Alise Roberts

Navigating the Short Sale Mine Field

Kai — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 00:24:26 +0000

How does Alise manage to complete so many short sales, when the national average for short sales that actually close is hovering around 60%? She takes it seriously. Alise doesn’t look as short sales as a way to get “leads” for buyers looking for a bargain- all the while hoping to direct their attention to an easier close. She treats homes that are short sales with the same 5 star service as every other listing she takes on. That service often includes professional photography, staging, graphic designers and ad copywriters. why would she spend thousands of dollars before your home is even on the market? Simply because she knows she can sell the home, and she is confident it will make it to the closing table. What's the difference between Alise Roberts and the average agent trying to make this happen? We’ve identified several common speed bumps that keep contracts from reaching a successful conclusion, and developed a solution or prevention for the most common issues. What are they?

Not doing your homework. In order to actually qualify to complete a short sale, some parameters have to be in place. For one, a sale of the home, after expenses like excise tax, closing costs and real estate commissions, has to net less than the amount owed on the home. Simple enough. The proceeds have to come up “short” hence the name. Second, there has to have been a change that created the hardship requiring the sale. This is definitely a subjective evaluation, but suffice it to say you cannot just be tired of your home. Has your income been reduced for some reason? Have your payment amounts changed, due to an ARM? Have you had increased expenses due to medical or familial issues? Any and all of these can create a hardship that qualifies your loan to be CONSIDERED for a short sale. A good Realtor will go over your situation to help you determine if you meet the criteria LONG before slapping a sign down on your lawn.
Incomplete documentation. Your agent will need to document a well planned attempt to market the home at a high enough price to not make it short, or have sufficient time pass with the suggested list price in order to get the bank to agree to the price set for the short sale. You (or your agent) can’t just throw a random price on your home and demand the bank take it. If they loaned you $400k two years ago on a home they believed was valued at $480k, and now you are trying to tell them it’s only worth $350, they are going to want some proof. Alise uses 7 different valuation and documentation methods to establish that the asking/sale price is reasonable. In fact, our method is so thorough that several banks we deal with have commented that they were able to skip two or more departments that would have been involved in valuation of the property and validation of the hardship. This is a huge bonus for Alise’s clients, as it shortens sale times and long negotiating periods are often when buyers get disheartened and walk away.
Being Passive. Yes, the bank has every scrap of paper they could possible ask for in order to make decision. Is your agent patiently waiting for a decision? Hopefully not. Short sales take nurturing and direction. The bank and their reps are overloaded. It’s not about being a squeaky wheel, it’s about being an unceasing foghorn. Seriously. Every day, banks tell me that they will not have any new information for , their recorded messages tell me that a live agent doesn’t have any better intel for me than the automated program, and new reps tell me “this isn’t how it’s done, you have to wait for us…”. While doing everything possible to not get my number banned, I call and email and call again. Eventually, almost always, I will at last reach someone who has the authority and understanding to work with me on the level we need to in order to complete the sale.
Uneducated Buyers. It’s not their fault. It’s not even their agents fault, really. Until an agent has successfully navigated multiple short sales from a sellers end, they will have no idea of what kind of blindsides can come their way. Short sales CAN take a long time. True, we’ve some close in under 60 days, but that’s still rare. I would guess 100 days is about average. If a buyer is not in it for the long haul, they will get bored or impatient and move onto to another propery before we even have bank approval. Alise makes it a policy to commit to the buyers on her short sales. She asks that they agree NOT to pursue other properties until we get an answer from the bank. In exchange for that commitment, she doesn’t pile offer after offer on the bank, and commits to sticking with one qualified buyer and their agent to closing. Aside from the wait, there’s often a long line of people who have claims to the sellers proceeds. Those can include attorneys, HOA’s, county and federal tax liens, private notes, utilities just to name a few. While we can often get bank to cover up to 3% of BUYER closing costs, the seller is usually in a situation where they CAN’T pay these liens off. Often there’s a couple thousand dollars of expenses that the bank won’t allow and without someone to pony up, the deal can die. We really try to find buyers who are prepared to step up and cover situations like this. If they expect these expenses, it doesn’t seem like a blindside and they are still getting a killer deal on a house!

