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Success Story: Cash Flow Crazy in the Twin Cities
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By Daren Blomquist | Wed, 01 Sep 2010 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Minneapolis-area resident Mark Kozikowski specializes in buying distressed buildings at a discount so he can renovate them and then rent them out for the long-haul with a nice monthly cash flow.
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Is Mortgage Relief In Your Future?
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By Peter G. Miller | Thu, 26 Aug 2010 07:00:00 GMT | |
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There's a little voice you might have heard, the one which says it's great that the government is trying to help people facing foreclosure but what about you and me?
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Can Pension Cash Save A Home?
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By Peter G. Miller | Mon, 16 Aug 2010 07:00:00 GMT | |
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At a time when a lot of households are in deep financial trouble, the U.S. is awash in cash.
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Local Agents Facilitate Long-Distance Foreclosure Purchases
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By Octavio Nuiry, RealtyTrac Staff Writer | Thu, 05 Aug 2010 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Two buyers looking for a foreclosure bargain in unfamiliar territory relied on local agents to help them successfully narrow down their list of properties and eventually complete a successful purchase.
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How Wall Street Reform Benefits Foreclosure Buyers
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By Peter G. Miller | Wed, 28 Jul 2010 07:00:00 GMT | |
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With the passage of Wall Street reform now a done deal in Washington there are probably few people who did better than real estate investors. Stricter mortgage standards plus less federal emphasis on homeownership means there will be a new and growin
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Is Now the Time to Buy Condo Foreclosures?
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By Peter G. Miller | Thu, 22 Jul 2010 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Given vast supply, sputtering prices and interest rates around 4.5 percent, is now the time to buy investment condos, especially distressed units in distressed communities?
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Rehabbing REOs for More ROI
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By Octavio Nuiry, RealtyTrac Staff Writer | Fri, 09 Jul 2010 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Attention foreclosure rehabbers: Plenty of roughed-up repos are yours for the taking. From San Francisco, Calif., to Cape Coral, Fla., repo rehabbers are snagging discounted digs before the sector snaps back.
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Will New Mortgage Standards Slow Foreclosures?
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By Peter G. Miller | Thu, 01 Jul 2010 07:00:00 GMT | |
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The new face of mortgage lending is now being revealed on Capitol Hill. How will the market for foreclosures, REOs and short sales be impacted? How will getting a mortgage change?
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Best Places to Find a Foreclosure Bargain
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By Joel Cone | Wed, 16 Jun 2010 07:00:00 GMT | |
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The metro areas on the list below had an average discount of at least 35 percent on foreclosure purchases, positive year-over-year growth in median home prices and relatively low unemployment rates.
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Why More FHA Foreclosures Loom Ahead?
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By Peter G. Miller | Wed, 09 Jun 2010 07:00:00 GMT | |
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In the world of short sales, foreclosures and REOs not too many distressed homes are available through the FHA, a situation which may be on the verge of change.
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20 Keys To Foreclosure Investing Success
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By Peter G. Miller | Thu, 27 May 2010 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Is there any way to assure real estate success, to purchase real estate at the bottom of the market, sell at the top and face no risk in between?
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Top 10 Myths About Buying a Foreclosure
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By Tara-Nicholle Nelson | Thu, 20 May 2010 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Here are the Top 10 Myths that came up in a recent survey about attitudes toward buying foreclosure, and the facts to set the record straight.
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Tips for Buying REO Properties in 2010
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By RealtyTrac Staff | Thu, 13 May 2010 07:00:00 GMT | |
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With the number of bank-owned REO properties expected to rise in the summer of 2010, here are 7 Tips that can help you snag a bank-owned property.
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Gulf Oil Spill Changes Real Estate Equation
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By Peter G. Miller | Thu, 06 May 2010 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Recently there's been an argument to be made that portions of the real estate market were beginning to return, an argument that may have to be re-thought as a result of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
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10 Real Estate Investing Tactics for 2010
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By RealtyTrac Staff | Mon, 03 May 2010 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Here are ten investing tactics for 2010 that can help you build wealth and financial stability in the years ahead.
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Are We Headed For A New Real Estate Decline?
