The Worst Cities For Foreclosures In 2010

The good news is foreclosure activity is down in the U.S. cities hardest hit by the housing market crisis.   The bad news? Foreclosures in general have increased in 72% of all the other major cities across the country.

At least, that was the case in 2010, according to RealtyTrac’s “2010 MSA U.S. Foreclosure Market Report.”  As a year-end re-cap, the online foreclosure marketplace leader crunched default data for America’s 206 largest Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs), as defined by  the U.S. Census Bureau.   They counted the total number of properties with at least one foreclosure filing entered into RealtyTrac’s database during the 2010 calendar year.  If a property received more than one filing during the year, only the most recent was counted.

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How Banks Manage the REO Properties?

REO properties have now become the first choice of any smart home buyer. These properties are equally liked by the seasoned investors and the real estate beginners. These are those properties that have been acquired by the lender or the bank if there is no sale in the foreclosure auction. A property moves in the foreclosure process if the owner has taken loan from the lender or the bank to purchase it but is not able to make payments to the lender or the bank.

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4Q Wasatch Front Home Sales, Prices Decline

The residential real estate market remains mired in one of the worst downturns ever along the Wasatch Front, but it is showing some signs of improvement, a new report shows.

In Salt Lake County, 1,934 existing single-family homes were sold in the fourth quarter of 2010, down 21 percent compared with the fourth quarter of 2009, the Salt Lake Board of Realtors reported Thursday. The median selling price was $215,000, down 4.4 percent from the same three-month period in 2009. Median prices peaked at $256,000 in the summer of 2007.

The Realtor group attributes the declines in both sales and prices to federal home-buying incentives that boosted demand for homes in late 2009 and early 2010. Sales fell off in the second half of last year after the incentives expired.

Why Your Best Investment Right Now is a Home

I’ve heard it over and over again for the past couple of years from friends, family, business colleagues, and even my local bartenders and baristas. The refrain is eerily similar each time, and it sounds something like this: “What are you waiting for?  Now is the time to buy that house.” I let these comments roll off my back for a long time, as I knew the metrics of large supply overhang, increasing foreclosures, slow GDP growth and anemic employment figures were liable to keep home prices down for some time.

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Foreclosure Horror: Home Filled With Dead Pets

Police on Monday arrested an elderly woman and her son on charges of animal cruelty for the starvation deaths of over 30 pets, mostly cats, whose decayed carcasses were found in their foreclosed home north of Seattle.

The remains of 29 cats and two dogs, some of which had been dead for six months and were skeletonized, were discovered on Friday strewn about the vacant home littered with animal feces, empty beer cans and trash. Three surviving but emaciated cats also were found amid the squalor.

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Buying Tips for Short Sales

With new records being set in foreclosure rates, sellers are turning to short sales more and more. How does a short sale work? The seller has to make arrangements with their mortgage lender to accept a sale for the property for an amount that is less than what is owed. This agreement typically ends up with the lender waiving the rest of the loan. This is a better option than going through a foreclosure. The result of this is that the buyer gets a good discount on the property, and the lender avoids the difficulty of having to sell the property again. Due to the exorbitant amount of losses suffered by mortgage lenders during the financial crises of 2007-2010, they are now much more willing to accept short sales than they have been in the past.

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8 Reasons To Invest In Your Home

Not long ago, you could have your big remodeling project and get your money back too. Owners recouped an average of 87% of home improvement costs at resale in 2005, according to Remodeling magazine.

But by 2010 the magazine had pegged the typical payback at just 60%. Hardly the right time to tackle the new kitchen or master bathroom you've been dreaming of, right?

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Unlicensed Mortgage Brokers Get The Boot

With interest rates and house prices at historic lows, it is the perfect time to buy a home.

But before a purchase is made, a bank loan officer or a mortgage broker has to approve a home loan for the buyer.

Bank of Utah Chief Financial Officer Branden Hansen cautions prospective buyers to make sure the person they are dealing with is reputable.

"As a bank and being involved with the mortgage industry," Hansen said, "we had to compete with a lot of people we feel are less than scrupulous."

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HUD Extends Foreclosure Anti-Flipping Rule

The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced that it is in the process of approving another one-year suspension of its anti-flipping rule on foreclosed properties bought with FHA loans. The suspension was first initiated on February 1st of last year to allow investors to quickly renovate foreclosed homes and selling them to first time buyers as a means to further sales of foreclosed properties.



In 2003, HUD issued a rule that prohibits the FHA from insuring a mortgage on a home that was owned by the seller for less than 90 days. HUD initiated the anti-flipping rule early last decade because the Federal Housing Authority (FHA) discovered that too many of these quick sales were made at grossly inflated prices and involved fraudulent activities.

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Bringing the Office Home

Working from home is a growing trend in Calgary, but for some entrepreneurs it involves more than just using the home PC in the kitchen.

