Can A Bank REally Change The Locks On My Mountain View Short Sale?

Seems like a bizarre question doesn't it? Well guess what, it is not.  If you are selling your home as short sale the bank may have the right to send a property preservation company to the house and "secure it" if they feel the house is vacant and abandoned. But it is still my house, right?

Yes, it is still your house, even if you have stopped making payments, but here is the catch. Many loans contain clauses that say if you abandon your home the bank has a right to secure the property to preserve their interest in the home while they are waiting to re-posses it.

So here is the typical situation.  Owner has a home that they need to short sell.  They have already left the home, often to take a job somewhere else, but maybe for some other reason.  The short sale is initiated and the bank finds out the property is vacant. They do not want any damage to the property so they send out a property preservation company to secure the house.  The company changes the locks and may even board up windows. There are even some instances where the property preservation company employees help themselves to some things that were "abandoned" in the home that do not belong to them. The realtor listing the property may not be given the key and other agents may not be able to get in until the mess is straightened out.

What is the solution?  There is no fool proof solution but there are some things you can try.  If you are selling an empty home for what ever reason the best thing to do is to hire a realtor who can stage it for you. (I do this for all my listings) Once the home is staged, or even if that is not possible, take pictures. Show the bank the house is being cared for by the realtor, that the windows are not broken, and that there are locks on the door.  Take pictures of all the fixtures to show what is in the house.  Send these pictures to the bank along with the initial short sale authorization and then again with the short sale package to show that the home is not abandoned and in case there is any question about things going missing.

This may not stop the the bank every time from "securing" an un-abandoned house, but it should help.

If you have nay questions about short sales in San Mateo or Santa Clara counties please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

650-619-9285

Mountain View Ca Short Sale Buyers Should Not Buy Furniture From the Seller

When a buyer makes an offer on a Mountain View, or any Silicon Valley Short Sale they ocassionally want to purchase some of the furniture in the house.  Sometimes there is a couch that fits perfectly in the family room, or a dining room table that is too big for the seller's new house and they want to sell it. It's ok to do that, right?

NO NO NO NO NO!!!!!!!

Should I say it again?  Ok, NO DO NOT DO IT!!!!!

Here is why.  The seller is not allowed to have any gain from the sale of the home.  The bank gets all the money from the buyer in exchange for allowing the loan to be written down so the seller can get out of his/her obligation. If the seller sells furniture to the buyer it can be considered by the bank to mean that the seller has received money from the buyer. So, if the buyer wants a big table they will have to go to Ikea and buy one.  If the seller does not want a couch, put it on Craigslist, but do not sell personal property to the buyer.

If you have any questions about short sales in Santa Clara or San Mateo counties, please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcyoyer.com

650-619-9285

D.R.E. 01191194

Federal Government Disclaimer (MARS): 1. You may stop doing business with us at any time. You may accept or reject the offer of mortgage assistance we obtain from your lender [or servicer]. If you reject the offer, you do not have to pay us. If you accept the offer, you will have to pay us commission as agreed to in listing contract for our services.
2. Marcy Moyer of Keller Williams Realty is not associated with the government, and our service is not approved by the government or your lender; and 
3. Even if you accept this offer and use our service, your lender may not agree to change your loan.

Silicon Valley Short Sales: How Can They Help The Seller?

Silicon Valley Short Sales: How Can They Help the Seller?

If you are a seller who is behind in your house payment, or are about to be you may be wondering what are your options and which is best for me.  Let me start out by saying that I am not trying to give legal or tax advice.  It is always best to ask a lawyer or accountant about your options.  But as a Santa Clara County short sale realtor I can offer some broad strokes that may apply to your situation.

If you can not afford your mortgage you can:

• Try to get a loan modification.  You can ask your bank to lower your interest rate, decrease your principal, or lengthen to time period for your loan.  Please keep in mind that you need to qualify for the new loan. So, if you can not afford your mortgage because you lost your job, you probably will not qualify for a loan mod because you will not have enough money to pay your mortgage.
• If you do not qualify for a loan modification you can attempt to short sell your home.  You can sell your home for market value and if current market value is less than your mortgage the bank may agree to take less than what they are owed.
• You can stay in house until you are foreclosed and the bank evicts you or offers you a deed in lieu of foreclosure.