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By Peter G. Miller | Thu, 29 Apr 2010 07:00:00 GMT | |
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The federal government's tax credit for first-time homebuyers is now over and done. The result is that a housing market that had begun to stabilize will now be set back as demand wanes.
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Banks Have REO Market Locked Up
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By Daren Blomquist | Thu, 15 Apr 2010 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Jay Schurman concluded that “banks are not in the real estate business” after a marathon REO purchase in 2008 that started in January and ended in August.
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The Coming Wave of Stealth Foreclosures
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By Peter G. Miller | Wed, 14 Apr 2010 07:00:00 GMT | |
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The surest place to find future foreclosures is among the very people Uncle Sam is helping with its mortgage modification programs, which gave 1.4 million borrowers trials modifications in 2009.
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Foreclosure Market Frontlines: A Sweet Deal in South Chicago
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By Octavio Nuiry | Wed, 31 Mar 2010 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Corey Fryer found the dream home for his growing family in an idyllic tree-lined Chicago neighborhood by negotiating directly with a distressed homeowner in pre-foreclosure.
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New Rules End Short Sale Guessing Game
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By Peter G. Miller | Thu, 25 Mar 2010 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Beginning April 5 new guidelines will make buying distressed properties much easier. Simply put, if this was poker you’d now be able to see the other guy's hand.
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5 Emerging Foreclosure Hot Spots
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By Joel Cone, Staff Writer | Thu, 18 Mar 2010 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Foreclosure activity in these five metro areas zoomed higher last year at a faster pace than already established foreclosure hotbeds like Las Vegas, Phoenix, Los Angeles and Tampa Bay.
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Lenders Offer New Plan to Hold Down Foreclosures
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By Peter G. Miller | Thu, 18 Mar 2010 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Forbearance pretty much means financial mercy at the option of the lender and it's at the heart of a new proposal by the Mortgage Bankers Association to reduce foreclosures among the unemployed.
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Courthouse Auctions: Mining Foreclosure Gold
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By Octavio Nuiry | Thu, 25 Feb 2010 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Every week, tens of millions of dollars worth of foreclosed real estate is sold nationwide at sheriff’s sales and trustee’s sales, and savvy investors are finding a few golden bargains at these sales.
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Oregon Targets Piggyback Lenders To Stop Foreclosures
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By Peter G. Miller | Thu, 25 Feb 2010 07:00:00 GMT | |
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While many efforts to encourage mortgage modifications have been tried, the state of Oregon has come up with something that costs taxpayers nothing and will motivate many lenders to write down loans.
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Why Borrowers Are Welcoming Foreclosure
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By Peter G. Miller | Thu, 18 Feb 2010 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Foreclosure, it seems, is no longer the stain it once was. A new study of 27 million credit records shows that since 2008 credit card delinquencies have been lower than mortgage payment delinquencies.
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College Town Real Estate Displays Immunity To Foreclosure Crisis
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By Housing Predictor | Wed, 03 Feb 2010 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Hard times in the nation’s employment sector have helped college towns like Burlington, Vt., and Utica, N.Y., avoid the foreclosures that have hit Las Vegas and other markets across California and Florida.
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Federal program aims to streamline short sales in 2010
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By Joel Cone, RealtyTrac Staff Writer | Tue, 02 Feb 2010 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Here’s another acronym to add to the federal government’s alphabet soup of foreclosure prevention programs: HAFA, or Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives. It could streamline short sales in 2010.
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Best to buy before new FHA guidelines take effect
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By Octavio Nuiry, RealtyTrac Staff Writer | Thu, 28 Jan 2010 07:00:00 GMT | |
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New FHA lending standards will make it tougher for some prospective buyers to purchase a home by requiring a higher down payment, higher insurance premiums and reduced seller concessions.
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Will Principal Cuts Reduce Foreclosures?
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By Peter G. Miller | Thu, 21 Jan 2010 07:00:00 GMT | |
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The latest idea bubbling up in the world of real estate is the use of principal reductions to stem the foreclosure tide, but don't look for lenders to gleefully cut mortgage balances anytime soon.
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Faster Sales Coming For Foreclosure Buyers
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By Peter G. Miller | Thu, 14 Jan 2010 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Foreclosure buyers got a Christmas Eve goodie from Fannie Mae, a new strategy that's likely to make foreclosure purchasing very much quicker. The catch? A bunch of lenders are about to be very unhappy.
