The Real Estate Bloggers

Wayne New Jersey Real Estate Agents Busted Having Sex In House For Sale
Five Ways To Avoid A Craigslist Rental Scam
Florida Attempts to Seize Waterfront Property
Options Abound For Older Homebuyers
Homeownership Drops as Housing Market Recovers
Top 10 Worst Cities For Tornadoes in the United States
Why Wait To Buy Your First Home Till You Are Married
U-Haul’s Top 10 US Destinations For 2013
Home Starts Surge on Rental Construction Demand
HARP Distressed Borrower Loans Extended For 2 More Years

Wayne New Jersey Real Estate Agents Busted Having Sex In House For Sale

Posted: 04 Jan 2014 09:57 AM PST

I am sure the thought crosses a home sellers mind what might happen inside their house when they hand over their keys to the real estate agent. The level of trust between agents and their clients to respect their property is tantamount.

Unfortunately, in Wayne, New Jersey, two real estate agents decided to use a clients house for their sexual encounters. For a period of over a month, these agents had over 10 trysts in the empty house.

Fortunately, for the homeowners and the other people in Passaic County, these agents have been caught via cameras the homeowners set up. While their character has been sullied, no charges have been brought to the Passaic Board of Realtors, and the state has not taken any action yet, so these two can still legally sell homes, and have access to all the lock boxes in the county… That is not reassuring.

On Dec. 27, 2011, the security cameras in the Weiners' home captured Lindsay entering the Weiners' home at 12:49 p.m. and he was dressed casually. At 12:51 p.m., the security cameras show that Phelan entered the Weiners' home and Phelan and Lindsay kissed and hugged in the kitchen. The security cameras further show that at 1:02 p.m., Lindsay and Phelan entered the master bedroom, undressed and proceeded to have sex on the Weiners' bed," the suit states. "A while later, the security cameras show Lindsay and Phelan getting dressed."

From Dec. 27, 2011, to Jan. 23, 2012, according to the suit, the security cameras captured Lindsay and Phelan making 10 additional visits to the home.

All visits were for sexual encounters," the suit states. "The last visit to the house by Lindsay and Phelan was on Jan. 23, 2012. Sandra Weiner happened to be checking the video cameras feed at the time and saw strange people in the house with what she thought were flashlights. The house was dark at the time. The Weiners called the local police, who then went to the house."

The police opened the door to the house and found Lindsay pulling up his pants," the suit states. "Lindsay lied to police by telling them that he was there to prepare the house for an open house. … Instead, Lindsay and Phelan were at the house to have sex."

Michelle Perrone-Epstein, chief executive officer for the Passaic County Board of Realtors, said part of her agency's job was to uphold a code of ethics. She was not aware of any action pending involving those named in the suit, but noted that the Passaic Count Board of Realtors has no legal authority. She said the New Jersey Real Estate Commission has the authority to revoke real estate agents' licenses. It could not be immediately confirmed whether Lindsay and Phelan are still selling real estate. via NorthJersey.com

Five Ways To Avoid A Craigslist Rental Scam

Posted: 04 Jan 2014 09:53 AM PST

Renting a home is a very stressful process. You have to find the right house, in the right neighborhood, at the right price before someone else snatches the home right out from under you.

And the scammers know this, and frequent Craigslist to take advantage of you. Finding the perfect home at the perfect price is tough, and our defenses are down when we get the emotional rush of the perfect home at a great price.

This is what the Craigslist scammers are counting on.

So if you have found this article odds are you got that horrible feeling in the pit of your stomach that your deal might be too good to believe. Read the rest to be an educated and aware consumer, and not a statistic.

Five Ways To Avoid A Craigslist Rental Scam

Do Not Rent The Home Until You Have Met The Person Renting It and Have Previewed the Property

One of the most popular scams on Craigslist is by claiming to be the homeowner on a mission trip and needing to rent the house. Overseas thieves love this as it combines the trusting nature of the rentee and the impression the renter is a good and honest person who can not come to meet you at the house. It lowers your resistance to the scam.

Always ask to meet someone at the house so you can tour it. The scammers look for homes for sale and are empty, and then create rental ads to lure you in.

