Introduction. On September 2, 2013 the online Wall Street Journal carried an article that should be of interest to thousands of folks who have weathered the last five years of unpleasantness, but in the process suffered a short sale, foreclosure or perhaps a deed-in-lieu-of-foreclosure. The full article can be found here. Continue reading “New FHA Underwriting Guidelines – Good News For Former Distressed Homeowners Re-Entering The Marketplace”
On September 4, 2013, the online Wall Street Journal reported an event that has not occurred in recent memory. The chances of seeing it happen in our lifetime was unfathomable – like a Big Bank, overcome with remorse, confessing its sins of greed, pride, avarice, gluttony, and offering the American Public their money back. Well, almost as unfathomable…. Continue reading “Jumbo Rates Near Parity With Conforming Loan Rates”
Ever changed your mind? Gotten buyer’s remorse? Seller’s remorse? Well, join the club! It’s human nature to second-guess ourselves. Knowing that, perhaps you will want to read some do’s and don’ts in the process of negotiating a real estate transaction – especially when it comes to revoking an offer or counteroffer.
[To continue, go to link here.]
Most everyone who has purchased a home in Oregon has obtained a title insurance policy. However, few have read them. And those that have, likely don’t understand what is and is not covered. Here is Part One of a primer on title insurance to help folks understand what it is and what it does.
In an article posted at the online MReport, here, they noted the continued jump in fixed term interest rates this week.
According to Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 4.58 percent (0.8 point) for the week ending August 22, up from last week’s 4.40 percent. A year ago at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 3.66 percent.
The reason? The credit markets and the stock market are schizophrenic. One day it’s sunshine and roses, the next day it’s gloom and doom. Right now, attention is focused on the Fed, and whether it will taper off of its $85 billion monthly bond purchasing program (called “Quantitative Easing” since that’s the term they thought would make it appear as if it was a well-recognized principal of economics, rather than a Hail Mary Pass).
I’ve explained the Fed program here. Bottom line is that investors chasing returns knew they couldn’t get it in treasury bills, so they flooded the stock market. Then on June 19, 2013, when the Fed “suggested” it might slow down its bond buying, investors dumped their stocks and ran to treasuries. The stock market tanked and interest rates have climbed in T-bills, causing fixed term rates to increase for mortgage loans.
It is expected the Fed will knock $10 – $20 billion off its bond purchases this Fall. It remains to be seen how the markets will react – i.e. like adults, or Chicken Little. Tip: If you’re getting a mortgage loan anytime soon, consider buying down the rate and locking it for enough time to close. ~ PCQ
OK, we’ve made it through the first half of 2013. We now have six months’ of foreclosure statistics. I posted the first quarter stats for the year here. Now, armed with the second quarter, I’m prepared to prognosticate – for what it’s worth. [Actually, Q3 and Q4 will be the most interesting, as we move forward into a post-Niday foreclosure world, and SB 558, the mandatory resolution law, goes into effect. I predicted here, that the Niday and Brandrup decisions would have little impact on the Big Bank judicial foreclosures; the stats going into the end of 2013 will give us a peek of things to come.] Here is the link to the 2Q stats. What follows is a “back of the napkin” analysis – i.e. scribbled notes and scrambled thoughts. I could be all wrong. Time will tell. Continue reading “Q2 Portland-Metro Foreclosure Stats – What Are They Telling Us?”
If inhaled or swallowed, lead can be very toxic, especially to small children. If ingested, it accumulates in the body’s bones and other tissues and is known to impair the physical and mental development of children and aggravate blood pressure problems in adults. In older homes lead is principally found in the paint and plumbing. Continue reading “QUERIN LAW: Lead Based Paint”
The governing statutes are ORS 105.462 to 105.490. ORS 105.464 sets forth a form of disclosure statement that, subject to limited exceptions, all sellers of Oregon residential property must complete. The disclosure statement consists of 50+ questions about the property being offered for sale. The representations are not warranties; they are based upon the seller’s best knowledge. Continue reading “Oregon’s Seller Property Disclosure Law”
Congrats to Terry Scannell, the attorney who convinced a Washington County jury last Thursday, July 18, 2013, to rule in favor of his clients, Bela and Eva Lengyel, in one of the first – if not the first – wrongful foreclosures cases in Oregon. The fact that it is occurring only now, 5+ years after the credit and housing crash that gave us the Great Recession, speaks to the difficulty of these cases, and the perseverance of both attorney and clients. Continue reading “Chase Chased & Caught – Slapdown!”
In a recent article in Mortgage Servicing News here, we learn that apparently 49 state attorneys general were unable to draft the terms of the $25 billion National Mortgage Settlement in a way the Big Banks couldn’t slip through them like the eels they are. It seems that notwithstanding the AGs’ collective belief the banks would stop dual-tracking -that insidious practice of putting someone into a loan mod program while foreclosing them at the same time – it still continues. Continue reading “Ever Wonder Why the Big Banks Lose Your Loan Mod Paperwork? Wonder No More!”