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New Year, New Opportunities
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By Rick Sharga, RealtyTrac Senior Vice President | Thu, 07 Jan 2010 07:00:00 GMT | |
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As we enter a new year — and begin a new decade — it’s a good time to take a look ahead and try to answer some of the most frequently asked questions about the foreclosure market.
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Real Estate 2010 -- Will It Be Better?
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By Peter G. Miller | Thu, 17 Dec 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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What about 2010? Where are we headed? Here are the views of one observer — someone who admittedly is not a trained economist, Nobel laureate, high-ranking government official, soothsayer or seer.
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How The Shadow Inventory Is Forcing Home Prices Higher
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By Peter G. Miller | Tue, 15 Dec 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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How is it possible for home values to stabilize while our vast “shadow inventory” of distressed and unsold real estate continues to grow?
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Do We Really Want Courts To Erase Mortgage Debts?
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By Peter G. Miller | Thu, 10 Dec 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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A $461,263 mortgage claim erased in a New York bankruptcy case sounds like a big victory for the good guys. But it might be wise to sort out the winners and losers before beginning the celebrations.
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The Mortgage Brokers You've Never Heard Of
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By Peter G. Miller | Tue, 08 Dec 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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There's a small association of mortgage brokers out there that you need to know about. With just 80 individual members, the group has a code of ethics that actually means something.
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Low Rates & Court Cases Spur Foreclosure Demand
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By Peter G. Miller | Thu, 03 Dec 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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During the past few days real estate investors have been treated to the lowest mortgage rate on record, meaning that now might be a very good time to buy — even if property values continue to slide lower.
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Are Short Sales Really the Next BIG THING?
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By Rick Sharga | Fri, 30 Oct 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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If you believe the hype, it appears that the next phase of the housing market recovery is going to rely heavily on short sales to help remove distressed properties from the home sales pipeline.
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New Foreclosure Hot Spots Emerge in Q3 2009
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By Daren Blomquist | Wed, 28 Oct 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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California, Florida, Nevada and Arizona accounted for all but one of the Top 20 metro foreclosure rates. But one city in the Top 20 was a surprise.
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Job Losses Foreshadow More Foreclosures Deals, Risk
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By Joel Cone | Wed, 21 Oct 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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The full impact of the nation’s rising unemployment rate — which reached 9.8 percent in January — has not yet been seen in the foreclosure numbers.
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Should We Return To Paper-Based Mortgages?
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By Peter G. Miller | Mon, 19 Oct 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Ways Foreclosure Investors Can Resuscitate Market
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By Peter G. Miller | Sun, 18 Oct 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Here are several practical suggestions which could instantly impact the housing market. The source of these ideas is Bruce Norris, California real estate investor and analyst.
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Option ARMs: The New Foreclosure Menace
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By Peter G. Miller | Fri, 16 Oct 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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It used to be that few people had ever heard of something called “mortgage recasting,” but now this term is likely to become very well known, and not in a good way
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Are Tax Credits For First-Time Buyers Too Costly
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By Peter G. Miller | Mon, 12 Oct 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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After a number of fumbles and failures, it seems that government has finally found a way increase home sales. The trick? A little tax incentive bribery.
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New: Instantly Identify Foreclosures Listed For Sale
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By RealtyTrac Staff | Tue, 29 Sep 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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RealtyTrac’s newly expanded MLS feed of over 1 million properties for sale, matched against 1.9 million foreclosure properties, gives members the ultimate advantage for purchasing a foreclosure bargain.
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The Case of the Missing REO Inventory
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By Rick Sharga | Mon, 21 Sep 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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With foreclosure activity breaking records nearly every month, where are all the REOs?
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Can An Ohio Judge Reduce The Foreclosure Glut?
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By Peter G. Miller | Wed, 16 Sep 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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A federal bankruptcy judge has set a new precedent that could stop huge numbers of foreclosures nationwide. Her demand: Countrywide Home Loans must document every foreclosure claim it submits in Ohio.
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Overlooked FHA Loan Ideal for Foreclosure Buyers
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By Peter G. Miller | Thu, 03 Sep 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Hidden away in the deep recesses of the federal government is a one-shot financing plan which will allow you to not only buy foreclosures but also to pay for repairs and upgrades.