Check And Make Sure The Price Is Right For The Market

Remember Mama saying, "if it is too good to be true, it is?" Well, if you find a 3 bedroom house that looks great and is super cheap on Craigslist, odds are you are getting taken for a ride. It may truly be a great deal, but odds are it is using the low price to get you to lower your guard.

Do Not Use Western Union or Wire The Money (or share your bank information)

Another logical move. If the person renting their house wants you to wire them the money or even send a check, DON'T!!! This is the most prevelant part of the scam, and the easiest to avoid.

Check The Local Tax Records For Ownership

If they say they are John and Sally Smith, go online to the local county tax office and make sure that the house is in their name. Typically the scammers use fictitious persona's over and over, as it is easier to manage from their side, so make sure that the person you are talking to owns the home.

Check To See If The Home Not For Sale

As I mentioned above, the scammers find homes newly listed for sale and then place the fake for rent ads. Check Zillow, Trulia, or Realtor.com to see if the home not for sale, and if it is contact the real estate agent to find out if it is also for rent. The agent will be thankful for your call either way.

BONUS TIP – Use Your Intuition

If the person renting the home for a too cheap a price only via email or will not give you a phone number they will answer, the odds are they are trying to rip you off. Don't let that funny feeling in your stomach go unnoticed.

We have heard hundreds of stories from folks who have been ripped off by these Craigslist Scams since we first started writing about them in 2009. Save your family the pain and anguish by following these simple steps when renting a home you found on Craigslist.

Share With Us:

If you want to share how someone tried to scam you, let us know in the comments. Together we can help stop these evil people praying on others.

Florida Attempts to Seize Waterfront Property

Posted: 31 Jul 2013 11:49 AM PDT

The State of Florida is filing suit against a property owner in the Tampa region. The man, Rick Ware, owns a dock that sits on St. Petersburg’s Snell Island. The deed for the property goes back to 1883, but Florida is claiming that it is invalid.

Instead, they are claiming the property as being built on a navigable waterway, and thus being sovereign land and the property of the state.

What is scary is that if they win the suit, they can claim ownership of millions, if not billions, of dollars in property throughout the state. This taking will impact local tax collections, city owned docks and property, and may have a major impact on real estate in the state.

Plus, it now makes people question the value and long term ownership of property, Never a good thing for a marketplace.

Watch the video, shared on Facebook by Cyndee Haydon, a Clearwater Beach real estate agent, and pay attention to this story if you are involved in real estate in coastal regions of the country. Because, if one state can seize some of the most expensive real estate within their borders, other states will most likely follow suit.

Options Abound For Older Homebuyers

Posted: 24 May 2013 05:32 AM PDT

When it comes to residential real estate, age is often overlooked. Well, more accurately, old age is often overlooked in favor of news and programs geared toward first time home buyers in Illinois and elsewhere, who are typically on the younger side of the spectrum. However, if news out of the construction market is any indication, older Americans are helping to drive the housing recovery.

Data from the National Association of Home Builders Housing Market Index shows that confidence in senior housing has been on the rise for quite some time. Not only did the index rise 19 points over the past year for the over 55 single family housing market, reaching 46, first quarter data shows that this is the highest level the senior housing index has reached since the inception of the survey in 2008. What's more, this marks the sixth consecutive quarter for year-over-year improvements.

“Builders and developers for the 55 plus housing sector continue to report increased optimism in the market,” said Robert Karen, chairman of NAHB’s 50+ Housing Council. “We are seeing an increase in consumer demand for homes and communities that are designed to address the specific needs of the mature homebuyer.”

Builder sentiment regarding future sales is also positive, with the index for expected sales over the next six months increasing by 21 points to 53. Fortunately, there's also good news for the older Americans forecast to purchase these properties.

Program helps retired homebuyers

While becoming a retiree comes with many perks, a limited income isn't one of them. Buying a home in Illinois is ideal for older Americans who wish to take advantage of ultra-low mortgage rates, but not having a high, steady income that employment can provide creates a challenge. However, according to Christina Boyle, vice president and interim head of single-family sales & relationship management at Freddie Mac, retirement doesn't have to mean the end of homebuying.

