Orlando Short Sale Expert | Orlando Short Sales, Orlando Short Sale Realtor / Agent

With a glut of distressed properties on its books, Bank of America says it is stepping up efforts to increase the number of short sales it completes.

Bank of America senior vice president and mortgage servicing
executive Bob Hora discussed the bank’s plan yesterday. Short sales were extremely rare before the housing crash—accounting for less than 1% of all sales—because home prices were rising and transactions could take months with mountains of paperwork.

Now they take up 12% of the market, according to Realty Trac.
Bank of America is on track to complete 100,000 in 2011, up from about 42,000 a couple years ago, said Hora. Bank of America wants to increase its volume by 60% in 2012, Hora said. Other large banks, such as JP Morgan Chase, have also recently taken on such efforts. With short sales’ percentage of the market rising since the housing crash, banks were left without the staff to deal with the changing landscape. To keep up, the banks have ramped up their short-sale staffs and are streamlining the process. “If we can shave three weeks off the timeline,
that’s better for everyone,” said Hora in the webinar.

This reflects a growing trend among big mortgage servicers actively encouraging borrowers who aren’t paying their mortgages to pursue short sales. Foreclosures inflict huge costs on banks. According to Realty Trac, the average loss on a foreclosed home was 40% in August, while the loss on short sales was 20%. Bank of America now has 3,000 people on its short-sale account, Hora said. In the housing depression’s early years it had 200 to 250. The bank is also starting to mail out packets of materials to delinquent homeowners encouraging them to try to short-sell. The bank two weeks ago began a pilot program in parts of foreclosure-ridden Florida that offers borrowers incentives as high as $20,000 to short-sell. The program is similar to ones adopted by banks such as Chase, which has a nationwide program that offers borrowers as much as $30,000 to short-sell and relocate. “With a combination of incentives,
staffing up and of people being more aware of short sales, it creates a better and faster process for the homeowner, investor and the neighborhood,” said Thomas Kelly, a spokesman for Chase. Kelly said JP Morgan Chase has doubled its short-sale staff and has completed 120,000 short sales since 2009.

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Jerry LaRose is an Orlando Area Residential Real Estate Expert and Foreclosure Specialist who can assist you with the purchase and/or sale of Real Estate in Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden, Kissimmee, St. Cloud, East Orlando, Longwood, Altamonte Springs, Maitland, Winter Park, Oviedo, Apopka, Lake Mary, Clermont, Ocoee Florida or any place in the country. Jerry has created a team of professionals throughout Orlando and the country to ensure that you enjoy a smooth transition to your new area.
Please visit:
Avoid Foreclosure / Short Sale Help http://OrlandoShortSaleExpert.com, or http://ShortSellMyOrlandoHome.com
Our Website http://JerryLaRose.com or www.JerrySellsOrlando.com, or http://OrlandoRealEstateVoice.com ,
If you’re a Buyer looking for Great Deals – http://InvestmentPropertyDealsOrlando.com
Please give me a call if you have questions about the Orlando and Central Florida real estate market.
P.S. If you are listing your home as a short sale in Orange, Seminole, Polk, Lake, Osceola and Brevard County Florida and Orlando, East Orlando, St. Cloud, Davenport, Clermont, Longwood, Windermere, Winter Garden, Kissimmee, Winter Park, Altamonte Springs, Maitland, Apopka, Lake Mary, Oviedo or Ocoee Florida make sure you hire an agent and realtor who knows how to do short sales and has the experience to get the job done. We are doing successful short sale packages. The short sale process is complicated and we can help simplify it.
We also have now expanded to help homeowners to Stop Foreclosure in Brevard County Florida. Servicing Melbourne, Coco, Coco Beach, Satellite Beach, Palm Bay, Indian Harbour Beach, South Patrick Shores, Palm Shores, Rockledge, Cocoa West, Merritt Island, Port Saint John and Titusville Florida
Call us at 407-580-7011 or email at jerry@JerryLaRose.com to find out more about Orange County Short Sales and Orlando Area Short Sales.
Orlando Short Sales, expert, specialist, Realtor, Keller Williams Realty, agent, broker, short sale, stop foreclosure