This is barely scratching the surface of glitches that can derail a short sale, but hopefully gives you a good idea of why Alise has such a great reputation and stellar system.

Why Would ANYONE Sell Their House Right Now?

Alise — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 23:13:59 +0000

I have heard this sentiment expressed over and over again the last few months. From the outside, it may seem a reasonable question. After all, a lot of the traditional “hold ‘em or fold ‘em” rules say “Hold”. Prices are (hopefully) settling at the bottom of the pre-boom 2003 pricing. Inventory is high, really high. A lot of that “inventory” includes short sales and already foreclosed homes at even lower prices. Is there any reason for someone who is NOT is dire straights to throw their hat into the frenzied ring? Unequivocally, yes.

The first group of folks that I highly recommend consider selling, are those who are certain- beyond a shadow of a doubt-that they are going to need or want to move in 5 years or less. I can’t guarantee that prices will be better in 5 years, but I can safely say that we are looking at AT LEAST 5 years before you could expect to do significantly better than you can today. So, if you and your 3 little ones are feeling cramped in a 2 bedroom condo, or mom has moved in and you’ve been calling the sofa a temporary bedroom, or the commute from Everett to Federal Way is wearing thin…it’s time to act. These are extreme examples, of course. I really just want to encourage you to examine your present circumstances and ask yourself; “Can I make this work another 5 years?”. If the answer is not a resounding yes, then call me.

Perhaps you are ok in your current digs, but you have a wandering eye for all of the bargains out there. Remember the chaos of 2005? Trying to buy a home meant standing in line with 10 other buyers who wanted the same home. Now the tables have turned. There are thousands of really, truly motivated sellers who will do just about anything to make a deal with you. If you have considered being a “move up” buyer (larger home, better neighborhood, better view) this is the time to act! True, you will make less on your current home than if you hang onto it, but let’s do the math.

Say your current home would sell for $300,000 but you’d really like to get $350k out of it. You won’t get that right now, and that’s holding you back from selling. You’ve been eyeing a home with twice the square footage that’s 20 minutes closer to work for $475. In 2006, that home would have been $600k, so it REALLY feels like a bargain. Still, you are torn. Selling for $300,000 means you are actually going to take a bit of a loss on the house if you purchased it in the last 5 years, and that’s not sitting well with you. You could hold out for 5 years, until your house is again worth $350k. By then, the house you are REALLY hankering for is back up at $600k. Do you see what’s happening? You created a net LOSS for yourself of $75,000. Or, to be realistic, it’s an extra $153,303 over the life of a 30 year loan (and that’s at the currently awesome 5.5% rates).

Don’t get me wrong, this is NOT a cry to go out and overextend yourself on a home you can’t afford. In fact, lenders have tightened up their guidelines, thank goodness, so that it’s pretty hard to do that. It’s just a nudge to explore your options.

If you know you won’t qualify for a different house, and you are able to make your payments- I definitely recommend KEEPING your home if at all possible. There’s too many tax benefits and too much wealth building potential to choose renting unless it’s absolutely necessary.

Lastly, and back on topic, the tax credit expires the end of June, and homes need to be under contract by the end of April. Although there will still be people who buy and sell, I do expect to see a noticeable decline in activity- meaning now is a better time than later to get your house on the market and in front of buyers.

If all this makes about as much sense a broken piggy bank, call or email me for a consultation.

