Dec 13
11
CLOSED! Roslindale Massachusetts Short Sale APPROVED – Ocwen Multifamily
Jamaica Plain Multi Family Short Sale
CLOSED! Roslindale Massachusetts Short Sale APPROVED – Ocwen Multifamily
I’m very excited on this one. This is the first time we worked with Jay Balaban out of Prudential Unlimited in Jamaica Plain. Nick and I were honored to do a short presentation there last winter and Jay thankfully decided to work with us on this sale. He is an excellent agent. I would highly recommend him for ANY Boston Short Sales. He is communicative and worked through the process well with the sellers and a tricky buyer.
Jay Balaban Prudential Unlimited Short Sale Agent
This sale also had two additional execution liens that we were able to get released. We’ve done a ton of Ocwen short sales and I was fairly confident going into this one we could get it done. Ocwen has fairly specific thresholds and once you know them, you know what your offer and NET should be to them. I actually LIKE working with Ocwen (When they don’t force you to use HUBZU) – I know a lot of people don’t like working with Ocwen, but for a short sale, I think they are pretty decent to deal with.
Ocwen was able to also issue an extension on this sale for us, when the buyer wasn’t ready.
I really need to thank Jay, Julie in our office and of course Grugnale law, who has probably closed more short sales than any other title attorney in the state. They KNOW their way around a short sale and I’m so grateful to be able to work with them.
THANKS GANG!
Maryann Little, VP Short Sale Mitigation
Nick Aalerud, Exec VP Short Sale Mitigation, Broker New Hampshire / Massachusetts
http://shortsalemitigation.net
http://twitter.com/rapidshortsales
http://aapremierproperties.com
978-384-0032
603-505-4642 (f)
Stoneham, MA - Plaistow, NH
Short Sale Negotiation in Massachusetts and New Hampshire
Posted in Uncategorized by .
Broker Nick Aalerud & Maryann Little Short Sale Mitigation, LLC AA Premier Properties, LLC Serving Massachusetts and New Hampshire Homeowners with short sale negotiation.Owcen and Nationstar sending short sales to HUBZU and Auction.com
So has it happened to you yet? You list a short sale, market it, do CMA’s, take picts, and finally put the home under contract. Yes it’s a great day to submit a short sale. You send your package into Nationstar and wait while the processor weeds through the paperwork, and 1 month turns to two, and finally on the third month of waiting for them to approve the sale, they notify you that must now have the seller sign an agreement that the sale will be marketed on Auction.com. Wait, didn’t I just do that? Didn’t I just market it for four months, finally get a buyer, sign a contract, and submit and wait another 3 months? So now this sale has gone on for seven months, with a fully executed 
contract, for the seller’s lender to tell us we need to submit it to Auction.com?
Well, this isn’t new news. This has been going on since the first quarter of the year, and now Ocwen has jumped on the bandwagon by forcing sellers to join, HUBZU.com
The liability of doing this all around is HUGE. There are issues for the seller, lender, agent and I have heard the argument that the sale is subject to third party approval, however, I think it’s high time that NAR takes a stand. The SALE is subject to third party approval. Not the marketing. The marketing is for the agents, NOT for the lender. Why does Nationstar or Ocwen feel that their 3rd party companies do a better job at marketing and finding a higher offer than the one the agent has presented? I think if you do a quick search on the internet regarding Nationstar and Auction.com, you will see HUNDREDS of posts from agents losing qualified higher buyers, only to have the Auction.com sale fail. Also, what happened to STREAMLINING short sales?
HAFA guidelines stipulates the servicers must respond to a homeowners paperwork within 30 days and render a decision if they qualify…how does waiting 3 months to throw a sale that’s already under contract help?
What liability does this put onto the seller or agent, when a buyer already under contract, gets wind of the sale being put on Auction.com? Their already executed contract 
is now being “interfered” upon.
What about MLS rules? When a property goes under contract in MLS, it is not red flagged to take back up offers. Does an agent risk violating those rules?
What about the listing agent contract? The agent outlines the way they intend to market the property. Not in one area does the listing agent agree to market it on Hubzu or Auction.com
What about Military Vets? They will be excluded from short sales as there is a 5% buyer premium. One of my peers has already posted a very informational video on this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXVvTBhZWJ8
Both Nationstar and Ocwen have already been sued over this practice and I can just see the lawsuits following.