Bank of America encourages distressed homeowners to explore a short sale as a viable option for avoiding foreclosure. To that end, for a limited time we are offering enhanced relocation assistance to help motivate homeowners to engage with us on a pre-offer short sale. An additional benefit for these pre-offer programs – such as the Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives (HAFA) and Bank of America’s proprietary program – is that deficiency may be waived for the homeowner.
Eligibility:
• Homeowners with property in Florida
• Short sales initiated without an offer between September 26 and November 30
• The customer will have to be eligible for one of the without offer programs such as the HAFA program or our proprietary program (specific investor participation and eligibility criteria do apply to these programs)
• Successful closing of the eligible short sale by August 31, 2012
• Minimum relocation assistance is $5,000 and maximum is $20,000, with the specific amount calculated based on the unpaid principal balance
Exclusions:
• Ginnie Mae, FHA, VA and USDA loans are ineligible for participation
• Lot loans are ineligible for participation
• Properties outside the state of Florida are ineligible for participation
• Short sales initiated with an offer are not currently eligible for the enhanced relocation assistance
Frequently Asked Questions:
Q: How can I find out if my client/homeowner qualifies for this relocation assistance?
A: Call a Bank of America short sale specialist at 1.877.459.2852.
Monday – Friday 8 a.m. – 10 p.m.; Saturday 9 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. Eastern

Q: Do I have to do anything differently when initiating or completing the short sale?
A: No. As long as the homeowner’s short sale is initiated between September 26 and November 30, 2011, and the property closes by August 31, 2012, they will be eligible.
Q: Will the relocation assistance funds be reported on the HUD-1?
A: Yes, they will be documented on the HUD-1, and a 1099-MISC will be issued.

Q: Can the relocation assistance funds be used to pay off existing liens?
A: Yes, if the investor approves it.

Q: Is the relocation assistance added to any other incentives, such as the HAFA or Bank of America proprietary program incentives?
A: No. A homeowner will receive the $5,000 to $20,000 in place of the typical incentive paid out by these programs. The relocation assistance is essentially an enhancement to the standard payout offered on these programs.

Q: Is the enhanced relocation assistance available for other programs?
A: Currently, the enhanced relocation assistance is only available to short sale programs initiated without an offer. However, as we gauge the success we may extend this incentive to other programs.
Questions?
Homeowners and agents may call 1.877.459.2852 to speak to a Bank of America short sale specialist about this exciting relocation assistance offering.

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Jerry LaRose is an Orlando Area Residential Real Estate Expert and Foreclosure Specialist who can assist you with the purchase and/or sale of Real Estate in Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden, Kissimmee, St. Cloud, East Orlando, Longwood, Altamonte Springs, Maitland, Winter Park, Oviedo, Apopka, Lake Mary, Clermont, Ocoee Florida or any place in the country. Jerry has created a team of professionals throughout Orlando and the country to ensure that you enjoy a smooth transition to your new area.
Please visit:
Avoid Foreclosure / Short Sale Help http://OrlandoShortSaleExpert.com, or http://ShortSellMyOrlandoHome.com
Our Website http://JerryLaRose.com or www.JerrySellsOrlando.com, or http://OrlandoRealEstateVoice.com ,
If you’re a Buyer looking for Great Deals – http://InvestmentPropertyDealsOrlando.com
Please give me a call if you have questions about the Orlando and Central Florida real estate market.
P.S. If you are listing your home as a short sale in Orange, Seminole, Polk, Lake, Osceola and Brevard County Florida and Orlando, East Orlando, St. Cloud, Davenport, Clermont, Longwood, Windermere, Winter Garden, Kissimmee, Winter Park, Altamonte Springs, Maitland, Apopka, Lake Mary, Oviedo or Ocoee Florida make sure you hire an agent and realtor who knows how to do short sales and has the experience to get the job done. We are doing successful short sale packages. The short sale process is complicated and we can help simplify it.
We also have now expanded to help homeowners to Stop Foreclosure in Brevard County Florida. Servicing Melbourne, Coco, Coco Beach, Satellite Beach, Palm Bay, Indian Harbour Beach, South Patrick Shores, Palm Shores, Rockledge, Cocoa West, Merritt Island, Port Saint John and Titusville Florida
Call us at 407-580-7011 or email at jerry@JerryLaRose.com to find out more about Orange County Short Sales and Orlando Area Short Sales.
Orlando Short Sales, expert, specialist, Realtor, Keller Williams Realty, agent, broker, short sale, stop foreclosure

Bank of America and Ally Financial’s GMAC Mortgage have begun to lift their freezes on more than 100,000 foreclosure cases in Florida and other states, saying they’re not finding flaws in their paperwork.

Late Monday, Bank of America issued a statement saying that it expects to begin going back next week to courts in the 23 states where foreclosures are a judicial process, including Florida. A statement from spokesman Dan Frahm said the lender is preparing to re-submit documents in 102,000 foreclosure cases already underway.