So what are the advantages of a short sale for the seller?


Here are a few:

• There is going to be a hit on your credit, but it is usually less than what it would be with a foreclosure.
• You can buy a house again usually within 2 years instead of the 5-7 years you have to wait after a foreclosure.
• If you can negotiate with your bank about not pursuing a deficiency judgment  if they have a legal right to do so. With a foreclosure the bank does not negotiate on this point. Also, since the house will be in better condition if it is a short sale rather than a vacant foreclosure it will sell for more and the deficiency will most likely be less.
• If you are foreclosed it may affect your security clearance which can affect some jobs.

So, if you, like so many millions of other people are having trouble making your mortgage payments, it is a good idea to talk to a Santa Clara County short sale realtor and discuss your options and what might be right for you.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

marcy@marcymoyer.com

www.marcymoyer.com

650-619-9285

Why Don't Banks Act Rationally in a Short Sale?

Why do some short sales get approved, and others rejected? 

Why do some short sales with loans from the same bank get approved while others don’t? 

Why do some short sales with loans by the same bank in the same developments get approved while others are denied?

The world of the short sale is changing on a daily basis, and what you know today will be different tomorrow. The rules change, the players change, the documentation changes every minute.  There is, however, one constant: you do not always know whether a short sale will close or not. 

Two years ago only about 5% were closing, now that number is more like 50%. Still, it's quite risky for buyers and sellers to get their hopes invested in a successful short sale when the odds are 50/50.  There are some things you can do to help insure the process has the best chance of closing. 

In general if the following are true then the chances are better:

1.     The realtors on both ends know what they are doing and have the time, energy, and resources to follow up to set expectations appropriately.  The buyer can not be in a hurry!

2.     The fewer the liens the better. One loan is best, two loans with the same bank is second, two loans with two banks third, two loans with other liens such as taxes are probably not going to work out.

3.     The short sale process was started before a notice of default was filed.

4.     The buyer is well qualified.

5.     The home is owner occupied.

None of these things will guarantee a positive result, but they help.  The biggest problem in the short sale process comes from third parties who are not the bank, but either investors that purchased the loans like hedge funds, or insurance companies who insure the loans for the banks (not mortgage insurance for the borrower). 

These entities can derail a short sale, and it is not possible to know if they exist, or what they will say before the process begins, unless of course you are dealing with a bank approved short sale--but that is a different story.  So the lender may appear to be Bank of America or Chase, but the investor who put up the money maybe someone else and if so they have to agree to the price and terms.  Or sometimes the second lender will get more money in a foreclosure and will not agree to release the lien.  When this happens, what appears to be an irrational move by the bank, may have nothing to do with them.

These are a few of the reasons why seemingly illogical things often happen in the world of short sales. 

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

DRE  01191914

marcy@marcymoyer.com

www.marcymoyer.com

Facebook Fan Page

Twitter

Yelp

Mountain View Open House This Weekend (August 1st, 1:30-4:30): EXPERIENCE THE LIGHT

148 Holly Court, Mountain View, CA

EXPERIENCE THE LIGHT.

$599,000

DON'T MISS THE OPEN HOUSE THIS WEEKEND, August 1st.

 Sunday from 1:30-4:30.

Welcome to this striking townhome in the popular Whisman Station Development. 

You will delight in the modern amenities, convenient location, and wonderful life style options available to you if you live here.

Some of the lovely features include a fenced yard, central heat and air, new carpet and paint, attached 2 car garage, kitchen with granite counters, a center island, and gas stove, family room/kitchen, high ceilings, and, and rich cherry laminate floors.

Add to that wonderful Mountain View Schools and a great community with pools, parks, and easy access to light rail, freeways, and major emplyment centers. Don't miss this wonderful home buying opportunity!

Marcy Moyer
Keller Williams
650-619-9285
marcy@marcymoyer.com
https://twitter.com/marcyagent
DRE # 01191194

Mountain View OPEN HOUSE THIS WEEKEND (July 18th, 1:30-4:30): EXPERIENCE THE LIGHT

148 Holly Court, Mountain View, CA

EXPERIENCE THE LIGHT.

$599,000

DON'T MISS THE OPEN HOUSE THIS WEEKEND, July 18th.

