http://landparkblog.com/ Sacramento short sale agent shares observations about Land Park real estate and the great Sacramento market, plus real estate tips about home buying & selling, short sales, REOs and foreclosures, real estate agents, mortgages, offer negotiations, home staging, home inspections, home disclosures, investment properties, market facts and trends, and whatever else is on my mind. en-us http://landparkblog.com/post/2803649/something-old-and-something-new <p><strong>I'm not afraid to say it.</strong> I hate sports. On the other hand, I love high tech. Today will be all about sports. It's not so much that I hate sports as much as I hate the <em>sound</em> of sports. I don't mind guys running around a field in tight pants that show off their assets. It's the volume of the excitement I find objectionable. Not to mention, I was never that girl in high school who hung around jocks. I was with the guys out back of the coffeehouse passing the bong.</p> <p>Once as a teenager I attended a football game in the fall. Froze my tushie. Sat way up in the nose bleed section and let's just say I didn't feel the love. Not my thing.</p> <p><strong>We'll have the Super Bowl on TV at my house because I love my husband.</strong> He doesn't ordinarily watch sports, which is one of the reasons I married him. I might, however, watch the half-time performance of whoever is playing. See, I don't even know who that is. Isn't that pathetic? I can only hope to catch a wardrobe malfunction. That would be fun to watch. Like, what if some guy's pants fell off?</p> <p>The other thing people love to watch is the commercials, and I don't understand that. I see where sponsors were allowed to pick the quarters to buy. I figure the sponsors who chose the last quarter did so because their product appeals to people who are drunk. My husband says if the game goes is not exciting, nobody will watch the 4th quarter so those rates might be really cheap. I guess once you know who is going to win, guys can turn their attention to decking the guy next to them or hugging the toilet.</p> <p><strong>Whatever happens on TV, I can be relatively assured that my phone is unlikely to ring today.</strong> Which is too bad because I bought a brand new battery I'd like to try out. When I gave up my Blackberry of 8 years and bought my cell a few months ago, I discovered these smartphones run out of battery juice faster than my BlackBerry. Even though I turn off WiFi and set my screen to go dark after 15 seconds, I talk too much apparently.</p> <p><strong>Every day around 4 PM, my battery about dies.</strong> I can deal with my Bluetooth going out because I have 4 of those. I simply exchange out my Jawbone. But I'm not always near my charger for my phone. As a <a href="http://elizabethweintraub.com" title="sacramento short sale agent">Sacramento short sale agent</a>, you can imagine that I'm on the phone a lot. It's my lifeline to my clients and the short sale banks. If I'm not talking, I'm texting or emailing on my phone.</p> <p><strong>What I didn't know is they make an extended life battery.</strong> I bought a 3500MAH battery. It's supposed to double the life of my battery. It even arrived with its own back cover for my cell. My phone is a teensy bit thicker now. But who cares? The downside is I can't find a body glove or case for this size Samsung Galaxy. I care about that a lot more than who wins the Super Bowl. If I drop my phone and it shatters, I'm out of business. The Super Bowl winner outcome? Not so much.</p><div class="agent_signature"> <p><img title="sacramento short sale agent" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/8/2/8/6/7/ar12506909376828.PNG" height="43" alt="sacramento short sale agent" width="230"><img title="certified hafa specialist" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/8/8/4/3/4/ar12997948843488.jpg" height="49" alt="cerfified hafa specialist" width="50"></p> <p>---</p> <p>Certified HAFA Specialist</p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://www.zillow.com/profile/elizabeth_weintraub/Reviews/?scrnnm=elizabeth_weintraub"><img src="http://www.zillowstatic.com/static/images/badges/5star-agent-h.png" alt="Elizabeth Weintraub reviews"></a> <span> My <a href="http://www.zillow.com/homes/for_sale/Sacramento-County-CA/577944_agent_list/1_fr?scrnnm=elizabeth_weintraub">Sacramento Real Estate</a> Listings </span></p> <p><em><a href="http://elizabethweintraub.com/" title="land park agent">Elizabeth Weintraub</a> is an author, <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/" title="home buying and selling">home buying</a> columnist for The New York Times-owned About.com, a Land Park resident, and a Land Park real estate agent who specializes in older, classic <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/marketfactstrends/ig/Land-Park-Homes/" title="homes in land park">homes in Land Park</a>, Curtis Park, Midtown and <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/marketfactstrends/ig/East-Sacramento-Homes/" title="homes in east sacramento">East Sacramento</a>. Weintraub is also a <a href="http://shortsaleagentsacramento.com/" title="short sale agent sacramento">Sacramento Short Sale agent</a> who lists and successfully sells short sales throughout the four-county Sacramento area. Call Elizabeth Weintraub at 916.233.6759. Put 35 years of real estate experience to work for you. Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate. DRE License # 00697006.<br><br><strong><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Short-Sale-Savior-Elizabeth-Weintraub/dp/1574723766/re" title="The Short Sale Savior">The Short Sale Savior,</a> by Elizabeth Weintraub, available at Amazon.com.</strong></em></p> <p><span><span><span>Lyon Real Estate is not associated with the government, and our service is not approved by the government or your lender. Even if you accept this offer and use our service, your lender may not agree to change your loan.</span></span></span></p> <p>Photo: Unless otherwise noted in this blog, the photo is copyrighted by Big Stock Photo and used with permission.</p> <p>The views expressed herein are Weintraub's personal views and do not reflect the views of Lyon Real Estate.</p> <p><span>Disclaimer: If this post contains a listing, information is deemed reliable as of the date it was written. After that date, the listing may be sold, listed by another brokerage, canceled, pending or taken temporarily off the market, and the price could change without notice. It could blow up, explode or vanish. To find out the present status of any listing, please go to elizabethweintraub.com.</span></p> <p> </p> </div> Elizabeth Weintraub, Sacramento Short Sale Agent, Land Park, #00697006 Lyon RE (Lyon Real Estate #00697006) Sun, 05 Feb 2012 10:49:29 -0500 http://landparkblog.com/post/2803649/something-old-and-something-new http://landparkblog.com/post/2799984/before-you-hire-a-remax-agent-to-do-a-dts-cooperative-short-sale-with-bank-of-america <p><strong>As the hot-to-trot little <a href="http://elizabethweintraub.com" title="sacramento short sale agent">Sacramento short sale agent</a> that I am, I listed a couple more short sales yesterday.</strong> One of those is a <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/shortsale/qt/How-To-Apply-For-A-Bank-Of-America-Cooperative-Short-Sale.htm" title="cooperative short sale">Cooperative Short Sale</a> with Bank of America. The thing about this short sale home is it is owned by a lawyer. A lawyer who is sharp enough to hire the best short sale agent she could find and not the agent who Bank of America recommended. She likes my 30-plus years of experience, and she appreciates the fact that I am the <a href="http://activerain.com/blogsview/2795322/my-once-in-a-lifetime-achievement" title="#1 Agent at Lyon Real Estate">#1 Agent at Lyon Real Estate</a> for last month.</p> <p><strong>I'm not saying that Bank of America is paying extra money to other brokerages</strong> with whom they are <span>in cahoots </span>affiliated, but let's just say that Bank of America doesn't do anything that is not beneficial to Bank of America. That's because Bank of America is a corporation. Corporations exist to turn a profit. Sole reason. Clear disclosure: I hold stock in Bank of America.</p> <p><strong>But Bank of America is not a short sale seller's friend.</strong> Those days of bankers being your friend and helping you are over. It's YOU vs. Bank of America. Bank of America is working with DTS, Digital Transfer Solutions, to do Cooperative Short Sales in Sacramento, and in other cities. A Cooperative Short Sale means no real qualification on the part of the seller. You don't have to write a <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/shortsale/qt/How-To-Write-A-Hardship-Letter.htm" title="hardship letter">hardship letter</a>. And the bank gives you $2,500 at closing. How sweet is that?</p> <p><strong>The lawyer homeowner I met with had Googled the ReMAX agent whom Bank of America had referred to her.</strong> She said the guy had only 2 years in real estate. She had a conversation with the ReMAX agent. He could not answer her <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/shortsale/f/Top-10-Frequently-Asked-Questions-About-Short-Sales.htm" title="questions about a short sale">questions about a short sale</a>. On top of that, he pressured her about her obligation to Bank of America. She said he acted as though he was a collection agent for Bank of America -- and maybe that's how DTS trains them, if they train them at all, hard to say. But that's not what a short sale agent does.</p> <p><strong>A short sale agent is supposed to have a fiduciary relationship with the seller.</strong> The short sale agent represents the seller, not the bank. If you want your Cooperative Short Sale to close smoothly and without complications, you better hire an experienced Sacramento short sale agent to do it. Especially a short sale agent who has closed other Cooperative Short Sales.</p> <p>Don't sell yourself short. The bank has already done that scenario for you.</p><div class="agent_signature"> <p><img title="sacramento short sale agent" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/8/2/8/6/7/ar12506909376828.PNG" height="43" alt="sacramento short sale agent" width="230"><img title="certified hafa specialist" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/8/8/4/3/4/ar12997948843488.jpg" height="49" alt="cerfified hafa specialist" width="50"></p> <p>---</p> <p>Certified HAFA Specialist</p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://www.zillow.com/profile/elizabeth_weintraub/Reviews/?scrnnm=elizabeth_weintraub"><img src="http://www.zillowstatic.com/static/images/badges/5star-agent-h.png" alt="Elizabeth Weintraub reviews"></a> <span> My <a href="http://www.zillow.com/homes/for_sale/Sacramento-County-CA/577944_agent_list/1_fr?scrnnm=elizabeth_weintraub">Sacramento Real Estate</a> Listings </span></p> <p><em><a href="http://elizabethweintraub.com/" title="land park agent">Elizabeth Weintraub</a> is an author, <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/" title="home buying and selling">home buying</a> columnist for The New York Times-owned About.com, a Land Park resident, and a Land Park real estate agent who specializes in older, classic <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/marketfactstrends/ig/Land-Park-Homes/" title="homes in land park">homes in Land Park</a>, Curtis Park, Midtown and <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/marketfactstrends/ig/East-Sacramento-Homes/" title="homes in east sacramento">East Sacramento</a>. Weintraub is also a <a href="http://shortsaleagentsacramento.com/" title="short sale agent sacramento">Sacramento Short Sale agent</a> who lists and successfully sells short sales throughout the four-county Sacramento area. Call Elizabeth Weintraub at 916.233.6759. Put 35 years of real estate experience to work for you. Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate. DRE License # 00697006.<br><br><strong><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Short-Sale-Savior-Elizabeth-Weintraub/dp/1574723766/re" title="The Short Sale Savior">The Short Sale Savior,</a> by Elizabeth Weintraub, available at Amazon.com.</strong></em></p> <p><span><span><span>Lyon Real Estate is not associated with the government, and our service is not approved by the government or your lender. Even if you accept this offer and use our service, your lender may not agree to change your loan.