A Little Tid-Bit of Sunlight !

I finished my prospecting late today and am reading articles just now at almost 2 in the afternoon! But, it was worth catching it a little late as it will carry us to a happier spot for a smidgen!

It was on Housing Wire. A short little post. Teeny little segment that states delinquencies in the first quarter are improving. Just a slight improvement, but still, I'm taking it.

You can read it quickly yourself  :

Delinquency Rates Improve Slightly in First Quarter

Interesting that they predict a slight increase in delinquencies for construction loans though. Well, why people would consider building new homes right now is beyond me anyways. But, I suppose if they could get it built in less time than it takes to consummate a short sale, then maybe it is a good idea.

Regardless, a shimmer of light at the end of this week.

Let's relish it!

Rent Vs. Buy - Are People Really Changing Their Minds About The Value of Home Ownership?

A lot of articles are saying that the American public is starting to shift away from the theory of owning a home being one of the best things ever. At least that's what many are saying.

Me? I still believe that true home ownership has incredible value. Not as an investment like stocks, bonds and gold though. Only play the housing market if you have a lot of cash to gamble with. Rewards of true home ownership come from the long-term. The love of your home, the tax write-offs, the credit health of keeping your mortgage current.

Those are all pluses. There are many more.

I was prompted on the subject of this post by an article I read this morning on Realtor.org. About strategic defaults. People that are current on all of their other financial obligations and are just deciding to default on their mortgage because it's not worth it anymore.

Not going to kid you....I despise this concept. Absolutely and completely. And, so do the lending institutions. They are going to try to determine, by a new technology tool, which people are more likely to default strategically than others.

Many Borrowers Have Strategy To Defaulting

While it won't help the current situation, it will help eliminate it in the future. We always learn from our mistakes.

Back to Rent Vs. Buy. My personal example here:

Sold back in 2006 my prior residence for 670,000. Now, those homes are selling for about 400,000. Bought my beautiful home, the first all by myself, for 610,000 right then and there. Now, it's worth about 375,000. Sheesh! Yes, I know, it stinks. But, many people are in this same boat.

Can I still pay my mortgage? Absolutely. Do I still love my home? You bet. What about the lost value? Shit happens!

But, in reality, do the math and it works out pretty equal in my eyes.

I would have paid about 36,000 year in rent, right? That's 180,000 over the last 5 years. Wow, that's a lot of money going into someone else's pocket. But, you say, that's still a huge loss in value on my current home. Well, take the 180 from the 610 and we have 430. So, I'm still 'upside' down by about 55k? Ah well, I've been writing off the interest and property taxes for the last 5 years too. And the Uncle Sam tax rate I pay is minuscule in part, large part, because of that. Truly teeny-weeny!

End of story. End of my story at least. I still believe that owning a home is far better than renting. I believe that what goes around comes around too. I borrowed money from someone, I can pay it back....I'm going to enjoy my home and pay back my debt. I'm soooo not hip on Strategic Defaulting. I'm still totally hip on Home Ownership!

Today's Real Estate Market: a 'Once-in-a-Generation Opportunity'

This was so good I just copied & pasted for my friends/clients to read!

By: Heather Hill Cernoch 

04/21/2011

Greg Rand, a 20-year real estate veteran and CEO of OwnAmerica, says now is the time to invest in real estate.
Rand compares the current market to the years following the Great Depression when market conditions sparked a boom that sustained 65 years of appreciation in real estate.

“This economic crisis, while similar to the Great Depression, is also unique in the way that the housing market played a central role,” Rand said. “It is true that this is a once-in-a-generation crisis. It is also true that this is a once-in-a-generation opportunity. It’s time to focus on the other side of the coin.”

According to Rand, a little optimism can go a long way toward spurring real estate back to life.

“There is a very real economic force called irrational pessimism that is the cause of much economic hardship, not the effect,” he said.

“More people are unemployed because successful businesses are afraid to expand. More people are losing homes they can afford because they are underwater and believe their home will never appreciate again. People with job security are convinced they don’t have it and live in fear,” Rand explained.

He insists, “Irrational pessimism is one reason why today’s situation runs so parallel to the Great Depression.”