Kailee Vs. Green

Kai — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 00:36:12 +0000

Gardening does not come naturally to me. I can say this definitively, because I have several family members who do not own worn copies of Potted Plants for Dummies. Somehow, their begonias continue to blossom, while mine curl into grayish blobs. Their philodendrons remain firm and green, while mine shed leaves as if every day is Autumn. Yes, I know that philodendrons are not deciduous, that’s on page 93. So the idea of tackling an actual garden, one where the result is something that is meant for human consumption, had me understandably tense. The first year I really decided to give it a go, it began in February. I did all the research. I carefully selected a variety of veggies that were ideal for Zone 8. At the time, I was not yet aware that I was the nemesis to all things green. I believed I had a level playing field. After plowing through books, creating spread sheets, measuring and re-measuring the ground, I returned from shopping armed with enough seeds to start my own nursery. In my typical overachieving fashion I soon had every level surface of the home covered in flat trays, filled with meticulously amended topsoil and a diversity of seeds. A few days later, the first green nubs appeared. I gave a proud lecture on science to the kids. I spoke of sustainability, agrarian societies and the future. “Will we get corn on the cob?” Asked Skyler, who was 10 at the time. “Tons of it!” I confidently responded. “You can have as much corn as you can eat.” A week later, the trays were full of green shoots. The starts grew so fast, I had to quickly divide them into more containers. Before long, the multiple trays filled the floor, separated only by paths that allowed me to stroll smugly through my indoor paradise. Visions of the cornucopias I’d be handing out to friends and neighbors cancelled any apprehension I had at spending so much money on take-out meals due to the non-functional kitchen. Knowing I’d have a pantry full of home-canned goods more than made up for the added expense, right? When the plants outgrew their second home, I took a few minutes to read the next chapter in my how-to book. What I read troubled me just a bit, but I thought perhaps the author was merely being overly conscientious. I trudged out to my staked-off area and started turning soil over. The photos in the book showed heaps of rich looking dirt. What I turned over resembled something that came out of the back end of a cow. Over the next several hours, I gingerly placed all my baby plants in the wet, sloppy mess. I stood back and surveyed my masterpiece. Satisfied with the final product, I retired to the house with dreams of bushel beans. The next morning I slipped on my trendy clogs and went to check on my new garden. The previous day, my starts had poked proudly up for the mud heaps I had planted them in. Since then, the mud seemed to have swallowed every speck of green. For a few days I consoled myself with the hope that the plants would grow back out of the mud. That dream lasted until the ground froze, hard, for a few weeks. I eventually put a set of lawn furniture between the window and the garden so that I would not have to face my failure on a daily basis. Over the next several years, I pretty much resigned myself to the idea that gardening was never going to be my strong suit. One year, I did a kitchen window box for herbs. Days before the first chives were ready to snip, I was draining a huge pot of pasta into the sink. As I tipped the pan, the boiling water leapt, as if directed by some unseen anti-gravity troll, directly into the window box. The herbs that were not immediately scalded to death were washed across the counter-top smack into a stack of tax paperwork. Another year I bought 300 tulip bulbs, and waited all winter to enjoy the glorious results. Just as the first ones were ready to bloom, our septic system failed. 