"A little-known change in Freddie Mac’s rules could be a big help to qualifying retiring Baby Boomers and other savvy homebuyers who have limited incomes, but substantial financial assets, for a low-rate conforming, conventional mortgage," Boyle writes for Freddie Mac's Executive Perspectives Blog. "The change lets lenders use a significant portion of a borrower’s eligible financial assets to determine whether they qualify for a Freddie Mac mortgage. Although it took effect in the spring of 2011, word has apparently been slow to spread judging by the calls we field from inquiring borrowers and housing professionals."

Freddie Mac guidelines allow individual retirement accounts (IRAs) and 401(k)s, lump-sum retirement account distributions and proceeds from the sale of a borrower’s business to be used as determining factors in whether an individual is eligible for a home loan.

There are, of course, some rules. Firstly, the assets in an IRA or 401(K) must be in a fully-vested retirement account that is recognized by the Internal Revenue Service. Also, these financial assets must be entirely accessible to the borrower. This means there must not be a withdrawal penalty, and the assets must not already be being used as a source of income.

In addition to Freddie Mac already allowing a lender to issue a home loan using a borrower's dividends, interest payments, trust distributions and Social Security payments as determining factors, older homebuyers have more options than ever when it comes to obtaining financing for a home purchase.

Homeownership Drops as Housing Market Recovers

Posted: 01 May 2013 10:16 AM PDT

Understanding the real estate industry is always a challenge, but the recovery that we have been talking about recently has not been kind to homeowners. Instead, what we are seeing is the market finding it’s base through the investor class.

The share of Americans who own their homes was 65 percent in the first quarter, down from 65.4 percent a year earlier and the lowest level since the third quarter of 1995, the Census Bureau reported today. The vacancy rate for rented homes dropped to 8.6 percent from 8.8 percent a year earlier, while vacancies for owner-occupied houses fell to 2.1 percent from 2.2 percent.

Investors are buying single-family homes and renting them out to capitalize on demand among families unable to qualify for a mortgage. Their purchases, many made with cash, are helping to support the housing recovery and pushing up prices. Home values in 20 cities increased 9.3 percent in February from a year earlier, the most since May 2006, according to the S&P/Case- Shiller (SPCS20Y%) index released today.

Tight credit has been a huge part of the real estate industry these days. The home owner class has been beaten up financially by the downturn and still has not recovered from it. Instead of being homeowners, they are renting the homes they used to own… Ouch.

Investors are finding the low prices and even lower interest rates as the chance to increase their holdings. Add to this large investment pools buying up real estate in certain cities, the market volume has been increasing. But the "American Dream" buyers are still recovering and sitting on the sidelines. They will be back, but this recovery is investor driven so we must be patient for the past homeowners to come back.

Top 10 Worst Cities For Tornadoes in the United States

Posted: 29 Apr 2013 06:50 AM PDT

When you think of tornadoes you think of Kansas and the Great Plains states. You may be wrong these days. The Weather Channel has come out with their list of worst cities for tornadoes and the list is dominated by cities in the Deep South.

I grew up on Long Island in New York and now live in Wilmington, North Carolina, but I spent 20 years in Atlanta so I have an interesting perspective on storms. Growing up with hurricanes that can be just as deadly as tornadoes I found was no where near as nerve wracking as living in a tornado alley.

Hurricanes are like a great white shark. Odds are you had fair warning to put yourself in harms way, so you understand the risks you are taking. But a tornado is like a barracuda. You typically don’t even see them and the attacks are random. Even with the new radar images tornadoes can pop up quickly and destroy your home before you even know it is there.

To be honest, tornadoes scare the heck out of me while hurricanes I just respect.

So for the people who live in these cities, good luck. Be safe. And have a good weather radio.