</span></span></span></p> <p>Photo: Unless otherwise noted in this blog, the photo is copyrighted by Big Stock Photo and used with permission.</p> <p>The views expressed herein are Weintraub's personal views and do not reflect the views of Lyon Real Estate.</p> <p><span>Disclaimer: If this post contains a listing, information is deemed reliable as of the date it was written. After that date, the listing may be sold, listed by another brokerage, canceled, pending or taken temporarily off the market, and the price could change without notice. It could blow up, explode or vanish. To find out the present status of any listing, please go to elizabethweintraub.com.</span></p> <p> </p> </div> Elizabeth Weintraub, Sacramento Short Sale Agent, Land Park, #00697006 Lyon RE (Lyon Real Estate #00697006) Sat, 04 Feb 2012 10:58:27 -0500 http://landparkblog.com/post/2799984/before-you-hire-a-remax-agent-to-do-a-dts-cooperative-short-sale-with-bank-of-america http://landparkblog.com/post/2795322/my-once-in-a-lifetime-achievement <p><strong>I finally accomplished a feat that ended up achieving a goal I didn't create.</strong> While I like competition as much as the next guy -- after all, I am a <a href="http://elizabethweintraub.com" title="sacramento short sale agent">Sacramento short sale agent</a> which, by its very nature, should make me somewhat competitive -- I am not driven by competition. I don't have to be <em>better</em> than anybody else, I just have to make more money, haha.</p> <p><strong>Seriously, though, given a choice between celebrity status or being stinkin' rich, I'll take the money.</strong> Haven't you ever had discussions like that? Well, I did, when I was younger. Before the days of Paris Hilton and the Kardashians. Back when being a celebrity meant you had actually accomplished something, because being a famous person meant one possessed a talent that was recognized. I've never fully understood why anybody would want to be famous, though.</p> <p><strong>Famous people get mugged, strangers clamor for autographs.</strong> Paparazzi hound them to death. Look what happened to Lady Diana. You have no privacy. Photographers with long lenses take photos of you half nude on the beach. You can't ever let your hair down and just be yourself because sure as crap you'll screw up, say something that is not PC, and the media will blast you to smithereens. No thanks.</p> <p><strong>I know there are people who think I am a celebrity.</strong> I get the biggest kick out of those people. I'm just a writer who writes about <a href="http://homebuying.about.com" title="homebuying">homebuying</a> for the New York Times' website About.com. I've been in real estate for so long that my longevity makes me an expert. I don't consider myself a celebrity. I sell real estate in Sacramento. For the past 6 or 7 years, I've been specializing in <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/4closureshortsales/a/shortsalebasics.htm" title="short sales">short sales</a>, and I've gotten pretty good at it. So, my goal was to earn Master's Club status in the first 30 days of the year. Just to see if I could do it.</p> <p><strong>Sure enough, this January, I did it.</strong> When I first earned this status years ago, it took me almost a year to meet the requirements. But now I am a Life Member of Master's Club. And in the first 30 days of January, I met the qualifications for 2012. Not only that, but the unexpected benefit is I am also the #1 Top Producer Agent for Lyon Real Estate in January 2012. We have almost 900 agents at Lyon. This is a huge deal.</p> <p><strong>I don't have a big team.</strong> I'm not an REO agent churning dozens of homes, hand over fist. I simply keep my nose to the grindstone, and keep listing and closing those Sacramento short sales. But now that I made Master's Club in January, I'll have to come up with a new goal to achieve. Well, being the #1 Agent at Lyon is nothing to sneeze at, either. But I doubt I'll earn Master's Club status next January. I suspect this was a lucky fluke. I had closings rollover from December.</p><div class="agent_signature"> <p><img title="sacramento short sale agent" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/8/2/8/6/7/ar12506909376828.PNG" height="43" alt="sacramento short sale agent" width="230"><img title="certified hafa specialist" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/8/8/4/3/4/ar12997948843488.jpg" height="49" alt="cerfified hafa specialist" width="50"></p> <p>---</p> <p>Certified HAFA Specialist</p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://www.zillow.com/profile/elizabeth_weintraub/Reviews/?scrnnm=elizabeth_weintraub"><img src="http://www.zillowstatic.com/static/images/badges/5star-agent-h.png" alt="Elizabeth Weintraub reviews"></a> <span> My <a href="http://www.zillow.com/homes/for_sale/Sacramento-County-CA/577944_agent_list/1_fr?scrnnm=elizabeth_weintraub">Sacramento Real Estate</a> Listings </span></p> <p><em><a href="http://elizabethweintraub.com/" title="land park agent">Elizabeth Weintraub</a> is an author, <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/" title="home buying and selling">home buying</a> columnist for The New York Times-owned About.com, a Land Park resident, and a Land Park real estate agent who specializes in older, classic <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/marketfactstrends/ig/Land-Park-Homes/" title="homes in land park">homes in Land Park</a>, Curtis Park, Midtown and <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/marketfactstrends/ig/East-Sacramento-Homes/" title="homes in east sacramento">East Sacramento</a>. Weintraub is also a <a href="http://shortsaleagentsacramento.com/" title="short sale agent sacramento">Sacramento Short Sale agent</a> who lists and successfully sells short sales throughout the four-county Sacramento area. Call Elizabeth Weintraub at 916.233.6759. Put 35 years of real estate experience to work for you. Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate. DRE License # 00697006.<br><br><strong><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Short-Sale-Savior-Elizabeth-Weintraub/dp/1574723766/re" title="The Short Sale Savior">The Short Sale Savior,</a> by Elizabeth Weintraub, available at Amazon.com.</strong></em></p> <p><span><span><span>Lyon Real Estate is not associated with the government, and our service is not approved by the government or your lender. Even if you accept this offer and use our service, your lender may not agree to change your loan.</span></span></span></p> <p>Photo: Unless otherwise noted in this blog, the photo is copyrighted by Big Stock Photo and used with permission.</p> <p>The views expressed herein are Weintraub's personal views and do not reflect the views of Lyon Real Estate.</p> <p><span>Disclaimer: If this post contains a listing, information is deemed reliable as of the date it was written. After that date, the listing may be sold, listed by another brokerage, canceled, pending or taken temporarily off the market, and the price could change without notice. It could blow up, explode or vanish. To find out the present status of any listing, please go to elizabethweintraub.com.</span></p> <p> </p> </div> Elizabeth Weintraub, Sacramento Short Sale Agent, Land Park, #00697006 Lyon RE (Lyon Real Estate #00697006) Fri, 03 Feb 2012 09:36:54 -0500 http://landparkblog.com/post/2795322/my-once-in-a-lifetime-achievement http://landparkblog.com/post/2790740/just-because-wells-fargo-has-a-small-title-company-doesn-t-mean-it-should-use-it <p><strong>This is not the first time it has happened.</strong> Unfortunately, it won't be the last. And it wouldn't be nearly so much fun if every time I called the Wells Fargo office in Des Moines I wasn't disconnected after holding. <em>If you don't know your party's extension, press 2.</em> And you're zapped into voice mail hell or hung up on -- one or the other.</p> <p><strong>But I stop to consider the fact those employees at Wells Fargo in Des Moines had to get out of bed in Des Moines.</strong> I try to have empathy for them. It's 28 degrees in Des Moines this morning. Probably has snow on the ground. I'm a <a href="http://elizabethweintraub.com" title="short sale agent in sacramento">short sale agent in Sacramento,</a> typing at my keyboard in my robe. Our high today will be in the 60s. I can be compassionate.</p> <p><strong>The problem started a few weeks back when we received <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/shortsale/f/42309_Waiting-for-Short-Sale-Offer-Approval.htm" title="short sale approval">short sale approval</a> from the first lender at Wells Fargo.</strong> We have been waiting for the approval from the second lender and kept getting the run around. Wells Fargo said it had a title issue it was working on. I kept asking for clarity and an explanation. Finally, a negotiator disclosed there was a third <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/marketfactstrends/qt/111307_DofTrust.htm" title="deed of trust">deed of trust</a> showing up in their search. He told us Wells Fargo had ordered the <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/glossaryqr/g/Reconveyance.htm" title="reconveyance">reconveyance</a> and had sent the reconveyance last December to a lawyer in California to record.</p> <p><strong>Why did he think this even though it wasn't true?</strong> Because Wells Fargo owns a small title company that couldn't find its plant with two flashlights and a map. Of course, in California, we pull a preliminary title report on every file. Our prelim did not reflect a third deed of trust. We ordered the recon from Placer Title and sent it to Wells Fargo. The problem was Wells Fargo did not understand that our recons in California do not contain the name of the beneficiary.</p> <p><strong>There are 3 parties to a deed of trust</strong>. You've got your trustor (the borrower), the beneficiary (the lender) and the trustee (with power of sale). The reconveyance references the Book and Page number of the original deed of trust that it reconveys. Since the recon did not name the third lender in big fat bold letters, Wells Fargo ignored the recon.</p> <p>Now, right here, you've got to wonder what kind of lawyer Wells Fargo employs in California. What kind of lawyer would receive a document for recordation in December and, come February, still not record it? I'd say it's the kind of lawyer who is lying on the beach somewhere in Hawaii or maybe scooting around in a golf cart in Arizona.</p> <p><strong>I obtained a copy of the original deed of trust, packaged it with the preliminary title report and the recorded reconveyance and sent it to Wells Fargo.</strong> Followed up a week later, and still received the same message. <em>Yup, the recon was sent to California for recordation.</em> Makes you wanna grab the guy by his tie and pull his face up close to yours so you can stare into those beady little vacant eyes and beat him on the head with your shoe.</p> <p>Which is what I did yesterday. This morning when I called the supervisor at 6 AM, she told me the issue had finally been resolved and the file is now moving forward for approval. Ya gotta love a Wells Fargo short sale.</p><div class="agent_signature"> <p><img title="sacramento short sale agent" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/8/2/8/6/7/ar12506909376828.PNG" height="43" alt="sacramento short sale agent" width="230"><img title="certified hafa specialist" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/8/8/4/3/4/ar12997948843488.jpg" height="49" alt="cerfified hafa specialist" width="50"></p> <p>---</p> <p>Certified HAFA Specialist</p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://www.zillow.com/profile/elizabeth_weintraub/Reviews/?scrnnm=elizabeth_weintraub"><img src="http://www.zillowstatic.com/static/images/badges/5star-agent-h.png" alt="Elizabeth Weintraub reviews"></a> <span> My <a href="http://www.zillow.com/homes/for_sale/Sacramento-County-CA/577944_agent_list/1_fr?scrnnm=elizabeth_weintraub">Sacramento Real Estate</a> Listings </span></p> <p><em><a href="http://elizabethweintraub.com/" title="land park agent">Elizabeth Weintraub</a> is an author, <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/" title="home buying and selling">home buying</a> columnist for The New York Times-owned About.com, a Land Park resident, and a Land Park real estate agent who specializes in older, classic <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/marketfactstrends/ig/Land-Park-Homes/" title="homes in land park">homes in Land Park</a>, Curtis Park, Midtown and <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/marketfactstrends/ig/East-Sacramento-Homes/" title="homes in east sacramento">East Sacramento</a>. Weintraub is also a <a href="http://shortsaleagentsacramento.com/" title="short sale agent sacramento">Sacramento Short Sale agent</a> who lists and successfully sells short sales throughout the four-county Sacramento area. Call Elizabeth Weintraub at 916.233.6759. Put 35 years of real estate experience to work for you. Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate. DRE License # 00697006.<br><br><strong><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Short-Sale-Savior-Elizabeth-Weintraub/dp/1574723766/re" title="The Short Sale Savior">The Short Sale Savior,</a> by Elizabeth Weintraub, available at Amazon.com.</strong></em></p> <p><span><span><span>Lyon Real Estate is not associated with the government, and our service is not approved by the government or your lender. Even if you accept this offer and use our service, your lender may not agree to change your loan.</span></span></span></p> <p>Photo: Unless otherwise noted in this blog, the photo is copyrighted by Big Stock Photo and used with permission.</p> <p>The views expressed herein are Weintraub's personal views and do not reflect the views of Lyon Real Estate.</p> <p><span>Disclaimer: If this post contains a listing, information is deemed reliable as of the date it was written. After that date, the listing may be sold, listed by another brokerage, canceled, pending or taken temporarily off the market, and the price could change without notice. It could blow up, explode or vanish. To find out the present status of any listing, please go to elizabethweintraub.com.</span></p> <p> </p> </div> Elizabeth Weintraub, Sacramento Short Sale Agent, Land Park, #00697006 Lyon RE (Lyon Real Estate #00697006) Thu, 02 Feb 2012 10:07:28 -0500 http://landparkblog.com/post/2790740/just-because-wells-fargo-has-a-small-title-company-doesn-t-mean-it-should-use-it http://landparkblog.com/post/2724076/what-do-you-do-when-that-bpo-on-your-short-sale-comes-in-too-high- <p><strong>Whenever I list a short sale in the Sacramento area, I run the comparable sales two different ways.</strong> And I often get two different answers. When that happens, I know I might have a problem with the <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/glossaryb/g/100109_BPO.htm" title="bpo">BPO</a>. That's because it's tough to say which way of running the comps a BPO agent might use. I can tell you there is not enough money in doing a BPO for a BPO agent to run the comps more than one way.</p> <p><strong>So, the question is which do they use?</strong> You can't second-guess that. But if I were to guess, I'd say they take the path of least resistance. The easiest way to run the comps is to go to Realist and click on the button that says run the comps. You don't even have to delete homes if you're too lazy to remove the ones that don't belong in the neighborhood. You can just leave them all there and click "generate comps report."</p> <p>The program will automatically pull the last 20 sales and average the <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/marketfactstrends/f/062408_persqft.htm" title="per square foot">per-square-foot</a> cost based on the subject property. It's not the most ideal way to look at comparable sales, but it is one method. It's also fast. If you're lucky, you'll find homes on the same street and maybe even with the same square footage. You can hit pay dirt that way. But if you're <em>not</em> lucky, this down-and-dirty way to analyze the comps is crap. Or, a BPO agent can search within a 1/4- to 1/2-mile radius of the property, but that method can overlap neighborhoods and boundary lines.</p> <p><strong>A better way, of course, is to run a map search of the neighborhood and narrow the results.</strong> Look only at homes of similar size, condition and configuration. That type of analyzation will tell you how much a buyer is likely to pay. But it is unlikely to be the way the BPO agent will pull the comps. And therein lies the problem. So, what do you do when the BPO is out of whack?</p> <p><strong>A <a href="http://elizabethweintraub.com" title="sacramento short sale agent">Sacramento short sale agent</a> can disagree with the BPO agent</strong> and submit her own comps, along with an explanation. Sometimes, that's enough to get the bank to agree to consider the buyer's offer.</p> <p><strong>A buyer can increase her price slightly</strong> but not all the way to the amount the bank demands. Just so you know, banks don't always ask for the amount of the BPO. Sometimes, banks ask for <strong>more</strong> in the event of negotiation, and sometimes they ask for more just for the hell of it, so they can they show the investor they tried.</p> <p><strong>A buyer can pay for her own appraisal</strong> and submit it to the short sale bank. She might end up paying for two appraisals because her own bank will probably use a different appraiser.</p> <p><strong>Or, a buyer can agree to the bank's demands</strong>, wait for the <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/shortsale/qt/What-Is-A-Short-Sale-Approval-Letter.htm" title="short sale approval letter">short sale approval letter</a>, and then take her chances with her own bank's appraiser. If that bank appraises the home for less, then the buyer can petition the short sale bank for a price reduction. The bank will agree because if it disagrees, and the home is sold to somebody else, that next buyer will probably get the same appraisal.</p> <p>If you choose the last option to fight that over-inflated BPO, here's a tip: Study the pending sales. Those pending sales will become your comps. And remember, the old comps will go away if they sold more than 3 months ago. If you are near the end of the month when this happens, that time can be in your favor.</p><div class="agent_signature"> <p><img title="sacramento short sale agent" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/8/2/8/6/7/ar12506909376828.PNG" height="43" alt="sacramento short sale agent" width="230"><img title="certified hafa specialist" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/8/8/4/3/4/ar12997948843488.jpg" height="49" alt="cerfified hafa specialist" width="50"></p> <p>---</p> <p>Certified HAFA Specialist</p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://www.zillow.com/profile/elizabeth_weintraub/Reviews/?scrnnm=elizabeth_weintraub"><img src="http://www.zillowstatic.com/static/images/badges/5star-agent-h.png" alt="Elizabeth Weintraub reviews"></a> <span> My <a href="http://www.zillow.com/homes/for_sale/Sacramento-County-CA/577944_agent_list/1_fr?scrnnm=elizabeth_weintraub">Sacramento Real Estate</a> Listings </span></p> <p><em><a href="http://elizabethweintraub.com/" title="land park agent">Elizabeth Weintraub</a> is an author, <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/" title="home buying and selling">home buying</a> columnist for The New York Times-owned About.com, a Land Park resident, and a Land Park real estate agent who specializes in older, classic <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/marketfactstrends/ig/Land-Park-Homes/" title="homes in land park">homes in Land Park</a>, Curtis Park, Midtown and <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/marketfactstrends/ig/East-Sacramento-Homes/" title="homes in east sacramento">East Sacramento</a>. Weintraub is also a <a href="http://shortsaleagentsacramento.com/" title="short sale agent sacramento">Sacramento Short Sale agent</a> who lists and successfully sells short sales throughout the four-county Sacramento area. Call Elizabeth Weintraub at 916.233.6759. Put 35 years of real estate experience to work for you. Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate. DRE License # 00697006.<br><br><strong><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Short-Sale-Savior-Elizabeth-Weintraub/dp/1574723766/re" title="The Short Sale Savior">The Short Sale Savior,</a> by Elizabeth Weintraub, available at Amazon.com.</strong></em></p> <p><span><span><span>Lyon Real Estate is not associated with the government, and our service is not approved by the government or your lender. Even if you accept this offer and use our service, your lender may not agree to change your loan.</span></span></span></p> <p>Photo: Unless otherwise noted in this blog, the photo is copyrighted by Big Stock Photo and used with permission.</p> <p>The views expressed herein are Weintraub's personal views and do not reflect the views of Lyon Real Estate.</p> <p><span>Disclaimer: If this post contains a listing, information is deemed reliable as of the date it was written. After that date, the listing may be sold, listed by another brokerage, canceled, pending or taken temporarily off the market, and the price could change without notice. It could blow up, explode or vanish. To find out the present status of any listing, please go to elizabethweintraub.com.</span></p> <p> </p> </div> Elizabeth Weintraub, Sacramento Short Sale Agent, Land Park, #00697006 Lyon RE (Lyon Real Estate #00697006) Mon, 16 Jan 2012 11:04:46 -0500 http://landparkblog.com/post/2724076/what-do-you-do-when-that-bpo-on-your-short-sale-comes-in-too-high- http://landparkblog.com/post/2786046/proof-that-bank-of-america-listens-to-short-sale-agents <p><strong>If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem.</strong> There is very little in between. Especially when it comes to short sales. As a <a href="http://elizabethweintraub.com" title="sacramento short sale agent">Sacramento short sale agent</a>, I close a lot of short sales. Our market is inundated with short sales. I've been specializing in short sales for 6 or 7 years now. As a result, I close a lot of <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/shortsale/qt/061710-Bank-of-America-Short-Sales.htm" title="bank of america short sales">Bank of America short sales</a>.</p> <p>In fact, I am very familiar with how Bank of America processes its short sales. I do whatever it takes to help Bank of America. Not because I am a stockholder and not because I have any great affinity for big banks but because helping Bank of America helps my clients. It helps my clients to close escrow.</p> <p><strong>When I receive a survey from Bank of America, I complete it and return it</strong>. Because if I don't, I'm not helping anybody. And there is no way I want to be part of the problem. I am greatly amused at the way Bank of America structures its surveys. It removes much of the feedback that could be helpful; it's geared toward positive comments. But I don't complain because up until lately I haven't had very many Bank of America short sale rejected.</p> <p>Last month I had 2 Bank of America short sales declined because the sellers were current. That was unusual. But what was odder was there was no place on the survey form to check a bullet point that explained why. Being current on the mortgage was not an option for rejection. Neither was there an option for the <span>number reason for a declined file -- the mere fact the buyer got tired of waiting for approval and split.</span></p> <p>I mentioned that fault in the comments at the end of the survey. Sure enough, the next survey received listed 10 or 12 possible reasons for rejection instead of four. I was elated. Bank of America listened.</p> <p><strong>Then, yesterday, I discussed a common problem with a representative from the Bank of America Social Media Team.</strong> That's because I had to escalate a <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/shortsale/qt/Hafa-Short-Sale-Program.htm" title="hafa short sale">HAFA short sale</a> file that is presently with UTLS. The negotiator was playing the <a href="http://activerain.com/blogsview/2508635/here-are-some-of-the-problems-with-ams-and-bank-of-america-preapproved-hafa-short-sales" title="hud game short sale">HUD game</a>. This is when the negotiator picks up the file to find one small fault so she can send an email about it and go back to watching General Hospital on her cell phone.</p> <p>The latest demand was to change the property tax proration by 5 cents to match the tax proration on the worksheet. The representative from Bank of America said she would note this procedure and try to get it changed. She agreed that the negotiator should review the entire file and not piecemeal corrections. The bigger problem with this particular short sale is the <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/glossaryb/g/100109_BPO.htm" title="bpo">BPO</a> had expired and nobody at UTLS noticed it. It expired quite a while ago.