3 workmen with size 13 boots made sure that no stem went unbroken. That same spring, I managed to keep a strawberry plant alive long enough to realize it would never bear fruit. After seeing our daughter, Cheyenne, eagerly check the plant daily without result, Hugh decided to start leaving store-bought strawberries under the leaves for her. She would squeal with delight each time she discovered the enormous berries that dwarfed the pathetic little plant. That’s the kind of gardening you have to save up for. Then there was the year we did tomatoes in planters on the front porch. I think we started with 12 plants. As the summer wore on, the stalks grew thick and healthy. Small green fruits started to form. Each morning, I’d pause to savor the unique smell, knowing that- at last- I would get to eat something I had grown myself. Soon, there were too many fruits to count. Then it started. Cue the creepy music. One at a time, the plants began to meet untimely deaths. A rope swing was the first weapon of mass destruction. A rope swing with a little boy attached. One swing-by with flailing legs and two stalks snapped right at the base. Mack, the fattest pug in the world, somehow found the vertical leap of Michael Jordan and immediately used a planter to bed down in and recover his breath. Two more plants destroyed in an instant. We lost a few more to gravity, when the un-staked monsters collapsed under the weight of their own fruit. A self-aware basketball (as no one would claim having touched it in the last decade) conquered one plant. A neighborhood cat decided the largest plant was a threat to its existence and tackled the offending monster, breaking off all but one tomato. In the end, we harvested a handful of tomatoes. Between the plant purchases, the soil and the stakes we figure they cost us $12 each. In the spirit of bringing the mountain to Mohammed, I was hoping that by relocating to the fertile Okanogan valley, my handicap would be negated. Last year, our wonderful neighbor (who makes his flourishing orchard and acres of garlic look effortless) kindly plowed up a patch of ground 150’ by 50’. “That’s an awful big garden for a coastie,” He warned, “You might wanna start with something you can handle.” Fortunately for him, my excitement at the freshly turned dirt outweighed my indignation at the towns most biting slur. We started by planting garlic starts, 200 of them, on the end of the garden closest the irrigation. In my defense for that less-than-brilliant decision, I had asked my distracted sister-in-law if “that was a good place” and taken vague nod as gospel. After all, she is a master gardener. You got it. In addition to having a brown and withered thumb myself, I married into a family that can grow just about anything without trying. “Why look, the beans I threw in the trash sprouted, and the beautiful vine is climbing the wall.” “Oh, how funny, the apple core I dropped last fall came up as three healthy trees!” I just grit my teeth and keep planting. In addition to the garlic, we planted over 100 tomato plants, 400 corn seeds, zucchini, cucumbers, beans, peppers and a smattering of other plants. After 10 days, we had what can only be described as a miniature forest of weeds. This would have been less shocking, but the fact was, the rest of the property barely grew grass. Huge patches of dirt that we had watered for weeks showed less promise. By sifting carefully through the weeds, I was able to identify most of the plants that we needed to cultivate, but I needed manpower- or kid power- at least. What followed will always be remembered by the kids as the Summer of the Weeds. When is started, every family member was required to spend at least an hour a day pulling weeds. It became quickly apparent that the weeds would still win at that speed, so we started adding hours until it seemed we were getting ahead of the weeds. At one point, my sister in law casually mentioned that it would have been “a lot less work” if we had let the first batch of weeds grow in, tilled again, and then planted. We added that to the “things she could have told us a few weeks earlier” list, which was growing daily. With a few hundred feet between the house and the garden, a trip to the house became a welcome break from weeding. It was amazing how helpful they all suddenly became. “Mom, do you want me to go get a pitcher of water for everyone?” Dakota would innocently ask. He’d return 10 minutes later and have forgotten the cups. He’d return again, only to realize he forgot the sunscreen and couldn’t live another moment without it. After settling in the garden fully protected, the sweat would make the sunscreen run into his eyes, prompting yet another trek inside. One day he returned after a long break with a new excuse. “Sorry it took me so long,” he started out sincerely, “but Ruby had a bird almost dead, and I had to put it out of its’ misery”. “Oh, yeah?” Started Gabe, half interested. “I stabbed it through the heart.” Dakota responded, as if that were the most natural course of action. I don’t know what offended me more, the fact that the “suffering bird” had delayed him unreasonably, or the fact that my child would think a knife to the heart was the most humane way to handle the issue. My dilemma was the least of his