As far as our homeowners going through this process? Well even though the paperwork alludes to the fact it’s an OPTION, it’s not. The response we got was either they do it this way, or they’ll be reviewed for a modification or a Deed in Lieu of Foreclosure, which, hey, let’s have all the homeowners OPT for this method. The lenders and investors will get NOTHING when they take back the property as opposed to fair market value.
I will keep you posted to let you know what transpires.
Maryann Little, VP Short Sale Mitigation
Nick Aalerud, Exec VP Short Sale Mitigation, Broker New Hampshire / Massachusetts
http://shortsalemitigation.net
http://twitter.com/rapidshortsales
http://aapremierproperties.com
978-384-0032
603-505-4642 (f)
Stoneham, MA - Plaistow, NH
Short Sale Negotiation in Massachusetts and New Hampshire
Posted in Uncategorized by .
Dec 13
9
CLOSED! Haverhill MA Short Sale!
Haverhill MA short sale
This was not the easiest nor was it the worst short sale we’ve ever closed in Haverhill, Massachusetts, but it was the FIRST for our new negotiator Kelly Couture, who had sellers so happy, they gave a raving testimonial.
This was our first closing with Marilyn Ellis http://www.theconciergerealtor.com/ who I’ve really come to get to know and who I have a lot of respect for.
This sale was a condo situation, that could have gone South real quick due to the unstable neighbor next door, but thankfully, Marilyn and the sellers did not let this derail things. This was a Bank of America sale, with a full deficiency release for the seller and right in time for the new year.
Here is what the seller sent to us immediately after the sale:
“Thank you for everyone’s effort during this process. When this whole process started Marilyn promised me that I would put up my Christmas tree in a new place, a place away from all of the negativity and yesterday I did just that.
Marilyn Ellis, Short Sale Agent, Massachusetts
There are no words to express my unconditional gratitude for all of the time and people it took to complete this. Thank you and wishing everyone a happy and healthy holiday season!”
Sometimes I forget how much people appreciate the assistance out of a tough situation, and this closing made it all worth it.
Thanks to Marilyn, Kelly in our office, and of course the diligent work of Grugnale Law.
Maryann Little, VP Mitigation
THE SHORT SALE CLOSERS
Thank you for everyone’s effort during this process. When this whole process started Marilyn promised me that I would put up my Christmas tree in a new place, a place away from all of the negativity and yesterday I did just that.
There are no words to express my unconditional gratitude for all of the time and people it took to complete this. Thank you and wishing everyone a happy and healthy holiday season!
Maryann Little, VP Short Sale Mitigation
Nick Aalerud, Exec VP Short Sale Mitigation, Broker New Hampshire / Massachusetts
http://shortsalemitigation.net
http://twitter.com/rapidshortsales
http://aapremierproperties.com
978-384-0032
603-505-4642 (f)
Stoneham, MA - Plaistow, NH
Short Sale Negotiation in Massachusetts and New Hampshire
Posted in Uncategorized by .
FHA Short Sale Changes effective October 1, 2013 – for NH and Massachusetts Short Sales
HUD announced new changes in their guidelines for short sales effective 10/1. One change has already been rescinded such as no DUAL agency, however some other notable changes and the government shut down have prolonged an already long process in short sale ATP’s and approvals.
Eligibility Requirements: To successfully complete a Preforeclosure Short Sale the sellers must meet the following requirements:
- They cannot list the property with or sell it to anyone with whom they are related or have a close personal or business relationship. In legal terms, it must be an “arm’s-length” transaction. Any knowing violation of the arm’s-length requirement may be a violation of federal law.
- Your mortgage must be in default, on the date the short sale transaction closes.
- Before closing, any additional liens against the property must be released. A lien holder who demands a payment to release its lien must submit a written statement, and an agreement to release the lien if that amount is paid.
- Financial Hardship Validation Requirement: For a standard preforeclosure sale, servicers must use a Deficit Income Test (DIT) to determine a homeowner’s financial hardship. The IRS Collection Financial Standards will be used to verify homeowners expenses not reflected in their credit report. Only owner-occupied properties are eligible for the standard preforeclosure sale.
