Great Deals for the Month of April!
There are incredible incentives now available. At Today's Real Estate & Auction, we have made April, Carolina Home Buyer Month. National Homebuyer month is in June. As a result, all homebuyers will receive:
A 25% commission rebate from Today's Real Estate & Auction that you can do anything you please with. Buy down points, purchase furniture, use it towards closing costs, anything! Transaction must close by June 30, 2010. Certain restrictions apply.
Take advantage of Fannie Mae foreclosures!
Close by May 1st and receive up to 3.5% in closing costs and/or new whirlpool appliances. Visit for Fannie incentives more information.
Don't forget about the $8,000 tax credit available through April 30th wih a 60-day cushion to close as long as you are within a contract by April 30th. Don't miss out on these combined savings.
Buying a Home with Equity
A 25% commission rebate from Today's Real Estate & Auction that you can do anything you please with. Buy down points, purchase furniture, use it towards closing costs, anything! Transaction must close by June 30, 2010. Certain restrictions apply. Close by May 1st and receive up to 3.5% in closing costs and/or new whirlpool appliances. Visit for Fannie incentives more information.
There are many ways to purchase a home today with instant equity. Due to the large amount of foreclosure filings, we have more than enough pre-foreclosures and foreclosed properties to choose from. You should know or have the following prior to searching or viewing a distressed property. 1. What is your price point? What is the price range you would like to stay in for each purchase? 6. Realistic expectations. Some homes have already received deep discounts. Bid smart or risk losing out
2. Do you have a solid pre-approval? Banks and asset management companies only consider serious
offers. You should already have a pre-approval.
3. The area of town you would like to purchase in.
4. The condition of the foreclosed property that is acceptable to you.
5. If you are willing to purchase a foreclosed property as a rehab project, do you have contractors in
place?
on a good dea
What is a HUD Home?
The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) is a part of the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). They are the part of the organization that provides federal mortgage insurance when a home is purchased with a FHA loan. When the homeowner forecloses on their home, the lender can file a claim for the part of the mortgage that has not been paid. FHA will pay the lender's claim and HUD gains title to sell the home.
HUD Offer Periods
New listings are available weekly on Friday mornings. Bids may only be submitted by HUD authorized real estate agents for owner occupants during the first 10 calendars days. After the bids are opened and reviewed, the bid with the highest acceptable net bid to HUD will be selected.
After the initial 10 day period, all general bids to include investor & non-owner occupied bids can be submitted and accepted.
What are REO Properties?
REO is an acronym for real estate owned. These homes have been foreclosed upon. Buying homes that have been foreclosed upon can save home buyers and investors thousands of dollars off the sales price of a home.
Addendums to contracts can vary from one REO property to another. You should work with a real estate agent with experience in working with various foreclosed contracts. An agent needs to know how to advise the home buyer on inspections and inspection periods, repair negotiation, bid and closing cost negotiation.
What are Motivated Seller Properties?
There are many reasons why a seller may be EXTRA motivated to sell. The seller may unfortunately be going through a divorce, relocation, financial distress, plus many other personal reasons. If a seller is extremely motivated, the seller's agent will disclose(with permission) this information to another agent. This information is NOT available through a public search of the MLS. These properties may also be easier to negotiate because of the nature of the transaction.
What is an Equity Property Search?
There are homes in the MLS may have been appraised by the county appraisers for property tax purposes at a higher amount than they are actually listed for. Please note that only an appraisal for current market price by a licensed appraiser will safely determine the amount of equity that may be in a property. An equity search may help identify properties that are listed for a lower price than they may be worth.
Ready to start your foreclosure search?

Leave a comment » Charlotte's Residential Auction Resource BlogCharlotte Real Estate Auction For Sale
Know home values, market trends, and specific neighborhood trends within minutes of your automatic request! Buyers and sellers, receive fully customized, interactive MLS property reports with Live market information, community and school data with charts and graphs allowing you to keep on top of market conditions at all times.
We offer today's buyer up to the minute property information on the best deals available. We offer today's seller a way to sell their home outside of the traditional listing method to create a competitive bidding environment among qualified buyers.
