Mar 14
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So did you have a SHORT SALE listing TAKEN OVER by Auction.com or HUBZU? Sign the petition.
So did you have a SHORT SALE listing TAKEN OVER by Auction.com or HUBZU? Sign the petition.
Agents are angry. It’s not just me, and the amount of liability around a short sale on a GOOD day is tough. Now let’s just take the fact the servicer (Nationstar or Ocwen) is forcing the homeowner to put their ALREADY UNDER CONTRACT property up on Auction.com or HUBZU to get additional higher offers….well, in my opinion, it’s downright illegal and it seems that there’s nothing anyone can do about it. If you haven’t already read my article on the topic, you may not know what the fuss is about, but if you are an agent, attorney, negotiator, title company or third party, that negotiates short sales for a living, then you KNOW that there is a huge gain to be made by Nationstar and Ocwen if they continue on this path and what seems like very tough times ahead for short sale homeowners who want to get out of their situation in the speediest manner, because there is NOTHING about Auction.com or Hubzu that is quick. In fact, it seems like they can just do what they want. Even if you are doing a HAFA short sale, they seem to be able to bypass the fact that they don’t need to allow the homeowner to know the MNP (minimum net proceeds)after the homeowner applies. They also follow NONE of the servicing guideline set forth by the treasury, but let’s face it, those of us in the know, realize, they are just GUIDELINES.
A petition has been formed by an agent who had had enough. I commend her and signed this petition and I urge EVERY agent getting this newsletter to do the same, whether you negotiate a lot of short sales or not. We need to ban together to stop servicer insanity and actually streamline the process for short sales for all homeowners http://www.change.org/petitions/nationstar-mortgage-stop-violating-distressed-homeowner-rights-and-allow-them-to-opt-out-of-the-auction-com-process
Please use the link above and take under 3 minutes to sign the petition for this to be reviewed. THANK YOU!
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
Broker Nick Aalerud & Maryann Little Short Sale Mitigation, LLC AA Premier Properties, LLC Serving Massachusetts and New Hampshire Homeowners with short sale negotiation.SHORT SALE HOMEOWNERS IN MA AND NH – THERE COULD BE TAX FORGIVENESS WITHOUT Mortgage Debt Forgiveness Act
I’m not an accountant nor do I play one on TV so please for tax advice seek out someone qualified. I give the same advice to short sale sellers in Massachusetts and New Hampshire, which is find someone qualified to negotiate your sales – Oh wait, that’s me. One of the big questions I’ve been asked since the beginning of 2014 is WILL THE MORTGAGE DEBT FORGIVENESS ACT BE EXTENDED? My feeling is WHY wouldn’t it be? However, the reality is, it hasn’t which means anyone selling a home short this year could face potential tax ramifications from the sale (PLEASE UNDERSTAND FOR THE PURPOSES OF THIS BLOG, I’M ONLY REFERRING TO THE FEDERAL LEVEL OF TAXATION – MASSACHUSETTS MAY HAVE THEIR OWN SEPARATE TAXES) – Now, if you are unfamiliar with why this is important, please see my earlier blog on this topic.
One of the provisions in the act which has yet to be extended is INSOLVENCY – which means if you are insolvent, you may not owe taxes on the forgiven debt, but what few know is there is still a tax code for homeowners who are deemed insolvent. So even if the Act is not extended, you may still qualify for tax forgiveness if you are insolvent.
The code reads as follows:
Income from the discharge of indebtedness is includible in gross income unless it is excludable under Code Sec. 108 or other applicable legislative provision. Five types of exclusions are provided:
|
(1) |
a debt discharge in a bankruptcy action under Title 11 of the U.S. Code in which the taxpayer is under the jurisdiction of the court and the discharge is either granted by or is under a plan approved by the court; |
|
(2) |
a discharge when the taxpayer is insolvent outside bankruptcy; |
|
(3) |
a discharge of qualified farm indebtedness; |
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(4) |
a discharge of qualified real property business indebtedness, and |
|
(5) |
a discharge of qualified principal residence indebtedness occurring before January 1, 2014 ( Code Sec. 108). 80 |
This is good news for many homeowners who are still facing financial challenges and need to sell their home. Again, I am not giving you tax advice, merely pointing out there may be a different provision for insolvent homeowners still needing a short sale.
Feel free to contact us today to discuss your short sale options.
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 .
So far, Congress has been silent regarding the extension of the Mortgage Debt Forgiveness Act even though the Massachusetts Attorney General and 41 other AG’s across the country have urged for the Act to be extended. Despite bipartisan support of the Act, Congress has not moved it forward for 2014. For anyone facing foreclosures, short sales, or loan modifications, this Act is imperative.
