Foreclosure Aid For Idaho Unemployed

Idaho has been approved for 13 million dollars to aid the unemployed and help save their homes from foreclosure. Unemployed homeowners will be able to get help from the government with zero-interest, forgivable loans that set out to help them avoid foreclosure. The program will provide up to $50,000 to unemployed homeowners so they can continue to make their mortgage payments while out of work.  The loans can be forgiven over 5 years. For more information contact Joshua Groesbeck  208353-7131 or josh@homeswithjosh.com

Or contact The Department of  Housing and Urban Development

http://portal.hud.gov/portal/page/portal/HUD

 

 

 

Unemployed home owners in five states will be able to get some help from the government with zero-interest, forgivable loans that set out to help them avoid foreclosure.

The $1 billion Emergency Homeowners’ Loan Program an Obama administration program was established nearly a year ago but has been delayed several months. The House recently voted to end the unemployment program, but the Democrat-led Senate isn’t expected to approve the measure.

The program will provide unemployed home owners zero-interest loans of up to $50,000 so that they’ll be able to continue making mortgage payments. The loans can be forgiven over five years.

Idaho Buy Low and Buy Now

Waiting for the bottom of the housing market can be very tricky and truth be told when you find it- Well chances are very high that you missed it and it is on the way back up- I wanted to leave and example of what waiting on the fence may cost you in the end. The market here in Idaho is still rocky in cities such as- Boise, Eagle, Meridian, Nampa, Caldwell, Kuna, Star and Middleton. Below is just an example of how interest rates compare to purchasing power. 208-353-7131 or josh@homeswithjosh.com

Let’s say you were going to take out a $200,000 30-year-fixed-rate mortgage in November of 2010. At that time, interest rates were 4.17% (as per Freddie Mac). Your principle and interest payment would have come to $974.54. According to the most recent report from Case Shiller house prices fell 3.9% in the 4th quarter of 2010. The most recent report from the Federal Housing Finance Agency shows a 0.8% fall in prices. Let’s use the larger percentage decrease: 3.9%.

For the sake of keeping the math simple, we will now say you can get the same house with a $192,000 mortgage (4% discount from November price). Interest rates are now 4.95% (as per Freddie Mac).

Your principle and interest payment would now be $1,024.84.

By waiting to pay less for the PRICE of the house, the COST increased over $50 a month. That adds up to more than $600 a year and over $18,000 over the life of the loan.

Multi-Family Housing In Meridian Idaho

1071 West Pine offers this super nice 5 year old 4-plex for just $270,000 OBO!! Walking distance to the ever growing downtown Meridian,Idaho. Enjoy good local restaurants and craft stores. Easy Access to I-84 and all of the Treasure Valley. Could be a great opportunity for owner occupy have the renters make your payment while you get the tax exemption for owner occupied, call Josh for more info– All units are  rented with a solid rental history, don’t wait if this is for you because I am expecting multiple offers. Joshua Groesbeck 208-353-7131 or josh@homeswithjosh.com

To view this and all properties available in our local treasure valley market go to visit HomeswithJosh.com

If you are trying to save your home from Foreclosure please call Joshua for free consultation!

Lakeview Golf Course Home

CURB APPEAL, VIEWS AND GOLF- right outside your front door what more could you ask for. Look out your beautiful bay windows and you can see the club house, lake and bogus basin mountains and the 10th green. Fresh paint inside and out. Inside you will enjoy having a living room and family room with fireplace. All bedrooms are good size with ceiling fans.Kitchen includes nice breakfast bar with built in swivel chairs.Fully fenced backyard with covered patio Room to park your trailer etc..No association fees For more information and to schedule your private showing call Joshua Groesbeck 208-353-7131 or josh@homeswithjosh.com

To view all homes available in the Treasure Valley visit www.homeswithjosh.com

HAMP Struggling With Cancellations Or Rejections

Below are numbers for Bank of America, JP Morgan, Citi Mortgage, Wells Fargo and how they have been doing with HAMP ( Home Made Affordable Program)- Is your lender trying to foreclose on you? Would you like to minimize the damage to your credit and avoid foreclosure?     FREE CONSULTATION AND FREE SERVICE Joshua Groesbeck 208-353-7131 or josh@homeswithjosh.com

As of November 30, 2010, there were an estimated 1,420,048 borrowers eligible for HAMP who are 60 or more days delinquent.

The servicer performance report released Monday by Treasury revealed that as of the final day of 2010 there are a total of 521,630 active permanent modifications and 152,289 active trial modifications.

By contrast there have been 1,025,907 homeowners rejected for HAMP modifications by the eight largest servicers, and there have been 572,655 canceled trial modifications.

To date there have been 1,466,448 HAMP trials started.