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Posted on June 12, 2008 13:35:52 by sandra.allen - View Profile
Posted in buyers info, sellers info
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Leave a comment » FHA Guidelines and Changes for 2010fix your credit report, fha loans, mortgages, loan approval, bad credit, hudI've had a number of questions poised this month regarding financing for buyers. There are many industries across the country and globally struggling. FHA is the biggest buzz right now. Since 1934 the Federal Housing Administration has been helping people with income and credit challenges become homeowners. Now, this all important program for many of Americans is slated for big changes due to program coming under scrutiny as defaults on its loans climbed past 9 percent nationwide at the end of last year. Previous FHA Guidelines FHA has always been that "go-to" place for our buyers that have had financial challenges. Of course is not a "free" program, guidelines included
FHA also has adjustable rate mortgages to help homeowners transition into homeownership. New and Proposed FHA Guidelines There was not a magic credit score number needed and allowed seller paid concessions/closing costs were always a big plus for first time homebuyers. We are now seeing changes to the credit score requirements. This year the organization raised that amount to 10 percent for borrowers who had a FICO score lower than 580 in order to protect its financial reserves. Guidelines for the government-backed loans have traditionally allowed sellers to offer as much as 6 percent in concessions. New rules would cap that at 3 percent. Reports have shown that borrowers who received more than 3 percent in seller concessions had a significantly higher risk of losing their homes than buyers who received less. Changes are expected this summer. "This proposed cap will not only align FHA's single-family mortgage insurance programs to industry practice, but will help ensure that borrowers who rely on FHA-insured financing have sufficient investment in their home purchases," the FHA commissioner wrote. An already significant change that greatly affected closing costs for buyers was the raise in upfront insurance premium buyers paid from 2.25 percent from 1.75 percent. Getting in Position to Buy The best way to get into position to buy is to know which credit programs are available based on your current credit profile and income. We are always, always speaking with loan officers each week about new programs that aren't main stream, but can get a buyer into a home loan at a lower interest rate without strict underwriting guidelines. There are many companies offering programs to fix your credit report, fix bad credit, fix credit problems, etc.., but many of these "fixes" are under your control. My next post will focus on credit repair and things many of our buyers are doing while looking for a home to increase their chances of getting a loan approval at a competitive interest rate. Sandra Allen (704) 502-4324
http://www.charlotterealestateforeclosures.com/005479
Posted on August 16, 2010 13:47:59 by sandra.allen - View Profile
Posted in buyers info, finance center
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Leave a comment » Top Seven Reason Banks Aren't Lending MoneyGetting a Loan to Buy a HomeTop Seven Reasons Banks Aren't Lending Money. Easy to Qualify Loans are a Thing of the Past Oh, I remember the days of sold signs everywhere throughout Charlotte and the surrounding areas. This was coupled with 100% financing loans, pick-a-payment, low doc, no doc, and yes...the extended LTV loans. As a loan officer,it sometimes felt like Christmas each day waking up to see what new loan products were available to broker. The most incredible? A low doc 125% LTV? Well, I never brokered it, but it was definitely a conversation starter. So now, 2010 and an entire shift in the economy later, we have buyers trying to buy homes that are flooding the market and lenders with moving target underwriting guidelines. So what's the scoop on financing these days? According to a recent Federal Reserve survey, it was found that about 75% of the banks surveyed indicated they had tightened their lending standards for prime, sub-prime and commercial mortgages. That was up from about 60% in the previous survey. According to RISMedia, below are the top 7 reasons why buyers aren't getting loans: 1. Poor credit: Obtaining a conventional loan has become more challenging. Regardless of a heavy down payment or excellent equity built-up in their house, banks want to see a strong credit history. According to CNN, FHA (Federal Housing Administration) loans, which have traditionally catered to borrowers with lower FICO scores, have an average borrower credit score of 693, which is above the national average. 2. Insufficient liquidity: Low reserves of money aren't attracting approvals for loans. Lenders are wanting to see a sizable down payment and a strong reserve of money. 3. Lack of income: The borrower doesn't have consistent proof of income for the last two to five years. Good credit is not a free pass anymore. Regardless of how good their credit score is or how much equity they have in their home, if they can't show the bank proof of income, loan approval will be tough. 4. Lying on the application: Banks are not interested in hearing stories and lies any longer. 5. Debt: Borrower has excessive debt and their debt-to-income ratio exceeds the bank's guidelines. 6. Unemployment: Most lenders will like to see at least two years of stable work to issue loan approval. 7. Self employment: Lenders are looking at self-employed applicants with a lot more scrutiny these days, making it very tough for these borrowers to get approved. So what's a buyer to do? Private Funding? Some buyers and their Realtors are turning to Noteflo. "With the strict underwriting guidelines banks are governed by these days, private lending is the wave of the future for getting real estate loans funded," explains Eric Wohl, president of NoteFlo, an online private lending marketplace launching today. NoteFlo's unique service allows borrowers to post loan funding requests for free, which will be broadcast out to thousands of private lenders that will bid for the opportunity to fund their loan. "Our goal is to make sure borrowers know that they have plenty of other options if their loan application is denied by a traditional bank," says Wohl. However it can be accomplished, getting a loan and buying a home in this real estate market has been the smartest move ever for most buyers and investors.