- New Streamlined Short Sale Option: Homeowners eligible for a streamlined short sale may not be required to submit financial information or have a financial hardship. Principal residences, second homes, investment properties and service members who have received Permanent Change of Station (PCS) Orders are potentially eligible.
- Property Appraisal: The appraisal of your property should be completed within approximately ten business days. After the appraisal, the short sale file will be updated and prepared for review. In some cases, approval may be required by the investor and/or FHA, which may take more time.
- Cash Contribution: As a new condition, you might be required to make a final payment (sometimes called a cash contribution) before or at closing. This payment will reduce the deficiency balance.
- Seller’s Incentive Compensation: If you are an owner occupant, acting in good faith, and successfully selling your property, you may be eligible for an incentive of up to $3,000. If you are required to make cash contribution, you are not eligible for this incentive.
- Short Sale Contract Addendum:
- The revised FHA short sale addendum must be signed and dated by all parties. Under this addendum, all parties agree that the subject property must be sold through an arm’s-length transaction. An arm’s-length transaction is defined as a short sale between two unrelated parties that is characterized by a selling price and other conditions that would prevail in an open market environment. Also, no hidden terms or special understandings can exist between any of the parties (e.g., buyer, seller, appraiser, sales agent, closing agent, and mortgagee) involved in the transaction.
Our firm has seen another change that has affected some of our short sales. In addition to an appraisal, the servicers are ordering a BPO on the property if the property value falls within these certain parameters:
After its review of an FHA Roster appraisal, a mortgagee must submit a Request for a Variance through the Extensions and Variances Automated Requests System (EVARS) to approve a PFS transaction if one of the following conditions exists:
• The current appraised value of the property is less than the Unpaid Principal Balance (UPB) by an amount of $75,000 or greater; or
• The appraised value is less than 50 percent of the UPB. If neither of these conditions exists, a PFS appraisal (prepared by a FHA Roster Appraiser) will be considered acceptable if the “as is” value of the property is affirmed using a Broker’s Price Opinion (BPO) or Automated Valuation Model 4 (AVM) that is within 10 percent (10%) of the value assessed by the appraiser. The cost of an AVM and/or BPO is reimbursable. Upon determining and documenting that the appraised value is within the relevant range, the mortgagee may authorize the marketing of the property in accordance with Mortgagee Letter 2008-43. However, if the appraisal is deemed unacceptable because it does not meet the aforementioned criteria for acceptability, the mortgagee must:
• submit a variance through EVARS; and
• obtain approval prior to authorizing the marketing of the property.
So what does this mean? It means lengthier time frames to an already long process. If the appraisal on your property determines the above the servicer must THEN order either a BPO or a value variance through HUD and I’m not sure WHICH is more expedient.
Be prepared to wait on HUD short sales in New Hampshire and Massachusetts.
Maryann Little, VP Short Sale Mitigation
Nick Aalerud, Exec VP Short Sale Mitigation, Broker New Hampshire / Massachusetts
http://shortsalemitigation.net
http://twitter.com/rapidshortsales
http://aapremierproperties.com
978-384-0032
603-505-4642 (f)
Stoneham, MA - Plaistow, NH
Short Sale Negotiation in Massachusetts and New Hampshire
Posted in Uncategorized by .
CPFB announces servicers MUST hand over appraisal or BPO to borrower being considered for a Short Sale.
On January 18th, Short Sale Negotiators around the country will rejoice regarding the new Consumer Protection Finance Bureau, Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) amendment, under Regulation B which stipulates that servicers MUST provide borrowers with free copies of all appraisals and other written property valuations developed in connection with an application for credit.
The final rule is written as follows:
To the extent a loss mitigation transaction is covered by Regulation B, the transaction is covered by the final rule, including its requirement of providing copies of appraisals and other written valuations. Consumers generally will benefit from receiving information about the value of their dwelling, both in the context of making a decision about the loss mitigation transaction and also in detecting potential discrimination, consistent with the purposes of ECOA. http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2013-01-31/pdf/2013-01384.pdf (p. 7223)
The days are over when servicers can deny a sale with the simple response, “the offer doesn’t meet investor requirements.” Now servicers will be held accountable to describe exactly what about the offer does NOT meet investor requirements.