Converting a room such as a bedroom into a home office requires a bit of planning and sometimes even a bit of bylaw navigation.

“It’s something I’ve done myself,” says Kurt Underwood, owner of Talon Contracting Inc. “A lot more people are bringing their work home nowadays.”

Is It Possible That Short Sales Just Got Easier?

I just got a hold of these news from the closing attorney I use for my properties. If you are interested in doing a short sale or investing in real estate through short sales, you will want to verify the following information and see if it can help you:

Changes to HAFA make more homeowners eligible for streamlined short sales.

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Seizing an Opportunity: Housing Slump Whets Investors’ Appetite in Resale of Foreclosures

Most CEOs entered 2011 hoping the economy will soon fire on all cylinders. For one business chief, however, mortgage delinquencies and tight credit standards are a dream come true.

Sean Whalen is the CEO of Property23, an Orem-based startup that has successfully capitalized on the recent real estate meltdown, seeking out foreclosure properties across the country and prepping them for resale. Most of its clients are fellow investors who are hoping to rent or resell at double-digit profit when the recovery gathers steam. Since it was founded in 2008, the company has bought and sold no less than 4,000 properties and currently employs more than 100 people.

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4 Questions Before Buying Your First House

The decision to buy a house is about more than just mortgage interest rates, the Case-Shiller Home Price Index, and property taxes. Your home is more than just an investment, it's also shelter, security and safety. That's why you should think about more than just finances when making the decision.

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Trashed! Golf Course Home Is Called Worst Mess



A 2-story house on the Seacliff Golf Course in Huntington Beach is the worst example of "malicious vandalism'' of a foreclosed home that a top Realtor for bank-owned properties says he's ever seen in Orange County.

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Utah Lawmakers Look To Reduce Foreclosures

For the third straight year, Utah was among the worst states in the U.S. for the rate of foreclosure filings per household, according to a recently released nationwide report. Two state lawmakers now want to do something about it.


Irvine, Calif.-based research firm RealtyTrac reported this month that Utah had the nation’s 5th highest foreclosure rate in 2010, representing nearly 20 percent hike from 2009 and a 119 percent jump from 2008. The report showed that one in every 29 Utah housing units received a foreclosure filing last year.

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Hulk Hogan Still Trying To Sell Off His Florida Real Estate


Hulk Hogan may have gotten married at his Clearwater, Florida home in December but that doesn't mean he isn't still trying to unload it. Not only that, he is still trying to sell the Belleair, Florida home that he shared with his ex-wife Linda and his family and was featured in the reality television show "Hogan Knows Best." Back in 2006 the five-bedroom home was listed at $25 million.  

How Accurate Are Property Records?

A Utah court case in which the owner of a Draper townhouse got clear title to the property, even though he still owed $132,000 on it, raises new legal and financial questions about a property-records database created by mortgage bankers. 

The award of a title free of liens means that whoever owns the promissory note on the Draper property — likely a group of faraway investors — no longer has the right to foreclose to collect on a delinquent loan. Indeed, the townhouse owner has sold the property and kept the money. Those who own the promissory note probably don’t even know what occurred.

Before Shopping For A Place, Check Financial Readiness

You might be ready to buy a home, but are you armed with the knowledge you need? Do you know about credit score requirements? Are you familiar with flexible standards on Federal Housing Administration loans?

Whether you are a first-time homebuyer or an experienced owner, buying a house requires a "preflight check," in the words of Barry Zigas, director of housing policy for the Consumer Federation of America. "It's a brave, new world with respect to credit requirements for mortgages," says John Ulzheimer, founder of 2StepCredit.com and formerly of FICO, which pioneered credit scoring.

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Nicolas Cage Las Vegas Home For Sale Again

Around this time last year we heard that the Las Vegas home that once belonged to Nicolas Cage has finally been sold. Kenneth Lowman, Broker/Owner of Luxury Homes of Las Vegas announced that he sold Cage's foreclosed, now bank-owned Las Vegas home the first day it was on the market at a new low price of $4.95 million. Cage, who once had a variety of properties scattered all around the world, picked up this home in 2006 for $8.5 million. In July 2008 he listed it for $9.95 million. The 14,000-square-foot home with a 16-car garage was later discounted to $9.49 million. The seven-bedroom home is blandly extravagant with a sweeping staircase, home theater, elevator and panoramic views of Las Vegas. The home has a pool and spa and is located in a gated community for privacy.

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Why First Time Home Buyers Shouldn’t Target Their Dream Homes

People have a lot of expectations when buying their first home. Most first time home buyers probably envision opening the doors to their dream house and triumphantly walking into their mansion. The culmination of their hard work and even harder saved dollars are embodied in this perfect piece of property.

