Stop Michigan Foreclosure

Due to the overwhelming number of homeowners out in need of short sales, and the success rate of said short sales being extremely low, the government has stepped in to attempt to help out. The new “Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternative” program has been created in order to give mortgage companies an incentive to close these deals. But is a HAFA short sale right for you? Answer this little questionnaire, and we’ll find out.

1. During the short sale process (which can take several months) are you able to make mortgage payments at a minimum rate of 31% of your gross (before tax) income?
2. Are you currently living at the property?
3. Do you have a second mortgage that is willing to accept only 3% of the balance of that loan as payment in full?
4. Are you willing and able to keep paying utilities, assessments, association dues, and interior and exterior maintenance costs?
5. Is your property in good condition, or are you willing to bring it up to a good condition (and keep it there)?
6. Are you willing to take the chance that the short sale may be denied, in which case you will be forced to accept a deed in lieu of foreclosure? (turning the house over to the bank – yikes!)
7. Will you agree to let the bank decide how much your house is worth, instead of you deciding on a value with your REALTOR®?

If you answered no to one or more of these questions (there are a few more stipulations, by the way) then you will be denied for a HAFA short sale. The good news is that you can still do a short sale the old fashioned way. And the better news is that we can take all of the stress out of it by doing it for you. You won’t have to make any repairs to your house, and you will never have to give us (or anyone involved) any money. Give Emily a call at (269) 685-5921 today and find out what we can do for you!

Joel

I just had a young girl come to my door who was on a Scavenger hunt.  The conversation went like this.

Kid: Do you have any pumpkin seeds.

Me: No, sorry.

Kid: How about some nail polish

Me: Sorry, don’t have that either.

Kid: That’s ok, as she runs towards the neighbor’s house, thinking only of the prize she can win if she finds all the things on her list.

Now imagine if the conversation had gone like this:

Kid: Do you have any pumpkin seeds.

Me: No, but I have some used motor oil, you can have that.

Kid: No thanks.  How about some nail polish

Me: Fill out this 5 page form and I’ll check with management and get back to you in 4-6    wks.

Kid: You are a nut case, as she runs to the neighbor’s house to talk to someone sane.

The second scenario is ridiculous, but that is how it feels when you are facing a Michigan Foreclosure and trying to get the bank to work something out with you.

Borrower: I would like to do a loan modification

Lender: Pay us an extra $2,000 this month and we’ll let you continue to make the payments that are too high for you already.

Borrower: No thanks.  How about a Repayment plan

Lender: Fill out this 5 page form and I’ll check with management and get back to you in 4-6 wks.

Borrower: You are a nut case (feeling like there is nowhere to run)

However, there is someone to run to. Us!  We can review your options and help you decide what the best course of action is for you.  If the only option is to sell the house, we may be able to negotiate with your lender to take a discount on what is owed so the house can sell and you can get out from under the burden or stress of a Michigan foreclosure.  We promise we will help you move toward the prize of getting your family back to better times and not put you in a worse position.  Give us a call today!

Ann

I overheard a statistic today that 12% of all Real Estate Sales are now Short Sales. The commentator went on to say that it would probably be more except that Short Sales take Stamina. Stamina for the buyer to hang in there, Stamina for the seller facing foreclosure to hang in there, Stamina for the negotiator and REALTORS® to keep working on the Short Sale.

Well I have Good News for you if you are a seller facing a Michigan Foreclosure. Our team has Stamina! I have seen Emily work 8 hours in the office then go home and take calls from new referrals and existing sellers in the evenings and weekends. I have seen Melissa sit on hold for 45 minutes or more to talk to a lender about a case. And then she hangs up and calls another one and goes through it again. I have seen Holly call extension after extension at a lender or attorney office until she finds someone who can answer a question or help us move a file forward. And I have seen Joel work tirelessly from 6:00am until sometimes 8:00pm or later  to do whatever he can to get a deal to close.

One of our 4 promises is that we will work harder than anyone to help you get back to better times and that is the Stamina in action. Our track record speaks for itself. The Stamina pays off in terms of results. We have techniques to keep the buyers motivated and we have methods to help the seller deal with the lender. Give us a call and let us put our Stamina to work for you.

Ann

The other day I was on the phone, making my daily call to one of the biggest lenders in the country, when the conversation I was having took an unusual turn (after 37 minutes on hold of course). The Customer Service Rep who was helping me – I’ll call her “Jane” – was doing her best to answer my questions about a short sale we were negotiating on an FHA loan. She began to ask me questions about the various programs and options available. This isn’t unusual as I spend a lot of time educating the people at the banks about various options/programs available. She eventually revealed to me that she herself had an FHA loan on her house…and that she was over three months behind on her payments. Yikes!

I was shocked to hear that Jane, who worked for a major lender, had so little idea where to turn for help on her own house! She told me she had been approach by a company in her state that had offered their (somewhat ambiguous) services for a fee…of $3,200 upfront. To me, this begs the question: if a person is nearly four months behind on their mortgage payment, how is this person supposed to come up with $3,200?

I suggested, instead of agreeing to fork over several thousand dollars to this company, that since she had an FHA loan, she contact the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).. I told Jane they would be able to either assist her themselves, or direct her to a business or non-profit organization in her area that would not charge her an upfront fee. I even gave her the number for HUD. Jane thanked me profusely and told me she had no idea there were people out there who wouldn’t charge her to help her.

If you are facing a Michigan foreclosure, don’t let someone tell you that assistance costs $3,200. It doesn’t (and it never will cost a dime with us). Learn your options! This blog and our website are full of information and suggestions. You can also call us anytime.

Melissa

Often, when homeowners find themselves in financial hardships, they may look first to housing counseling agencies or mortgage brokers to formulate a workout plan or renegotiate the terms or their loan (as well they should turn there first). But because of the large number of families in similar situations, these alternatives have become flooded with requests.

In response, more private mortgage insurance (PMI) companies have begun offering programs to keep their clients out of foreclosure. Obtainment of private mortgage insurance (not to be confused with homeowner’s insurance) is a requirement on every loan on which there has been less than 20% down payment. The policies are in place to protect the lender if the homeowner stops making payments. Some PMI companies have begun to reach out to homeowners in order to assist in avoiding foreclosure; however, there are often stringent requirements to qualify for the programs being offered.

For example, one program offers to cover delinquent payments with an interest-free loan but requires the applicant to prove the delinquency is temporary and requires the regular monthly mortgage payments continue to be made. Another program is only available to homeowners who have owned their house for fewer than three years.

It’s no wonder far less than 10% of workouts are approved with these strict criteria.

If you are in default or financial hardship, rest assured, you’re not alone, especially if you are facing a Michigan foreclosure. You have only to turn on your television or radio to hear about the many others in similar circumstances, but let me encourage you to research the information out there for yourself to find out what options are available to you because no one else besides you can really choose which option will suit your unique situation.

Of course Emil (“Mom”) is always available to you at no charge to help you narrow your options on focus you on solutions with the best chance of working. Give her a call today.

Melissa

As I’m writing this blog, I’m on hold with one of the lenders so I can continue my short sale negotiation for a family we are working with (both the husband and wife lost their job within 2 weeks). It occurred to me that most people like you don’t have either the time or the patience, between work, kids, and home life, to deal with their lenders.

Whether you’re trying to modify the terms of your loans, do a refinance, negotiate a short sale or discuss their options for a workout when you find yourself behind on their payments facing a Michigan foreclosure. Hold times routinely surpass 15 or 20 minutes. Navigating through the maze of various Customer Service, Collections, and Mortgage Servicing departments can be time-consuming, frustrating, and impractical for almost everyone!

Here’s the good news, though: that’s what our team does. We keep up-to-date, exhaustive records of phone, fax, and email information to streamline our time spent in contact with lenders, yet there are still many times that we end up on a lender phone call for 45-60 minutes. This is the nature of the business, the way the lenders systems are structured (very poorly I might add). If you’ve tried talking to your lender and have had trouble negotiating a short sale with them, let me tell you, I feel your pain. If you’re at the end of your rope with your lender or would prefer not even to start the climb on your own, give Emily (“Mom”) a call, and let us do what we do best.

Melissa

Sometimes I come across and article that expresses thoughts better than I ever could.  Here is such an article – a must read for all you distressed owners still hoping a government program will bail you out to avoid a Michigan foreclosure. Take the time you were going to spend reading this blog and read this article – the opinions expressed are those of the writer alone.

Ann

We are busier than we have ever been: starting with new families, offers coming in like crazy, short sale approvals rolling in and lots of closings.

In fact, we have offers on half the houses we are working with. Don’t let the pessimistic press make you think the sky is falling and nothing good is happening out there. Buyers are buying houses. Lenders are giving loans. Lenders are accepting discounts (short sales). We know because we see it every day – in fact our work days are getting longer because so much buying, discounting and closing is going on. No time to write more – have to get back to work.

No matter how busy we are, we are not too busy to talk to you. Talking to Michigan homeowners facing foreclosure is always our first priority – give Emily a call today.

… this of course is said with a strong Scottish ascent.

