Jordan claims that he’d have 80,000 visitors every December, all wanting to catch a glimpse of his giant Santa and nearly 200 foot stretch of Christmas characters.  But earlier this year, Jordan’s house was lost to foreclosure, and the Costa Mesa tradition seemed to be lost forever.

Costa Mesa city officials, however, offered to host Jordan’s display outside the City Hall.  They have even offered to include Santa’s village and a holly jolly St. Nick himself.  Costa Mesa residents, and Jordan himself, are thrilled the tradition remains alive.  Though foreclosure took his home, it couldn’t take Jordan’s holiday spirit. 

By: Joshua C Anderson

Published: Tuesday, 2 Aug 2011

Afshar Properties Chief Correspondent

Over the past few years the housing market has taken a turn for the worst, even in affluent communities such as Beverly Hills, Bel Air and Malibu, to name a few. Homeowners are left with few options once their property value declines. In some cases, the homes are owned free and clear, but in most they carry high ticket mortgages that seem to balloon as the market declines. If a home goes into foreclosure and sells at auction, the neighborhood will be adversely affected. Often times when the property is underwater, a homeowner can choose to short sale it as long as there is a legitimate hardship, and in 90 percent of the cases, there are.

Los Angeles based Housing Assist of America knows the short sale market better than most. With over 200+ short sales under their belt and one of the biggest names in real estate backing them, they are a short sale powerhouse. Coldwell Banker brought them on board in 2011 and hasn’t looked back since. The secret to their success lies in their ability to negotiate effectively with hardball lenders, an attribute that separates Housing Assist from the distressed property expert.

Overall the short sale is a proven method to alleviate debt and get a fresh start, no matter what the property is worth or how much you owe. It is always advantageous to the seller in every aspect, however in some cases there could be tax ramifications. Whether it’s a 250k home in a modest community or 1.5 million dollar villa in Beverly Hills, the banks just want to cut there losses and move on, The process is exactly the same, but keep in mind no two short sales are alike. Avoiding foreclosure at all costs should be a top priority to sellers. And recent research has shown that lenders are approving more and more of these complex transactions. As of April 2011, bank of America has completed well over 23,500 short sales nationwide, with Wells Fargo and GMAC at 13,500 apiece and counting. JP Morgan Chase has even offered some owners as much as $30,000 as an incentive to short sale their property.

If you owe more on your property than its worth and it’s a financial burden to make the payment, the answer should be quite clear, short sale.

By: Joshua C Anderson

Published: Friday, 12 Aug 2011

Afshar Properties Chief Correspondent

Over the past few years no trend in real estate is hotter than the short sale. In the beginning, this type of transaction was sparse amongst agents and few ventured into them. However with lenders approving more and more of these transactions the high end real estate market is testing the waters. Recently a survey done in Los Angeles showed that a great percentage of short sales came from areas such as Beverly Hills, Holmby Hills, Malibu, Pacific Palisades, Bel Air and Hollywood Hills to name a few. These affluent communities contain homes that a worth between $500k to upwards of $20,000,000 dollars. Bank of America and Chase are the leading lenders but there are dozens of services that are becoming increasingly known for approving short sales. Homeowners now have an opportunity to rid themselves of the negative equity they have a accumulate over the years, and not without the help of newly appointed California governor Jerry Brown, who recently passed a debt forgiveness law known as SB 458 & 931. As one can imagine, the owners of these multi million dollar properties are short selling their properties left and right.

Currently, Colwell Banker in Beverly Hills is amongst the leading brokerage in this region that is handling these high ticket transactions. They recently brought in negotiating firm Housing Assist of America who are notorious for getting “clean approvals” in other words short sale approvals where the lender agrees to release the homeowner of the lien upon the close of escrow. In some cases the lenders have even paid sellers personal tax liens in the amount of $30,000. No two short sales are alike so it’s important to keep several things in mind before considering a short sale, such as, do you have a legitimate hardship? And can you afford to pay the taxes on the forgiven amount should that be required. One should always consult with an attorney and their accountant before moving forward with a short sale. In most cases, a homeowner can recover from a short sale within 18-24 months depending on their situation. In any case, if your property is upside down and you just cannot make the payment, it is quite obvious what the solution is.

Short sales will remain prominent over the next several years as foreclosure inventories increase and remain somewhat stable. With the prolonged foreclosure timelines along with enhanced processes and technology, more short sale closings will be completed in the next 2-3 years. For now, the average foreclosure timeline is 587 days, and the number of short sales is expected to increase by 25% next year.