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Loan Modifications May Slow Because of New Court Decision
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By Peter G. Miller | Wed, 02 Sep 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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The nation's mortgage investors have just won a court victory in New York, a decision likely to change the way we modify loans and foreclose on houses.
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Playbook to Economic Recovery Starts with Real Estate
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By John Hines | Tue, 01 Sep 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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The housing market and the overall economy aren't going to improve until at least four parts of the economy improve.
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10 Signs to the Bottom of the Housing Market
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By Mike Colpitts, HousingPredictor.com | Mon, 31 Aug 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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The bottom of each real estate market in America won't occur with much fanfare. In fact, few people will realize that it’s even happening.
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Investor Buys 60 Foreclosures in 6 Years
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By Octavio Nuiry | Mon, 17 Aug 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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While everyone is worrying about the recession, Portland, Maine investor Debbie Kilmartin is busy buying, fixing and flipping foreclosures for a living.
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Flipping in a Falling Market
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By Joel Cone, Staff Writer | Fri, 14 Aug 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Conventional wisdom considers a declining housing market unfit for flipping property. But some highly successful investors are rejecting this conservative approach.
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Can We Sell Houses The Same Way We Sell Cars?
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By Peter G. Miller | Mon, 10 Aug 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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They're selling a lot of Hyundai cars these days, a miracle of sorts when you consider the overall condition of the automobile industry.
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Foreclosures: The 10 Percent Solution
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By Peter G. Miller | Fri, 07 Aug 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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With all the talk of good news on the recession front there remains the little matter of reality.
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The Case For Cash Buying
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By Peter G. Miller | Mon, 03 Aug 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Imagine that a few years ago you could have bought a nice investment property and had the option of financing or paying cash. Which would you have chosen?
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2009 Midyear, Q2 & June State Foreclosure Activity Tables
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By RealtyTrac Staff | Mon, 20 Jul 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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State data tables for foreclosure activity in June, Q2 and Midyear 2009.
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336,173 Foreclosure Filings Reported in June 2009
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By RealtyTrac Staff Writers | Thu, 16 Jul 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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A total of 336,173 foreclosure filings — default notices, auction sale notices and bank repossessions — were reported in June 2009, a 5 percent increase from the previous month and a 33 percent increase from June of 2008, according to RealtyTrac.
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1.9 Million Foreclosure Filings Reported on More Than 1.5 Million U.S. Properties in First Half of ‘09
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By RealtyTrac Staff | Wed, 15 Jul 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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A total of 1,905,723 foreclosure filings — default notices, auction sale notices and bank repossessions — were reported on 1,528,364 U.S. properties in the first six months of 2009.
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Does Negative Equity Cause Foreclosures?
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By Peter G. Miller | Wed, 15 Jul 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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For years folks have been wondering what caused the mortgage meltdown and many people have pointed to subprime loans.
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How The Government Is Pushing Up Home Prices
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By Peter G. Miller | Wed, 08 Jul 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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The government is in action on the home front, and in a strange way the result may be fewer foreclosures as well pressure to raise real estate prices.
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New FHA Rules Doom Condo Values
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By Peter G. Miller | Fri, 03 Jul 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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For the past two years the FHA has been involved in an effort to lower its risks, a process which is entirely understandable given that the government program is nothing more than insurance.
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FHA Loans With Nothing Down, Will They Change The Foreclosure Picture
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By Peter G. Miller | Tue, 30 Jun 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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The headlines are brimming with good news for first-time homebuyers. They can now purchase with FHA loans and little or nothing down. It sounds great, but is this really a smart idea?
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Should We Bring Back The Skip-A-Payment?
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By Peter G. Miller | Fri, 26 Jun 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Years ago a lender sent me the most-interesting note.
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Bargain Hunters See Bottom in Some Markets
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By Octavio Nuiry | Mon, 22 Jun 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Ask a group of real estate millionaires how they made their money and most will recite some version of this axiom: “When everyone zigs, you zag.”
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Can First-Timers End The Foreclosure Mess?
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By Peter G. Miller | Fri, 19 Jun 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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The National Association of Home Builders has kicked off a new campaign to continue the first-time buyer tax credit, now as much as $8,000 for every first-time buyer who purchases a home.