If you are unfamiliar with the act, here is why it’s important to underwater homeowners. In the case of a short sale, if a lender forgives a portion of your note, that portion is now looked at by the IRS as taxable income. Now, if the forgiven debt is small, let’s say $20,000, that may not be a HUGE amount for a homeowner struggling to recover from a hardship, but in our company we’ve seen HUNDREDS upon THOUSANDS of dollars forgiven. So, let’s say you owe $700,000 on a property and the lender takes a payoff of $450,000, then the IRS will look at that $250,000 difference as taxable income.
Now there are certain provisions you must meet, such as it must be owner occupied and usually only on the first mortgage. Second mortgages can be considered if the second mortgage was purchase money, but not in the case of a HELOC. (Home Equity Line of Credit).
We at Short Sale Mitigation, LLC and AA Premier Properties, LLC (in NH) feel the act is highly important to the housing recovery which we are deeply rooted in with our homeowners. Thankfully both New Hampshire and Massachusetts Attorney Generals are in support of the act. Unfortunately, we don’t see Congress moving quite as efficiently in their communication as we do with our homeowners.
We will certainly update you accordingly.
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 .
Worcester Massachusetts Short Sale
Thank you to Keith Shaw from Keller Williams, Julie in our office and the amazing Hampton Properties team for putting their faith in us.
This property had two loans with Bank of America. The second was a charge off, which caused some delay at the end and of course it’s pretty funny when Bank of America doesn’t even know where their own loan is. It took them a while to figure out it was charged off. Basically, when they “charge off” debt, they feel it’s “uncollectible”, but don’t ever let a lender bully you into feeling that if they charge something off, you’re in more trouble. I actually find charge offs easier to deal with, but many times you have to dust off the cobwebs of the loan to get them to negotiate and pay.
Keith Shaw, Keller Williams Short Sale Agent
I also like having two loans with the same servicer. It’s USUALLY easier, except if you are working with PNC. They make life VERY difficult even
if they service both loans.
This was an investor sale as well. We love assisting investors in deals, and although they can be tricky, this one overall was fairly smooth.
Thanks to Russell, and Chad for putting their faith in us!
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! Another Haverhill, Massachusetts Short Sale!
Haverhill Massachusetts Short Sale
A big thanks to Debbie Kruzel. Debbie is an amazing agent out of Keller Williams in Andover. We were able to give a class at her brokerage last summer and thankfully Debbie has put her trust in us. We are very grateful and thankful to Debbie.
This was a Bayview backed Short Sale with one lien. They were holding firm on the value which Debbie did end up getting. Bayview IS one of my favorite servicers. They are fast, not paperwork heavy, and usually you are dealing directly with the asset manager and not some middle person which makes them very very efficient.
Initially they wanted to deny the homeowner, but after some clarification on finances, the sale went through.
Of course we could not have gotten this sale closed without the amazing help of Julie on our staff, Debbie, and Grugnale law who makes the short sale process very very efficient.
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! Chapter 13 Malborough MA Short Sale! Thanks EXIT REALTY!
Malborough Massachusetts Short Sale
I wasn’t sure what to expect on this one. We were working with a new agent, Debbie Jean, from Exit Realty. I’m don’t know the full history of the sale as we just got the sale this year, but I guess this was the third maybe fourth attempt to get a sale to go through on this Fannie backed property. Anyone dealing with Fannie knows their valuations are quite askew so Debbie’s frustration didn’t surprise me. All I could tell her is we would do our best and that we did know a little about doing a short sale while in active Bankruptcy. Debbie is great to work with.
You will need court review AND approval of the sale so even when you get short sale approval, if you’ve cleared that hurdle, you need Bankruptcy COURT approval.
Anyways, after the first buyer dropped out, the second stepped in. We went back and forth on the contract and finally submitted our package once again to Greentree. My issue with Greentree is they are slow and the left hand NEVER knows what the right is doing, but thankfully even though we knew the value would be high, we could at least dual track it with Homepath, which we did.
Debbie Jean Exit Realty Short Sale Specialist
The one thing I think Julie and I have learned with Greentree is they will ignore you throughout the entire sale until approval. The minute you get approval, you will get HOUNDED to close. Unfortunately, we couldn’t just CLOSE. We now had to get court approval and thankfully Matt Desrochiers, Esq did some running around for us and literally got court approval on the LAST day the approval was good, and then of course the wire had to get out on time. Julie and I couldn’t have done it without the Grugnale team.
Anyways, it was a great way to end 2013 and SWEET way to enter 2014 – Thank you Debbie Jean for giving us the opportunity to work with you. It was a pleasure
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 .
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 .
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 .