In April of 2010, new short sale laws were implemented which have resulted in an incentive program. The new laws provide more incentives for secondary lien holders to consider approving the transaction in order to avoid foreclosure. Prior to this change, secondary lien holders were not guaranteed a percentage of the proceedings and had little incentive to sign in approval. Due to the change in the laws, secondary lien holders are more comfortable approving the short sale on homes in default and homeowners can avoid foreclosure consequences.

In recent year, short sales have become quite common due to the fact that so many homeowners owe more than their houses are worth. In a short sale, a seller facing potential foreclosure strikes a deal with their lender to accept less than they owe on the property, in exchange for avoiding foreclosure.

According to a recent study, 1 out of 53 short sales generated “unnecessary losses”, which may or may not mean there a short sale fraud occurred. Four states, including California, Arizona, Colorado and Florida, accounted for 55.8% of the suspicious activity. Study results estimate the average loss to lenders on a short sale fraud to be $41,500.

But wherever there are home sales, there are the opportunities for home sales fraud. Short sales pose a suspicious risk in a variety of ways.  There is the chance that a buyer may flip the property for a 10% profit, less than one month after the bank unloads it. The same-day turnaround of a short sale can be fulfilled by what is called as a “back-to-back” closing. In this case, the investor prepares two different contracts － A purchase contract with the short sale lender and a sale contract with a third party. The purchase transaction is first executed, followed immediately by the sale contract.

Overall, roughly 65% of the resales after the originally short sale transaction were deemed “suspicious” and caused direct and unnecessary losses to the bank.  For further information or questions on short sales, please contact www.housingassist.com

By: Joshua C Anderson

Published: Tuesday, 2 Aug 2011

Afshar Properties Chief Correspondent

Over the past few years the housing market has taken a turn for the worst, even in affluent communities such as Beverly Hills, Bel Air and Malibu, to name a few. Homeowners are left with few options once their property value declines. In some cases, the homes are owned free and clear, but in most they carry high ticket mortgages that seem to balloon as the market declines. If a home goes into foreclosure and sells at auction, the neighborhood will be adversely affected. Often times when the property is underwater, a homeowner can choose to short sale it as long as there is a legitimate hardship, and in 90 percent of the cases, there are.

Los Angeles based Housing Assist of America knows the short sale market better than most. With over 200+ short sales under their belt and one of the biggest names in real estate backing them, they are a short sale powerhouse. Coldwell Banker brought them on board in 2011 and hasn’t looked back since. The secret to their success lies in their ability to negotiate effectively with hardball lenders, an attribute that separates Housing Assist from the distressed property expert.

Overall the short sale is a proven method to alleviate debt and get a fresh start, no matter what the property is worth or how much you owe. It is always advantageous to the seller in every aspect, however in some cases there could be tax ramifications. Whether it’s a 250k home in a modest community or 1.5 million dollar villa in Beverly Hills, the banks just want to cut there losses and move on, The process is exactly the same, but keep in mind no two short sales are alike. Avoiding foreclosure at all costs should be a top priority to sellers. And recent research has shown that lenders are approving more and more of these complex transactions. As of April 2011, bank of America has completed well over 23,500 short sales nationwide, with Wells Fargo and GMAC at 13,500 apiece and counting. JP Morgan Chase has even offered some owners as much as $30,000 as an incentive to short sale their property.

If you owe more on your property than its worth and it’s a financial burden to make the payment, the answer should be quite clear, short sale 

When dealing with your home it is important to know that you are working with a solid team that specializes in short sales and not just a traditional realtor in Burbank.  For those of you are looking to short sale a home in Burbank you want to make sure that your short sale is successful.  It is important to know that you have a team of experts on your side to make sure that you are not left with delinquency payments and liens to payback.  Housing Assist of America specializes in short sales located in Burbank.  We have a team of experts who will help walk you through the entire process, and make sure to work diligently to get your short sale approves.  Everyone these days is a short sale realtor, trust a company that has dealt with over 5oo short sales.  Please contact us if you are looking to short sale your home in Burbank.

If you are thinking about foreclosing on your home, you should consider doing a short sale first.  Filing for bankruptcy not only destroys credit, but let’s be honest here, it carries with it a certain stigma that is somewhat shameful.   Regardless, many feel this is the only option if upside down on mortgage payments.  But there actually is another option: a better option.