http://www.charlotterealestateforeclosures.com/005471
Posted on August 10, 2010 11:18:04 by sandra.allen - View Profile
Posted in buyers info
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Leave a comment » National Foreclosure ActivityNational and Local Foreclosure Activity
10 States make up more than 70 percent of the national total of foreclosures. According to a RealtyTrac report, California, Michigan, Florida, Nevada, Arizona, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Utah and Maryland have the highest foreclosure activity in the nation. California alone accounts for more than 22 percent of the national total. California had over 72,000 properties receiving a foreclosure notice during this one month alone. Default notices, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions were reported on 322,920 properties in May 2010. One in every 400 U.S. housing units received a foreclosure filing during the month of May. Bank repossessions hit a record monthly high for the second month in a row. There were a total of 93,777 U.S. properties repossed by lenders during the month, an increase of 44 percent from May 2009. Where does Charlotte rank in foreclosures? According to RealtyTrac, the number of foreclosures in N.C. fell about 35% in May from the same period last year. The state of N.C. had 2,587 foreclosures in May 2010. One in every 1,595 homeowners received a default notice, auction sale notice or bank-reposession filing. N.C. ranked 36th in the nation for foreclosure filings in May of 2010. What does this mean for N.C. homebuyers? It means that home purchases are picking up and buyers are feeling more comfortable buying homes in North Carolina. According to the data from the National Bureau of Economic Research, it appears that mortgage rates have not been this low since the summer of 1956. The national 30-year benchmark for fixed-rate mortgage fell to 4.88 percent this week. For a free short sale home list and guide, visit http://www.charlotterealestateforeclosures.com/0053F6
Posted on June 15, 2010 11:49:22 by sandra.allen - View Profile
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Leave a comment » HAFA- Home Affordable Foreclosure AlternativesThe New HAFA Program Set to Help Homeowners
HAFA, the Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives directive set to kick off April 5th was announced by the Treasury Department last November as an answer to the large number of loans not meeting the eligbility requirements to be fully accepted into the HAMP program. HAMP, the Making Home Affordable Program has been a blessing for some and a nightmare for others. The servicer of the loan has a good amount to do with the homeowner's experience. March 12, 2010 Release of Loan Modification Information Number of permanent modifications increases by 45 percent WASHINGTON - The U.S. Department of the Treasury and the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) today released February data for the Administration's Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP). As of the end of the month, more than one million borrowers were receiving a median savings of $500 each month - a 36 percent median monthly payment decrease. Permanent modifications have been granted to 170,000 homeowners and an additional 91,800 permanent modifications have been approved by servicers and are pending only borrower acceptance. The February HAMP report can be found here: Now Back to HAFA... This week I will focus my blogposts on the HAFA directive. There are lots of questions homeowners have. One popular question that reaches our office daily is "Will HAFA stop my foreclosure". According to the documentation released from the Treasury Dept, Page 3 reads "Pursuant to the servicer's policy, every potentially eligible borrower must be considered for "HAFA" before the borrower's loan is referred to foreclosure or the servicer allows a pending foreclosure sale to be conducted". Please check with your servicer for more information on how your application to pursue a short sale may suspend a pending foreclosure. Buyers... http://www.charlotterealestateforeclosures.com/0052C7
Posted on March 22, 2010 00:41:17 by sandra.allen - View Profile
Posted in buyers info, sellers info
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