</p> <p>No sooner did I hang up the phone than I received a ding in my email from Bank of America. It had changed the worksheet counter by increasing the sales price. The negotiator based it on the existing BPO and market conditions, he said. What? The market in Sacramento is falling. Just then my phone rang. Before I could fire off an email message, it was the negotiator saying he simply wanted to keep the file active and not let it decline. I could reject the worksheet and counter, which I did.</p> <p><strong>I have great hopes that we'll see more improvement at Bank of America.</strong> Now, if we can just get them to stop putting a hold on the initiation of Equator files for HAFA review. It promised last year to stop doing that, but I've yet to see it. I wonder how long it will continue this practice after HAFA expires in December?</p> <p> </p><div class="agent_signature"> <p><img title="sacramento short sale agent" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/8/2/8/6/7/ar12506909376828.PNG" height="43" alt="sacramento short sale agent" width="230"><img title="certified hafa specialist" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/8/8/4/3/4/ar12997948843488.jpg" height="49" alt="cerfified hafa specialist" width="50"></p> <p>---</p> <p>Certified HAFA Specialist</p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://www.zillow.com/profile/elizabeth_weintraub/Reviews/?scrnnm=elizabeth_weintraub"><img src="http://www.zillowstatic.com/static/images/badges/5star-agent-h.png" alt="Elizabeth Weintraub reviews"></a> <span> My <a href="http://www.zillow.com/homes/for_sale/Sacramento-County-CA/577944_agent_list/1_fr?scrnnm=elizabeth_weintraub">Sacramento Real Estate</a> Listings </span></p> <p><em><a href="http://elizabethweintraub.com/" title="land park agent">Elizabeth Weintraub</a> is an author, <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/" title="home buying and selling">home buying</a> columnist for The New York Times-owned About.com, a Land Park resident, and a Land Park real estate agent who specializes in older, classic <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/marketfactstrends/ig/Land-Park-Homes/" title="homes in land park">homes in Land Park</a>, Curtis Park, Midtown and <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/marketfactstrends/ig/East-Sacramento-Homes/" title="homes in east sacramento">East Sacramento</a>. Weintraub is also a <a href="http://shortsaleagentsacramento.com/" title="short sale agent sacramento">Sacramento Short Sale agent</a> who lists and successfully sells short sales throughout the four-county Sacramento area. Call Elizabeth Weintraub at 916.233.6759. Put 35 years of real estate experience to work for you. Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate. DRE License # 00697006.<br><br><strong><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Short-Sale-Savior-Elizabeth-Weintraub/dp/1574723766/re" title="The Short Sale Savior">The Short Sale Savior,</a> by Elizabeth Weintraub, available at Amazon.com.</strong></em></p> <p><span><span><span>Lyon Real Estate is not associated with the government, and our service is not approved by the government or your lender. Even if you accept this offer and use our service, your lender may not agree to change your loan.</span></span></span></p> <p>Photo: Unless otherwise noted in this blog, the photo is copyrighted by Big Stock Photo and used with permission.</p> <p>The views expressed herein are Weintraub's personal views and do not reflect the views of Lyon Real Estate.</p> <p><span>Disclaimer: If this post contains a listing, information is deemed reliable as of the date it was written. After that date, the listing may be sold, listed by another brokerage, canceled, pending or taken temporarily off the market, and the price could change without notice. It could blow up, explode or vanish. To find out the present status of any listing, please go to elizabethweintraub.com.</span></p> <p> </p> </div> Elizabeth Weintraub, Sacramento Short Sale Agent, Land Park, #00697006 Lyon RE (Lyon Real Estate #00697006) Wed, 01 Feb 2012 09:04:47 -0500 http://landparkblog.com/post/2786046/proof-that-bank-of-america-listens-to-short-sale-agents http://landparkblog.com/post/2781905/you-can-t-stop-people-from-killing-themselves <p><strong>You can't stop people from killing themselves.</strong> I'm not going all <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Kevorkian" title="kevorkian">Kevorkian</a> here. I'm actually thinking about the story in the Sacramento Bee this morning about protecting people from themselves.</p> <p>Not to try to understand how newspapers work, but I imagine the Sac Bee had an editorial meeting about how to run the story about preventing people from killing themselves at railroad crossings. We had a tragedy at Sacramento light rail on Saturday. A family of three, including a toddler, were killed when the train struck their SUV at a railroad crossing. Authorities say the SUV driver was trying to drive around the gate arm. The family rejects this theory.</p> <p>A<strong>s a result, the Bee ran a story about <a href="http://www.sacbee.com/2012/01/31/4226735/impatient-drivers-dodge-rail-crossing.html" title="gate jumping">gate jumping</a>.</strong> The reporter who wrote the story about risk-takers who try to jump the train will now have to monitor a live chat and address community concerns. It's a touchy situation. Whether this driver was at fault doesn't negate the fact that many drivers apparently try to jump the train. Part of the solution offered is to install double gates so drivers can't get around them no matter what.</p> <p><strong>How far do we go to protect people from harming themselves?</strong> You would think a simple<strong> stop, do not cross</strong>, would do the trick. Stop in the name of love, before you break my heart. Stop, only YOU can prevent forest fires. Except today you've gotta get your smokey on to get the message across. I saw that billboard at the downtown Sacramento mall and thought, oh, give me a break. Get your smokey on? You can tell I'm an old cranky person.</p> <p><strong>Cranky enough that I don't purposely try to alienate myself when working with other people</strong>. Sometimes, I see agents sabotage their own efforts. Especially in a <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/shortsale/f/31809_SSOffers.htm" title="multiple offer">multiple-offer</a> situation. Earlier this week, I received 4 or 5 offers for a <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/4closureshortsales/a/shortsalebasics.htm" title="short sale">short sale</a>. Short sale offers carry requirements and not all of them were met. But, still, I sent every offer as it arrived to the seller, like I am required to do. If agents were testy or argumentative, I passed along that information to the seller as well.</p> <p>I believe we can protect other people only so much. Somewhere along the line people might want to take responsibility for their own actions. Sellers don't always choose the highest offer. Sellers choose the buyer and the buyer's agent with whom they want to spend 2 to 4 months in escrow.</p><div class="agent_signature"> <p><img title="sacramento short sale agent" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/8/2/8/6/7/ar12506909376828.PNG" height="43" alt="sacramento short sale agent" width="230"><img title="certified hafa specialist" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/8/8/4/3/4/ar12997948843488.jpg" height="49" alt="cerfified hafa specialist" width="50"></p> <p>---</p> <p>Certified HAFA Specialist</p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://www.zillow.com/profile/elizabeth_weintraub/Reviews/?scrnnm=elizabeth_weintraub"><img src="http://www.zillowstatic.com/static/images/badges/5star-agent-h.png" alt="Elizabeth Weintraub reviews"></a> <span> My <a href="http://www.zillow.com/homes/for_sale/Sacramento-County-CA/577944_agent_list/1_fr?scrnnm=elizabeth_weintraub">Sacramento Real Estate</a> Listings </span></p> <p><em><a href="http://elizabethweintraub.com/" title="land park agent">Elizabeth Weintraub</a> is an author, <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/" title="home buying and selling">home buying</a> columnist for The New York Times-owned About.com, a Land Park resident, and a Land Park real estate agent who specializes in older, classic <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/marketfactstrends/ig/Land-Park-Homes/" title="homes in land park">homes in Land Park</a>, Curtis Park, Midtown and <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/marketfactstrends/ig/East-Sacramento-Homes/" title="homes in east sacramento">East Sacramento</a>. Weintraub is also a <a href="http://shortsaleagentsacramento.com/" title="short sale agent sacramento">Sacramento Short Sale agent</a> who lists and successfully sells short sales throughout the four-county Sacramento area. Call Elizabeth Weintraub at 916.233.6759. Put 35 years of real estate experience to work for you. Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate. DRE License # 00697006.<br><br><strong><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Short-Sale-Savior-Elizabeth-Weintraub/dp/1574723766/re" title="The Short Sale Savior">The Short Sale Savior,</a> by Elizabeth Weintraub, available at Amazon.com.</strong></em></p> <p><span><span><span>Lyon Real Estate is not associated with the government, and our service is not approved by the government or your lender. Even if you accept this offer and use our service, your lender may not agree to change your loan.</span></span></span></p> <p>Photo: Unless otherwise noted in this blog, the photo is copyrighted by Big Stock Photo and used with permission.</p> <p>The views expressed herein are Weintraub's personal views and do not reflect the views of Lyon Real Estate.</p> <p><span>Disclaimer: If this post contains a listing, information is deemed reliable as of the date it was written. After that date, the listing may be sold, listed by another brokerage, canceled, pending or taken temporarily off the market, and the price could change without notice. It could blow up, explode or vanish. To find out the present status of any listing, please go to elizabethweintraub.com.</span></p> <p> </p> </div> Elizabeth Weintraub, Sacramento Short Sale Agent, Land Park, #00697006 Lyon RE (Lyon Real Estate #00697006) Tue, 31 Jan 2012 10:44:21 -0500 http://landparkblog.com/post/2781905/you-can-t-stop-people-from-killing-themselves http://landparkblog.com/post/2777810/should-you-sell-that-short-sale-to-an-investor-or-a-first-time-home-buyer- <p><strong>I was all primed to write about investors who are buying short sales this morning when I received an email from a buyer's agent who is representing herself.</strong> She's trying to buy a short sale in Elk Grove. I have to share this. The agent said she was withdrawing an offer she made yesterday that was too low. I had asked her to bump it up to meet the comps. She said, <em>"According to <a href="http://zillow.com" title="zillow.com">Zillow.com</a>, it is worth $XXX."</em> As a licensed real estate agent, she has world class tools at her disposal to help her to determine market value but this agent relies on a worthless website such as Zillow? See, this is part of what's wrong with the Sacramento real estate market.</p> <p><strong>The other part is our local real estate market is exploding at the moment.</strong> We've got investors and buyers fighting over the same Sacramento-area properties. The reason is simple. Investors can get positive cash flow because of today's prices and historically low interest rates. This means an investor can collect more in rent than she pays for a mortgage payment. Many renters should be home buyers because it's costing them more to rent than to own.</p> <p><strong>Much of the inventory available for sale is a short sale.</strong> As a <a href="http://elizabethweintraub.com" title="sacramento short sale agent">Sacramento short sale agent</a>, I carry a large inventory of short sale listings. My goal is to put that short sale into escrow and close it. To accomplish that goal, I help my sellers to choose the best short sale offer. Is that an offer from an investor or a home buyer, in other words, an owner occupant? Which is the best buyer?