A short sale is an agreement between the lender and the borrower in which the lender agrees to accept half the total amount do.  Lenders will complete short sales for a few reasons.  First off, they will no longer have to chase borrowers for payment.  Second, they will avoid the costs and troubles of foreclosing on the property.  Though some lenders will not consider a short sale, borrowers should definitely inquire before agreeing to foreclose.

If a short sale sounds right for you, the first thing you must do is contact the lender and suggest the idea.  If he agrees, call a real estate lawyer and inquire about the legal ramifications of following through with the short sale.  Finally, reach out to an accountant and ask about possible short sale taxes.  So before you even consider foreclosing, make sure to question the lender about a short sale.  You’ll save yourself time, money, bad credit, and a heck of a headache.

The more news articles I read regarding the US economy, the more I realize the average American is drowning (and tethered to a sinking house). Lets start with headlines from today like “Obama’s Mortgage Mod Plan is Still Lacking”. This article from CNN Money explains that while $30 Billion was set aside for HAMP to help struggling homeowners stay in their properties, only $4 Billion will end up being used for this purpose. Instead of saving an estimated 3 million to 4 million peoples home, they now project a total of 700,000. Why, you may ask? For the same reason these people are in this position in the first place, the benefit of Corporate America. It’s plain and simple. Wall Street greed caused this mess and its perpetual greed is keeping America here. Instead of writing down loan balances and offering REAL and sustainable plans for people to keep these properties; the executives at the top plan to foreclose on every one of them. And they are laughing all the way to the bank!

Here are a couple other headlines from CNN Money today, “Wealth Gap becomes Chasm at Christmas” and “Wall Street Bonuses May Top Last Year’s as Earnings Soar”. So basically the rich are continuing to get richer as the average Joe is slipping deeper into negative net worth with their underwater properties. The middle class is getting completely wiped out and we will be left with a very small minority of Super Rich and a large majority of Super Poor. The government could stop this but unfortunately is under Wall Street and Corporate America’s thumb.

We at Housing Assist of America have made it our business to help these homeowners that are drowning in negative equity with ridiculous mortgage payments. Our job is to fight the banks on behalf of the homeowner to allow a Short Sale. We negotiate with lenders like Bank of America, Wells Fargo, Chase, and many more to forgive these homeowners for their debts. Our clients are able to walk away and start fresh while planning a road to economic recovery. Housing Assist of America lays out a plan to repair credit and buy a home at a reasonable price. We do not charge for our services and we have a greater than 85% success rate. We are so skilled that hundreds of real estate agents contract us to negotiate on their short sales on their behalf.

Isn’t everybody FED UP with the current situation? Please contact us at Housing Assist of America to find out how we can help you. I look forward to hearing from you.

By Joshua C Anderson, Lexington Realty Correspondent

As the holidays approach, many Americans are considering relocating to take advantage of the low prices available in the market. However, the savings are not a result of an amazing deal, there the aftermath of the worst housing crisis in history. For the miniscule market of qualified buyers, there are some great opportunities, but for the rest of the nation the turmoil continues. Just last week Forbes online magazine released an article of the worst hit cities in the nation, and that list continues to grow.

Cleveland Ohio was the top city to have the sharpest decline in home values, followed closely by Minneapolis and Portland. The nation however has seen somewhat of a decrease in underwater mortgage holders. But the problem of underwater homeowners still has an adverse effect on the market. The underwater homes carry the highest risk of default and foreclosures. The only realistic solution for these homeowners is a short sale. The short sale process has several benefits for the homeowners as well as the lender. The market will continue decline regardless of new buyers as long as there are foreclosures. Many delinquent borrowers do not want to face the fact that they will lose the house to foreclosure if they do not short sale, and there are still many holding on to the idea of the failed modification program.

In addition to the devastating consequences of foreclosure, many homeowners are opting for bankruptcy, deed in lieu and abandonment. All of which will continue to drive down the economy. If all of these delinquent borrowers choose a short sale, they will avoid all of these problems. Housing Assist of America is a southern California based company that has been named number one and is platinum certified through equator. HAA also has an immaculate rating with the better business bureau and doesn’t charge fees to facilitate the transaction. To learn more about them you can visit www.housingassist.com In these uncertain economic times its prudent to make the right decisions for the long run.