Sunday from 1:30-4:30.

Welcome to this striking townhome in the popular Whisman Station Development. 

You will delight in the modern amenities, convenient location, and wonderful life style options available to you if you live here.

Some of the lovely features include a fenced yard, central heat and air, new carpet and paint, attached 2 car garage, kitchen with granite counters, a center island, and gas stove, family room/kitchen, high ceilings, and, and rich cherry laminate floors.

Add to that wonderful Mountain View Schools and a great community with pools, parks, and easy access to light rail, freeways, and major emplyment centers. Don't miss this wonderful home buying opportunity!

Marcy Moyer
Keller Williams
650-619-9285
marcy@marcymoyer.com
https://twitter.com/marcyagent
DRE # 01191194

Do You Want to Buy a New Car?

OR: What Hurts More, A Short Sale or One Where There's Still Equity But You Have Lost A Lot

This morning my husband opened up an envelope with information about his stock options. He looked at me and said, “Do you want to buy a new car?” 

My answer was of “Of course not.” He then explained we'd just lost $50,000 in value from his stock options. 

My response? “Don’t be so greedy.”  

We are both working, our mortgages are almost paid off on the house and rental properties, and the stock options are like dessert, nice but not essential. However, it was painful to him to lose that much money on paper.

It made me think of my latest clients.  Some have lost all equity and if they have to sell it will be a short sale. By the time they get to me it is gone, and they do not seem to be concerned about the price as much as the process.  Others who are losing equity when they sell seem to fall into 2 categories: those who are grateful to be able to sell and those who are fighting for every penny and do not seem to see the value in taking an offer to make a sale if it means losing a little more money.

If you are a buyer then your life will be much easier if you can find one of the former sellers. If you are working with a seller who is emotionally invested in every penny they are losing it will be a much more difficult sale.

If you are a seller it is important to clearly understand your goals when putting a home on the market. If you only want to sell at your price, then if your price is market value, you may get it. But if your price is above market, it won’t sell. Period.  

The most difficult part once you understand your financial choices is overcoming the emotional ties to a particular number.  If you want 1.5 million and you only get 1.4 million and life can go on, can you let go of your emotional attachment to to 1.5? If not, this may not be the best time for you to sell.

It is no different if you want 400K and you can only get 380K.  If your life can go on with a lower price and you need to sell, you may have to eat the emotions.  If you are just testing the market, don’t bother. In this environment you will fail. If you focus on your need and not your want you will get to your goal of selling a house much quicker and easier.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

650-619-9285

Follow Me on Twitter! 

Mountain View OPEN HOUSE THIS WEEKEND (July 3rd, 1-5PM): EXPERIENCE THE LIGHT

148 Holly Court, Mountain View, CA

EXPERIENCE THE LIGHT.

$599,000

DON'T MISS THE OPEN HOUSE THIS WEEKEND, July 3rd.

Saturday from 1:00-5:00.

Welcome to this striking townhome in the popular Whisman Station Development. 

You will delight in the modern amenities, convenient location, and wonderful life style options available to you if you live here.

Some of the lovely features include a fenced yard, central heat and air, new carpet and paint, attached 2 car garage, kitchen with granite counters, a center island, and gas stove, family room/kitchen, high ceilings, and, and rich cherry laminate floors.

Add to that wonderful Mountain View Schools and a great community with pools, parks, and easy access to light rail, freways, and major emplyment centers. Don't miss this wonderful home buying opportunity!

Marcy Moyer
Keller Williams
650-619-9285
marcy@marcymoyer.com
https://twitter.com/marcyagent
DRE # 01191194

Hardships and Short Sales

This informative post is re-blogged from Partner First, an online real estate network with resources for buyers, sellers, and agents. This post was written by Jacob Swodeck, and published on his Partner First affiliated blog.

Back to the Basics: Hardship and the homeowner...What will Fly?

Posted by: jswodeck on Jun 01, 2010

Tagged in: Untagged 

What qualifies as hardship in a short sale? I get this question fairly often, and it should be addressed. First, I’ll tell you what does not qualify as hardship, and that is simply being underwater. If you owe more than you are worth, being upside down alone is not adequate hardship to get a short sale approved. That is only half the equation. There has to be a financial hardship.