While that is a great image to strive for, a more practical approach may be to buy a starter home like a fixer-upper or condo to tide you over as your first purchase. It isn’t as pretty a setting as you’d like, but it could be a much smarter financial decision in the long run. In fact, it could help get you to that perfect home a little sooner.

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House Appraisal & Divorce

Most states require a home appraisal to settle the division of property in a divorce. The home easily represents one of the largest marital assets, and the outcome of the property division often adds to the emotional trauma. In addition, marital property may include commercial or vacation property. To achieve an equitable distribution of property between the spouses, courts depend on objective appraisal valuations of all real estate assets that are considered marital property.

New York Judges Hold Foreclosure Lawyers Responsible For Filings

As foreclosure cases continue to pour into courts, judges in New York are holding their fellow legal professionals accountable for their role in perpetuating foreclosure fraud.

Judges in the state say foreclosure lawyers have filed often ludicrous paperwork on behalf of their clients, which Nassau County District Court judge, Scott Fairgrieve, told the New York Times, "reflects poorly on the profession as a whole." Another judge referred to a lawyer's filings as "ludicrous," among other jabs.

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Contemporary Beverly Hills House Has Old-World Flair

A verdant acre in the residential heart of Beverly Hills is the setting for a contemporary home with Old World flair designed by architect-to-the stars Harold "Hal" Levitt.

Levitt's design combines modern elements such as geometric skylights, generous sheets of glass, touches of concrete and an open floor plan in reimagining a European villa.

Levitt, who died in 2003, designed the Riviera Hotel in Las Vegas and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences building in Los Angeles. He's better known, however, for the striking home plans he created for Lew Wasserman, Steven Spielberg, Quincy Jones and Dean Martin, to name a few of his high-profile clients.

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Utah County Woman Sues Group Of Developers

A 77-year-old Utah County woman is suing a group of developers, saying she was swindled out of $600,000 after being promised a 15 percent return on a real estate project in Hurricane.

The Salt Lake Tribune reports that Patricia Tanner has sued H&S Investments, Summit Development, Management, American Commercial Real Estate Specialists Group, and Utah Commercial Real Estate.

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The $60 Million Dream House

A group of wealthy art collectors and philanthropists dined on risotto and listened to chamber music at a 10-bedroom estate on a private island off Florida's Biscayne Bay last month. The mansion isn't owned by a Russian oligarch or a certain NBA player who recently moved to town. It was built purely on speculation by developers in search of a buyer.

Its asking price: $60 million.

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Fewer Foreclosures Will Help Economy

Reducing the number of foreclosures will help stabilize the U.S. housing market and help patch one of the economy's most troubled sectors, officials said.


One state that is seeing fewer foreclosures is Arizona, The New York Times reported Sunday.
One reason for the reduction in foreclosures, which helps the market because it removes excess inventory, is the array of federal and state investigations into the way banks foreclose on delinquent homeowners, the report said.

What Do I Put In A Short Sale Hardship Letter?

What in short sale and letter and why do I need to write one?
Please mail your real estate agent has explained the process of short sale to you and has told you that you need to write a short sale hardship letter. If you are reading this is most likely because they did not thoroughly explained that to you. The hardship letter is the statement from you to your lender as to why you no longer can make your mortgage payment and why they should accept a short sale on your home.

What should you never do when writing a hardship letter?
Your short sale hardship letter is not the place to complain about your lender! As you sit down to write your letter resist the urge to complain to your lender about how unfair they are and how bad your loan is. They simply do not care! You need to focus on staying factual and nonemotional as you write your hardship letter. Keep in mind that the person reading your hardship letter does not really care about your situation but has the power to approve or disapprove the sale of your home. Starting off by telling them how stupid they are, and how unfair the bank is been to them is not likely to help you.

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A Look at HGTV Dream Home in Stowe, Vermont


There’s only a few more weeks left to enter HGTV’s Dream Home sweepstakes. The fully-furnished custom-designed home, which is located at Spruce Peak in Stowe, Vermont, is the 15th home to be that the cable network has given away.

The Dream Home offers breathtaking views of Mt. Mansfield and the rural landscape, which is perfect for outdoor activities in all seasons. "This HGTV Dream Home is the first in Vermont, and we intend to show the features that make this location so amazing," said HGTV Dream Home Planner Jack Thomasson in a statement in June. "It's a spectacular place and the perfect location for our 15th anniversary home."

The Dream Home is 3,400 square-feet and features 3 bedrooms, three and a half bathrooms and lots of open spaces in which to entertain. A ski dorm is furnished with four sets of bunk beds to provide accommodation for your closest friends. Drink in the views of Vermont’s fall foliage with the floor-to-ceiling windows. The house also features a deck with a hot tub and outdoor fireplace—perfect for those chilly to downright freezing Vermont winter evenings. The home combines cutting-edge technology and modern architecture with a rustic mountain feel.

