Like  most people do at this time of year , our staff was reflecting on the happenings of the past year , the ups  the downs  and the lessons we have learned .   As a country the USA  has faced  monumental problems that have only been paralled just a few times in history .

What has happened  and is happening is a globalization of the economy , some say by chance , some say as a calulated plan .

 Americans  still have one of the highest standards of living in the world . As many  elsewhere are struggling to find their next meal  ,  an average American childs idea of doing without may be having to deal with a limited texting plan .

We have met with many families this year and have met the goal of making their life a little better , providing stability of shelter ,

peace of mind and a goal for the future .

I have met with many leaders and bright thinkers in the Mortgage and Real estate industry to be informed of concepts and startegies that can help individuals and families in these trying times .

Surround yourself with companions that are open to listening and deciding for themselves, and plan   what can be in store for your future .   I give you this definite gift of hope for the New Year.

Although you will find those among you that are negative with every suggestion,  the families we have helped in the past year are living proof that   Loss of job , FORECLOSURE , SHORT SALES and BANKRUPTCY  may have ended the history of  a house in their life , but the HOME still lives on . 

Posted by Mortgage Larry at 1:31 PM EST

Updated: Monday, 3 January 2011 8:34 AM EST

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Any one looking to buy a House or Condo right now

knows that its a buyers market .  CASH is great .  But  financed buyers

 must  have provable income  .   FHA buyers must have 3.5  %down

 (SOME Properties are not eligible for FHA)

and FNMA buyers  perhaps  20 % down , 25 % down  for condo's  and

perhaps 30 %   down for a property to be used for investment . 

Therefore if owner financing or an assumable loan is available

a buyer may be able to get in with easy terms .

 Let's assume

Two homes identical   side by side

one  Seller wants  $  200000.  (GET YOUR OWN FINANCING )

the other seller  wants 215000.  ( ALTERNATIVE OWNER FINANCING)

if you could , go to the bank and buy the first home   Payment

1043.29  at today's 4.875 (?)  per cent   NORMAL CLOSING COSTS

 OR  own the second home at 1220.74  per month  assuming 5.5 %

interest rate     .    NORMAL CLOSING COSTS

   OR you can rent   or wait until your credit gets better

and/ or    banks get easier .     WHAT WOULD YOU DO ?

Posted by Mortgage Larry at 2:23 PM EST

Updated: Saturday, 11 December 2010 2:23 PM EST

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Most Lenders are now cooperating in the short sale  process

if you are working with Knowledgeable Short Sale agents

you should hear from the Lender with responses in 2-3 weeks

but it really depends on the lender.

Their are many methods and short cuts to help  close a transaction

Short Sale processes should not just  be  communication back and forth

between Lender , Seller and Buyer.  Mortgage Foreclosure Defense by the

homeowner plays a critical role in sucessfull shorts sales .

Don't let the Lender steam roll you !  for more information

contact me at  239-298-2392    or visit  our foreclosure/short sale info page

at  http://www.freeforeclosure411.net   

Posted by Mortgage Larry at 10:36 AM EST

Updated: Monday, 15 November 2010 5:01 PM EST

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Recently i represented a cash buyer who wanted to purchase a house that was a Short Sale .  The balance owed on the mortgage

was perhaps  $  500000    ,  the value was   240 K or more ?

and our offer was much lower .    Surprisingly  I did not recieve a response from the homeowner ( thru the Real Estate Agent)

After repetitive calls  I finally reached the Agent and she told be the homeowner was advised of the market value of the property and decided to decline the offer.

I was flabergasted !  First of all I had done my research. The Home was months away from foreclosure  one of the two owners had recieved a default judgement and it was a matter of weeks before the other would ( at worst thru Newspaper Publication ) . 

The  Home had been on the market for quite some time with no contract  and with Mortgages and Values uncertain it would be fairly difficult to find a buyer,  let alone a cash buyer .

I sent an e mail to the agent  asking for a counteroffer  and to this day i have not heard back .

