Thursday, January 27, 2011

More About Real Estate Short Sales

The real estate short sale market has grown exponentially in the wake of the real estate crunch. Statistics from mortgage servicer Fannie Mae show that short sales and foreclosures have gone up steadily in the past four years, and with the new spate of foreclosures said to take hold later this year, distressed homes are expected to take up a much bigger portion of the market. Here are some recent statistics for a quick look at today’s real estate short sale market.

More Homes In Default

Of the 30.7 million mortgages held by Fannie Mae, 921,000 are over 60 days in default, and another 644,700 were 90 days or more behind. This was before the loan modification and short sale programs took effect, and the servicer then addressed the problem by enacting a foreclosure/eviction freeze. This was followed by a loan modification effort that resulted in 23,777 modified loans toward the end of the year. The short sale option offered today is expected to help prevent even more foreclosures.
 
Short Sale And Foreclosure Ratio

A 2008 report shows that for every successful short sale, eight other homes started foreclosure proceedings. To many experts, it’s a sign of the inefficiency of lenders when it comes to the short sale process. Many of them were ill-prepared for the wave of defaults and did not have adequate loan modification experience. So for much of 2008 and 2009, the helpful home-saving programs were an uphill climb for borrowers. Fortunately, both programs have since been largely improved.
 
Government Real Estate Short Sale Program

One thing that helped refine the process is Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives (HAFA), the government’s own program and partner to the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP), a previous initiative focusing on loan modifications. HAFA allows homeowners who have been rejected for HAMP to pursue a short sale following a streamlined process. These efforts have since reached thousands of struggling homeowners and helped them steer clear of foreclosure.
 
Future Outlook for Homeowners

Lenders and government officials agree that the short-sales will play a vital role in market recovery in the years to come. Every sale means that a foreclosure has been prevented, and that losses have been curbed for both lender and borrower. As more borrowers seek alternatives in the coming foreclosure wave, there may be more demand for short sale solutions, and the government is making sure lenders are ready for it.
###
 
This guest post was written by a professional short sale/ real estate agent experienced in 
helping distressed owners, or those who want to sell for any reason. People who are having difficulty but want to keep their home may find information that is useful on his website at .www.shortsalesafe.com.
 
 
For information on Myrtle Beach short-sales,  visit the C21 Harrelson Group website.
For Albuquerque short sales, visit the Albuquerque Real Estate Group's website.
Realtor Jan Bradshaw helps with Lake Greenwood SC foreclosures and short-sales.

No comments: