer any questions you may have. Or, if you prefer, you can call me at 530-318-1030. Thanks for reading this, Scott Pearce Chase International South Tahoe Realty. www.SoLakeTahoeHomes.com Article written by Chris Curry
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Gainesville FL – Another common type of loan that does not usually have a deficiency is a VA loan. But, how do you determine whether or not you have an VA loan? Click here to discover how other sellers successfully did a short sale and avoided foreclosure. On your original mortgage, 1-4 pages past the signature page will be a VA Rider. At the top it will say “NOTICE: THIS LOAN IS NOT ASSUMABLE WITHOUT THE APPROVAL OF THE DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS.”  That is a VA loan. The picture above is from a VA mortgage. The page for the VA mortgage was 2 pages below the original signature page of the mortgage. The pages between this and the signature page had the notary’s signature and the legal description. You can get a copy of your mortgage from the public records in your county. Most realtors will know how to look up this information. If not, then they will know a title company that can do the research for you. A VA Short Sale is called a “Compromise Sale.” According to those guidelines, they will give a complete release if a seller participates in the short sale program, and there was no “fraud, misrepresentation, or bad faith” on the part of the homeowner. The bad news is that you will not be eligible for another VA loan until you repay the VA for their loss. So you may not be able to get a VA loan in the future. Thinking about a short sale? I can help you short sale your property and never pay the bank another penny. Send me an e-mail at scott-pearce@live.com. I will contact you for a free consultation. When we talk, I will explain how the process works in detail and answer any questions you may have. Or, if you prefer, you can call me at 530-318-1030 Scott Pearce Chase International South Tahoe Realty. www.SoLakeTahoeHomes.com Article written by , Chris Curry.
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South Lake Tahoe, CA– Most short sale negotiators are professional. They understand the seriousness of their jobs. They work hard to educate themselves on the industry and market trends. They are friendly and fun to work with. This is one of the things I like about selling short sales for a living. The downside is that every once in a while a negotiator will get an attitude. For whatever reason they have decided to go on a power trip. They start asking for unnecessary paperwork. Or, they nitpick the paperwork you send to them. Most agents just kowtow to the negotiator. They think that the negotiator has all of the power. I have found that isn’t true. The negotiator has very limited power. After all, they don’t own the bank. They aren’t the one who will be losing money on the loan. The fact is most banks lose a substantial amount of money when they turn down a short sale. As an example, a bank turned down a $190,000 offer on a short sale. The property sold about 18 months later. But, this time it didn’t sell for $190,000. It sold for $165,000. Not only did that bank lose $25,000 on the sales price. They also paid the property taxes and insurance for that amount of time. In addition, they were unable to lend that money and earn interest. I estimate they lost an additional $15,000 when you factor in the interest. That’s a $40,000 loss. When a short sale negotiator gets an attitude I simply remind them of this. And I tell them I will be holding them accountable if they turn down the short sale and the bank loses more money as a result. Needless to say, they lose the attitude. Thinking about a short sale? I can help you short sale your property and never pay the bank another penny. Send me an e-mail at scott-pearce@live.com I will contact you for a free consultation. When we talk, I will explain how the process works in detail and answer any questions you may have. Or, if you prefer, you can call me at 530-318-1030. Scott Pearce Chase International South Tahoe Realty. www.SoLakeTahoeHomes.com Article written by, Chris Curry.
