Posts from — July 2010

Is your money safe sitting in your bank?

It’s a question many of us haven’t asked in probably most of our lifetimes…it probably hasn’t been given much though since the Great Depression.

But in today’s economy we are in a new environment — as the government raises taxes and begins to take more control of our private lives it’s a good question to ask yourself — Is my money REALLY safe in my local bank?

Did you know the IRS can take money out of your personal accounts? They can and if you owe them then they probably will!

Did you know that if you stop paying your mortgage and you bank with the same institution they may go ahead and pay themselves right out of your checking account? Yep, I just saw this happen last week!

I’m not forming an opinion one way or the other at this moment but just wanted to put this out there because it’s a question that a lot of people have been buzzing about lately and it’s worth some thought!

Former model home in Surprise at a fantastic short sale price!!

A distressed property market always brings out some interesting characters and not all of them are on the up-and-up.

Although there are legitimate real estate auction houses & firms be wary of people who tell you that they’ll buy homes for you at the auction if you just give them a cashier’s check. Some of these people are just looking for a quick buck from you and have no plans to attend the auction or use your money for anything other than their monetary gain.

It may sound like a simple scam but I have heard of multiple people who have signed up for one of these “We buy for you at the courthouse steps” programs never to see their money again.

As with all real estate be sure to do your homework on the people you hire to represent you or your interests. And this goes for Realtors as well…just because someone sat through real estate class & passed a couple of tests doesn’t mean they are working with your best interests in mind. More than one “professional realtor” has found themselves in hot water for using their license to take advantage of gullible clientele and unfortunately many more sneak through the system.

Do your homework, check them out, ask for referrals, etc. Noone can protect YOU better than YOU can!

Alternatives to letting the government take your home —

Fannie Mae wants it and they can’t wait to foreclose on it…don’t let them!! Do a short sale, be smart about it, and get out from underneath that mountain of debt!

If you have a Fannie Mae backed loan and you need to do a short sale then here are some steps to avoid their newest ploy to get your home…

1. Check to see if your loan is backed by Fannie Mae. You can visit http://www.fanniemae.com/loanlookup/ and type in your address to see if Fannie Mae is the investor on your loan.

2. If they are then you will need to try and get your short sale progressing quickly. Once a foreclosure date is set they will probably not postpone it and the house will need to be sold, approved, and closed before that date.

3. Gather all your short sale documentation and provide it to your short sale agent. Be sure everything is up to date, including last two paystubs and last two months bank statements.

4. Your agent will get the property on the market promptly and you’ll need an offer soon so make sure the house shows as well as possible and is priced aggressively but within market value.

5. Be sure your agent works diligently on the file and attempts to expedite it at every given opportunity. Some short sales can take 120 days or longer JUST for the approval and then remember that you still need to give the buyer 30+ days or so to close.

6. Time is of the essence in these types of transactions — not having Fannie Mae as the investor gives you much more breathing room as most other investors don’t like losing money and are willing to give you time to complete the sale —

Good luck! If you need short sale help in Arizona please feel free to contact us at 480-241-4406 or Sean@AzHomeHelp.com and we’ll expedite your short sale today!!

Mortgage rates are at all time lows…the government keeps pushing this in our face and letting us know what a great job they are doing for the American people.

However it doesn’t matter if rates are at 0% if they aren’t giving out any money it’s pointless!! Saying rates are low but having a stranglehold grip on approving loans is like every 5-star restaurant in town offering free dinner….but when you get there and order they don’t have any food left!

As soon as they loosen their grip on lending guess what happens next? Rates are going to go up. Its typical economics but what is driving me nuts is how they are packaging these low rates in a huge marketing scheme to make it look like they are doing something good.

Maybe they should spend less time & money making billboards & TV commercials touting how low rates are and instead spend that time and money actually APPROVING people for these low-rate wonderful loans!