Tom Schieber - Brentwood Real Estate, Brentwood Homes, Brentwood Homes for Sale » Short Sales

SOLD: 1031 Meadow Brook Dr, Brentwood CA

Tom Schieber — Fri, 11 Mar 2011 06:33:41 +0000

Gorgeous Brentwood single-story home for sale! Big corner lot, covered patio, gas fire pit, sparkling pool with waterfall & solar. Open floor plan, spacious master, upgrades throughout. Amazing built-in home office, beautiful rock fireplace, built-in fridge, and much more. Central location close to everything. Must see!

Practical Advice : How To Help Your Home Sell Faster

Tom Schieber — Wed, 02 Feb 2011 13:52:33 +0000

In December, home sales reached an 8-month high, recovering from the losses of last summer. Market momentum is positive across California , but that doesn’t mean every home is selling quickly — only some of them are.

So, if you’re a home seller and want (or need) to get your home sold quickly, take a listen to this 3-minute interview from NBC’s The Today Show. It’s loaded with practical sales advice for sellers. (I can get you professional photos and virtual tours for about $100 by the way.)

As examples:

How to price your home relative to comparable homes for sale
Using home inspections to keep your contract on-track for closing
How much should be spent on your “home photos” that are shown online

The interview also covers about the 3 key places of a home on which to spend money — the kitchen, the living area, and the front facade. And for good reason — they’re emotional hooks for buyers that help sell homes.

In any market, selling a home can be a challenge. It can be easier by applying common sense.

Short Sale Scams – What to Look Out For

Tom Schieber — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 18:38:26 +0000

Short Sale scams are on the rise in California, so much so that the Real Estate Commissioner has issued a formal warning to Brokers and Agents throughout the state. We are seeing plenty of questionable practices here in Brentwood/Discovery Bay/Antioch due to the high number of distressed homeowners. These scams make victims of both individuals and financial institutions, and while you may not be concerned about your bank getting the short end of the stick this time, unwary Sellers could end up being seen as complicit in bank-fraud schemes.

So how can you know if the Short Sale service that you are being offered is legal? Here are some tips from the Commissioner’s office as of last week, September 21, 2010:

1. Short sale negotiators must be licensed real estate brokers (or a licensed real estate salesperson where that person is working under the supervision of his or her broker).

2. Real estate licensees wishing to collect an advance fee in connection with performing short sales must first submit an advance fee contract to the DRE for review and then receive from the DRE the issuance of a no-objection letter relative to that contract. All advance fees collected thereafter under the terms of that contract must be placed in a trust account and handled as client trust funds.

3. Any and all payments must be fully disclosed and made part of the escrow documents. If there are any fees to be paid “outside” of escrow, this may be the red flag that the payment is illegal.

4. If your agent explains that the buyer is a fictitious person or entity or your buyer is purchasing the property under a power-of-attorney or is a limited liability company (LLC), this may be a red flag that fraud is involved in your transaction.

5. If you are told that an unlicensed processor, negotiator or facilitator is handling your short sale, this is a red flag that unlicensed activity is taking place. Only real estate licensees, California lawyers acting as lawyers and investors acting on their own behalf can engage in short sale negotiations.

It is also worth noting that Short Sale Flipping is just about always a fraudulent transaction on the front-end. More from the DRE:

Flipping of Short Sale Properties: Either an unscrupulous agent or a short sale negotiator will misrepresent the true market value of the property to the bank/lender and/or fail to forward all offers to the bank reflecting the true market value. They try to buy it themselves through the use of “straw buyers”, many of whom are limited liability companies, which are their alter egos. They will use false broker price opinions or appraisals to support a depressed valuation. Once the unscrupulous agent or a short sale negotiator has convinced the bank of the false value, they have their straw buyer purchase the property and immediately attempt to sell it at the true market value, re-visiting buyers who had made legitimate offers. Had the property been sold for the most amount of money that the market will bear, the potential tax consequence to the seller is diminished. Conversely, by accepting an artificially deflated offer, the seller’s potential tax liability is increased.

Short Sale transactions that allow a Seller to remain in the property as a tenant with a lease or lease with an option to buy are also very tenuous deals to be a part of. There are very specific laws that govern disclosures and obligations of Investors who purchase properties in default, and specific paperwork that needs to be provided. Banks also normally require that Short Sale transactions be “arms-length” transactions, and these situations most certainly aren’t that.

Most importantly, be sure that you get sound legal and tax advice from a qualified professional (beyond your Realtor) before agreeing to any kind of Short Sale transaction. Be smart, protect yourself and your family.

You can download the DRE Commissioner’s Consumer Warning Alert Regarding Short Sale Transactions by clicking below.

Note: There is a file embedded within this post, please visit this post to download the file.

Have additional questions about short sales? Call me direct at 925-487-3172 and let’s set-up a time to talk!

Short Sales Soar in California, Brentwood

Tom Schieber — Fri, 13 Aug 2010 18:25:00 +0000

A report in the Los Angeles Times points out that the volume of Short Sale transactions that are closing successfully is on the rise – primarily in California and the Sunbelt states. Short Sales in Brentwood have continued to make up a significant part of the market, and we are seeing more and more successful closings.

Known as short sales, the increasingly common transactions for financially troubled homeowners are projected to balloon to 400,000 in 2010, according to Core Logic, a Santa Ana company that provides services to the real estate and mortgage markets. By comparison, existing homes sold at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.37 million units in June, according to the National Assn. of Realtors.

Read the entire article here.

If you would like to find out how I can help you determine if a short sale is the right foreclosure alternative strategy for you, don’t hesitate to call me today.