The report details numbers reported for several servicers, including the Bank of America (BofA), Citi, JP Morgan Chase, and Wells Fargo. Though the “big four” banks are leading the pack in numbers of modifications, the numbers are quite low over all when contrasted with the 3 to 4 million homeowners HAMP projected to help by 2012.

On top of that, it seems the pace of modifications is slowing dramatically.

Bank of America has the highest number of modifications of all surveyed servicers. The company reported it currently has 45,753 active trial modifications and 90,243 active permanent modifications.

In June, BofA reported it had completed 72,323 permanent modifications so far. The servicer completed just 6,484 modifications nationwide from November to December 2010.

BofA also has 199,196 homeowners in canceled HAMP trial modifications, and 114,531 homeowners who were not accepted for HAMP trial modifications. Of those homeowners, 18,031 are currently in the process of alternative modifications, 18,572 are in the process of short sales or deeds in lieu, 35,872 are experiencing foreclosure starts and 12,549 have completed foreclosures.

CitiMortgage reported a total of 42,746 active permanent modifications at year-end, and 7,415 active trial modifications. Citi has 81,329 homeowners in canceled trial mods and 128,665 homeowners who were not accepted for HAMP trial modifications, with 34,369 in the process of alt mods, 3,370 going through a short sale or deed in lieu, 8,864 foreclosure starts and 4,527 foreclosure completions.

JP Morgan reported 66,441 active permanent modifications, 20,7999 active trial modifications, and 113,997 in canceled trial mods. The servicer has denied the most homeowners HAMP modifications, at 334,462. Of those homeowners, 101,136 are in the process of alternative modification, 9,892 are in the process of short sales or deeds in lieu, 35,676 are experiencing foreclosure starts and 8,994 are in the process of foreclosure completions.

Wells Fargo reported 70,135 active permanent modifications and 18,526 trial modifications, as well as 118,395 in canceled mods. Wells has 172,387 homeowners who were not accepted for a HAMP trial modification, of those, 47,818 are pursuing alternative modifications, 10,550 are in the process of short sales or deeds in lieu. There are 18,914 foreclosure starts and 11,340 completed foreclosures.

The performance report says the most common causes of trial cancellations are insufficient documentation, trial plan payment default, and borrower ineligibility. Most common causes of trials not accepted are insufficient documentation, borrower ineligibility, or mortgage ineligibility.

Interestingly, Citi and JP Morgan experienced a decline in active permanent modifications from November to December.

Cumulative permanent mods recorded for Citi and JPMorgan in November 2010, were 52,856 and 67,722, respectively.



Home Market Recovery 5+ Years

As home prices have slid new buyers are finding great opportunities and they can expect more to come.  As home interest rates are historically low it would be hard to argue with the mind set of the able and willing buyer. These opportunities are providing people with the ability to purchase homes in areas in the past that would not be possible. Home, Location and Price all are all starting to end up on the same street so be advised- This is a great year to Buy Your Home.

Josh Groesbeck 208-353-7131 or josh@homeswithjosh.com

It’s taken three years to process $1 trillion in foreclosed homes. At that rate, it will take more than five years for the amount of each individual’s mortgage debt, relative to their income, to get back to levels that were the norm in this country before the housing bubble, according to a report from TrimTabs Investment Research.

“For the debt-to-income ratio to return to 65 percent, mortgage debt needs to fall from its current level of $8.9 trillion to $6.4 trillion to $7.4 trillion,” Madeline Schnapp, TrimTabs director of economic research lays out very clearly in a report to clients today. “At the current pace, it could take four to six more years to work through the current and expected backlog of delinquencies.”

Home with foreclosure sign

One problem with this math could be that Schnapp assumes there will be very little income growth because of high unemployment so the only way to get back to normal is to lower the debt side of the equation through foreclosures. However, she’s also assuming 60 to 65 percent is the “sustainable” amount of debt to income an average homeowner can handle and many believe that will still have to come down even further. Either way, you’re left with at least a five-year slog, according to many economists and investors.

“It may take longer than 4-6 years in my opinion to work through the delinquencies,” said Simon Baker, CEO of Baker Avenue Asset Management. He cited the stall in the foreclosure process taking place in the court system as banks are forced to prove they actually own mortgages that changed so many hands during Wall Street’s securitization process.

“Sloppy paperwork and government policies that slow foreclosures and allow banks to postpone losses are only delaying the necessary adjustment in the housing market,” wrote Schnapp in her report. “The faster home prices reach a market clearing level, the faster the housing market will boost the economy.”

The latest Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller data showed that housing prices fell again across most of the major cities, with eight markets such as Las Vegas and Miami setting new lows since the housing crisis. Data released today showed a much higher than expected jump in weekly jobless claims, dampening hopes of an increase in wages anytime soon.