In nearly every case of hardship I have ever seen, a loss of income has been involved. It could be unemployment, divorce, being laid off, the failure of a business, or any of a hundred other things, but a loss or decrease of income is absolutely hardship. When your expenses remain the same and your income goes down or disappears, you have a case for hardship. You could be a ditch digger paying a $500 per month mortgage or a brain surgeon paying $10,000 per month. If you lose income, hardship is not hard to prove. In rare cases, income has remained the same but the payment has adjusted up, but the mathematical outcome, namely a deficit, is the same.

That is as basic a yardstick as I can find. I’d be surprised to find a more common or less complicated theme.

I can pretty much guarantee that with mortgage investors, Fannie Mae, and Freddie Mac shaking in their boots about strategic defaults that hardship will have to be proven and justified.  It may not be enough to state your hardship.  Borrowers will more than likely have to provide any and all supporting documentation in order to have qualified hardship.


--
Marcy Moyer
Keller Williams
650-619-9285
marcy@marcymoyer.com
https://twitter.com/marcyagent
DRE # 01191194

*thanks to the UK Daily Mail for the image

Mountain View Ca Open House Sat & Sun 1:30-4:30: Experience the Light in Whisman Station!

148 Holly Court, Mountain View, CA

EXPERIENCE THE LIGHT.

$599,000

DON'T MISS THE OPEN HOUSE THIS WEEKEND, June 19th & 20th. 

SATURDAY AND SUNDAY FROM 1:30-4:30

Welcome to this striking townhome in the popular Whisman Station Development. 

You will delight in the modern amenities, convenient location, and wonderful life style options available to you if you live here.

Some of the lovely features include a fenced yard, central heat and air, new carpet and paint, attached 2 car garage, kitchen with granite counters, a center island, and gas stove, family room/kitchen, high ceilings, and, and rich cherry laminate floors.

Add to that wonderful Mountain View Schools and a great community with pools, parks, and easy access to light rail, freways, and major emplyment centers. Don't miss this wonderful home buying opportunity!

Marcy Moyer
Keller Williams
650-619-9285
marcy@marcymoyer.com
https://twitter.com/marcyagent
DRE # 01191194

MOUNTAIN VIEW OPEN HOUSE THIS WEEKEND (June 12 & 13, 1:30-4:30: EXPERIENCE THE LIGHT

148 Holly Court, Mountain View, CA

EXPERIENCE THE LIGHT.

$599,000

DON'T MISS THE OPEN HOUSE THIS WEEKEND, June 12th & 13th.

SATURDAY AND SUNDAY FROM 1:30-4:30

Welcome to this striking townhome in the popular Whisman Station Development. 
You will delight in the modern amenities, convenient location, and wonderful life style options available to you if you live here.

Some of the lovely features include a fenced yard, central heat and air, new carpet and paint, attached 2 car garage, kitchen with granite counters, a center island, and gas stove, family room/kitchen, high ceilings, and, and rich cherry laminate floors.

Add to that wonderful Mountain View Schools and a great community with pools, parks, and easy access to light rail, freways, and major emplyment centers. Don't miss this wonderful home buying opportunity!

Marcy Moyer
Keller Williams
650-619-9285
marcy@marcymoyer.com
https://twitter.com/marcyagent
DRE # 01191194

MOUNTAIN VIEW CA OPEN HOUSE THIS WEEKEND (SAT AND SUN 1:30-4:40)

148 Holly Court, Mountain View, CA

$599,000

DON'T MISS THE OPEN HOUSE THIS WEEKEND,

SATURDAY AND SUNDAY FROM 1:30-4:30

Welcome to this striking townhome in the popular Whisman Station Development. You will delight in the modern amenities, convenient location, and wonderful life style options available to you if you live here.

Some of the lovely features include a fenced yard, central heat and air, new carpet and paint, attached 2 car garage, kitchen with granite counters, a center island, and gas stove, family room/kitchen, high ceilings, and, and rich cherry laminate floors.

Add to that wonderful Mountain View Schools and a great community with pools, parks, and easy access to light rail, freways, and major emplyment centers. Don't miss this wonderful home buying opportunity!