worries. His brothers and sister were immediately skeptical. “How do you know where the bird’s heart IS, idiot?” Jesse blurted. “Are you saying your dull, rusty pocket knife was sharp enough to stab through anything?” Gabe asked, unconvinced. “You STABBED it? Why didn’t you just waterboard the poor thing?” chimed in Cheyenne. Dakota has yet to live down the mercy killing. Hardly week goes by that Jesse doesn’t pop off a jab. “Look Dakota, that bird looks hungry and weak, maybe you should STAB IT THROUGH THE HEART.” As the spring turned to summer, our little garden started to look respectable. Just when I was starting to feel like I had overcome genetic disposition for reigning death on plant life, the July 2008 windstorm hit. You might remember it. The havoc that day wreaked on our property is entire story itself. Suffice it to say, my role during that storm was tearfully running from one tomato cage to another, propping it up and racing to the next like some sick version of whack-a-mole. One day as we all knelt, weeding, our kindly neighbor meandered into the garden, appraising the progress. “Pullin’ weeds?” he finally drawled. “You got it, Captain Obvious” Hugh muttered, too softly for anyone but me to hear. “Yes.” I answered, trying not to giggle. “What do you think of our first garden?” “I think you are going to need a heck of a lot more than this to feed y’all.” He stated matter-of-factly, turning back towards his farm. I wished I hadn’t heard that. The absolute knowledge that there was no way he was wrong settled in my heart like a brick. The visions I had of preserving enough food to provide for our family through the winter vanished with his dire prediction. We all lost a bit of enthusiasm that day, but then everything stated to ripen and our woes were temporarily forgotten. I think the plant that brought me the most delight was a pepper plant. Having watched the tiny pepper grow from a nub, to a miniature to a tiny purple bell was somehow therapeutic. I needed therapy-anger management, that is- when my niece decided to pick it and bring it to me days before it was ready. The corn was a bit of a surprise. Granted, my previous experience with corn was limited Disney movies portraying stalks laden with a dozen fat ears, but when our stalk had two, or rarely three, ears I was righteously indignant. My promise to the kids that we’d have all-you-can-eat corn on the cob for 90 days straight was amended slightly. It was further amended when a roving band of raccoons stole more than half of the ears one night. They rudely left the husks and cobs behind, taunting us with the knowledge that they had dined leisurely while we slept. The zucchini were prolific. I know now why friends always bring them by. In the past, I just thought they were showing off their garden’s bounty, not trying to pawn them off on someone unsuspecting. Never again will I feel guilty about not using a re-gifted zucchini. The tomatoes were a success. As they began to ripen, I envisioned rows of full mason jars that would finally give me the bragging rights I had craved. I started stocking up on canning jars. I had not really counted on how much I was going to spend in order to start canning. As I unloaded $400 worth of jars into the garage, Hugh decided to ask me how this was going to save us money. I mumbled something about the big picture. In addition to the jars, I had to purchase all the canning accessories. I figure I was into the canning project for about $600. The first afternoon I had enough excess to can, I laid out my supplies like a surgeon preparing the operating room. Four hours later, I emerged from the kitchen drenched in sweat, splattered with tomato debris, and the proud owner of 3 dozen quarts of beautifully canned tomatoes. The following day, a medical emergency land Hugh in the hospital, and the garden dropped off the radar for several days. During those several days, we had our first frost. When we were settled back at the house, I started towards the garden with apprehension. Surely, I reasoned, it can’t that bad. In the back of my head, fear was winning with each step. Green things loathe me. I had walked away at a crucial point in the battle, and my first glimpse into the garden confirmed my worst fears. A post-apocalyptic, scorched earth version was all that was left. Hundreds of dollars and hundreds of hours had yielded us just a taste of what this garden had been capable of. Defeated, I trudged back to the house. I took last year off, but the soil is tempting me again this year. I am hoping the ground is lulled into a false sense of security, because I am back.