</p> <p><strong>Most of the time, sellers prefer to choose the offer from the owner occupant</strong>. Why would they do that when the investor can wait forever and the first-time home buyer typically cannot? Because there are problems with offers from investors. For starters, if the short sale home is occupied by the seller and a <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/glossaryno/g/011708_NODefaul.htm" title="notice of default">Notice of Default</a> has been filed, investor buyers must comply with the <a title="home equity sales act">Home Equity Sales Act</a>. Many of them don't and have never heard of this law. But if they don't comply, the seller can rescind the transaction 2 years later -- after the seller restores credit from the short sale.</p> <p><strong>Another problem is some investors want to hold title as an LLC</strong>, and short sale banks don't like to accept offers from an LLC. Additionally, some investors want to <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/marketfactstrends/f/090508_Flipper.htm" title="flip the property">flip the property</a>. Many <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/shortsale/qt/What-Is-A-Short-Sale-Approval-Letter.htm" title="short sale approval letters">short sale approval letters</a> restrict flipping for 90 to 120 days. If that's the goal, the buyer will cancel upon short sale approval. And not to mention, sometimes the buyer's agent is acting as principal and, when that happens, the banks don't always allow the agent to receive a commission. These types of offers magically vanish when agents discover they are stiffed.</p> <p><strong>But aside from all of that, who is more motivated to wait for short sale approval?</strong> Who is more motivated to increase the sales price if the short sale bank demands it? Who is emotionally connected to the home, enough to jump through qualifying hoops the bank throws into the air? Which type of buyer does a seller feel attracted to? Mr. Money Banks who wants to rent out his home and retire with a big, fat, 401K? Or, Miss FHA first-time home buyer?</p> <p>I'm not even going to talk about the investor who is trying to cancel one of my short sales because another came back on the market that caught his eye . . .</p><div class="agent_signature"> <p><img title="sacramento short sale agent" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/8/2/8/6/7/ar12506909376828.PNG" height="43" alt="sacramento short sale agent" width="230"><img title="certified hafa specialist" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/8/8/4/3/4/ar12997948843488.jpg" height="49" alt="cerfified hafa specialist" width="50"></p> <p>---</p> <p>Certified HAFA Specialist</p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://www.zillow.com/profile/elizabeth_weintraub/Reviews/?scrnnm=elizabeth_weintraub"><img src="http://www.zillowstatic.com/static/images/badges/5star-agent-h.png" alt="Elizabeth Weintraub reviews"></a> <span> My <a href="http://www.zillow.com/homes/for_sale/Sacramento-County-CA/577944_agent_list/1_fr?scrnnm=elizabeth_weintraub">Sacramento Real Estate</a> Listings </span></p> <p><em><a href="http://elizabethweintraub.com/" title="land park agent">Elizabeth Weintraub</a> is an author, <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/" title="home buying and selling">home buying</a> columnist for The New York Times-owned About.com, a Land Park resident, and a Land Park real estate agent who specializes in older, classic <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/marketfactstrends/ig/Land-Park-Homes/" title="homes in land park">homes in Land Park</a>, Curtis Park, Midtown and <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/marketfactstrends/ig/East-Sacramento-Homes/" title="homes in east sacramento">East Sacramento</a>. Weintraub is also a <a href="http://shortsaleagentsacramento.com/" title="short sale agent sacramento">Sacramento Short Sale agent</a> who lists and successfully sells short sales throughout the four-county Sacramento area. Call Elizabeth Weintraub at 916.233.6759. Put 35 years of real estate experience to work for you. Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate. DRE License # 00697006.<br><br><strong><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Short-Sale-Savior-Elizabeth-Weintraub/dp/1574723766/re" title="The Short Sale Savior">The Short Sale Savior,</a> by Elizabeth Weintraub, available at Amazon.com.</strong></em></p> <p><span><span><span>Lyon Real Estate is not associated with the government, and our service is not approved by the government or your lender. Even if you accept this offer and use our service, your lender may not agree to change your loan.</span></span></span></p> <p>Photo: Unless otherwise noted in this blog, the photo is copyrighted by Big Stock Photo and used with permission.</p> <p>The views expressed herein are Weintraub's personal views and do not reflect the views of Lyon Real Estate.</p> <p><span>Disclaimer: If this post contains a listing, information is deemed reliable as of the date it was written. After that date, the listing may be sold, listed by another brokerage, canceled, pending or taken temporarily off the market, and the price could change without notice. It could blow up, explode or vanish. To find out the present status of any listing, please go to elizabethweintraub.com.</span></p> <p> </p> </div> Elizabeth Weintraub, Sacramento Short Sale Agent, Land Park, #00697006 Lyon RE (Lyon Real Estate #00697006) Mon, 30 Jan 2012 10:29:53 -0500 http://landparkblog.com/post/2777810/should-you-sell-that-short-sale-to-an-investor-or-a-first-time-home-buyer- http://landparkblog.com/post/2774842/california-short-sale-sellers-should-check-the-tap-program-for-cash <p><strong>A producer from KCRA-TV Channel 3 is coming to my house tomorrow.</strong> She wants to film a quick news segment about <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/4closureshortsales/a/shortsalebasics.htm" title="short sales">short sales</a>. She is certainly coming to the right place. Because one of the things she wants me to talk about is the importance of hiring a short sale expert vs. a regular real estate agent. I've been mulling this over as my first inclination is to say a seller should hire a short sale specialist because we know stuff other agents don't know. Like what stuff, you might ask?</p> <p><strong>Well, yesterday a seller called me from Rocklin.</strong> He asked me questions about a <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/shortsale/qt/How-To-Apply-For-A-Bank-Of-America-Cooperative-Short-Sale.htm" title="bank of america cooperative short sale">Bank of America Cooperative Short Sale</a>. Then he asked me questions about a <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/shortsale/qt/How-To-Do-A-Fannie-Mae-Hafa-Short-Sale.htm" title="fannie mae hafa short sale">Fannie Mae HAFA short sale</a>. I answered them, and that's when I discovered he is 3 weeks away from a public auction and his home is on the market. This seller is very unhappy that his agent put him in this position because she did not have the answers he needed when he needed them.</p> <p>He said she went to a conference to get answers but returned with none. She put him in a Fannie Mae HAFA without qualifying him, and he lost a lot of time because he did not qualify from inception. He asked if I had heard of this group of real estate agents out of Elk Grove. I'll never say anything bad about another agent.  I told him he needs to talk with his agent about his problems. In fact, he should follow his agent's advice because I can't interfere (it's against the <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/realestateagents/qt/RealtorvsAgent.htm" title="code of ethics">Code of Ethics</a>) and he should try to close his escrow with his existing agent.</p> <p><strong>I believe if an agent is going to set herself out there as a <a href="http://elizabethweintraub.com" title="sacramento short sale agent">Sacramento short sale agent</a>, she should stay on top of the short sale business.</strong> She should know answers. She should be prepared to advise clients on all short sale programs. For example, sellers in California can apply for $5,000 in cash if they meet income guidelines and their lender participates. This program is the TAP, <a href="http://keepyourhomecalifornia.org/tap.htm" title="Transition Allowance Program">Transition Allowance Program</a>, and it's part of the <a href="http://keepyourhomecalifornia.org/index.htm" title="keep your home california">Keep Your Home California</a> Program. Except you don't keep your home. You sell it as a short sale.</p> <p>Some of the major lenders I've worked with who participate in this program in California are:</p> <ul> <li>CalVet (CA Department of Veteran Affairs)</li> <li>Guild Mortgage</li> <li>GMAC Mortgage</li> <li>Central Mortgage</li> <li>Everbank</li> <li>Flagstar Bank</li> <li>Saxon Bank</li> <li>US Bank</li> </ul> <p>If your household income is below $90,100, as a seller of a short sale in Sacramento County (each county has different income requirements), you might qualify for TAP. That's money that can help a seller to pay for moving expenses, a security deposit and first month's rent for a new place. The seller must occupy the present home as a principal residence, produce a documented hardship and be in imminent danger of foreclosure or in foreclosure. It's not a loan, either. It's cash in hand at closing. You can use it for anything.</p> <p>The TAP program began on February 7, 2011 and runs for 3 years. If you are in the middle of a short sale in Sacramento and you qualify for this program, you should contact TAP. And then ask yourself: why didn't my agent tell me about this? Probably because you didn't hire a Sacramento short sale agent. You probably hired a regular agent. And therein lies part of the difference.</p><div class="agent_signature"> <p><img title="sacramento short sale agent" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/8/2/8/6/7/ar12506909376828.PNG" height="43" alt="sacramento short sale agent" width="230"><img title="certified hafa specialist" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/8/8/4/3/4/ar12997948843488.jpg" height="49" alt="cerfified hafa specialist" width="50"></p> <p>---</p> <p>Certified HAFA Specialist</p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://www.zillow.com/profile/elizabeth_weintraub/Reviews/?scrnnm=elizabeth_weintraub"><img src="http://www.zillowstatic.com/static/images/badges/5star-agent-h.png" alt="Elizabeth Weintraub reviews"></a> <span> My <a href="http://www.zillow.com/homes/for_sale/Sacramento-County-CA/577944_agent_list/1_fr?scrnnm=elizabeth_weintraub">Sacramento Real Estate</a> Listings </span></p> <p><em><a href="http://elizabethweintraub.com/" title="land park agent">Elizabeth Weintraub</a> is an author, <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/" title="home buying and selling">home buying</a> columnist for The New York Times-owned About.com, a Land Park resident, and a Land Park real estate agent who specializes in older, classic <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/marketfactstrends/ig/Land-Park-Homes/" title="homes in land park">homes in Land Park</a>, Curtis Park, Midtown and <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/marketfactstrends/ig/East-Sacramento-Homes/" title="homes in east sacramento">East Sacramento</a>. Weintraub is also a <a href="http://shortsaleagentsacramento.com/" title="short sale agent sacramento">Sacramento Short Sale agent</a> who lists and successfully sells short sales throughout the four-county Sacramento area. Call Elizabeth Weintraub at 916.233.6759. Put 35 years of real estate experience to work for you. Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate. DRE License # 00697006.<br><br><strong><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Short-Sale-Savior-Elizabeth-Weintraub/dp/1574723766/re" title="The Short Sale Savior">The Short Sale Savior,</a> by Elizabeth Weintraub, available at Amazon.com.</strong></em></p> <p><span><span><span>Lyon Real Estate is not associated with the government, and our service is not approved by the government or your lender. Even if you accept this offer and use our service, your lender may not agree to change your loan.</span></span></span></p> <p>Photo: Unless otherwise noted in this blog, the photo is copyrighted by Big Stock Photo and used with permission.</p> <p>The views expressed herein are Weintraub's personal views and do not reflect the views of Lyon Real Estate.</p> <p><span>Disclaimer: If this post contains a listing, information is deemed reliable as of the date it was written. After that date, the listing may be sold, listed by another brokerage, canceled, pending or taken temporarily off the market, and the price could change without notice. It could blow up, explode or vanish. To find out the present status of any listing, please go to elizabethweintraub.com.