Top 10 Worst Cities For Tornadoes in the United States

Huntsville, Alabama
Jackson, Mississippi
Birmingham, Alabama
Tuscaloosa, Alabama
Little Rock, Arkansas
Tulsa, Oklahoma
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Atlanta, Georgia
Wichita, Kansas
Canon City, Colorado

Tags: top+ten+tornado, tornado+cities

Why Wait To Buy Your First Home Till You Are Married

Posted: 22 Apr 2013 07:26 AM PDT

In my parents generation it was easy, you dated, got engaged, got married, then bought the house. Lots of little check marks on the list and very few deviated from the norm.

In my generation it was a bit more difficult. You still did the dating part, but we typically added the living together part before the marriage or even the engagement. It was practical, and a bit controversial, but we did it.

Now our children are facing another change in the equation. Young couples are buying homes together before they get married.

Coldwell Banker has come out with a new survey that shows 24 percent of millennial couples are buying the house before they get married. Now part of this is because these couples are waiting much longer to tie to the knot, but for those in the real estate industry it is a trend to watch.

Especially as we see the housing industry start to recover. If these numbers were growing in the recent housing recession I think they will explode as the market takes off.

So remember when you want to go back into your personal history to predict future events in real estate, odds are you will be mistaken. The world is changing, fast, and the smart and successful agents are watching these trends and using them to their advantage.

Survey Trends: Love, Marriage and Homebuying

New Homes for Newlyweds: More than one in three married homeowners (35 percent) purchased their first home together by their second wedding anniversary.

Cold Feet? Not These Couples: 17 percent of all married couples surveyed purchased a home together before their wedding day.

Millennials are Less Likely to Wait Until Marriage: 24 percent of married homeowners ages 18 to 34 bought a home together before they were married, compared to 14 percent of those ages 45 and older.

Southerners Take Their Time: 72 percent of married Americans in the South waited until after they were married to purchase a home, compared to 60 percent of Americans in the Northeast.

To Have and to Hold … and to Own: Only 16 percent of married U.S. adults have not purchased a home together with their current spouse.

View the whole study here.

U-Haul’s Top 10 US Destinations For 2013

Posted: 17 Apr 2013 01:07 PM PDT

I always like lists that come from companies that are in the trenches. The U-Haul report is especially interesting because it is counting those that are migrating without hiring the big moving companies. This captures the economic moves for families that are leaving not because of a corporate relocation or high dollar retirement, but those that are looking to find a better start.

Recent graduates, the unemployed, or those looking for a new start typically will load up the U-Haul and start again. From a real estate perspective, it may capture the foreclosed upon. From an economic perspective, it shows where people are to find a better economic situation.

Some cities that have typically done well in attracting relocations, such as Atlanta, have fallen drastically to the 33^rd position. Meanwhile Houston has held the top position for 4 years straight as people are moving to the Texas city. My guess is that opportunity in Houston has not let up for the middle class.

U-Haul’s Top 10 US Destinations For 2013

HOUSTON, TX
RALEIGH, N.C.
CHICAGO, IL
LAS VEGAS, NV
SAN ANTONIO, TX
AUSTIN, TX
BROOKLYN, N.Y.
PHILADELPHIA, PA
KANSAS CITY, MO
SACRAMENTO, CA

______________

Here is the full list of the top 50 cities in the U-Haul survey.
1 HOUSTON
2 ORLANDO, Fla.
3 CHICAGO
4 LAS VEGAS
5 SAN ANTONIO
6 AUSTIN, Texas
7 BROOKLYN, N.Y.
8 PHILADELPHIA
9 KANSAS CITY, Mo.
10 SACRAMENTO, Calif.
11 COLUMBUS, Ohio
12 SAN DIEGO
13 NEW YORK CITY
14 PHOENIX
15 CHARLOTTE, N.C.
16 INDIANAPOLIS
17 DALLAS
18 TAMPA, Fla.
19 ST. LOUIS
20 JACKSONVILLE, Fla.
21 LOS ANGELES
22 TUCSON, Ariz.
23 SAN FRANCISCO
24 BRONX, N.Y.
25 PLANO, Texas
27 RALEIGH, N.C.
28 WASHINGTON, D.C.
29 BALTIMORE
30 COLUMBIA, S.C.
31 OKLAHOMA CITY
32 TULSA, Okla.
33 ATLANTA
34 COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo.
35 VICTORVILLE, Calif.
36 NASHVILLE, Tenn.
37 PORTLAND, Ore.
38 SAN JOSE, Calif.
39 TACOMA, Wash.
40 MIAMI, Fla.
41 RICHMOND, Va.
42 SEATTLE
43 CINCINNATI, Ohio
44 LOUISVILLE, KY
45 BAKERSFIELD, Calif.
46 RENO, Nev.
47 OAKLAND, Calif.
48 FRESNO, Calif.
49 DENVER, Colo.
50 EUGENE, Ore.