The Pursuit of Mediocrity

Kai — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 00:48:37 +0000

The clean dishes are stacked up, high. Not in an orderly, space maximizing fashion. Like some twisted game of Jenga, they are precariously stacked with odd shaped jutting out from every side. I can’t ascertain where to start. I do know that if I choose the wrong piece, the entire stack will clatter into the sink and onto the floor, and we will actually have fewer plates than people in our house. I also know what caused this fiasco of flatware and dishes. It’s my kid’s unmatched skill at attaining the minimum standard. You see, we have a house rule that requires some subjective evaluation. When you wash your dishes, if the drain board is too full to fit what you have washed, you must put away ALL the dishes. In the beginning, the rule had the desired effect, a somewhat even distribution of the greater chore. As time went on, it has evolved into a battle of will and skill, with the stacks deemed “not too big” growing increasingly larger. Granted, the time it takes to successfully balance a wet dish in just the right spot without disturbing those already in place is likely equal to the few moments it would take to just put the entire stack away. My kids have made it painfully clear, it's about the principle, not the practicality. If mediocrity, meeting the minimum standard, was an Olympic event- my kids would definitely medal. I clearly remember Levi bringing home his first middle school report card. Straight C’s. I asked him one question. “Is this the BEST you can do?” “C is average” He dodged my inquiry. “Is this the best you can do?” “C means I met the requirement” Another desperate feign, hoping I will forget my original question. “If this is really the best you can do, then I am proud of you. However, if it isn’t, you know what you have to do.” From that day forward, Levi brought home A’s, sometimes sullenly. His personal bar had been raised and it offended his sense of justice that the minimum for him was higher than the one for some of his siblings. Yes, I strongly believe that no legal system in the world had a sense of justice quite so refined and sensitive as that of siblings in their dealings with each other. There are times when I feel it’s purely a cohesive effort on their part to wear me down. “Can I have my 30 minutes on Facebook?” Jesse will innocently ask. “sure” I reply, blissfully unaware of what lies ahead. “Can I actually have 33 minutes? Because yesterday, I had to stop early so Cheyenne could print her homework, and I never got the last 3 minutes.” While I am still reeling from the shock that the kid who adamantly refuses to learn to read the clock face took note of and mentally banked 180 seconds of perceived injustice, Cheyenne pipes in. “I didn’t even get my 30 minutes on Wednesday!” I know what comes next. She will want a full hour at some point. Jesse had other ideas. “You missed your Wednesday time because you went to Raine’s house, not because you were doing homework or chores. You don’t get to make up time if you were doing something fun.” Apparently, there was a whole subsection of rules I wasn’t even aware of. “I didn’t have that much fun that day!” Cheyenne proclaimed, sensing her case was losing steam. “Raine was doing homework the whole time!” They look at me, and what was a simple yes or no has turned into a five minute session that now, judging by the indignant looks on their faces, screamed for justice. “Cheyenne, if you had been given the choice- before you went to Raine’s- of whether you wanted to take your Facebook time or go to Raine’s, what would you have chosen?” Cheyenne knows her argument has been defeated, and is only consoled by the fact that the first few minutes of Jesse’s Facebook time were squandered in taking her down. Somehow that makes it better. I think the house rule that has gotten the most amendments is the “Two minute rule”. This rule states that if you leave your seat, you have two minutes to return and claim it before another family member is allowed to take it as theirs. However, there are oh-so-many clarifications to this rule. One, parents can take any seat, at any time. Two, if you were asked to get up BY a parent to complete a task, then you may have an unlimited reservation on the seat- provided that you do not move onto another activity that was not requested of you. Thirdly, If you abandon your seat verbally; for instance claiming you are going to bed or taking a shower, it immediately becomes available to others- even if you change your mind after having gotten up. The amusing side effect of the two minute rule is watching the kids keep their seat officially claimed. In the middle of scooping ice cream or popping popcorn, they will dash into the living room, plunk their heinie on the seat, shout the obligatory “two minutes!” and return to the task at hand. Yes, it’s complicated, but much preferable to the previous rule the kids dubbed “Move your meat, lose your seat.” We also have a chore list that rotates weekly. There are four separate sets of tasks that need to be done with regularity. Inevitably, the responsibilities collide at times. For instance, one of the jobs is pets (feeding, watering and cleaning up any deposits they make in the yard). Another is cleaning the bathroom on a daily, or as needed, basis. What hasn’t been clarified is what happens if one the dogs leaves something offensive in the bathroom. Or, what if one of the dogs makes a mess in an individual bedroom? Is it the job of the person to whom the bedroom belongs, the job of the pet person? Further complicating things is the rule that the first person who sees something that needs attention is commissioned with cleaning it up. Before you ask, yes. That last one has led to a LOT of temporary blindness. With four teenagers racing towards adulthood with ever increasing speed, I know the days of chore charts and two minute rules are numbered. As I prepare to slowly extricate bowls and glasses from the aforementioned stack, I try to adjust my attitude. I know I will be looking back on the current chaos with wistfulness soon, just I think about the days of diapers and loose teeth and crayons on the wall just a few years ago. Instead of putting the dishes away, I join in the battle and ever-so-carefully, add mine to the stack.