In my experience , once a offer is submitted to the bank  , it may be a process but usually with negotiation and persistance , I have been able to close transactions at sometimes as much as 20 % less than

the banks initial asking price.    you can't have a sale  if you don't

submit a short sale offer .  Correction ,  the only sale you will have

is   a Foreclosure Sale at the Courthouse Steps . 

Benefit from my experience   call  239-298-2392

or visit   www.  e sell my home .com

(no spaces)

Posted by Mortgage Larry at 10:20 AM EDT

Updated: Wednesday, 27 October 2010 10:39 AM EDT

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In the news is the revelation that banks are halting foreclosures because they are having problems with proper documents being filed in order to foreclose on a property correctly and legally.

In reality the documentation on most of these loans is impossible to track so instead----- the present lender " promised" that everything was in order. That is a legal no-no but 90% of foreclosures go unchallenged , meaning the borrower does not answer or show up in court . That is an automatic win for the Bank .

Why is documentation impossible to track ? Because Banks were loosely guarded from 2000-2007 thanks to a bill sponsored  by

Former Rep Phil Gramm from Texas in 2000 .  Banks were allowed to relax existing laws and combine and convert and invest and wrap and sell to Wall Street  unchecked and lots of people made a lot of money.   NOW Mr Gramm is President of  USB BANK .  Sound all to familiar ?

If you would like a forensic audit of your loan documents , information can be found so that you can have leverage against the bank

Contact me at  239-298-2392   or e mail LLDLLD@aol.com

or for more info go to www.freeforeclosure411.net

Posted by Mortgage Larry at 11:32 AM EDT

Updated: Wednesday, 13 October 2010 11:53 AM EDT

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I recently was representing a buyer for a condominium .

because of the short sale situation , there were over  $7000 in unpaid association dues .

there has been a new law passed in Florida which is to aid the

HOA's  in trying to collect more money from absentee owner's

and collect money directly from tenant's too .  One of the more

important points is  that  usually after a foreclosure when the bank

becomes the owner , the bank was protected as to how much they

would owe the association . The cap has been riaised from 6 months dues to 12 months dues OR  one percent of the mortgage balance

being foreclosed on .

 So for instance if a homeowner pays

3200 in maintainance fees per year   and they have not paid

in two years they would owe 6400 in maintenaince fees plus late charges lawyers fees etc .    if you sell your home on a normal sale

the HOA would have to be paid  in full (or settled with ) .

If a Bank gets the home in foreclosure or a Deed in Lieu of Foreclosure   , the bank is only liable for one year of assessments

BUT if they foreclosed on a 100000 mortgage loan

the cap  would be  1 %    or equal     $1000   for the association .

This is another example of the favorable treatment Banks are getting

from lawmakers.

Unfortunately ,  your  Condo Association representatives are just as

mislead on their views and understanding of viable solutions .

BUYERS are being charged non refundable  upfront fees of as much as $350 just to be able to find out from Attorneys representing associations how much is owed.

If policies were in place to be buyer friendly  perhaps many of these

properties would not go to foreclosure . Perhaps more units would

be a revenue producing units for the association and the rest of the

homeowners.  remember the shortfall of income must be a shared  burden by the remaining paying residents.

talk to your association representatives about what policies are in place in order to gain maximum revenue for the association .

The quick highering of a condo attorney  (and their fees) may become more of a burden  when a condo goes into foreclosure and

outstanding balances are reduced  by the (new) Law

Posted by Mortgage Larry at 9:52 AM EDT

Updated: Wednesday, 15 September 2010 10:15 AM EDT

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Please write an account of your short sale/modifcation/foreclosure 

experience with various lenders  and how it turned out or the status .

use initials not full name of any individuals

Posted by Mortgage Larry at 8:11 PM EDT

Updated: Tuesday, 31 August 2010 8:13 PM EDT

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I talk to alot of people about their house , thier job, their expenses

and why they can't pay the mortgage anymore.  I also hear a lot of lender horror stories .  The best stories i have heard ( from the homeowners point of view)  is when the lender does nothing ,

This usually gives them time to figure out what to do ,  and save money  up .  The worst stories i hear is when the lender gives them false hope , leads them on a promise of lower payments while on the other end suing them for foreclosure  all the while the  "HOME Retention Dept "  is freezing them into inaction with false promises.

