Buyer’s Choice Realty blog

There are resources available to home owners who are falling behind in mortgage payments. A major program has been launched to help people in this situation, or those whose home value has fallen below the amount they have financed.

Visit “Making Home Affordable” to find out if you qualify to either refinance your existing loan(s) or have your lender/servicer modify your loan(s). This site also features answers to frequently asked questions and some other resources that you may find helpful.

If you are falling behind making payments or are struggling to make ends meet in Massachusetts, help is available. Visit your local city/town hall for information, ask a real estate professional, or talk to someone who may know where you can turn. Whatever you do, do not fall prey to the various mortgage protection scams wherein companies promise to rescue you from foreclosure. They simply do not work. We’re rooting for you and are here to help.

The image you are looking at is the Hancock Building in downtown Boston. It was sold today at a foreclosure auction. What would you bid for this landmark?

In 2006, this commercial investment was worth around $1.2 billion to a group of investors who purchased it, hoping for a solid CAP rate and increased rents from the various businesses leasing space in the tower. Like many properties purchased before the bubble burst, their goals were not reached, they fell behind on payments, and ultimately ended up in foreclosure.

What did it sell for today? A paltry $660.6 million. In case you don’t have your calculator handy, that means the new group of investors purchased the property for slightly more than half price compared with the sale price three years ago. Come back in another three years and we’ll check on the market value… Any guesses?

Many common mistakes that buyers of real estate make can usually be avoided. Here are a few mistakes many buyers make, and some ways to avoid them.

#1. Buying before selling. It sounds simple, but the lure of that new house can have an overwhelming effect on your finances. Sell the home you currently own before buying a new one. Sure, bridge loans can be obtained, but in the current buyers’ market, who knows how long your home will be on the market before someone purchases it? Unless you are able to pay cash for that new place, wait until you are certain your home sale will close before placing an offer on another piece of property.

#2. Continuing to look when it’s time to make an offer. This mistake, most often made by first-time buyers, is very common. Many folks think they must look at 30, 40, 50 properties before making a decision. If you see property you like, it fits your budget and needs, and you envision yourself living there, pull the trigger! Assuming your real estate agent is working for your best interests only (as Exclusive Buyer Agents are, hint hint), they should have a good idea of what you are looking for in a home based on your preliminary interview, and should be knowledgeable about what’s on the market as well as what’s not. They are likely to show you the properties that match the majority of your search criteria first. Don’t fall into the trap of feeling anxious because you feel haven’t looked enough. Remember, this is only the first part of a long process. Be grateful it was easy.

#3. Waiting for prices to drop. In most towns, real estate prices have dropped significantly over the past few years and show few signs of increasing. Many buyers fear paying too much for their home. Keep in mind that real estate is cyclical, so prices will move up eventually. There is no failsafe way to ‘time the bottom’, and you should take the long view. If you are planning to spend more than a year or two in the home you are purchasing, don’t worry about short term price changes. Focus on finding a great place that you can afford. Large price drops are very uncommon in the short term, so don’t fret. Either way, it is almost always a better use of your money to make mortgage rather than rent payments. History shows us that real estate has been one of the safest and lucrative investments ever.

I’d be happy to discuss your home buying wants and needs if you are thinking about starting a home search. I work only for buyers and as such have your best interests in mind at all time and my only loyalty will be to you. Call me at 800.25.BUYER (ask for John) or email me.

Check back soon, as there are many mistakes buyers make that I have yet to cover. An educated consumer is the best consumer.

President Obama announced a plan today designed to help millions of homeowners around the country. While final details and rules & regulations will not be announced for two weeks, we learned some details today. The plan is scheduled to begin March 4.

Some homeowners will be able to refinance their existing mortgages, only on owner-occupied properties. There are several criteria they must meet. Owners must be current on their mortgage payments, must have a conforming loan (less than $417,000) that is owned or guaranteed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, and apparently must owe more than 80% of their home’s value. Currently, lenders are not likely to refinance loans for borrowers who have less than 20% equity in their home. A further caveat: the new mortgage and refinancing costs must be no more than 105% of the current value of the home. Obama’s administration predicts that this plan will help up to five million “responsible homeowners.”

This initiative also aims to bring mortgage payments down to no more than 31% of borrowers’ income. The goal for this portion of the plan is for lenders to reduce interest rates on loans to bring monthly payments down to 38% of income and the government will further subsidize lenders and servicers to bring the ratio to 31%.

Check out this article from CNN for more information on this hot-button issue.

There are plenty of details surrounding this plan that I haven’t included, such as the government throwing more money to Fannie and Freddie, etc., with the end goal being to keep mortgage interest rates down for some time.

What do you think? Is the plan going to work? Will it really help millions of at-risk homeowners?

The image you are looking at is the Hancock Building in downtown Boston. It was sold today at a foreclosure auction. What would you bid for this landmark?

In 2006, this commercial investment was worth around $1.2 billion to a group of investors who purchased it, hoping for a solid CAP rate and increased rents from the various businesses leasing space in the tower. Like many properties purchased before the bubble burst, their goals were not reached, they fell behind on payments, and ultimately ended up in foreclosure.

What did it sell for today? A paltry $660.6 million. In case you don’t have your calculator handy, that means the new group of investors purchased the property for slightly more than half price compared with the sale price three years ago. Come back in another three years and we’ll check on the market value… Any guesses?

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Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley, together with several State Senators and Representatives, has filed two pieces of legislation aimed at reducing foreclosures and negating some of the negative effects of abandoned properties as a result of foreclosures.

What is Ms. Coakley’s hope? According to the AG website,

“We hope that this legislation can provide for Massachusetts some relief while we wait for action at the national level. The effects of the housing crisis have rippled through all sectors of our economy, and until we tackle the underlying problem of the subprime lending crisis, no bail out package, no matter how big, can appropriately stabilize our economy,” said Attorney General Coakley.

If you are interested in reading the full text of these pieces of legislation, please view the ‘press release attachments’ near the top of the page from the link above. If not, read on for a brief synopsis of each.

The first piece of legislation, titled An Act to Require Commercially Reasonable Efforts to Avoid Foreclosure, will essentially force lenders (creditors) to make loan modifications on owner-occupied primary residences. This is aimed in the right direction, and it should bring hard-working homeowners and their lenders together. It remains to be seen whether this legislation will actually reduce the number of foreclosures in the Bay State, but the initial groundwork is being laid.

The second piece of legislation, titled An Act Regarding Community Leadership, Neighborhood Revitalization and Urban Violence Protection, aims to accomplish two main tasks. First, it would create an abandoned & vacant property registry. Owners of such properties (primarily lenders and service companies) would be required to maintain these properties as they are added to the registry. The hope is that this will reduce dilapidation, building code violations, and different types of criminal activity like drug dealing, theft, and arson.

Secondly, it would establish a second-hand metal registry. Currently, thieves target abandoned and under-construction properties to steal and re-sell copper, lead, building materials, etc. Junk dealers and pawn brokers, many of whom are unlicensed, are the buyers. They would be forced to register with the state and obtain a license. With this additional monitoring, Coakley hopes to reduce such thefts. Sounds like bureaucracy in its purest form to me, but hopefully it too will work.

To get more information about these proposed pieces of legislation or learn about buying a foreclosure, feel free to call or email me.

800.25.BUYER (ask for John)