Tag: Orlando Realty

Beware of online Orlando Real Estate ads for rent

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

Online real estate rental scams are still on the rise

Unfortunately, their are people in this world that are just hardwired to be scammers. The internet age has made things even easier for these scammers to rip off unsuspecting victims especially in the rental arena of Orlando real estate. Scammers will actually post Craigslist ads for properties that are for rent on the Florida MLS but, their asking rent is always much less than what the real asking rent is. This is what makes the ad so enticing, people see the and and say “Wow a 3bd 2 bth in Downtown Orlando for only $500 per month! I ‘d better snatch it up before someone else does”.

Then they continue to exchange emails back and forth with the so-called owner, which of course, happens to be traveling out of the country because he is soo successful and busy. The so-called owner will then request the first and last month’s rent via Western Union in order for the renter to lock in the contract before someone else does. The next thing you know they’re sending 1st and last month’s rent to an internet thief after signing a completely bogus rental agreement.

It’s human nature to be attracted to anything that seems like it’s a great deal. These ads are designed to arouse your curiosity and get you excited about moving into a house that you would normally not be able to afford,… a real lifestyle changer. The problem is that people get so caught up in the idea of moving into their dream house, that their judgment gets clouded and they are no longer thinking straight. Unfortunately, I’ve heard countless stories like these over the years and the sad part is that these types of rental and purchase scams are still on the rise.

Hire an Orlando Realtor and prevent getting burned

Many people don’t like to use realtors because they think that they can save money by finding their own Orlando property to rent and avoid paying a commission by dealing directly with the owner. The truth is that dealing directly with the property owner [even if it’s the real owner] is like going to court without a lawyer. Landlords love it when they get a renter that is not represented by an Orlando realtor. They know that they will not only  be able to control the situation completely but they don’t have to pay a realtor commission.

The place where someone lives is the most important place in their lives. This is the place where you and your family come together for shelter, safety, food, rest, entertainment, etc. Like Dorothy said, “There’s no place like home”.

This is why it’s soo important to use a licensed Orlando Realtor to find a place to live, whether it’s to rent or own. By trying to save a few hundred bucks upfront, you could end up paying a lot more than that by doing things on your own. Orlando real estate agents are trained to go through contracts and to make sure that everything is done legally as well as look out for your best interest. Top Orlando realtors are also much better negotiators than the average person which means that you might even be able to get a better price on a rental than you would have on your own.

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Mortgage Insurance and how it affects Orlando Short Sales

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

The definition of Mortgage Insurance

 

In a nutshell, mortgage insurance is an insurance policy which compensates lenders or investors for losses due to the default of a mortgage loan. Mortgage insurance (MI) is required for mortgage loans which exceed 80% of the property’s sale price.

This means that if you are buying a home with less than 20% down, you are obligated to pay for mortgage insurance. The mortgage insurer will charge a premium for this coverage, which may be paid by either the borrower or the lender. If the borrower defaults and the property is sold at a loss, The MI company will pay out the amount as described in the policy. Coverages offered by mortgage insurers can vary from 20% to 50% and higher.

 

 

How does mortgage insurance affect an Orlando short sale?

If you’re trying to complete a short sale on your property and there’s a mortgage insurance in place then there are some things that you  need to  be aware of. The decision long longer falls only on the lender, it will also have to be approved the the mortgage insurance company as well. As a mater of fact the MI company is usually the one in charge of the situation.

Typically what happens, especially in regards to 2nd liens, is that the MI company will want a higher payoff than would be the case if the loan did not have MI. This can definitely complicate things because if the 2nd mortgage holder wants a higher pay off than the 1st mortgage holder is willing to pay then the deal can easily fall apart.

The MI company can refuse the short sale offer and kill the deal even if the lender approves it.  Although our office has closed countless short sales that have had MI insurance, I can tell you that there’s a lot more work involved. It’s actually just like dealing with another lien holder.

There are 2 different types of mortgage insurance, one is paid for by the borrower and the other is paid for by the lender.

Borrower-Paid Private Mortgage Insurance (BPMI) – This is default insurance on mortgage loans paid for by borrowers. BPMI allows borrowers to obtain a mortgage without having to provide 20% down payment, by covering the lender for the added risk of a high loan-to-value  mortgage.

Lender-paid private mortgage insurance (LPMI)–LPMI is similar to BPMI except that it is paid for by the lender, and the borrower is often unaware of its existence unless the homeowner tries to do a short sale. The cost of the premium is built into the interest rate charged on the loan. The lender will go ahead and insure themselves if they feel it benefits them.

 

 

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Orlando Short Sale Realtors outsourcing short sales to unlicensed 3rd Parties

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

 “Orlando Short Sale Realtors” using unlicensed negotiators to do the work

It’s recently come to my attention that certain Orlando realtors that claim to be “Short Sale Experts” are actually outsourcing their short sales to  unlicensed third party negotiators. Now, I’ve heard of  real estate attorneys outsourcing their short sales to licensed real estate agents, which to me makes perfect sense especially because by law the property must be listed on the Multiple Listing Service. However, when a licensed realtor marketing themselves as an Orlando short sale expert or specialist goes out and hires a non -licensed 3rd party negotiator it just doesn’t seem right and in my opinion is just downright deceiving to the homeowner.
When a realtor goes to a listing appointment to meet a potential client, they are making a commitment to that client as the realtor that will be representing them throughout the entire short sale process and look out for their best interest every step of the way. Do you really think that they would get the listing if they told the seller “By the way, I will be turning your file over to an unlicensed negotiator for them to work the entire short sale process with your lender and hopefully we can someone to buy it”… No Way!