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South Lake Tahoe, Heavenly Valley Ski Resort which is owned by Vail Corporation just bought Kirkwood. Last year they purchased North Star. How awesome is that. Our Heavenly pass works at Kirkwood and North Star. Ski three resorts on one pass. I'm looking forward to skiing next year. Looks like winter is having one more run for the season. Were hoping to get a 1' of snow by Friday. Could be the last weekend to ski. The real estate market in South Lake Tahoe is showing signs of life. 1st qrt stats escrows are up and inventory is down. Please call Scott at Chase International 530-318-1030. www.SoLakeTahoeHomes.com
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South Lake Tahoe, CA – Many homeowners considering a short sale are concerned about a deficiency. “Will I be forced to repay my bank for the $150,000 they lost”, they ask me. The good news is that most homeowners are able to walk away from their home without paying their lender another dime. A big part of this is because their lender agrees to that as part of the terms of the short sale. In addition, many states, such as California, require lenders to erase any deficiency when a homeowner short sells their home. But, these are for cases when the homeowner is short selling their house and the lender has included language in the short sale paperwork specifically releasing the borrower from a deficiency. What about situations where this isn’t happening. As an example, many states allows lenders to collect a deficiency after a foreclosure. even when a lender. With a judicial foreclosure the lender already has a judgment they can use to garnish wages and levy bank accounts. So does that happen? We haven’t seen any cases of it happening. We think the reason is because most homeowners simply declare bankruptcy when they are faced with sudden $100,000 bill. The lenders see this happen a few times and decide it isn’t worth the effort. Taking a look thru court cases at the local courthouse hasn’t turned up any lenders collecting on a deficiency. Remember, there are thousands more foreclosures than deficiency judgments. The lenders probably view collection on a deficiency as difficult and unlikely to bring much return on the investment. That is why we think they don’t even both with it. What do you think? Please post your experiences in the comments section below. Thinking about a short sale? I can help you short sale your property and never pay the bank another penny. Send me an e-mail at Scott-Pearce@live.com for your free consultation. When we talk, I will explain how the process works in detail and answer any questions you may have. Or, if you prefer, you can call me at 530-318-1030. Best of luck. Scott Pearce Chase International. www.SoLakeTahoeHomes.com Blog written by Chris Curry
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South Lake Tahoe, CA – A lot of people incorrectly think that bankruptcy is a “Get Out Of Jail Free” card. Yes, bankruptcy does not help a lot of people get back on their feet. However, it is not a “Get Out Of Jail Free” card, despite what many people think. Let me explain why not. Not everyone qualifies for bankruptcy. The bankruptcy laws were dramatically changed in 2005. Now you have to qualify for bankruptcy. If you don’t qualify, then the bankruptcy judge will throw your case out. Your creditors will still be able to pursue you. They may be able to levy your bank account, garnish your wages, or take your tax return. What can you do to avoid this? First, hire a highly qualified short sale realtor. Look for someone with lots of experience who will negotiate hard with the bank. You want them to convince the bank to release you from the upside down mortgage debt. If they are unable to convince the bank to release you from the debt, then you need to consult with a good bankruptcy attorney. Just like not all short sale realtors are created equal; not all bankruptcy attorneys are the same either. Find one that is highly experienced. They will explain the intricacies of bankruptcy law to you. They will know whether or not you can qualify for bankruptcy. They may even know how to get you to qualify when other attorneys would say you aren’t eligible for bankruptcy. Thinking about a short sale? I can help you short sale your property and never pay the bank another penny. Send me an e-mail at scott-pearce@live.com I will contact you for a free consultation. When we talk, I will explain how the process works in detail and answer any questions you may have. Or, if you prefer, you can call me at 530-318-1030. Take care, Scott Pearce Chase International South Tahoe Realty www.SoLakeTahoeHomes.com Blog written by, Chris Curry.
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South Lake Tahoe, CA – I am frustrated that people can be perpetuating these kinds of myths online. These experts on financial websites have never sold a short sale. Some of them are not even licensed realtors. I recently saw an article on a well known financial website. The article falsely claimed that ” A home has to be on the market for at least 90 days before the lender will review the short sale file. Obviously this person has never sold a VA Short Sale, nor reviewed VA Short Sale Guidelines. Not many people know about it, but a lender must give an answer on any short sale file within 45 days. They must make a decision within 45 days of their receipt of all necessary documents from the home seller. As you can see, the 90 day rule does not apply to VA Short Sales. We’ve negotiated many short sales and never seen a lender request the home be marketed for 90 days before they will consider an offer. That is ludicrous! So, before you believe everything you read about short sales ask for the person’s credentials. Ask them, “How many short sales have you been involved with?” The answer from many of these so called experts may surprise you. Thinking about a short sale? I can help you short sale your property and never pay the bank another penny. Send me an e-mail at scott-pearce@live.comI will contact you for a free consultation. When we talk, I will explain how the process works in detail and answer any questions you may have. Or, if you prefer, you can call me at 530-318-1030. Scott Pearce Chase International South Tahoe Realty. www.SoLakeTahoeHomes.com Article written by Chris Curry.