Short Sale Updates

Alise — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 02:47:49 +0000

A ton of rumors and half truths have been flying around this month regarding changes the banks are required to make in the handling of short sales. I have gotten several calls from potential sellers who believe that the process is now simplified. While that CAN be true, there are a number of factors that determine whether or not your home will qualify for the expedited processing. Bad news first-

This program does not help with second mortgages or HELOCs. However, the information you gather for your application package MIGHT help you or your Realtor negotiate with the second lender.
You cannot go straight to a short sale without going through the process of applying for refinance or modification.

PLEASE NOTE- There are a lot of home loan modification programs available through individual lenders, this is only in reference to the Making Home Affordable program. Here are the steps you have to take to determine eligibility. 1. First you have to determine if you are eligible for a REFINANCING through this program. Here's how:

You must be the owner of a home that has a loan insured by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. You can check online for Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac to see if your home qualifies.
The first mortgage must be for an amount no more than 125% of what you owe. In other words, if your home is now worth $200,000 and you owe $250,000, you could qualify, but if you owe $275,000 you would not. If you aren't sure of your homes current market value, please contact me
You must be current on your mortgage payments.

If you do not meet those requirements you may qualify for a LOAN MODIFICATION, which can lower your monthly payments to an affordable level. To qualify for a modification you must meet the following:

The home must be your primary residence
The loan must be for less than $729,750
You must have gotten the loan before January 1, 2009
Your payment; including principle, interest, taxes, insurance and HOA dues must be more than 31% of your gross income. If you need help determining this, CLICK HERE
You must have either had a) a significant change to your payment amount or b) a change in circumstances that makes your payment a hardship. This can be a loss of income, a health crisis etc.

If you meet all those requirements, you MAY qualify for a loan modification through the Making Home Affordable program. If you do NOT qualify for a refinanace or a loan modification, or are unable to make the payments that are arranged through the MHA program, you may then qualify for the expedited review process on a short sale. Those guidelines state:

You must have applied for the refinance or loan modification (above) and been turned down OR
Been approved but be unable to complete the trial period for your new payments OR
Be late for two consecutive months AFTER completing the trial phase successfully OR
You may simply request a short sale after your application has been approved

At this point you will be participating in the Home Affordability Foreclosure Alternatives program, or HAFA. Here's how that will help you:

You will already be qualified, eliminating the need for the often lengthy approval process
You will be able to have a pre approved price for your short sales prior to listing the home
Lenders have to release you from future liability (see note above regarding second mortgages)
Lenders will not be allowed to reduce the commissions to the real estate agents. They often do this at the last moment now, something that has made many agents shy away from representing short sale sellers. (At Alise Roberts and Co, we have always provided the same excellent service to our sellers involved in a short sale as we do to any other client)
An incentive is provided to lenders to encourage them to participate in this program, increasing the chances of more lenders participating.

Overall, I think the MHA and HAFA programs will help a lot of sellers, if they make use of it. Education yourself on alternatives is so important. Often, homeowners facing foreclosure do nothing but wait for what they think is the inevitable. I can tell you from helping dozens of families this year- know your options.