Rand contends there is no housing meltdown. Rather, there was a media and Wall Street meltdown centered on a predictable housing correction.

The real estate market changes hourly, he says, and investing in real estate is a matter of watching the trends.

“It comes down to the idea that no matter how the markets change, no matter which way the winds shift, people will always need a place to live,” Rand said. “That’s been true of America since the first log cabin.

“If you plug into that concept and leave fear in a box on the shelf, you can be ahead of the curve and ride the wave of the trends that matter,” according to Rand.

OwnAmerica is a Web-based resource for real estate investors and investment advisors headquartered in New York.

Rand is also on WABC Radio, a regular commentator on the Fox Business network, a columnist for Real Estate magazine, and author of the book “Crash-Boom” from Career Press.

Banks Making Money

I've been reading, what else is new, the headlines again this week. Every day I've seen that one big bank after another has a profit in this first quarter. Of course, not in their mortgage department I would presume. But, some profit is better than none.

I'm guessing some if it is from the increase in credit rates to consumers. Not mortgage rates, they are still nice and low. But, most people have seen a huge jump in their credit card interest rates. They say that it has something to do with amounts being charged off. Written off losses. That kind of thing. So, is it a false gain?

I'm not sure really how I feel about this. Is it good that the banks are showing a profit? Is it bad that we're paying for their screw-ups? At this point, I'm happy that the financial industry isn't underwater completely like so many homeowners.But, I'm just uncomfortable that the big banks are showing profit and the little common people are seemingly barely scraping by.

But, I am glad, really glad, that the amount of 'good' loans are improving.

We always learn....sooner than later I wish. But, we always learn from our mistakes.

What do YOU want to know?

I spend time researching and reading and writing. I spend time looking for listings for my buyers and buyers for my listings. I negotiate, educate and protect.

It's who I am and what I do.

Anyone that has read a blog post or two of mine can tell that I'm the genuine article. That I tell it like I see it and I don't hold back.

I believe that is the way it should be. I believe that honesty, to a fault sometimes, is the best. And, I believe that my client knows the absolute best for their family and that I am just a conduit to help them obtain their goal.

And....I like it like that.

But, I would like to know sometimes what they aren't telling me. I listen, I probe...but some people certainly are not as bold as I.

So, you who read this. You that know me. Or you that want to get to know me.

What do YOU want to know about me and what I do?

Commercial RE Rebounding

Our Realtor magazine had a refreshing piece of good news about Commercial Real Estate today. Says it is coming back.  People are buying buildings. California is not noted yet. But, loans are being paid.

Commercial Market Exceeds Forecasts

It will be nice when we see this rebound happening here in California, and in Santa Clarita for certain. Right now, and I'm sure you see it too, there are a lot of vacancies in our commercial sites.  

But, if Commercial RE comes back, and people are moving money around, that is good news ultimately for Residential RE in my eyes too!

So, crossing my fingers for this continued rebound making it to our Awesome Town!

The Loan Mod and the Foreclosure Proceedings

Many consumers are attempting a loan modification to keep their home. They are having the same challenges Realtors were having in working with the banks on Short-Sales (SS).

One hand not necessarily knowing what the other is doing.

We Realtors have dealt with this many times, so in the last few years we learned very quickly that we, not the SS bank, had to keep track of what the foreclosure department was doing while we were navigating a SS for our clients.

This morning in the LA Times Real Estate section was a very good article about homeowners struggles with loan mods. Thinking they had stalled the foreclosure only to find them foreclosed upon when they had submitted their package two or three times and were waiting for another contact from the bank telling them they were missing yet another document.

Banks Foreclose While Homeowners Wait For Loan Mod

If one person reads this article, then one more person I have helped to stay in their home. It's a good article. Not necessarily a life saver, but remember that when you are attempting your one and only loan modification to save your home, us working Realtors have dealt with this over and over again.

Keep track of what is happening in all departments of your lender. Make sure that the Loan Modification department is getting what they need, no matter how frustrating. Always call them, don't wait for them to call you, to verify receipt. And, ALWAYS, keep track of what is happening in the Foreclosure department. 

Nothing could be worse than to get foreclosed on the same day you receive notice that you have been approved for the loan modification that saved your home.