Also Monday, Ally Financial spokesman James Olecki confirmed that GMAC is re-submitting documents in some foreclosure cases including at least one in Florida “as each of those files is reviewed and remediated when needed.”

Among major lenders, Bank of America had called a halt to all foreclosure sales nationwide. It also, along with GMAC, JPMorgan Chase and PNC Financial Services, initiated reviews in the 23 judicial foreclosure states. Bank of America later extended its review nationwide. Wells Fargo did not undertake a review of its procedures.

Major lenders in September began announcing halts to all or parts of their foreclosure processes, after revelations – in sworn statements submitted in lawsuits in which homeowners are fighting foreclosures – showing that employees or representatives failed to verify mortgage paperwork before submitting foreclosure cases to courts.

The so-called “robo-signers” said, under oath, that they handled thousands of documents each month without knowing whether they were accurate, as required by court procedure.

The GMAC and Chase documents surfaced in Palm Beach County cases that are still going through the courts.

On Monday, Bank of America said its “initial assessment findings” have shown “the basis for our foreclosure decisions is accurate.”

GMAC’s Olecki wrote in an e-mail, “Again, we have been in the midst of a review for approximately two months and have found no evidence of any inappropriate foreclosures to date.”

A spokesman for PNC Financial said the lender hasn’t changed its position on reviewing foreclosure documents. A spokesman for JPMorgan Chase repeated the bank’s intention to review about 115,000 foreclosure files and delay foreclosure sales.

Monday’s developments won’t speed the foreclosure process in Florida’s overburdened courts, said Alexander Fernandez, director of homeownership preservation for Neighborhood Housing Services of South Florida. He noted there are more than 50,000 cases in Broward County alone that are still pending. And renewed cases, he said, would probably go to the back of the line.

Foreclosure defense attorneys questioned how the process can be re-started. “Do they simply get to resubmit the document and go on like nothing happened?” said Matthew Weidner, a St. Petersburg foreclosure defense attorney.

Beyond Florida, Bank of America said it would continue its halt of foreclosure sales in the 27 states that do not handle foreclosures through the judicial system.

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Jerry LaRose is an Orlando Area Residential Real Estate Expert, who can assist you with the purchase and/or sale of Real Estate in Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden, Kissimmee, St. Cloud, East Orlando, Longwood, Altamonte Springs, Maitland, Winter Park, Oviedo, Apopka, Lake Mary, Clermont, Ocoee  Florida or any place in the country. Jerry has created a team of professionals throughout Orlando and the country to ensure that you enjoy a smooth transition to your new area.

Please visit:

Avoid Foreclosure / Short Sale Help  http://OrlandoShortSaleExpert.com, or http://ShortSellMyOrlandoHome.com

Our Website http://JerryLaRose.com or www.JerrySellsOrlando.com,  or http://OrlandoRealEstateVoice.com ,

If you’re a Buyer looking for Great Deals –  http://InvestmentPropertyDealsOrlando.com

Please give me a call if you have questions about the Orlando and Central Florida real estate market.

P.S. If you are listing your home as a short sale in Orange, Seminole, Polk, Lake  or Osceola County Florida and Orlando, East Orlando, St. Cloud,  Davenport, Clermont, Longwood, Windermere, Winter Garden,  Kissimmee, Winter Park, Altamonte Springs, Maitland,  Apopka,  Lake Mary, Oviedo or Ocoee Florida make sure you hire an agent who knows how to do short sales and has the experience to get the job done. We are doing successful short sale packages. Call us at 407-580-7011 or email at jerry@JerryLaRose.com to find out more about Orange County Short Sales and Orlando Area Short Sales.

It’s announcement has been received with mixed reviews. Many homeowners on the brink of foreclosure are breathing a temporary sigh of relief, as Bank of America announced it would become the first major bank to halt both foreclosure proceedings and sales. This will take effect in each of the 50 U.S. states

The decision comes on the heels of mounting political pressure, namely that from Senator Christopher Dodd, chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, and the impending November 16th hearing on foreclosures.

The temporary cessation of foreclosure proceedings will give Bank of America time, in the wake of the mortgage crisis, to review its own methods, to ensure fairness and that no predatory practices are in place.

Zillow.com is reporting that the foreclosure rate climbed again in August and became an even larger portion of monthly transactions. Foreclosure resales as a percentage of all sales in August were 19%, up 2 percent from July.

In an housing market that is already anemic, however, will this halt bring more paperwork, pressure, and slowed sales?