Unfortunately the Banks are getting faster at foreclosure and our court system isn't helping the consumer . ( google ROCKET
DOCKET FT MYERS)

You must defend your rights while you are in Default .  A phone call

or a letter about your tough times will only leave you homeless.

You need more time to accummulate money for a new place to live .

We have come up with a serious plan to do that. With the aid of DEFENSE and Bankruptcy Lawyers  , you can sell your house at your pace and save money to live somewhere else . Contact us for more details or visit    www.eSellMyHome.com

Sincerely

Larry Damiano

239-298-2392

Posted by Mortgage Larry at 7:49 AM EDT

Updated: Friday, 27 August 2010 8:09 AM EDT

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I have been involved in conversataions with several attorneys in the past months , both Bankruptcy attorneys and Mortgage Defense attorneys.   there is a big misconception out there .

when you get behind on your mortgage , you get many solicitations .

Many people are being told to file bankruptcy to avoid foreclosure.

If you have many bills such as credit cards and personal loans that

if eliminated would enable you to pay your mortgage ,   then Bankruptcy may be an option .  

 what they don't tell you  is that

you can chose to protect your home in a bankruptcy , However you must make  regular payments  again  and arrange to catch up on the back payments and interest .  this usually leads to higher payments than when you started .   if you fail to make the payments as agreed to by the court , the foreclosure prodedure continues .  Then you get a Bankruptcty AND  a foreclosure.

Their are also Mortgage Defense Attorneys . Their specialty is to protect you while you re-group your finances in order to try to catch up the mortgage  or  buy you time if there was a legitimate dispute

of past payments or to buy you time to negotiate a sale of your home

and avoid foreclosure . Perhaps a combination of these services is needed ,  or perhaps just one or the other . Depending on what you want to accomplish , you should ask questions of Attorneys , Realtors

and other Professionals and make a plan for the future.

visit www.FreeForeclosure411.net

or call Larry Damiano  for more information

239-353-4696 x 105  

Posted by Mortgage Larry at 8:44 AM EDT

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I am currently talking to two homeowners in Naples about their Late

mortgage situation  i told them several months ago

that the first step was of course, was talking to your lender and trying to

 work out lower payments.

However , be cautious and don't waste too much time .

one  told me they lowered their payments by only a few hundred dollars

(which did not help ) 

the other told me they made numerous phone calls and got many

conflicting stories on the phone from the lenders , in the meantime they

were served the first step of the foreclosure process ( the Lis Pendens)

notifying the world that a legal process has been started on their home .

The timing on this is very important . They may have 20 days to answer

the complaint in the proper legal way or the process continues against

them .  a phone call is not enough  and a letter saying your have hard

times is not enough  .  see my website www.freeforeclosure411.net

for information and lawyers websites that may inform you .

The Bottom line is this , according to feedback from live people

and statistics i have read ,  you can't stay in your home if you don't pay.

 I read Nationally  87 %  of loan workouts fail.  In my opinion

 one must come to realization that the lender wants the loan off the books

so they can have  less defaulted loans  and look better in the Fed's eyes.

also if they make you a promise for "a three month trial period "

that's three months money they never would have seen from every

customer .  The banks are also being paid to take applications by

the Government .   in my opinion , you must make a plan. With the right

choices you can downsize and end up with payments you can afford

somewhere else.

next time  THE BANKRUPTCY LIE  

DON"T end up broke , bankrupt and foreclosed on !

Posted by Mortgage Larry at 10:25 AM EDT

Updated: Monday, 23 August 2010 12:04 PM EDT

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