</span></p> <p> </p> </div> Elizabeth Weintraub, Sacramento Short Sale Agent, Land Park, #00697006 Lyon RE (Lyon Real Estate #00697006) Sun, 29 Jan 2012 11:11:34 -0500 http://landparkblog.com/post/2774842/california-short-sale-sellers-should-check-the-tap-program-for-cash http://landparkblog.com/post/2771545/goodbye-leopard-hello-lion-for-this-sacramento-short-sale-agent <p><strong>It's time for this short sale agent to change again.</strong> It's difficult to embrace change but to stay ahead of the competition, we need to do it. It's time to say goodbye to my Mac Pro and Leopard OS and hello to my new Mac Pro and Lion OS X. I can't believe I let Snow Leopard sneak in there on my laptop.</p> <p>It was only 4 years ago that I bought my previous Mac Pro desktop. It had a 232 GB hard drive. I thought that would last me forever. Ha. What a joke. I have used about 85% of it. My computer would no longer do a restart without a shut down first. Plus, I was two operating systems behind.  As a result, it just made sense to pop for a new computer.</p> <p>Besides, buying an Apple product is so much fun. Those sneaky Apple people, making shopping a joy. Those guys are brilliant.</p> <p>I upgraded the memory to twice what I think I might need. Also, doubled the hard drive from 1 TB to 2 TB. The difference in disk space will probably be laughable a few years from now, but at the moment, it's really significant. I've got a 2 x 2.4  GHz Quad-Core, which is super fast.</p> <p>Will all of this make me a better <a href="http://elizabethweintraub.com" title="sacramento short sale agent">Sacramento short sale agent</a>? Probably not. But it will make me much happier. I love efficiency. Although, it may take me months to figure out everything this computer can do. If you have tips, I'd love to hear them.</p><div class="agent_signature"> <p><img title="sacramento short sale agent" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/8/2/8/6/7/ar12506909376828.PNG" height="43" alt="sacramento short sale agent" width="230"><img title="certified hafa specialist" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/8/8/4/3/4/ar12997948843488.jpg" height="49" alt="cerfified hafa specialist" width="50"></p> <p>---</p> <p>Certified HAFA Specialist</p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://www.zillow.com/profile/elizabeth_weintraub/Reviews/?scrnnm=elizabeth_weintraub"><img src="http://www.zillowstatic.com/static/images/badges/5star-agent-h.png" alt="Elizabeth Weintraub reviews"></a> <span> My <a href="http://www.zillow.com/homes/for_sale/Sacramento-County-CA/577944_agent_list/1_fr?scrnnm=elizabeth_weintraub">Sacramento Real Estate</a> Listings </span></p> <p><em><a href="http://elizabethweintraub.com/" title="land park agent">Elizabeth Weintraub</a> is an author, <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/" title="home buying and selling">home buying</a> columnist for The New York Times-owned About.com, a Land Park resident, and a Land Park real estate agent who specializes in older, classic <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/marketfactstrends/ig/Land-Park-Homes/" title="homes in land park">homes in Land Park</a>, Curtis Park, Midtown and <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/marketfactstrends/ig/East-Sacramento-Homes/" title="homes in east sacramento">East Sacramento</a>. Weintraub is also a <a href="http://shortsaleagentsacramento.com/" title="short sale agent sacramento">Sacramento Short Sale agent</a> who lists and successfully sells short sales throughout the four-county Sacramento area. Call Elizabeth Weintraub at 916.233.6759. Put 35 years of real estate experience to work for you. Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate. DRE License # 00697006.<br><br><strong><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Short-Sale-Savior-Elizabeth-Weintraub/dp/1574723766/re" title="The Short Sale Savior">The Short Sale Savior,</a> by Elizabeth Weintraub, available at Amazon.com.</strong></em></p> <p><span><span><span>Lyon Real Estate is not associated with the government, and our service is not approved by the government or your lender. Even if you accept this offer and use our service, your lender may not agree to change your loan.</span></span></span></p> <p>Photo: Unless otherwise noted in this blog, the photo is copyrighted by Big Stock Photo and used with permission.</p> <p>The views expressed herein are Weintraub's personal views and do not reflect the views of Lyon Real Estate.</p> <p><span>Disclaimer: If this post contains a listing, information is deemed reliable as of the date it was written. After that date, the listing may be sold, listed by another brokerage, canceled, pending or taken temporarily off the market, and the price could change without notice. It could blow up, explode or vanish. To find out the present status of any listing, please go to elizabethweintraub.com.</span></p> <p> </p> </div> Elizabeth Weintraub, Sacramento Short Sale Agent, Land Park, #00697006 Lyon RE (Lyon Real Estate #00697006) Sat, 28 Jan 2012 10:57:30 -0500 http://landparkblog.com/post/2771545/goodbye-leopard-hello-lion-for-this-sacramento-short-sale-agent http://landparkblog.com/post/2767614/the-long-road-to-a-hafa-short-sale-closing-in-sacramento <p><strong>Some short sales will forever stick with this <a href="http://elizabethweintraub.com" title="sacramento short sale agent">Sacramento short sale agent</a> because the sellers are such delightful people.</strong> In the end, it's all about helping the seller. And sometimes I work with sellers whom I suspect would be raked over the coals if their situation fell into less than honorable hands. There are some people who make me want to take extra special care of them; I feel protective. Like my recent <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/shortsale/qt/Hafa-Short-Sale-Program.htm" title="hafa short sale">HAFA short sale</a> closing for this elderly couple in their 80s. They reminded me of my grandparents, long gone.</p> <p><strong>The first buyers who committed to buy this short sale were not very nice people.</strong> They agreed to put down 25% and get a conventional loan. But after we received <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/shortsale/f/42309_Waiting-for-Short-Sale-Offer-Approval.htm" title="short sale approval">short sale approval</a>, these buyers changed their minds. However, not before they made the sellers move out, 5 days prior to closing. Then, after promising to close escrow, they canceled the transaction and left the sellers out on the street.</p> <p>They canceled because they had somehow decided to change their financing status midstream without authorization and put down 20%. But their lender would not approve such a down payment because the property had a non-conforming structure in the back yard. A seller can't sue such creatures when they don't have any money.</p> <p><strong>Enter buyer #2.</strong> She agreed to put down 25%. We were clear with the buyer's agent and his mortgage broker that the down payment had to be 25% to get a loan on this property. Oh, but <em>this that and the other thing</em>, the mortgage broker did a dance. No, we insisted, the down payment had to be 25% to get a loan. Read my lips. Buyer went back and forth as we negotiated with the bank. The second loan meanwhile went to charge-off. The buyer's agent and mortgage broker were stunned to learn that she really did need to put down 25% as she agreed to do in the beginning. At the last minute, this buyer changed her mind and refused to honor her contract.</p> <p><strong>The poor sellers.</strong> They were distraught. But I was not about to give up, even though the sellers were almost ready to walk away. See, this is the secret to a short sale. You can't give up. Just because buyers cancel or lenders refuse to negotiate, if you keep pushing, you can make something work. You need perseverance. Creativity helps. Other agents would cancel the listing and get on with their lives. Well, other agents probably would not want to tackle a HAFA short sale in the first place. They have more common sense and less patience than this agent.</p> <p><strong>Enter buyer #3.</strong> Time to change tactics. No loan problems here, because this buyer could pay cash. I called the first lender and asked if I could produce a <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/sellingahouse/qt/062107CMA.htm" title="cma">CMA</a> showing declining values, would that bank accept a lower price. Turned out the bank wasn't really interested in receiving market value as much as it was in dumping this loan. Every so often it works out this way. We accepted the offer and sent the paperwork to both banks.</p> <p>The second lender was not as generous. Because the loan had gone to charge-off, the lender wanted an enormous sum of money. It did not agree to participate in HAFA. This was a different department from the negotiator who previously had approved the HAFA. Rules change after charge-offs. Banks aren't required to approve a borrower for HAFA; it's voluntary. However, there was no enormous sum of money to give to the bank. It looked like we had reached a dead-end.</p> <p>At that point, I took a deep breath and said no. This bank was simply misinformed. I could not in good conscience allow the bank to throw the seller under the bus. Not this little old man and his ill wife. So, I closed my email, shut off my cell and wrote the bank a letter. I explained the sellers' circumstances and literally begged the negotiator to reconsider. I must have touched a heart. The next thing I knew the bank said it would agree to take $6,000 from the first lender and release the seller from liability.</p> <p><strong>I almost cried with relief.</strong> At this point, I think I cared more about the situation than the seller did. There comes a time when sellers can become apathetic, and I believe these sellers were about there. But in the end, they received $3,000 and a full <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/shortsale/qt/What-Is-A-Release-Of-Liability-For-A-Short-Sale.htm" title="release of liability">release of liability</a>. The HAFA short sale closed yesterday. Those other two buyers? I'll remember them and the horse they rode in on as well. Just not fondly. A bigger person would forgive. I'm not that big.</p><div class="agent_signature"> <p><img title="sacramento short sale agent" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/8/2/8/6/7/ar12506909376828.PNG" height="43" alt="sacramento short sale agent" width="230"><img title="certified hafa specialist" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/8/8/4/3/4/ar12997948843488.jpg" height="49" alt="cerfified hafa specialist" width="50"></p> <p>---</p> <p>Certified HAFA Specialist</p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://www.zillow.com/profile/elizabeth_weintraub/Reviews/?scrnnm=elizabeth_weintraub"><img src="http://www.zillowstatic.com/static/images/badges/5star-agent-h.png" alt="Elizabeth Weintraub reviews"></a> <span> My <a href="http://www.zillow.com/homes/for_sale/Sacramento-County-CA/577944_agent_list/1_fr?scrnnm=elizabeth_weintraub">Sacramento Real Estate</a> Listings </span></p> <p><em><a href="http://elizabethweintraub.com/" title="land park agent">Elizabeth Weintraub</a> is an author, <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/" title="home buying and selling">home buying</a> columnist for The New York Times-owned About.com, a Land Park resident, and a Land Park real estate agent who specializes in older, classic <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/marketfactstrends/ig/Land-Park-Homes/" title="homes in land park">homes in Land Park</a>, Curtis Park, Midtown and <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/marketfactstrends/ig/East-Sacramento-Homes/" title="homes in east sacramento">East Sacramento</a>. Weintraub is also a <a href="http://shortsaleagentsacramento.com/" title="short sale agent sacramento">Sacramento Short Sale agent</a> who lists and successfully sells short sales throughout the four-county Sacramento area. Call Elizabeth Weintraub at 916.233.6759. Put 35 years of real estate experience to work for you. Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate. DRE License # 00697006.