FNMA’s Stiff New Strategic Default Penalty

Tom Schieber — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 00:27:46 +0000

I wrote a couple of weeks ago that stiffer penalties were coming for borrowers who participated in a “strategic default” – now FNMA has made it official.

Fannie Mae recently announced policy changes designed to encourage borrowers to work with their loan servicers and pursue alternatives to foreclosure. Under the new policies, borrowers who strategically default on their home loan despite having the capacity to pay and those who do not complete a workout alternative in good faith will be ineligible for a new Fannie Mae-backed mortgage loan for a period of seven years from the date of foreclosure. Borrowers who have extenuating circumstances may be eligible for new loan in a shorter timeframe.

Fannie Mae also will take legal action to recoup the outstanding mortgage debt from borrowers who strategically default on their loans in jurisdictions that allow for deficiency judgments. In an announcement next month, Fannie Mae will instruct its servicers to monitor delinquent loans facing foreclosure and put forth recommendations for cases that warrant the pursuit of deficiency judgments.

Troubled borrowers who work with their servicers, and provide information to help the servicer assess their situation, can be considered for foreclosure alternatives, such as a loan modification, a short sale, or a deed-in-lieu of foreclosure. A borrower with extenuating circumstances who works out one of these options with their servicer could be eligible for a new mortgage loan in three years or in as little as two years depending on the circumstances.

Contact me directly for information on the federal government’s HAMP (Home Affordable Modification Program) loan modification/home retention or HAFA (Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives) foreclosure alternatives including expedited HAFA Short Sales and DIL options.

HAFA Program – Making Home Affordable Video

Tom Schieber — Thu, 17 Jun 2010 22:20:25 +0000

This is the place to start if you are struggling to make your mortgage payments. If you are looking for foreclosure alternatives, the new government sponsored Making Home Affordable program is the place to begin. Even if you are not yet late on your mortgage, you can receive help, and it’s totally free. Loan modification, refinance, short sale or a deed-in-lieu may be a better alternative than foreclosure. You can even get up to $3,000 for move-out assistance through the program.

Watch the video below and then contact me for more free information, and a no-cost, no-obligation consultation.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Is a Short Sale Boom Coming?

Tom Schieber — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 21:16:51 +0000

A recent article from CNN Money suggests that a Shot Sale Boom is on the horizon.

Banks are ramping up short sales thanks to government incentives and the realization that short sales result in lower losses than foreclosures. On average, banks lose 50 percent on a foreclosure, but only 30 percent on a short sale.

That is good news for distressed homeowners who are looking for foreclosure alternatives, or who have been hoping for an expedited Short Sale. By avoiding foreclosure, and selling their home for it’s current market value, homeowners facing foreclosure can limit the damage done to their credit by the current foreclosure crisis.

For more information on how to qualify for a short sale or other foreclosure alternatives, please contact me directly at (925) 487-3172 or tom@tomschieber.com.

CA D.R.E. Short Sale Consumer Warning

Tom Schieber — Fri, 28 May 2010 20:14:31 +0000

The California Department of Real Estate has issued a warning to consumers about fraudulent short sale practices. The document, which can be downloaded below, warns consumers to consult professionals for both legal and tax consequences, and makes clear the requirement for anyone involved in negotiating your short sale to have a valid real estate license.

It includes warnings about short sale flipping, undisclosed payments, and illegal up-front fees. If you are considering a short sale, PLEASE download and read the Consumer Alert!

Note: There is a file embedded within this post, please visit this post to download the file.

Brentwood Short Sales, Brentwood Short Sale Agents, Discovery Bay Short Sale Agent, Short Sales in California, Expedited Short Sale, Short Sale Scams, Short Sale Expert

Beware the Latest Short Sale Scams

Tom Schieber — Thu, 13 May 2010 21:55:42 +0000

If you are a distressed homeowner considering a short sale, beware of new fraudulent schemes that could land you in a much more tenuous situation than you probably ever imagined. Agents and investors looking to play every possible angle in this market, are coming up with not-so-new schemes to defraud the banks and take advantage of their short sale processes, as well as desperate homeowners.

Here are some tips, things to look out for:

If an agent offers you a short sale in which you are going to be allowed to stay in your property as a renter, with or without the option to re-purchase your house at a later date – be very cautious.

If you are told (or suspect) that your short sale listing is not listed on MLS, or that not all offers are being presented – ask some questions.

If you are told by your real estate agent that they have an “all-cash” investor who is willing to buy your house short – beware.

If there are additional payments being made at the closing that are not on the HUD-1 settlement statement - raise an objection.

If there is any part of your agreement with the Buyer, the Agent, the lender, appraiser or title company that is not being fully disclosed to the lender who is taking the short payoff – you may be involved in a short sale scam.

Like most of these sorts of deceitful practices, these new short sale scams seem harmless, and are easily justified by the homeowner who feels like they’ve been cornered by the lender, with few good options left. And some of these “omissions” or side-deals seem to be victimless crimes (like lying on the loan application). Just be aware, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

My advice: Get some good advice. Talk to more than one professional when you are considering your options. Talk to an attorney for sure (I know a reputable RE attorney who will do a consult for a very reasonable flat fee). Don’t do anything that could come back to haunt you!

Short Sale Alternatives

Tom Schieber — Mon, 10 May 2010 03:05:01 +0000

Call me today to discuss how you can stop foreclosure on your home with the direct assignment method. This may be a viable foreclosure alternative for you if your home is in default and headed to foreclosure or if you are tired of waiting for the bank to approve your short sale.

With a direct assignment, you can potentially avoid the time, hassle and uncertainty associated with a short sale. These guys have a 95% success rate, and can get you out of the deal in as little as seven days. It worth discussing for sure.