In my opinion this will add a huge layer of transparency between us as negotiators and the servicers/investors.
Will this change the future of short sales? I suspect not as greatly as we’d like. With every new announcement I’ve seen in the last 3 years between servicers and investors trying to streamline the short sale process, I have yet to see any REAL improvement in the amount of time it takes to expeditiously negotiate a sale. So let’s say we find the value of a property from the servicer to be in line with what the buyer’s offer is? What is to say the investor has a requirement that they will only accept a net 20% MORE than the FMV of a property. That leaves us in the same position we are today, which is fighting values, or losing buyers and relisting property higher and wasting more time on the sales.
I do look forward to this change next year, but I’m skeptical if the layer of transparency will really work to the benefit of short sale negotiations in Massachusetts or New Hampshire.
Maryann Little, VP Short Sale Mitigation
Nick Aalerud, Exec VP Short Sale Mitigation, Broker New Hampshire / Massachusetts
http://shortsalemitigation.net
http://twitter.com/rapidshortsales
http://aapremierproperties.com
978-384-0032
603-505-4642 (f)
Stoneham, MA - Plaistow, NH
Short Sale Negotiation in Massachusetts and New Hampshire
Posted in Uncategorized by .
CLOSED! Lowell Massachusetts Short Sale – with estranged sellers
Lowell, MA short Sale
Short sales are not usually pretty and this one was no exception to the rule. We went through two rounds of buyers, a servicing change and estranged sellers and finally closed. The point is you must be prepared for things that derail your sale, and keep focused on moving it forward to the best of your ability.
I like to say we specialize in divorce short sales. When I do an intake call and speak to sellers for the first time, I assess the situation to see how we can assist in the short sale process and even IF we can assist in that process. When you have one seller who wants to sell and another seller who doesn’t in an estranged situation, you really cannot MAKE the sale happen. If one seller digs their heels in, you will have a big headache ahead of you. Just last week I spoke to a woman who is on the deed, but not note. She wanted to sell, but her estranged ex-husband had no interest. My advice, “It’s not your problem. Let it go to foreclosure,” was quick and painless for her. Her credit wasn’t on the line and why should she jump through hoops trying to make someone do a short sale when they didn’t want to. HE should have been the one attempting a Shirley, MA short sale, but no.
In these situations, we MUST speak to both spouses. I cannot rely on just one spouse or the other, because we’ve seen some crazy things. Once we know both are on board, we can move the sale forward, and thankfully that’s what happened in this Lowell, MA short sale.
This sale had a first with BOA and a second originally with GMAC which got sold to Ocwen. This derailed things, along with the fact that BOA gave us a verbal OK on the
Joe Ready, Short Sale Agent MA
first sale, but then denied it in the end, so we started all over. This obviously doesn’t make anyone happy, but this is also NOT uncommon in short sales. My motto, “Until I see it in writing, it’s not true.”
Either way, we got it done with the help from Julie Baker, in our office, Grugnale Law, and of course Joe Ready, from Ready RE, LLC – We are so grateful to everyone who helped accomplish this long sale.
Maryann Little, VP Short Sale Mitigation
Nick Aalerud, Exec VP Short Sale Mitigation, Broker New Hampshire / Massachusetts
http://shortsalemitigation.net
http://twitter.com/rapidshortsales
http://aapremierproperties.com
978-384-0032
603-505-4642 (f)
Stoneham, MA - Plaistow, NH
Short Sale Negotiation in Massachusetts and New Hampshire
Posted in Uncategorized by .
Fannie Mae has provided us with Job Security!
What do I mean by that? Well, I think most people are under the assumption the real estate market is stabilizing. I do think that the rate of foreclosure is declining, however, I think that is largely due to the fact lenders are being forced to explore more loss mitigation options, before taking a property back.