The truth of the matter is, escrow officers, title representatives, and many of these amateur negotiators are inexperienced and they can cause a deal to fall apart. They lack the proper experience knowledge and care that a transaction of this sensitivity needs. A true Orlando short sale expert knows the urgency of the transaction and possesses the skills, experience and tenacity to get things done. Running a successful Orlando Real estate brokerage requires the outsourcing of many things such as; marketing, lock changing, cleaning crews, posting for sale signs, etc.  However, if a realtor is outsourcing the most important part of any real estate transaction which the processing and negotiating, then maybe that realtor needs to find another profession.

Choosing a Short Sale Realtor that’s right for You

As an Orlando homeowner you deserve the best chance at negotiating a successful short sale with an experienced realtor that’s willing to work hard for you throughout the whole short sale process from beginning to end. That’s why it’s soo important to important to to research a realtors track record as well as ask for testimonials, etc. If you’re in the market for a true Orlando Short Sale expert, read my article “A Typical Work day for an Orlando Short Sale Specialist”. It will help you in choosing the best agent to meet your particular needs.

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Banks are becoming more experienced with Orlando short sales making things easier for realtors

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

Banks are getting much faster at the Orlando short sale process

Short sales have had a bad reputation in the Orlando real estate market for several years now. Realtors didn’t want to take on short sale properties either because they didn’t know what was involved and were afraid of getting in over their head or because they knew exactly what was involved and they didn’t want to commit to the hard work that’s involved in completing an Orlando short sale. Buyers didn’t like them because of the time that it would take to hear back from the bank about their offer that was submitted. Sometimes a potential buyer would submit a contract and have to wait three or four months just to find out that their offer wasn’t accepted, and all that time they spent waiting to hear back from the bank could have been utilized searching for other properties. This was extremely frustrating for everyone involved.

Lenders also must have felt frustrated because the truth is they just weren’t prepared to take on all these short sales. They weren’t prepared to handle short sales period… let alone hundreds of thousands of them coming at them at once. I believe that this is probably one of the reasons why loss mitigators would often tell agents that they didn’t receive certain documentation over and over again, or they would say things like we needed these docs in a certain order or a month later they would tell you to send everything again because it needs to be updated. Any experienced Orlando short sale realtors that are reading this post right know exactly what I’m talking about. In my opinion, these were stall tactics because lenders didn’t know how to get these short sales processed in an efficient manner.

Orlando short sales are being fast tracked thanks to experienced negotiators

Short sales are now being processed much faster than was the case just a year ago. Lenders have come a long way in putting systems in place to make things move more smoothly for the homeowner as well as the Orlando realtor processing the whole thing. I feel that the biggest change, however, is because of the short sale negotiators having much more experience in dealing with short sales now. At the end of the day, Big banks don’t run things, people do, and for some people, it’s easier to say that they didn’t receive something or come up with some other type of lame stalling tactic rather than to admit that they didn’t know what they doing.

Lately,  I’ve noticed a huge difference in the way that short sale negotiators handle short sale files. They’ve gotten better in every area; from ordering the BPO to negotiating with their investors and even getting extensions on payoff letters. I have about a dozen or so negotiators with several different lenders that I just love working with because “they get it”, they know how this business works and they will do whatever it takes to get the deal done.  Don’t get me wrong, I still have conversations with some short sale negotiators that frustrate me to no end because they are clueless about the Orlando real estate market or real estate in general yet they still try to tell me how much I should list an Orlando property for, but for the most part it’s gotten much much better.

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Orlando Real Estate remains strong, despite a dip in prices at the end of summer

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

 

Summer’s gone and Orlando Real estate takes a drop

Prices of Orlando real estate dropped slightly last month for the first in a year. Don’t panic Orlando homeowners, this happens every year at this time. The reason for the drop is mostly due to the end of the peak of the summer buying season. Two facts remain true, Orlando real estate inventory is low and demand for great Orlando properties remains high. As long as these factors remain a part of the Orlando real estate market, sellers will be able to get top dollar for their Orlando Home.

Other factors indicating a strong Orlando Real Estate market

Orlando homes are selling faster and for more than they did a year ago. Studies show that Orlando homes are spending less than 80 days on the market before coming under contract and selling for almost  97% of the listing price. A year ago, Orlando Realty was selling for less than 95% of the listing price, and these properties were listed on the MLS for over 100 days.

Great mortgage interest rates are still being offered by lenders. The average interest rate currently being offered for Orlando home buyers is at 3.78 percent as opposed to a year ago when homebuyers paid an average interest rate of 4.26 percent. This is a huge incentive right now for potential Orlando home buyers and anyone interested in buying real estate in Orlando should definitely take advantage of these historically low-interest rates.

There are more regular listings in the Orlando real estate market than has been in years. Although Orlando’s short sales and REO’s still rule Orlando’s real estate inventory right now, there is another quieter group that is not desperate to sell their Orlando properties.  Believe it or not, everyone one in three homeowners owns their house “free and clear”. This group as well as homeowners with very small mortgages on their home are able to ask for top dollar on their Orlando home and they don’t care if it sells or not. Their way of thinking is “I will sell for the right price and if not then I’m not selling”. I’ve had several clients like this over the years, and homeowners like these actually help to maintain property values up in their neighborhoods because their listing prices remain high and they really don’t care how long it takes to sell.

Right now is  a great tome to sell your Orlando Home

Considering all the factors in play right now with Orlando Real Estate, it’s a great time to sell your home. Whether you need an Orlando short Sale done or you’re o of the few and fortunate people that own your property Free and Clear. If you’re interested in seeing how much your Orlando property will sell… click on “How much is my Orlando property worth?” or you can come and see me for a free consultation and I would be happy to sit and talk with you.

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