via U-Haul

Home Starts Surge on Rental Construction Demand

Posted: 16 Apr 2013 06:54 AM PDT

Home builders are thrilled today on reports that demand for new construction improved significantly during the month of March. While any increase is great news for the battered construction industry, this news may fortell an economic future that real estate agents may not be as excited about.

The demand is much greater right now for rental and multiunits properties than traditional single family homes. This indicates the rebound in home ownership may not be happening as much as the investors are reading the tea leaves and trying to lock in quality, new construction investment properties going forward.

Either way, for the contruction industry this is great news. People are being put back to work and suppliers are ramping up their inventories. New construction is a large driver in the overall economy and however it is occurring is a good thing for the United States.

Starts climbed 7 percent to a 1.04 million annual rate, the most since June 2008, after a revised 968,000 pace in February that was larger than previously reported, Commerce Department figures showed today in Washington. The median estimate of 80 economists surveyed by Bloomberg called for 930,000. Building permits, a proxy for future construction, fell.
Builders are rushing to satisfy growing demand for rental units, propelling the jump in construction that will help support economic growth. Work began on fewer single-family houses last month, adding to evidence that part of the market is pausing.
"Whether it's driven by demand from homebuyers or renters, it doesn't really matter because it's roofs over peoples' heads," said Aneta Markowska, chief U.S. economist at Societe Generale in New York, who had the highest starts forecast in the Bloomberg survey. "There's still a lot of room for improvement in housing, both for activity and for prices. This is critical for the U.S. economy." via Bloomberg

HARP Distressed Borrower Loans Extended For 2 More Years

Posted: 12 Apr 2013 07:26 AM PDT

If you are in a home that is still underwater, you may qualify for a H.A.R.P. mortgage from the Federal Housing Finance Agency. The program that was supposed to expire at the end of the year has now been extended for 2 more years through 2015.

More than 2.2 million borrowers have used the program so far. To qualify, homeowners must be current on their payments and have loans originated before June 1, 2009.
HARP is "a useful tool for reducing risk," FHFA Acting Director Edward J. DeMarco said in a statement. "We are extending the program so more underwater borrowers can benefit from lower interest rates."
The FHFA will soon begin a marketing campaign to expand the program's reach, DeMarco said in the statement.
There may be as many as 2 million eligible borrowers who haven't taken advantage of HARP, according to analysts at Bank of America Merrill Lynch. via Bloomberg

Now with the housing market starting to recover and competition for home loans driving down rates, the lending industry is happy to write HARP loans that are backed with government guarantees. The 2 million households that would qualify for these loans left is a huge profit center for the banks, and the politicians like having the win to talk about.

About the Home Affordable Refinance Program:

Eligibility:

The mortgage must be owned or guaranteed by Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae.
The mortgage must have been sold to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac on or before May 31, 2009.
The mortgage cannot have been refinanced under HARP previously unless it is a
Fannie Mae loan that was refinanced under HARP from March-May, 2009.
The current loan-to-value (LTV) ratio must be greater than 80%.
The borrower must be current on the mortgage at the time of the refinance, with a good payment history in the past 12 months.

Steps Towards Refinancing:

Determine whether your mortgage is owned or guaranteed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac by visiting their respective Loan Lookup Tools.
Contact your current mortgage servicer or another that is approved by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac to inquire about HARP.
Compare rates and costs with additional mortgage companies to ensure best refinance terms.

Important Links:

Tags: HARP,+Freddie+Mac,+Fannie+Mae

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