The Sound of Muzak

Kai — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 05:08:07 +0000

Last week, as I began my weekly calls to the short sale departments of a couple dozen banks, I believed I was fully armed. A stack of files with any and every possible document the negotiator might request. The same documents open in electronic form on the computer. The laptop was open and ready to make notes in the crazy shorthand you do when you dont want to miss a thing and you are SURE you will remember what "Eco no, 34 xts $544" means later. A huge cup of green tea; both to refresh me and help me pretend I am in a place without stress. The tether for my cell phone which would no doubt die while I sat on hold without it's handy charger. My previous call to a lender who shall for now remain nameless had started at 3:32, the day before. Someone, somewhere decided that the thing callers would want most is constant reassurance that the call was very important to them. A kindly woman assured me every 30 seconds that this was the case. As she would finish speaking, the line would click (which for the first 3 or 4 times made me think I was actually getting transferred) and a firm sounding gentleman would suggest I just leave a message by pressing "1" and get a returned phone call within 5 business days. I decided to believe the woman, because I thought my call SHOULD be very important to them. After 48 minutes, I finally heard a ring. At last, human contact ahead! I sat up straight and prepared to use friendly words, pushing the impatient thoughts to the land of far, far away. Accross the table my husband looked relieved as I finally turned off the monotonous speakerphone and held the phone to my ear. My heart sank as I realized it was yet another recording. "Our offices are now closed. Our hours are Monday -Friday 8:30 am to 5:30 pm East coast time. Please call back during normal business hours." "NORMAL BUSINESS HOURS?" I nearly shrieked into the phone. "Why don't you add another velvet voiced recording to the dynamic duo and have him or her mention these NORMAL BUSINESS HOURS?" My husband looked up from his computer, eyebrows raised, thinking this was how I had chosen to speak to the human I had thought was about to answer. They had been closed the whole time I had been on hold. Nothing frustrates me more than wasted time. All I had to show for most of an hour was a new high score on Bejeweled for Facebook. So this time, I was ready. I even had work I could do WHILE sitting on hold. You can imagine my surprise when a live person answered without even sending me to a brief recording. I stammered for a moment. "Is this Bank of America short sale department?" Oops. I wasnt going to say any names. "Yes." a gentleman assured me, sounding as if he might be about to hang up. "You answered fast." I hoped that came across as a compliment. "We've hired some new people, what can I do for you?" In less than 10 minutes he had not only answered my questions, but directed me to a couple other numbers to avoid the long hold times in the future. My faith in humanity restored, I dialed the next bank.

Register Here for Your Chance to Win a Dinner for Two at Maggiano’s!

admin — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 17:54:38 +0000

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Great news on Short Sales!

Alise — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 22:06:25 +0000

The new Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives Program has some really helpful new guidelines for the short sale process. As a short sale specialist who has had to navigate the shadowy, poorly regulated short sale halls for the last few year, I think most of these guidelines will really speed up the process if implemented.

New proposed changes to help distressed homeowners

Alise — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 20:03:05 +0000

All over the country, foreclosures are up for the 9^th straight quarter. A report last week by the Mortgage Bankers Association listed that 14 percent of homeowners with mortgages are either behind in their payments or headed for foreclosure. In response, it has been announced that there some changes to its "Home Affordable Modification Program,” originally launced in February of this year. The original program was meant to incentivize the banks to create loan modification programs for those who needed them. Under the plan, lenders who agreed to lower payments for troubled borrowers were to be paid $1,000 initially for each loan. That was to be followed by $1,000 annually for up to three years. The planned changes are supposed to increase transparency and accountability from mortgage companies. One of these priorities is to put more pressure on lenders by highlighting the ones who are lagging in loan modifications. Another is to delay the cash incentive payments to banks until the loan modifications have actually become permanent. I think there is a HUGE value to that. As an active professional, I can attest to the fact these modifications are taking an incredibly long time. Homeowners are stuck in a limbo of not knowing if they are facing foreclosure or relief for months at a time. I have had many sellers that were considering a short sale , but prefer to modify their loan if that’s an option. When it takes months for the modification application process, when a homeowner is turned down, they now have thousands of dollars in additional fines that have to be negotiated away. The original target for the foreclosure crisis had been borrowers who had gotten involved in subprime mortgages. Now this crisis has now extended to those who took out conventional, fixed-rate loans as well. Due to high unemployment and falling home values, it has even extended to some borrowers who were able to put down a significant down payment on their homes of at least 10 to 20 percent.

Coming Soon!

admin — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 23:06:08 +0000

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