<br><br><strong><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Short-Sale-Savior-Elizabeth-Weintraub/dp/1574723766/re" title="The Short Sale Savior">The Short Sale Savior,</a> by Elizabeth Weintraub, available at Amazon.com.</strong></em></p> <p><span><span><span>Lyon Real Estate is not associated with the government, and our service is not approved by the government or your lender. Even if you accept this offer and use our service, your lender may not agree to change your loan.</span></span></span></p> <p>Photo: Unless otherwise noted in this blog, the photo is copyrighted by Big Stock Photo and used with permission.</p> <p>The views expressed herein are Weintraub's personal views and do not reflect the views of Lyon Real Estate.</p> <p><span>Disclaimer: If this post contains a listing, information is deemed reliable as of the date it was written. After that date, the listing may be sold, listed by another brokerage, canceled, pending or taken temporarily off the market, and the price could change without notice. It could blow up, explode or vanish. To find out the present status of any listing, please go to elizabethweintraub.com.</span></p> <p> </p> </div> Elizabeth Weintraub, Sacramento Short Sale Agent, Land Park, #00697006 Lyon RE (Lyon Real Estate #00697006) Fri, 27 Jan 2012 10:21:44 -0500 http://landparkblog.com/post/2767614/the-long-road-to-a-hafa-short-sale-closing-in-sacramento http://landparkblog.com/post/2763592/how-do-you-cancel-a-short-sale-contract-in-sacramento- <p><strong>Some buyer's agents do not know that when a buyer and a seller sign a purchase agreement for a short sale listing, they have entered into a binding contract to <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/buyingahome/bb/buyhome.htm" title="buy a home">buy a home</a>.</strong> I don't really know why agents often treat a <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/4closureshortsales/a/shortsalebasics.htm" title="short sale">short sale</a> like the red-haired stepchild, but it's a real transaction just like any other real estate transaction.</p> <p><strong>This means if the buyer elects to cancel, a buyer can do so.</strong> The RPA contract put out by C.A.R. is written in favor of buyers. Probably because buyers sue more often than sellers. Sellers are typically happier after closing than buyers. It's rare that a seller feels that he or she got the raw end of the stick. But buyers? Whole 'nother story.</p> <p><strong>Some people believe that the only time a buyer cannot cancel is after all contingencies are removed, and that's a big fat lie.</strong> They can still cancel. Buyers can always cancel. But in that event, they could get sued because they don't have a contractual right to cancel, although that's where they will argue.</p> <p><strong>If a seller does not sign a buyer's cancellation, simply out of spite, a seller can be facing a $1,000 fine.</strong> The seller has no right to ignore the cancellation, if the buyer is within the time period to cancel. But that's after 30 days. So, you can't really force sellers to immediately sign a cancellation unless you're standing over them with a sledge hammer, and no agent has the inclination to do that.</p> <p><strong>But what happens when it's the other way around and the sellers want to dump a buyer?</strong> How is that handled? Before my sellers cancel buyers from a short sale transaction, we give them a chance. It's the fair and equitable thing to do, even if they are not fair and equitable to us. Besides, contracts stipulate. We send them a <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/offersnegotiations/qt/Notice-to-Perform.htm" title="notice to perform">Notice to Perform</a>. We spell out what we want them to do, and if they don't do it, we can unilaterally cancel them.</p> <p><strong>However, if you as a buyer wants to cancel, you need to sign a cancellation of contract.</strong> Not a withdrawal of offer and not an addendum. Buyers sign the top and bottom portion and date it, along with escrow information to release the <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/buyingahome/qt/EarnestMoney.htm" title="earnest money deposit">earnest money deposit</a>. Buyers also need to state a reason for the cancellation. When buyers sign a <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/shortsale/f/093009-short-sale-addendum.htm" title="short sale addendum">short sale addendum</a>, agreeing to wait for short sale approval, the buyer is supposed to wait during that period of time. But bottom line, if a buyer doesn't want to buy, nobody can make 'em.</p> <p>For more questions about a Sacramento short sale, call your <a href="http://elizabethweintraub.com" title="sacramento short sale agent">Sacramento short sale agent</a>, Elizabeth Weintraub, at 916 233 6759.</p><div class="agent_signature"> <p><img title="sacramento short sale agent" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/8/2/8/6/7/ar12506909376828.PNG" height="43" alt="sacramento short sale agent" width="230"><img title="certified hafa specialist" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/8/8/4/3/4/ar12997948843488.jpg" height="49" alt="cerfified hafa specialist" width="50"></p> <p>---</p> <p>Certified HAFA Specialist</p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://www.zillow.com/profile/elizabeth_weintraub/Reviews/?scrnnm=elizabeth_weintraub"><img src="http://www.zillowstatic.com/static/images/badges/5star-agent-h.png" alt="Elizabeth Weintraub reviews"></a> <span> My <a href="http://www.zillow.com/homes/for_sale/Sacramento-County-CA/577944_agent_list/1_fr?scrnnm=elizabeth_weintraub">Sacramento Real Estate</a> Listings </span></p> <p><em><a href="http://elizabethweintraub.com/" title="land park agent">Elizabeth Weintraub</a> is an author, <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/" title="home buying and selling">home buying</a> columnist for The New York Times-owned About.com, a Land Park resident, and a Land Park real estate agent who specializes in older, classic <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/marketfactstrends/ig/Land-Park-Homes/" title="homes in land park">homes in Land Park</a>, Curtis Park, Midtown and <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/marketfactstrends/ig/East-Sacramento-Homes/" title="homes in east sacramento">East Sacramento</a>. Weintraub is also a <a href="http://shortsaleagentsacramento.com/" title="short sale agent sacramento">Sacramento Short Sale agent</a> who lists and successfully sells short sales throughout the four-county Sacramento area. Call Elizabeth Weintraub at 916.233.6759. Put 35 years of real estate experience to work for you. Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate. DRE License # 00697006.<br><br><strong><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Short-Sale-Savior-Elizabeth-Weintraub/dp/1574723766/re" title="The Short Sale Savior">The Short Sale Savior,</a> by Elizabeth Weintraub, available at Amazon.com.</strong></em></p> <p><span><span><span>Lyon Real Estate is not associated with the government, and our service is not approved by the government or your lender. Even if you accept this offer and use our service, your lender may not agree to change your loan.</span></span></span></p> <p>Photo: Unless otherwise noted in this blog, the photo is copyrighted by Big Stock Photo and used with permission.</p> <p>The views expressed herein are Weintraub's personal views and do not reflect the views of Lyon Real Estate.</p> <p><span>Disclaimer: If this post contains a listing, information is deemed reliable as of the date it was written. After that date, the listing may be sold, listed by another brokerage, canceled, pending or taken temporarily off the market, and the price could change without notice. It could blow up, explode or vanish. To find out the present status of any listing, please go to elizabethweintraub.com.</span></p> <p> </p> </div> Elizabeth Weintraub, Sacramento Short Sale Agent, Land Park, #00697006 Lyon RE (Lyon Real Estate #00697006) Thu, 26 Jan 2012 11:09:59 -0500 http://landparkblog.com/post/2763592/how-do-you-cancel-a-short-sale-contract-in-sacramento- http://landparkblog.com/post/2758659/elizabeth-weintraub-to-talk-about-short-sales-on-sacramento-public-access-tv-tonight <p><strong>There are times in which I will behave myself.</strong> Not always, you can count on that. But when it's important, I can manage to do it. I step up to the plate. And I pride myself on that ability. After all, I am a <a href="http://elizabethweintraub.com" title="sacramento short sale agent">Sacramento short sale agent</a>. This means in today's market I possess super powers.</p> <p>Don't believe me? You try closing a few short sales yourself and see what you're up against. It used to be a lot easier. I'm not sure what happened but lately it's the super powers that do the closing, not me. By super powers, I mean the people I rely upon, and they constantly out-perform themselves. My team members, transaction coordinator and escrow officers, not to mention my fellow real estate agents in Sacramento who represent the buyers. They all do an astonishing and amazing job.</p> <p><strong>If you'd like to see me behaving myself and talking about Sacramento short sales, you can catch this <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vvwk9dOIQCA" title="Elizabeth Weintraub YouTube">Elizabeth Weintraub YouTube</a> video.</strong> Alternately, you can tune in to the program tonight on <a href="http://www.accesssacramento.org/" title="Channel 17">Channel 17</a>. I did a public outreach broadcast a week or so ago. It's for a nonprofit, <a href="http://americanshelpingamerica.us/" title="americans helping america">Americans Helping America</a>. I think the show is at 10 PM. That's past my bedtime, so I'll have to ask my husband to tape it.</p> <p>I don't have a lot of time to do things that I don't get paid to do, and when I do have the time, I like to make sure it involves lying on the beach with my husband somewhere warm and drinking Mai Tais. However, I also agreed to host a celebrity real estate forum next month. I think I need my head examined. There are only so many hours in a day.</p> <p>But you know what they say, right? If you want something done correctly and expeditiously, ask a busy person to do it. You want to sell a short sale in Sacramento? You call Elizabeth Weintraub, 916 233 6759.</p><div class="agent_signature"> <p><img title="sacramento short sale agent" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/8/2/8/6/7/ar12506909376828.PNG" height="43" alt="sacramento short sale agent" width="230"><img title="certified hafa specialist" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/8/8/4/3/4/ar12997948843488.jpg" height="49" alt="cerfified hafa specialist" width="50"></p> <p>---</p> <p>Certified HAFA Specialist</p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://www.zillow.com/profile/elizabeth_weintraub/Reviews/?scrnnm=elizabeth_weintraub"><img src="http://www.zillowstatic.com/static/images/badges/5star-agent-h.png" alt="Elizabeth Weintraub reviews"></a> <span> My <a href="http://www.zillow.com/homes/for_sale/Sacramento-County-CA/577944_agent_list/1_fr?scrnnm=elizabeth_weintraub">Sacramento Real Estate</a> Listings </span></p> <p><em><a href="http://elizabethweintraub.com/" title="land park agent">Elizabeth Weintraub</a> is an author, <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/" title="home buying and selling">home buying</a> columnist for The New York Times-owned About.com, a Land Park resident, and a Land Park real estate agent who specializes in older, classic <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/marketfactstrends/ig/Land-Park-Homes/" title="homes in land park">homes in Land Park</a>, Curtis Park, Midtown and <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/marketfactstrends/ig/East-Sacramento-Homes/" title="homes in east sacramento">East Sacramento</a>. Weintraub is also a <a href="http://shortsaleagentsacramento.com/" title="short sale agent sacramento">Sacramento Short Sale agent</a> who lists and successfully sells short sales throughout the four-county Sacramento area. Call Elizabeth Weintraub at 916.233.6759. Put 35 years of real estate experience to work for you. Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate. DRE License # 00697006.<br><br><strong><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Short-Sale-Savior-Elizabeth-Weintraub/dp/1574723766/re" title="The Short Sale Savior">The Short Sale Savior,</a> by Elizabeth Weintraub, available at Amazon.com.</strong></em></p> <p><span><span><span>Lyon Real Estate is not associated with the government, and our service is not approved by the government or your lender. Even if you accept this offer and use our service, your lender may not agree to change your loan.</span></span></span></p> <p>Photo: Unless otherwise noted in this blog, the photo is copyrighted by Big Stock Photo and used with permission.</p> <p>The views expressed herein are Weintraub's personal views and do not reflect the views of Lyon Real Estate.</p> <p><span>Disclaimer: If this post contains a listing, information is deemed reliable as of the date it was written. After that date, the listing may be sold, listed by another brokerage, canceled, pending or taken temporarily off the market, and the price could change without notice. It could blow up, explode or vanish. To find out the present status of any listing, please go to elizabethweintraub.com.</span></p> <p> </p> </div> Elizabeth Weintraub, Sacramento Short Sale Agent, Land Park, #00697006 Lyon RE (Lyon Real Estate #00697006) Wed, 25 Jan 2012 09:31:00 -0500 http://landparkblog.com/post/2758659/elizabeth-weintraub-to-talk-about-short-sales-on-sacramento-public-access-tv-tonight http://landparkblog.com/post/2754765/about-gaming-the-system-in-sacramento-for-a-short-sale <p><strong>Every once in a while, I run into a client I have to reject.</strong> You'd think that as a successful <a href="http://elizabethweintraub.com" title="sacramento short sale agent">Sacramento short sale agent</a> I would want to work with everybody in Sacramento, but I don't. I don't respect people who would lie, cheat and steal. Sorry -- I'm not an <a href="http://www.newt.org/" title="asshole politician">asshole politician</a> and I don't have to put up with that crap.</p> <p>It's not a judgment call thing, if that's what you are thinking. Because people who would lie, cheat and steal expect others they hire to lie, cheat and steal right alongside with them. I don't live my life that way. No amount of money would convince me to start, either.</p> <p><strong>Besides, I enjoy an excellent reputation.</strong> I've worked hard to earn it. When a buyer's agent advises her client to enter into a contract with my client, I expect cooperation and consideration. I give the same in return.</p> <p><strong>So, if you are looking to game the system, don't call me.</strong> I don't want to work with sellers who <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/4closureshortsales/qt/110507_Fixtures.htm" title="strip homes in foreclosure">strip homes in foreclosure</a>. Nor do I want to associate with sellers who have no intention of doing a short sale but simply want to avoid having to move. Some of these people hear that a short sale can take 6 months to 2 years to close, so they latch on to a Sacramento short sale agent, hoping they won't have to make a payment for 2 years and can stay put. They don't really intend to sell.</p> <p>That's dishonest.</p> <p>If you want to sell your home in Sacramento as a short sale in the shortest time period possible and with the least amount of hassle, I'm your real estate agent. If you don't, go make somebody else's life miserable.</p><div class="agent_signature"> <p><img title="sacramento short sale agent" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/8/2/8/6/7/ar12506909376828.PNG" height="43" alt="sacramento short sale agent" width="230"><img title="certified hafa specialist" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/8/8/4/3/4/ar12997948843488.jpg" height="49" alt="cerfified hafa specialist" width="50"></p> <p>---</p> <p>Certified HAFA Specialist</p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://www.zillow.com/profile/elizabeth_weintraub/Reviews/?scrnnm=elizabeth_weintraub"><img src="http://www.zillowstatic.com/static/images/badges/5star-agent-h.png" alt="Elizabeth Weintraub reviews"></a> <span> My <a href="http://www.zillow.com/homes/for_sale/Sacramento-County-CA/577944_agent_list/1_fr?scrnnm=elizabeth_weintraub">Sacramento Real Estate</a> Listings </span></p> <p><em><a href="http://elizabethweintraub.com/" title="land park agent">Elizabeth Weintraub</a> is an author, <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/" title="home buying and selling">home buying</a> columnist for The New York Times-owned About.com, a Land Park resident, and a Land Park real estate agent who specializes in older, classic <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/marketfactstrends/ig/Land-Park-Homes/" title="homes in land park">homes in Land Park</a>, Curtis Park, Midtown and <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/marketfactstrends/ig/East-Sacramento-Homes/" title="homes in east sacramento">East Sacramento</a>. Weintraub is also a <a href="http://shortsaleagentsacramento.com/" title="short sale agent sacramento">Sacramento Short Sale agent</a> who lists and successfully sells short sales throughout the four-county Sacramento area. Call Elizabeth Weintraub at 916.233.6759. Put 35 years of real estate experience to work for you. Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate. DRE License # 00697006.<br><br><strong><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Short-Sale-Savior-Elizabeth-Weintraub/dp/1574723766/re" title="The Short Sale Savior">The Short Sale Savior,</a> by Elizabeth Weintraub, available at Amazon.com.</strong></em></p> <p><span><span><span>Lyon Real Estate is not associated with the government, and our service is not approved by the government or your lender. Even if you accept this offer and use our service, your lender may not agree to change your loan.</span></span></span></p> <p>Photo: Unless otherwise noted in this blog, the photo is copyrighted by Big Stock Photo and used with permission.</p> <p>The views expressed herein are Weintraub's personal views and do not reflect the views of Lyon Real Estate.</p> <p><span>Disclaimer: If this post contains a listing, information is deemed reliable as of the date it was written. After that date, the listing may be sold, listed by another brokerage, canceled, pending or taken temporarily off the market, and the price could change without notice. It could blow up, explode or vanish. To find out the present status of any listing, please go to elizabethweintraub.com.</span></p> <p> </p> </div> Elizabeth Weintraub, Sacramento Short Sale Agent, Land Park, #00697006 Lyon RE (Lyon Real Estate #00697006) Tue, 24 Jan 2012 10:53:58 -0500 http://landparkblog.com/post/2754765/about-gaming-the-system-in-sacramento-for-a-short-sale http://landparkblog.com/post/2750492/should-you-do-a-short-sale-with-bank-of-america- <p><strong>I get a lot of phone calls from buyer's agents in Sacramento asking me who the lender is on a <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/4closureshortsales/a/shortsalebasics.htm" title="short sale">short sale</a>.</strong> They are wising up and realizing that not every agent in Sacramento who lists a short sale is likely to close that short sale except, perhaps, for me. So, their broker has given them a list of questions to ask a <a href="http://elizabethweintraub.com" title="bank of america short sale">Sacramento short sale agent</a>. The problem with this approach is they don't know what to do with the answers they get.</p> <p><strong>They think multiple loans is a bad sign, which is not true.</strong> They hear Bank of America and they shudder, which is also not true. Bank of America has stepped up to the plate over the years and dramatically improved its short sales. If you are a seller who has a Bank of America loan, you are actually sitting in a primo position and you might not realize it. Don't listen to the hoo-haw among the neophytes. Bank of America is a great short sale bank.</p> <p><strong>I close a lot of Bank of America short sales.</strong> There are different types of B of A short sales. Some are Fannie Mae; they could be Freddie Mac or even a <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/shortsale/qt/Hafa-Short-Sale-Program.htm" title="hafa short sale">HAFA short sale</a>. It would not be so hot to do a Fannie Mae HAFA short sale or a Freddie Mac HAFA short sale, but those are another long story, which I can explain if I take you on as a client and you have such a loan.</p> <p>They could also be a Bank of America FHA short sale or a <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/shortsale/qt/How-To-Apply-For-A-Bank-Of-America-Cooperative-Short-Sale.htm" title="cooperative short sale">Cooperative Short Sale</a> or a traditional short sale. You've got almost as many choices for a short sale at Bank of America as you've got loan options. And they are all different. A client laughed as she got off the phone with B of A saying it's just like ordering a pizza. Do I want pepperoni or sausage?</p> <p><strong>If you'd like to know about a <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/shortsale/qt/061710-Bank-of-America-Short-Sales.htm" title="bank of america short sale">Bank of America short sale</a> for you in the four-county Sacramento area,</strong> call this Sacramento short sale agent for more information at 916 233 6759. I'll say it again: I close Bank of America short sales. I know how Bank of America operates (it changes all the time). I stay on top of this stuff. You're in good hands.</p><div class="agent_signature"> <p><img title="sacramento short sale agent" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/8/2/8/6/7/ar12506909376828.PNG" height="43" alt="sacramento short sale agent" width="230"><img title="certified hafa specialist" src="http://activerain.com/image_store/uploads/8/8/4/3/4/ar12997948843488.jpg" height="49" alt="cerfified hafa specialist" width="50"></p> <p>---</p> <p>Certified HAFA Specialist</p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://www.zillow.com/profile/elizabeth_weintraub/Reviews/?scrnnm=elizabeth_weintraub"><img src="http://www.zillowstatic.com/static/images/badges/5star-agent-h.png" alt="Elizabeth Weintraub reviews"></a> <span> My <a href="http://www.zillow.com/homes/for_sale/Sacramento-County-CA/577944_agent_list/1_fr?scrnnm=elizabeth_weintraub">Sacramento Real Estate</a> Listings </span></p> <p><em><a href="http://elizabethweintraub.com/" title="land park agent">Elizabeth Weintraub</a> is an author, <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/" title="home buying and selling">home buying</a> columnist for The New York Times-owned About.com, a Land Park resident, and a Land Park real estate agent who specializes in older, classic <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/marketfactstrends/ig/Land-Park-Homes/" title="homes in land park">homes in Land Park</a>, Curtis Park, Midtown and <a href="http://homebuying.about.com/od/marketfactstrends/ig/East-Sacramento-Homes/" title="homes in east sacramento">East Sacramento</a>. Weintraub is also a <a href="http://shortsaleagentsacramento.com/" title="short sale agent sacramento">Sacramento Short Sale agent</a> who lists and successfully sells short sales throughout the four-county Sacramento area. Call Elizabeth Weintraub at 916.233.6759. Put 35 years of real estate experience to work for you. Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate. DRE License # 00697006.<br><br><strong><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Short-Sale-Savior-Elizabeth-Weintraub/dp/1574723766/re" title="The Short Sale Savior">The Short Sale Savior,</a> by Elizabeth Weintraub, available at Amazon.com.</strong></em></p> <p><span><span><span>Lyon Real Estate is not associated with the government, and our service is not approved by the government or your lender. Even if you accept this offer and use our service, your lender may not agree to change your loan.</span></span></span></p> <p>Photo: Unless otherwise noted in this blog, the photo is copyrighted by Big Stock Photo and used with permission.</p> <p>The views expressed herein are Weintraub's personal views and do not reflect the views of Lyon Real Estate.</p> <p><span>Disclaimer: If this post contains a listing, information is deemed reliable as of the date it was written. After that date, the listing may be sold, listed by another brokerage, canceled, pending or taken temporarily off the market, and the price could change without notice. It could blow up, explode or vanish. To find out the present status of any listing, please go to elizabethweintraub.com.</span></p> <p> </p> </div> Elizabeth Weintraub, Sacramento Short Sale Agent, Land Park, #00697006 Lyon RE (Lyon Real Estate #00697006) Mon, 23 Jan 2012 10:19:43 -0500 http://landparkblog.com/post/2750492/should-you-do-a-short-sale-with-bank-of-america-