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Homeowners Left In Lurch After Loan Modification Company Suddenly Closes

The sudden closure of a Utah County loan modification company has left several clients in danger of losing their homes.

The doors of Modify Utah's American Fork office located on east Utah Valley Drive were shuttered this week, leaving clients wondering what will happen to their homes. The company had been in the business of "assisting customers to obtain loan modifications of their home mortgage loans."

According to a letter from the firm's attorney, Paxton Guymon, Modify Utah ceased doing business for several reasons, including "a significant portion of (its) customers have failed or refused to pay ... for services provided, recently imposed restrictions impeding the company's ability to process or receive payments and lien holders unwillingness to work with loan modification companies."

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For Sale: 10 of America's Strangest Homes

Millions of homes across the U.S. are on the market. Some are cookie-cutter McMansions. Many more are your undistinguished Colonials. Search hard enough, though, and you'll find unique — and in some cases downright weird — properties up for grabs. 

Forbes surveyed real estate experts at Realtor.com, Sotheby's International, Coldwell Banker and elsewhere to compile a list of strange homes on the market that defy the status quo.

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Write A Letter To Get Your Short Sale Approved

You can no longer afford your mortgage payment and you’ve decided to try to get out from under your house. The easiest thing would be to just let the bank go through its process and foreclose on your house. But you don’t want a foreclosure on your credit report. A short sale is a good alternative. You’ll market your home and agree on a price with a buyer, subject to your lender agreeing to take less than the loan balance as payment in full. But it’s not that simple. There’s one more thing. The bank will only approve a short sale if they believe that it’s their best option. They’d really rather that you keep making payments as originally agreed. In order to convince them that their only other choice is foreclosure, you need to write a convincing hardship letter.

Lenders know which kinds of things make loans default. If you claim to have a financial hardship, they will want to know specifically what the problem is. And they’ll want to verify it. Here are some of the more common financial hardships that tell lenders that a loan is not going to succeed.

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Pros and Cons of Refinancing Appraisal

Many homeowners want to refinance their home loans in order to take advantage of lower mortgage rates. Before a loan is approved, however, the borrower likely will be asked to order a professional appraisal to assess the value of the property.

Even though appraisals are common, not everyone needs one to refinance a home, says Carolyn Warren, author of the book "Homebuyers Beware." That's because lenders sometimes participate in plans that allow eligible homeowners to skip the independent valuation, she says.

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The Biggest Celebrity Real Estate Losers of 2010


Pummeled by the steep devaluation of their real estate investments, Shelter Pop finds the biggest celebrity real estate losers of 2010:
  • Actor Nicolas Cage tops the charts at No. 1: The notorious property collector has built his own real estate coffin with an estimated loss of more than $10 million, and more than a dozen homes around the world selling for much less than he paid. One of the homes includes his legendary and primary residence in Bel-Air formerly owned by Dean Martin and Tom Jones that was seized. He currently has a home still on the market on REALTOR.com®.
  • Actress Scarlett Johansson is also in the running with her recent failed marriage to Ryan Reynolds, and a $3 million loss on a very A-list property (pictured here), which was valued at $7 million this past June.
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DAVE RAMSEY: Buying Home Before You're Ready A Bad Idea

Dear Dave: We’ve got $1,000 in our starter emergency fund, and we’ve paid off the last of our debt. We’re renting, but now my wife really wants to buy a house. On top of this, she wants to go the route of 100 percent financing and argues that a mortgage payment wouldn’t cost any more than we’re paying in rent. She’s extremely upset because I’m against the idea. How can I explain to her that this is a bad plan? — Alan

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Submitting A Short Sale Package

So…..You’ve evaluated a potential short sale and decided that it meets your investment criteria. You have the information you need from a listing Realtor to submit the short sale package to the lender. Now you need to gather information from the homeowner.

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Home of the Week: In Carlsbad, Keeping A Modernist Vision Intact

An International-style house designed in 1978 by Donald Cromley overlooks the second hole of La Costa's North Course. It received a seven-figure remodeling that made it more functional yet still true to the original design.

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What If You Did Not Succeed With A HAMP Loan Modification?

The goals of the FHA are to improve housing standards and conditions, to make available a satisfactory home financing system through insurance of mortgage loans and to steady the mortgage market. FHA home owners have benefited from the Streamline Loan Modification particularly in saving money and reducing monthly mortgage payments.

The goals of the FHA are to improve housing standards and conditions, to make available a satisfactory home financing system through insurance of mortgage loans and to steady the mortgage market. FHA homeowners have benefited from the Streamline Loan Modification particularly in saving money and reducing monthly mortgage payments. Loans Store offers professional help with mortgage refinance and the services of mortgage attorneys nationwide to help people with their specific needs.

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Happy New Years!


Read About it Here:  New Years Day...