Tag: Orlando real estate expert

The HARP Program is a Real “Life Changer” for Orlando Homeowners

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

 What Is The HARP Program?

HARP is the Home Affordable Refinance Program. It was an initiative by the Obama Administration begun in 2009 to allow underwater homeowners to refinance their homes at today’s low mortgage rates. The program is currently available to homeowners through June 30, 2012.

If you are current on your mortgage, with or without equity, then you are eligible for this program and there is absolutely no reason why you shouldn’t apply for HARP. It doesn’t cost anything to apply and it could the answer to your mortgage problems.

The government continues to purchase mortgage backed securities and rates continue to fall and are near record lows.

HARP allows you take advantage of current market rates even if you are “underwater”. These programs are Financial “Life-Changers”. They are also available for a limited time as determined by congress so people need to act now to take advantage of this stimulus program, and lower their monthly payment and/or term.

We’ve helped many Orlando homeowners to qualify for the HARP program since 2009 when it began. Sometimes people will come into my office thinking that their only option is to sell their Orlando property by way of short sale or by bringing money to the closing table. When I sit down with a client I like to know why they are selling. If an Orlando homeowner tells me that they would love to keep their Orlando property and they’re only selling because they can no longer  afford the payment, I will usually recommend that they apply for HARP before trying to apply for any other programs.

For clients that truly want to keep their Orlando homes, we explore every option available to them to achieve that result. It’s only after we’ve exhausted all means to try and keep the house do we resort to selling it.

Recent HARP applications Surge

According to a recent article in National Mortgage News, the five largest mortgage servicers have seen approximately 400,000 applications for refinancing under the new program. People are starting to become more aware of HARP but for some reason 9 out of 10 of eligible Homeowners still fail to take advantage of this government program.

Many people that are upside down in their mortgage automatically believe that they can’t re-finance. With the HARP you can!

Doing an Orlando Short Sale may be your best option

If you decide that an Orlando short sale is the best option for you, we then try to get you qualified for programs such as HAFA which allows the seller to leave the closing table with a minimum of $3,000.00. Depending on who the lender is, we’ve been able to get some of our clients up to $30,000.00 back in some cases. How’s that for a bailout package?

 

 

Ask me anything, I’m here to Help

Jenny Zamora Broker

Let's Keep In Touch!

New ORC Form Lead

"*" indicates required fields

Choosing the Right Orlando Short Sale Realtor, A Crucial Decision

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

Choosing the Right Orlando Short Sale Agent is Serious Business

 

As short sale agents, we go through all the same emotions as the seller we are representing. Working with these lenders can definitely provoke some strong emotions such as anger and frustration at times. Battling it out with short sale negotiators is an everyday occurrance in our office. Whether we’re trying to get an offer approved on a particular property, or negotiate a “Cash for Keys” incentive for one of our clients, there is always some kind of negotiation involved, so you need to make sure that your Orlando Realtor is experienced on the battle field of  short sale negotiations.

One of the Most Important Decisions you’ll ever have to make

When you hire an Orlando Real Estate Agent to take on your short sale file, It’s just like hiring an attorney to represent you in some legal matter. [Except Realtors don’t charge you] The realtor you choose is going to be dealing with your lender on your behalf  which is a huge responsibility. To begin with they have to put together your entire file correctly to then move to the next steps of sending in offers, counter offers, scheduling inspections, arranging showings and the most important task of all, creating rapport and dealing with the short sale negotiator.  Sure, cash incentive programs are out there, but if you’re agent is unaware of what programs you may qualify for, than you could end up getting the short end of the stick.

 

Research your Potential Orlando Agent Before signing

Would hire an attorney if you knew that he or she had just passed the Bar exam and you were their first client. Of course you wouldn’t….Short selling a home is serious business. Fact, selling a house is one of the most important decisions a person will have to make in their life, so it’s very important that you hire an Orlando realtor that specializes in short sales. There are some key questions that you should always ask when interviewing a realtor  before you trust them with one of the most important negotiations of your life.

Still have a million questions about Orlando Short Sales?

Ask me Anything, I’m here to help…

 

 

Sell A house in Orlando

Let's Keep In Touch!

New ORC Form Lead

"*" indicates required fields

Bank of America Increases Incentives for Orlando Short Sales

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

 Bank of America Stepping up their game to help out Orlando homeowners

On Tuesday Bank of America Corp.  launched a nationwide program that offers increased relocation payments to delinquent mortgage customers that care able to qualify for short sales.

B of A  tested this program in Florida last year, offering payments of $2,500 to $30,000 to help homeowners re-locate. A short sale is when a lender allows a homeowner to sell a home for less than the amount owed on the mortgage.