The current trend on Fannie Mae properties is not sitting well with most of us that negotiate short sales. First, Fannie has already publically announced they intend to counter EVERY short sale. Now, unfortunately many, many buyer agents still don’t understand that. They have their client go in with a strong offer, that suddenly gets countered by Fannie. These counters come in all shapes and sizes, but from what I’ve seen it’s a minimum $15,000 for a property $150,000 or under, and I’ve seen a $100,000 counter on a $380,000 property. Also, the strong offer the buyer provided many times IS fair market value. I’ve seen Fannie comp themselves higher than FMV on some of these offers. Does it make sense? Not yet. No, but essentially two things happen, either the buyer comes up and pays above fair market value, or says NO and we end up wasting time, relisting the property and trying to get a higher offer. SOMETIMES we get one, and MOST times we waste another three months until a new BPO/or appraisal can be ordered.
So what do I mean by, they are providing me with Job Security? If you look at the trend of properties that didn’t sell at auction or short sale, Fannie will then relist these 
properties so far above market value they won’t appraise for most buyers. Buyers have their lenders all lined up, but when their appraisal is done, the appraisal is too low, so they lose their financing. This is because the property is OVER PRICED. Now in most cases a buyer just loses the property, time, money etc., but in the case of a Homepath property (which is Fannie’s REO site) a buyer CAN buy the property with HOMEPATH financing if it doesn’t appraise. Do you see where I’m going with this?
Essentially Fannie is controlling the value and the market instead of the appraisal, and comps controlling the value.
I’ve had a conversation with a Fannie Mae supervisor and when I told him one of the properties we were working on definitely did NOT come in anywhere near what the value that they were looking for was, his answer was quite simple. “Value is only ONE factor we use when determining whether or not we plan on foreclosing.” Of course none of us are privy to the other factors, or even the appraisal/BPO they use in making that determination.
I’m not saying this to deter you from buying a Fannie property, but a Fannie short sale will NOT be a good deal. If you want the property, you have to be prepared to work for it. Get an appraisal once an offer comes in and have it ready. Chances are they will STILL come in above that appraisal amount.
The thing to remember is Fannie owns a HUGE amount of default loans, so many short sales you look at on the market will go in this direction. Just keep in mind it’s a negotiation. If you want the property, be prepared to PAY top dollar. Fannie is NOT discounting short sales.
Because people are largely overpaying for property – (Ummmm eehhh hemmm, remember the good days of 2003-2006?) and the economy from what I can see is NOT getting stronger, there is a LARGE portion of these loans that will likely default, so even though I don’t like what Fannie is doing, they ensure that our firm will still be negotiating short sales long into the future.
Thanks Fannie Mae!
Maryann Little, VP Short Sale Mitigation
Nick Aalerud, Exec VP Short Sale Mitigation, Broker New Hampshire / Massachusetts
http://shortsalemitigation.net
http://twitter.com/rapidshortsales
http://aapremierproperties.com
978-384-0032
603-505-4642 (f)
Stoneham, MA - Plaistow, NH
Short Sale Negotiation in Massachusetts and New Hampshire
Posted in Uncategorized by .
And the Massachusetts Short Sale Negotiators for Worcester do it AGAIN! First we are Reverse Mortgage Short Sale PROs – We love them and love to negotiate them so if you have a reverse mortgage short sale in NH or MA and need assistance, we have done these and closed them with EASE! We want your reverse mortgage short sales if you don’t want them and I have agents who will pay 50% commission on reverse mortgage short sales if you still want to make some $$$!
A few tips if you plan on negotiating reverse mortgage short sales in New Hampshire or Massachusetts:
1) If the seller is deceased, please have probate paperwork in hand
2) understand that the lender is going to want to NET 95% of the appraised value
3) the lender will obtain the appraised value/sometimes the seller
4) if the seller is alive, they are expected to sign all docs
Thanks to Julie in our office who negotiated this amazing sale and of course, Grugnale law which assisted with closing, title etc.
Once again, the REVERSE MORTGAGE #SHORTSALE NEGOTIATORS have CLOSED another short sale!
Maryann Little, VP Short Sale Mitigation
Nick Aalerud, Exec VP Short Sale Mitigation, Broker New Hampshire / Massachusetts
http://shortsalemitigation.net
http://twitter.com/rapidshortsales
http://aapremierproperties.com
978-384-0032
603-505-4642 (f)
Stoneham, MA - Plaistow, NH
Short Sale Negotiation in Massachusetts and New Hampshire
Posted in Uncategorized by .