Now, if you’re an original Star Trek fan, this needs no explanation. For those that aren’t, here’s a short one: Captain Kirk would frequently get his ship and/or crew in such situations that he’d need his chief engineer (Mr. Scott – “Scotty”) to bail him out. He’d have to do things like re-start the engines in 5 minutes (a normal 60 minute process) or get the Enterprise to run at warp 12 (normal top speed is warp 8). More than one time, after this request, Scotty would reply “I Can Not Change The Laws Of Physics Captain!”

What does this have to do with Michigan foreclosures? Here’s a story…

Yesterday I talked to a gal in Kalamazoo convinced she would find an answer to her problem – she just needed to talk to enough people. Now I’m all for that. Every person she talks to will have a different twist on the situation, and offer different suggestions. I certainly don’t know everything! The problem is, she wanted it all. She wanted to keep her house, her cars, all of the stuff she bought on credit cards, but make most of the debt go away.

Let’s just focus on the house. She had a “normal” (before she got behind) house payment of $1500 a month. She got behind because of health issues and a job loss (normal reasons that cause this – which is why so many people are losing their houses to foreclosure in Michigan. She wanted to keep her house, and have a payment of $800 a month. I did the math – she’d have to refinance at a rate of about 1.5% in order to get this done. There’s two problems with this plan.

1) If she had perfect credit today (which she doesn’t since she’s 120 days late on her mortgage), the best 30 year fixed interest rate loan I’ve seen is a around 6%. But of course because of her credit, no one will finance her – at any interest rate.

2) You can’t get caught up by slowing down. Here’s the analogy: If you’re in a row boat with a small leak (a mortgage payment), as long as you keep bailing the water out (making your normal monthly payment), you’re OK – you won’t sink. If you stop bailing for a period of time (lose your job and can’t pay), and want to not sink, you have to bail faster (start making bigger payments). She wanted a way to plug the hole (get rid of her mortgage payment but keep the house), but of course, you can’t change the laws of physics.

I felt bad when I hung up – I tried to help and explain there were other options besides the eventual Michigan foreclosure that was bound to happen. But, she was just so focused on the belief that someone would have an answer, there was nothing I could do. She’s going to have her head in the sand for 4 more weeks until the foreclosure sale at which point it could be too late for me to help.

The moral to the story? Realize that no one, not even Scotty, can change the laws of physics (or finances)!

Emily

To be successful, every Short Sale should be a partnership in which each member of the team takes their responsibility seriously. When we work with a seller facing a Michigan foreclosure, this is what the team responsibilities look like.

Realtor® – markets house and finds buyers.

[GLHS] Great Lakes Home Solutions, Inc (us) – negotiates the Short Sale with the foreclosing lenders, handles all communications with the lenders.

Seller (you) – maintains house for showings, cooperates with showings, stays in communication with GLHS & notifies GLHS of any changes in their situation such as moving, notices from the bank, inability to pay utilities, etc.

One of the reasons our Short Sale acceptance is 8 times the national average of 10% (we are close to 80%) is that we insist that you take responsibility for your part. After all, we are investing time and resources to resolve your situation without charging you, the Realtors®  or the buyer. What better way to show your gratitude than to shoulder your load. Yes, we understand you have a hardship and life is not great right now. We are trying to get you back to better times as quickly as possible. We will be much more successful when we work as a team.

Some examples of good teammates and not good teammates.

Not So Good Teammates

• Refuses or limits showings because of pets, work/sleep hours, children, company, etc. (Realize in today’s market, if a buyer can’t see the house when they want to, they probably won’t be back. They have far more homes available to them then you have buyers available to you).
• Moves without telling us, turning off utilities and leaving house vulnerable to damage from freezing pipes, vandalism, etc. or repossession by lender (yes, they can repossess if they deem the house abandoned. We can prevent this but we have to know it is vacant).
• Does not return our phone calls in a timely manner possibly preventing us from getting critical information needed to complete the Short Sale or update you on a critical development.

Good Teammates

• Makes sure house is clean and de-cluttered for showings, looking and smelling nice.
• Leaves for showings so the buyer can look in privacy and start to feel like they can make the house their home.
• Reports any phone calls, letters, postings from the lenders to us immediately.
• Maintains an attitude of gratitude realizing that they have no other options and we are working harder than anyone to help them.

See there, your responsibilities on this team really aren’t that hard when you consider we take the burden of all dealings with the lenders off your back, plus answer all your questions about options and what is happening. I guarantee that we will work harder than anyone else on this team or any other to get your situation resolved.

Ready to join the team? We’re ready to have you! Give us a call today and join a winning team!

Ann