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South Lake Tahoe, CA – The Stop Foreclosure Institute recently received a question from Nathan. Here was his question. “I’ll stop making the payments on my condo. That way we can start on the short sale process with my lender. How far behind do I have to be before they will start negotiations. Nathan’s comment reveals a common myth people have about short sales. They believe that a lender won’t approve a short sale unless the borrower has defaulted. Here is the truth. Yes, some lenders will not approve a short sale unless a borrower is behind on their payments. But, that is only in certain specific instances. But, most lenders will approve a short sale for a borrower that is current on their payments. They will ask if there is a hardship that requires the home to be sold. “Is the borrower moving for a job transfer?”, they ask us. The bottom line is that you do not have to be behind on your payments for your lender to approve a short sale. It is better to start the short sale negotiations while you are still current. You might even be eligible to buy another home right away. Contact me for more info on a new program that allows you to short sale and buy a new home right away. Thinking about a short sale? I can help you short sale your property and never pay the bank another penny. Send me an e-mail at scott-pearce@live.com. I will contact you for a free consultation. When we talk, I will explain how the process works in detail and answer any questions you may have. Or, if you prefer, you can call me at 530-318-1030. Scott Pearce Chase International South Tahoe Realty. www.SoLakeTahoeHomes.com Thanks for reading this. Article written by Chris Curry
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South Lake Tahoe, CA– We are explaining the steps to approving a short sale in 90 days or less. Today, we’re going to explain Step 4: Use the BPO information and knowledge of the loan owner’s short sale guidelines to force the lender to approve the short sale. After doing the steps detailed in the previous posts your agent has two important pieces of information now. First, they know who owns the loan. They know if it is owned by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, FHA, VA, or if it is a portfolio loan or “Sliced and Diced.” Second, they know the BPO value. Now, your agent is ‘loaded for bear.” They are ahead of 90% of all the other realtors negotiating short sales. As a result they will get some respect from the short sale negotiator at the lender. They will be able to hold the lender accountable for their actions. They can use the short sale guidelines for that particular loan owner to force the lender to approve the short sale. Here is an example of how that is done. Let’s say that a short sale property is selling for $278,000. The loan is an FHA insured loan. The home was marketed for 3 months before it sold. The FHA appraisal says that the home is worth $290,000. FHA’s short sale guidelines stipulate that the lender should approve that short sale. Why? Because FHA’s guidelines specifically instruct a lender to approve a short sale that will net them 88% or more of the FHA appraised value. After all the sales costs, the lender will net more than 88% of the $290,000 FHA appraisal value. But, let’s compare this with what might happen to an unprepared realtor who doesn’t follow this process to approve short sales. The negotiator could tell the realtor that they will not approve the short sale unless the buyer agreed to pay $290,000. Short sale negotiators do this all the time. Yes, it is an abuse of power but it still happens. This realtor has worked very hard to sell the home for as much money as possible. However, the buyer refuses to pay more than $278,000 for the house. This agent can’t force them to pay more for the house. The short sale negotiator tells the realtor that they will “close the short sale file” in a week if the buyer doesn’t agree to pay $290,000. This is another tactic short sale negotiators use to bully uneducated realtors who don’t understand short sales. The buyer doesn’t raise the offer and the home is foreclosed upon a few months later. It sells for $260,000 after the foreclosure. Your bank loses $18,000. You get a foreclosure on your credit report. Ouch! This is why it is so important that the realtor you hire to short sale your house know what they are doing. Thinking about a short sale? I can help you short sale your property and never pay the bank another penny. Send me an e-mail at scott-pearce@live.com. I will contact you for a free consultation. Or you can call Scott Pearce at Chase International South Tahoe Realty. 530-318-1030. www.SoLakeTahoeHomes.com Article written by Chris Curry