Marcy Moyer
Keller Williams
650-619-9285
marcy@marcymoyer.com
https://twitter.com/marcyagent
DRE # 01191194

Mountain View Market Update, March 7th: Condo/Town Homes

As of today, here's the snapshot of the Mountain View condo/town home market--

74 active listings

23 pending sales

1 closed sale this month

What does this mean? There hasn't been some increase in inventory this month. Active listings are up by 8 and pending sales are up by 7 in the last 3 weeks. The ratio of pending to active is about 1 to 3, which isn't too bad. Unless these numbers change the market should stay fairly stable, at soft, but not horrible.

If you're interested in finding the final selling price of any home, anywhere, you can do it on my website.  Click here to get to my site--once there, click on Cyberhome Home Valuation. You can then type in any address next to the search icon to get the county records.

If you need anything else please feel free to contact me. I'm here to help you.

Marcy Moyer, Intero Real Estate

marcy@marcymoyer.com

Mountain View Market Update, March 7: Single Family Homes

Here's today's snapshot of the Mountain View single family home market--

91 active listings

17 pending sales

2 closed sales this month

What does this mean? There hasn't been much change in inventory this month. Active listings are up by 3 and pending sales are down 1 in the last 2 weeks. The ratio of pending to active is 1 to 5--at the beginning of Feb. the ratio was 1 to 6 (pending to active). If inventory continues to increase without a similar increase in pending sales we will see more softening in the market.

If you're interested in finding the final selling price of any home, anywhere, you can do it on my website. Go to www.marcymoyer.com and click on Cyberhome Home Valuation. You can then type in any address next to the search icon to get the county records.

If you need anything else, please contact me. I'm here to help you. 

Marcy Moyer, Intero Real Estate

marcy@marcymoyer.com

650-619-9285

Mountain View Market Update, Feb 20: Single Family Homes

Here's today's snapshot of the Mountain View single family home market--

88 active listings

18 pending sales

1 closed sale this month

What does this mean? There's been a big jump in inventory this month. Active listings are up by 16 but pending sales are also up by 7. The ratio of pending to active is not bad, at about 1 to 4.5 now, when the ratio at the beginning of the month was about 1 to 6 pending to active. If the ratios hold we shouldn't see too much change in prices but if inventory continues to increase without a similar increase in pendings we'll see more softening in the market. 

If you're interested in finding the final selling price of any home, anywhere, you can do it on my website. Click here to get to my site. Once there, click on Cyberhome Home Valuation. You can then type in any address next to the search icon to get the county records.

If you need anything else, please feel free to contact me. I'm here to help.

Marcy Moyer Intero Real Estate

marcy@marcymoyer.com

650-619-9285

Mountain View Market Update, Jan 25th: Condos

Here's your daily snapshot of Mountain View's condo market:

62 active listings

28 pending sales

2 closed sales in last week

What does this mean? Well, there's been another big jump this week in pending sales. Last week there were 61 active sales, and 19 pending sales. The active sales only increased by 1, but the pending sales went up by 9. Not only that, but we're very close to the 1-2 ratio of active to pending sales that I think will stop the bleeding of home sale price decreases. If this continues, it may portend an increase in sales, at least in the lower end. However, this is only 2 weeks, so it's still too early to detect a trend.

If you're interested in finding the final selling price of any home, anywhere, you can do it on my website. Click here to get to my site. Once there click on Cyberhome Home Valuation. You can then type in any address to get the county records.

If you have any other needs, please contact me. I am here to help!

Marcy Moyer, Intero Real Estate

marcy@marcymoyer.com

650-619-9285

Mountain View Market Update, Dec 8th

As of Dec 8th, 2008, the Mountain View market looked like this:

Single family homes--

71 homes for sale

12 pending sales

4 closed sales the previous week

Condo/Town homes--

70 for sale

20 pending sales

2 closed sales the previous week

What does this mean?

First of all, there are a lot of homes for sale in Mountain View. Traditionally this area has more condo/town homes for sale as opposed to single family homes. 70 is not a huge number for condos, but it really is for single family homes. The ration of single family homes for sale to pending sales also shows a lot of softness in the market. For condos, the ratio is better. I would attribute this to the fact that less expensive condos are easier to sell because money is easy and cheaper to get for these sales.

I am an expert on the Mountain View market, so if you have any real estate questions or needs, please feel free to contact me.