Vicki Cox Golder, NAR President, notes, “There are valid foreclosures that should move ahead quickly, and we shouldn’t lump them in with mortgages that are suspect. That would cause deep problems in an already fragile market and throw many families into uncertainty.”

The National Association of Realtors also reports that “thousands of first-time and move-up buyers who hoped to make a foreclosed property their new home now face uncertainty, anxiety and possibly remorse as they worry that closing on their desired property could be in jeopardy.”

This temporary halt could also put more pressure on an ailing job market. Remodelers, contractors, and other workers employed to rehab newly purchased foreclosures may now find themselves without work.

Last week it was reported that U.S. Payrolls had already dropped 95,000 in September.

Will the Fed take action under this mounting pressure when it meets up on November 2nd and 3rd? Time will tell and we’ll keep you posted of any changes that may coming your way.

For now, the market remains mostly unchanged. According to the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index, results remain “dismal.” They report that new job formations slowed in the second and third quarters and both businesses and consumers pulled back on purchases. Overall uncertainty over economic growth has become the latest impediment to a resurgence in new housing — even with historically low interest rates, leveling house prices and pent-up demand from unformed households.

Zillow predicts that a bottom in national home values will happen later this year or early next year at the latest.

It looks like for now, the housing market will continue on its weakened path.

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Jerry LaRose is an Orlando Area Residential Real Estate Expert, who can assist you with the purchase and/or sale of Real Estate in Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden, Kissimmee, St. Cloud, East Orlando, Longwood, Altamonte Springs, Maitland, Winter Park, Oviedo, Apopka, Lake Mary, Clermont, Ocoee  Florida or any place in the country. Jerry has created a team of professionals throughout Orlando and the country to ensure that you enjoy a smooth transition to your new area. Please visit http://OrlandoShortSaleExpert.com,  http://OrlandoRealEstateVoice.com ,  www.JerrySellsOrlando.com, or http://InvestmentPropertyDealsOrlando.com for your Orlando real estate needs.  Please give me a call if you have questions about the Orlando and Central Florida real estate market.

P.S. If you are listing your home as a short sale in Orange, Seminole, Polk, Lake  or Osceola County Florida and Orlando, East Orlando, St. Cloud,  Davenport, Clermont, Longwood, Windermere, Winter Garden,  Kissimmee, Winter Park, Altamonte Springs, Maitland,  Apopka,  Lake Mary, Oviedo or Ocoee Florida make sure you hire an agent who knows how to do short sales and has the experience to get the job done. We are doing successful short sale packages. Call us at 407-580-7011 to find out more about Orange County Short Sales and Orlando Area Short Sales.

Orlando Investors looking to acquire houses through short sales in the Orlando area just might be in for some good news.

One of the largest holders of second liens in the U.S., the Bank of America, says it’s relaxing its policy on payoffs connected with short sales.

That’s important because large banks have been major impediments standing in the way of thousands of short sales, demanding money for home equity lines and second mortgages that would otherwise be worthless if the short sale property went to foreclosure.

Bank of America had been among the least cooperative of all banks in agreeing to short sale payoff terms, according to industry critics.

The company’s policy was blunt: Pay us 10 percent of what the homeowners owed on the equity line balance or second mortgage, or we won’t sign off on the short sale, which is necessary for the deal to go through.

Now the bank has adopted  “a less arbitrary, more rational” policy.

“What we’re saying (to short sale proposals) is — give us an opportunity to participate and gain at least some of the savings” that will go to the first lien holder — the primary lender on the property — by avoiding the high expenses and losses of a foreclosure.

Bank of America is now asking for five percent of the sale proceeds on the short sale, net of realty commissions, closing and other costs.

The bank believes that should open the door to more successful transactions, as well as more fruitful negotiations with buyers and sellers to avoid foreclosures.

The bank’s previous 10 percent policy meant they’d demand $20,000 on a $200, 000 equity line balance, or they wouldn’t bless the deal. But their new policy still means “they want $10,000 if the net proceeds are $200,000″ on a short sale, — even though the economic value of their holding may in fact be zero.

Bottom line for investors: If there’s a Bank of America second mortgage or credit line on the house you’re after in a short sale, work the new numbers. At least some of the time you might be surprised that the answer from the big bank is now ‘yes.’

And watch for other major banks to follow suit.

P.S. If you are listing your home as a short sale in Orange County Florida and Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden,  or Ocoee Florida make sure you hire an agent who knows how to do short sales and has the experience to get the job done. We are doing successful short sale packages. Call us at 407-580-7011 to find out more about Orange County Short Sales and Orlando Area Short Sales.