“We do not expect a true turn in home sales to occur until it becomes clear that the unemployment rate has peaked and is on a steady downtrend,” said Michelle Meyer, an economist for Bank of America Merrill Lynch, in a report to clients. “In addition, the turn in new home sales should be slower than that of existing homes given the lure of deeply discounted foreclosures.”

Source: John Melloy CNBC

Idaho Home Buyers In 2011

Lately I have been seeing Idaho rank for one of the worst places for real estate- Many home owners are upside down in their mortgage complicate that hardship with other factors and we have distress, leading owners to a short sale resolution or possible foreclosure. Here in Idaho the short sale process is becoming more and more transparent leading to more closed short sales and a little less distress. If you or someone you know is looking to take advantage of this great home buying opportunity call Josh Groesbeck 208-353-7131 or josh@homeswithjosh.com Look for your home of the future

Slowly but surely, home buyers are entering the market again. It’s a trend that will likely continue throughout 2011.

Overall, mortgage applications are down again this week. But this is mainly due to the huge drop in refinance activity, driven by rising rates. On the home buying front, activity was up in November. The housing market is still sluggish by any measure. But the buyers are starting to come out of the woodwork.

According to the National Association of Realtors, home purchases for November increased 5.6 percent over the month prior. Home purchases will likely drop in December, which is a seasonal trend that happens every year. As we move into 2011, home purchases are expected to rise again.

Buying a Home, 2011

In many parts of the U.S., home prices will continue to decline through the first part of 2011. This, along with consistently low mortgage rates, has kept a lot of home buyers on the sidelines for the past few months. But mortgage rates have risen steadily for the last several weeks. If the upward trend of interest rates continues, it will bring more buyers into the market.

“When you have record-low mortgage rates and price declines, home buyers don’t feel any sense of urgency,” said Brandon Cornett, publisher of the Home Buying Institute. “But when the rates start rising, buyers say to themselves ‘Okay, maybe this is as good as it gets … maybe it’s time to take the plunge.’”

Many are predicting that mortgage rates will inch upward through 2011, perhaps reaching or exceeding 5 percent by year’s end. If that prediction holds true, it will give home buyers a stronger sense of urgency.

Source: Brandon Cornett

The Home Buying Institute

Another Great Reason To Live In Idaho

Another great reason to live in Idaho. Boise State Broncos 2010 BSC Champions.. Today our beloved Broncos start their march towards the top-BSU 20 VT 17.  As a native Idahoan I have had the opportunity to grow up with what used to be a state college with  blue turf and tail gaiters. Over the years that team has become bigger than that  blue  turf and the tail gaiters have become BRONCO NATION!  Enjoy the video highlights.

Owning Your Idaho Home

Everyday we here more bad news about the housing fallout and while that cannot be ignored there are some major benefits of home ownership. A lot of the times home ownership are more than the financial dividends.  The best things about owning a home have a lot more to do with personal comfort and satisfaction. I was golfing with a retired professor from Notre Dame. He followed his wife and kids over to Idaho and told me if it weren’t for his job at the University of Notre Dame he would have been here years ago.  He had been coming to Boise, Idaho since the late 1960′s telling me that he always knew that he would end up owning a home here. In closing “I love Idaho” and good game :)

Here are five of them:

· Be your own landlord. The bank can only kick you out if you don’t pay; a landlord can be much less dependable – deciding to sell the property or choosing to live there themselves.
· Paying the principal is forced savings. Yes, it’s possible that home prices will fall further. It is also possible that your 401k will go down, but in the end both should provide you with an upside.
· Fixed-rate mortgages never rise – and eventually you pay them off. With mortgage rates at record lows, people who buy now are locking in real bargains.
· Good schools. Family-sized rentals are harder to come by in areas with excellent public schools.
· Spacious properties in pleasant neighborhoods. Sizable homes in attractive communities are almost always owned – not rented.

Source New York Times: Ron Lieber

Realty Check For Idaho

Watch today’s short report on the housing market- Some where around 32% of loan modifications have become permanent while the rest  moving towards some form of foreclosure.  It seems that banks are trying a little harder to get these loans modified to 31% of your monthly gross income, not your take home money but your gross. Idaho has been witness to a rise in values that we most likely will never see again. Lost jobs and income combined with values that have seemingly taken us back, back, back-are not helping recovery. If your payment is good and your paying down your principle and living life more power to you. If your payment has become a hardship and starts taking away your quality of life, look for help.. Take action and stay in your home, call    Joshua Groesbeck 208-353-7131 or josh@homeswithjosh.com or www.homeswithjosh.com