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South Lake Tahoe, CA – The Stop Foreclosure Institute recently received a question from Jon. Here was his question. “I am behind on my payments and my bank recently started the foreclosure process. I received something in the mail about a “deed in lieu of foreclosure.” What is that and how does it affect my credit? Jon.” Here was our answer to Jon’s Question. Some people say it is a great way to avoid foreclosure. Actually, all it does is accelerate the foreclosure process. A deed in lieu is not better for your credit than a foreclosure. I’ve heard many people say, “A Deed In Lieu is better for your credit because you avoid foreclosure.” It’s kind of sad to hear them say it. After you sign all the Deed In Lieu paperwork, then your house will still be sold at a foreclosure auction. Any person can actually bid on the house at the auction. It will show up on your credit history as a foreclosure. A Deed In Lieu does not always mean that you will not owe the lender any more money. A deed in lieu is similar to a no contest plea. The judge stops analyzing the foreclosure case and simply schedules the foreclosure auction. Unless otherwise stipulated, the lender still has all the deficiency and future collection rights. They may come after you for the loss. A deed in lieu is not always easy. this is absolutely not true. The process required a lot of follow up with the lender. Most lenders require you submit all your financial information. They want to make sure that you genuinely cannot afford the property. The process often takes between 20 and 40 hours over the course of several months. First, you submit your paperwork. Then, you call your lender to make sure they received your paperwork. Then, you have to wait while they review it. Then, you have to answer any questions and provide any paperwork they request. To me this is insane. Why not just live for free until your lender forecloses? A Deed In Lieu of foreclosure offers almost zero benefit to you. So why go thru the aggravation? That is why I always recommend a short sale over a Deed In Lieu. At least you can have a realtor tell you with the process. Thinking about a short sale? I can help you short sale your property. Send me an e-mail at Scott-Pearce@live.com. I will contact you for a free consultation. When we talk, I will explain how the process works in detail and answer any questions you may have. Or, if you prefer, you can call me at 530-318-1030. Scott Pearce www.SoLakeTahoeHomes.com Chase International. Article written by Chris Curry.
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South Lake Tahoe, CA– Short Sales where two or more mortgages are involved are the trickiest. Both mortgage companies are losing a lot of money. They both think that they are entitled to the proceeds of the sale. This is the most common short sale problem. Today we’ll give you an example of how we solved this problem. For example, we had a short sale with a first mortgage, a second mortgage, and a third lien. The third lien was an old credit card judgment. It had to be paid off to sell the house. Here is what happened. The first mortgage was only willing to pay $3,000 to any second mortgages or liens. The second mortgage wanted $4,500. The credit card judgment wanted $5,000. How were we going to get the extra money for them? I had to escalate the file with the first mortgage. I told them that they had two options. Option one: Pay the first and second mortgage what they wanted and net X from the short sale. Option two: Foreclose and net $15,000 less than X. Yes, my projections showed that they would lose an additional $15,000 if they rejected the short sale. I have a calculator that puts all these numbers together. In addition, I have the proof to back it up. Here is an example of that proof. There was recent short sale where the first mortgage stubbornly refused to give enough money to the second mortgage. As a result, they foreclosed on the house and sold it for around $43,000 less than the short sale price. I found out about this house because I met the first buyers at an Open House. They were trying to buy a short sale and were offering $272,000. The first mortgage was RBC, owed $337,500. The 2nd was Bank of America, owed 70k. The agent submitted the short sale offer to both companies. RBC said they would only pay $1,000 to the second mortgage. The second mortgage wanted more. The short sale dragged out for months. Finally the buyer paying $272,000 walked. The listing agent put the house back on the market. The housing market had declined. Now the only offers she could get were around $230,000. The house ended up selling for $229,000. RBC was greedy and wouldn’t offer enough money to the second mortgage. As a result, they lost around $43,000. Was that a smart business decision? I don’t think so. Now, back to my short sale story. I sent this and several other similar examples to the people at the first mortgage company. They agreed to pay the second mortgage $3,000 and completely pay off the credit card judgment. Everyone came to an agreement and the sale closed. The seller was able to wipe out over $70,000 in upside down debt and move on with her life. Thinking about a short sale? I can help you short sale your property and never pay the bank another penny. Send me an e-mail at scott-pearce@live.com. I will contact you for a free consultation. When we talk, I will explain how the process works in detail and answer any questions you may have. Or, if you prefer, you can call me at 530-318-1030. Scott Pearce Chase International. www.SoLakeTahoeHomes.com Article written by Chris Curry.
