Banks get more time to submit foreclosure plans
Posted on June 17th, 2011
Federal regulators are giving the nation’s largest mortgage lenders an extra month to show how they plan to address problems with their foreclosure practices. Citibank, Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo were among the lenders cited in the report.Federal regulators are giving the nation’s largest mortgage lenders an extra month to show how they plan to address problems with their foreclosure practices.
In April the government called on 16 mortgage lenders and servicers to reimburse homeowners who were incorrectly foreclosed upon. The lenders and servicers were also given 45 days hire auditors to show how many homeowners could have avoided foreclosure in 2009 and 2010.
Mortgage Rates: Questioning the Rally
Posted on June 12th, 2011
After finally managing to topple “The Wall“, the mortgage rate rally stalled and went sideways last week.
We’d describe this pause as mortgage rates taking a “breather” in the wake of a 2-month rally. The sideways shuffle seen last week serves as a reminder of the threats faced by home loan borrowers when floating a loan on a short-term timeline. The market doesn’t always act the way you’d expect it to and rallies don’t last forever. Investors always end up finding a way to question positive progress, and that generally leads to an unfriendly directional reaction.
CURRENT MARKET: The “Best Execution” conventional 30-year fixed mortgage rate is 4.50%.
Tags: Mortgage Rates, Rally
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#214 The Demographic Shift in Texas and the U.S.
Posted on June 11th, 2011
Join Jason Hartman as he talks with guest, Steve H. Murdock, former Census Bureau Director and current Professor of Sociology at Rice University in Texas, about the demographic shift taking place in the U.S. today . The face of Texas has been shifting dramatically, not just from immigration, but in-migration and natural increase. Steve argues that the Texas of today is the U.S. of tomorrow. Learn
Steve H. Murdock is the Allyn R. and Gladys M. Cline Professor of Sociology at Rice University. He previously served as Director of the U.S. Bureau of the Census having been nominated for the position by President Bush and unanimously confirmed by the U.S. Se
Tags: Demographic Shift, Texas
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Lenders Drop Bids by 37%
Posted on May 30th, 2011
I recently blogged about the huge results investors are seeing at the trustee sale auctions in Sonoma county, CA ). I wanted to share with you how the rest of California is doing to give you a glance at how the auctions are working statewide.
California trends continue similiar to the national trends I’ve been reporting. Foreclosure activity dropped across the board in California, while cancellations remained flat, most likely due to the failure of the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP).
Here are the recent stats:
Notice of Defaults- down 18.29% year over year (first step in the foreclosure process).
Cancellations- flat at 1.15% year over year (successful loan modifications or short sales).
REOs- down 21.09% year over year (lost to foreclosure, reverted to lender).
Sold to 3rd party- up 15.75% month over month and up 16.24% year over year (sold at the trustee sale auction to an outside bidder)
Foreclosure Bids- Average published bid (amount listed on the Trustee Sale Notice) is $375,000 relatively flat. Ho
Tenants’ Rights in Foreclosed Properties
Posted on May 30th, 2011
Renters and tenants are now being affected by foreclosures almost as often as homeowners. There are a lot of renters in foreclosed properties without knowing the property is being foreclosed on. Below are some rights and tips for Tenants.
The new property owner must maintain your utility service, even if it is the bank that foreclosed. If the new owner does not do so, contact your legal services office.
It is illegal in California to change a tenant’s locks without court order. To get a court order, the property owner must take the renter through the formal eviction process. For a formal eviction, the property owner must serve the renter with a written notice, and then must file a Summons and Complaint with the court and serve a copy on the renter.