When B of A bought out Countrywide Financial in 2008 the company inherited a bunch of bad loans and has been exploring new ways to work with delinquent homeowners outside of foreclosure. In March, the bank stated that it would offer a limited number of  homeowners facing foreclosure the option to lease their homes.
In the last 2 years Bank of America customers have completed 200,000 short sales and another 30,000 short sales in in the first quarter of this year.

Bank of America, which inherited loads of bad loans when it bought Countrywide Financial in 2008, has been exploring ways to work with homeowners outside of foreclosure. In March, the bank said it would offer a limited number of customers facing foreclosure the ability to lease their homes.
Since October, Bank of America has rolled out multiple initiatives to speed up short sales and to prevent foreclosures. Last month, it announced plans to approve some short sales in less than 20 days.
Part of the qualifying process is to work together with the bank to obtain a pre-approved sales price. Another pre-requisite is that the homeowner must start the short sale process by the end of 2012 and completed by Sept 26, 2013. Short sales are determined case -by-case, depending on the value of the home, how much is owed, etc.
The bank was also waiving the difference between the unpaid mortgage and amount of the short sale, which allowed homeowners to walk away without still owing the bank a big chunk of money.
Also, Florida homeowners who didn’t enroll in the test program can now apply for the new plan.
If you have a mortgage with Bank of America and you’re considering an Orlando short sale, now is the time to see what their willing to offer you. Set up a free consultation with an Orlando short sale specialist and find out your options

 

 

 

 
FREE short sale services

Let's Keep In Touch!

New ORC Form Lead

"*" indicates required fields

Growing Demand for Orlando Real Estate is Absorbing Shadow Inventory

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

 

Orlando Realty Sales are slowly overtaking the number of distressed properties coming on to the market

Chief Economist Dr. John Tuccillo says “The fear is that the inventory of delinquent and foreclosed loans will be released onto an already weakened market,” , explaining the findings of a new report conducted by the Florida Industry Data and Analysis department. “But the reality appears to be different, even here in Florida where distressed properties make up a significant portion of the market.”

Lenders have no reason to flood Florida’s real estate market with more homes especially if it ultimately affects their profit. Think about it, if the Orlando real estate market gets flooded with homes all at once then this would drive prices down significantly. Many people thought that lenders were holding inventory back on purpose when the true cause of this hold up was because of all the robo-signing issues they had to figure out.

Tuccillo says, “We looked at the recent history of distressed property listings and transactions relative to normal market data, as well as estimates for the shadow inventory, and came to some conclusions about the likely course for the future.”

 

These are the findings of recent studies done using data from the Florida MLS

* Even though Orlando Florida remains one of the Country’s hardest-hit areas for distressed property sales, foreclosure sales keep dropping while Orlando short sales continue to steadily rise.

* Prices for all residential properties including both distressed and normal property sales have been steadily increasing.
Orlando Realtors have learned how to cope with distressed properties in a way that stabilizes the market. It’s no longer an issue whether the  property is in distress or not.

* Currently, the number of distressed property sales [Orlando short sales and REOs] is more than keeping up with the amount of distressed  properties [90 days or more behind] coming on to the market.
 
 * The number of Orlando foreclosures and REOs were significantly lower in February of 2012 than one year earlier, suggesting slower shadow inventory growth.
 Distressed properties in Orlando will be a common trend for many years to come.  It will be so common that “distressed property” will be considered just another property type to a potential buyer.
 
Orlando Real Estate Broker

Let's Keep In Touch!

New ORC Form Lead

"*" indicates required fields

Orlando Realty’s Weekly MLS Market Report

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

Orlando Realty’s Weekly Report for Home Buyers and Sellers

Below are the numbers for properties sold and newly listed properties in Orange County for the past 7 days as well as the numbers from the week prior. By looking at this report it’s evident that the Orlando Real Estate market is steadily stabilizing. Orlando short sales are overtaking foreclosure sales and the demand for Orlando Realty is more than keeping up with the inventory coming on to the market.

 Our research is done by our Top Orlando Realtors using Florida’s Multiple Listing Service.

Orange County from 5/4/2012  through 5/11/2012.

*  Number of Short Sale Properties Listed –                       106             [ 5/27 thru 5/4  –  83]

*  Number of Short Sale Properties under contract-       207              [ 5/27 thru 5/4  –  187 ]

*  Number of REO Properties [Bank Owned] Listed –     113              [ 5/27 thru 5/4  –  384]

*  Number of REO Properties under contract-                  112              [ 5/27 thru 5/4  –  126]

*  Number of Regular listings (By Owner)-                         213            [ 5/27 thru 5/4  –  205]

*  Number of Regular listings under contract-                 243              [ 5/27 thru 5/4  –  203]

*  Total Homes Sold in Orange County-                             244             [ 5/27 thru 5/4  –  397]

Let's Keep In Touch!

New ORC Form Lead

"*" indicates required fields