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South Lake Tahoe, CA– There are some disadvantages of a short sale. But, remember how much a short sale would save you over a foreclosure. A short sale allows you to buy another home 2-4 years sooner and you avoid paying 2-4 years of rent. That would enable you to pay off your house 2-4 years sooner. You can put the $20,000 to $100,000 saved into your retirement. Based on that I think we can both agree that a short sale can save you between $20,000 and $100,000 compared to a foreclosure. So, are the following disadvantages worth $20,000 to you? Cons of a Short Sale: 1. There is no guarantee your bank will accept the short sale offer. However, banks are working very hard to improve their processes. They want the short sale process to become easier to work with. 2. The bank will want to see all documentation on your income and assets. Some people are private and don’t want someone else looking over their information. 3. Short Sales do not always go fast. They can drag on for 3-6 months. However, you can still live in the home for free during that time. The bottom line is that a short sale is a good option for most homeowners. It allows you to get rid of the debt and move on with your life. Many people rent another home for less than their mortgage payment. In one example, a homeowner in foreclosure found a larger home with a garage. It even had a fenced backyard for their kid. Their mortgage payment was $1,500. They rented the nicer, bigger house for $850 a month. Thinking about a short sale? I can help you short sale your property and never pay the bank another penny. Send me an e-mail at Scott-Pearce@live.com. I will contact you for a free consultation. When we talk, I will explain how the process works in detail and answer any questions you may have. Or, if you prefer, you can call me at 530-318-1030. Thanks for reading this, Scott Pearce Chase International. WWW.SoLakeTahoeHomes.com Blog written by Chris Curry Team Realty.
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South Lake Tahoe, CA – We received an email from another agent named Mark that shows how the flawed short sale process causes banks to lose thousands. Here is the email from Mark. “I have been working on a Short Sale for almost a year now. The abandoned Home was listed at $103,000 in the beginning. The price was unrealistic for a virtual tear-down built in 1860. It will take 3 semi trailers to haul off the asbestos alone. We received several offers for $85,000 and $89,000 from the city. They wanted to buy the 2 acre property to expand the city park. The asking price is now $69,000 and we have had multiple offers. However the bank keeps on declining these offers because they don’t feel that they are close to the value of the home. The bank hasn’t done an appraisal and probably has no idea of the true value other than the supporting evidence I have provided to them. Mark.” As you can see, the bank has lost $15,000 to $20,000 by turning down the previous offers. This kind of stuff happens every day. The moral of the story is that you need to hire a competent, experienced short sale realtor that can successfully navigate the system. That is the key to a successful short sale and avoiding the mark of a foreclosure on your credit. Thinking about a short sale? I can help you short sale your property and never pay the bank another penny. Send me an e-mail at scott-pearce@live.com. I will contact you for a free consultation. When we talk, I will explain how the process works in detail and answer any questions you may have. Or, if you prefer, you can call me at 530-318-1030. Thanks for reading this, Scott Pearce Chase International South Tahoe Realty. www.SoLakeTahoeHomes.com Article written by Chris Curry
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South Lake Tahoe, CA – The Stop Foreclosure Institute recently received a question from Roberta. Here was her question. “A company asked about short selling my home to them and they will then rent it back to me. They will allow me to buy it from them after my credit is repaired a few years down the road. This sounds too good to be true. Am I going to get in trouble with my lender if I do this? Roberta.” Here was our answer to Roberta’s question. I am not a lawyer and can’t provide you with legal advice. I don’t know if you will get into trouble. But, I don’t think it is a good idea. The banks don’t like it and they all have different rules regulating it. Every bank issues different short sale approval letters. Most of them state that the owner cannot stay in the home after the sale. What kind of trouble can you get into afterwards when they find out? I don’t know. Some experts consider it mortgage fraud. There can be legal and maybe even criminal accusations thrown against you. In my opinion, it’s just not worth the risk. The other problem is that the company wanting to buy the house is going to want to make money. They will want to charge a rent that is higher than their mortgage payment. If you can’t afford to pay, then they will ask you to move. If you can’t buy the home quickly enough, then they may decide to sell it to someone else down the road. So, there are a lot of unknowns. If you can’t afford the mortgage payments anymore, and you owe far more than the home is worth then a short sale may be a good option. Thinking about a short sale? I can help you short sale your property and never pay the bank another penny. Send me an e-mail at scott-pearce@live.com I will contact you for a free consultation. When we talk, I will explain how the process works in detail and answer any questions you may have. Or, if you prefer, you can call me at 530-318-1030 Thanks for reading. Scott Pearce Chase International www.SoLakeTahoeHomes.com Article written by Chris Curry
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