Real Estate News REcap
There has been a great deal of real estate news making headlines lately, so if you want the latest scoop here you go:
1. Bank of America is about to launch deed for lease program. After much controversy over this type of program, it seems B of A is going to jump into the deed for lease program arena. The program will target underwater homeowners, who are in danger of foreclosure, and will provide an alternative that allows them to stay in their homes: the homeowner turns over the deed to the property, and in turn gets to rent the property back as a tenant, at current market rates. The former homeowners would be given one year leases with options to renew. There are many questions as to whether this program will work, and whether it is good for the housing market. We will just have to wait and see. Stay tuned for more on this topic.
2. Bank of America is offering principal reductions up to $100,000. Sound too good to be true? It may well be – the requirements are very specific and do not apply to Fannie and Freddie loans. Your loan has to have originated with Countrywide AND you have to have been 60 days delinquent as of January 31, 2012. For more information click here.
3. New study finds buying is cheaper than renting in 98/100 major U.S. cities. According to a study by Trulia, it is more cost-effective to buy rather than rent in many places. This is due mostly in part to the rising rental rates and the flat housing prices – combine that with the extremely low interest rates which make now a great time to buy. Buying rather than renting can also avoid other potential headaches, such as finding properties to rent (a big problem in my area), or the surprise of a landlord facing foreclosure. For more details on the report click here.
4. Best February for home sales in 5 years. Yes, last month was the best February for resale homes of the last 5, according to the National Association of Realtors. Combined with a nice sale number in January, the year seems to be off to the best start since 2007. Hopefully this good news will continue.
5. Assets of 5 California mortgage companies are frozen by federal court. This came after investigations were opened against five California mortgage companies for fraud in scamming homeowners facing foreclosure. All the companies were owned by Sameer Lakhany, who apparently charged customers up to $10,000 for legal advice and forensic audits, encouraging them to join lawsuits against their lenders for fraud.
6. The blame game – are you surprised? The FHFA (Federal Housing Finance Agency) is claiming that the lengthy foreclosure timelines are the fault of state laws. These laws have been enacted by different states in order to protect homeowners, but the FHFA claims they are instead delaying foreclosures, which hurts neighborhoods and the homeowners in the long run. What do you think?