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New Law Protects Renters From Foreclosure Eviction
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By Octavio Nuiry | Fri, 19 Jun 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Under the new foreclosure prevention bill President Barack Obama signed into law on May 20, renters scored a big victory against foreclosure evictions.
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Housing Predictor: 10 Million Foreclosures Through 2012
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By Mike Colpitts, Editor of Housing Predictor | Tue, 16 Jun 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Housing Predictor forecasts that 10 million homeowners will be foreclosed through 2012 as more mortgage holders are unable to refinance or give up holding on to their homes all together.
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May State Foreclosure Data
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By RealtyTrac Staff | Mon, 15 Jun 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Foreclosure filings were reported on 321,480 U.S. properties during the month, a decrease of 6 percent from the previous month but an increase of nearly 18 percent from May 2008.
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Will The FHA Insure Loans With Nothing Down?
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By Peter G. Miller | Fri, 12 Jun 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Here today, gone tomorrow. That pretty much describes HUD's one-day policy regarding FHA loans with nothing down.
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Is There A Simple Solution To The Foreclosure Crisis?
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By Peter G. Miller | Thu, 11 Jun 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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The New York Times came out with a thunderous editorial a few days ago, an official opinion piece from the nation’s newspaper of record regarding the matter of foreclosures.
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Foreclosures: Are Commercial Properties Next?
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By Peter G. Miller | Wed, 20 May 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Mention the word “foreclosure” and the usual reference is to residential real estate, but now the term is beginning to have a new meaning, one with a troubling economic impact.
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New Numbers Stir Real Estate Investors
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By Peter G. Miller | Mon, 18 May 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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We're now at a very unusual point in financial history, one which home buyers and foreclosure investors may want to examine with care.
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Foreclosure Activity Hits Another Record High in April
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By Daren Blomquist | Fri, 15 May 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Foreclosure filings were reported on 342,038 U.S. properties during April, an increase of less than 1 percent from the previous month and an increase of 32 percent from April 2008.
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10 Best Places to Buy Foreclosures
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By Joel Cone | Fri, 15 May 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Despite the housing problems that have hit many areas nationwide, some areas of the country are better poised to stand the test of time than others.
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$8000 First-Time Homebuyer Tax Credit Q&A
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By RealtyTrac Staff | Fri, 01 May 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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A $789 billion economic stimulus bill signed into law by President Obama on Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2009, included a generous tax break for first-time homebuyers.
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Mortgage Reform Moves Ahead in Washington
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By Peter G. Miller | Thu, 30 Apr 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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While huge banks may be too big to fail they're no longer too big to regulate. The changing tone in Washington can be seen with a 49-21 vote by the House Financial Services Committee on April 29.
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Time to Unleash Real Estate Investors
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By Peter G. Miller | Fri, 24 Apr 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Whether a foreclosed property is owned by an investor or an owner-occupant is irrelevant. The instant and immediate need is to get such properties off the market and occupied.
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How the AIG Bailout Could be Driving More Foreclosures?
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By Peter G. Miller | Thu, 23 Apr 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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"The government bailout of AIG has actually encouraged foreclosures because the taxpayers continue to fill AIG’s coffers with enough cash to pay out insurance on defaulted home loans."
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Unemployment & Foreclosure: Connecting the Dots
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By Peter G. Miller | Wed, 22 Apr 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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News on the employment front is grim and getting grimmer. It's being widely reported that job losses are the highest they've been in 50 years. Actually though, that's not quite the whole story.
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Mortgage Reform Faces Uphill Battle on Capitol Hill
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By Peter G. Miller | Tue, 21 Apr 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Stashed away on Capitol Hill's back burners has been the emerging idea that the mortgage lending process has to be changed. Not around the edges and not something here or there, but the entire process.
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Are Mortgage Brokers An Endangered Species?
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By Peter G. Miller | Mon, 20 Apr 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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There's a new game of musical chairs going on in the home financing industry and increasingly it's mortgage brokers who have no place to sit.
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Millions To Miss Out On New Mortgage Help Plans
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By Peter G. Miller | Fri, 17 Apr 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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The Obama plan ought to be applauded. It will help large numbers of homeowners. But when you see claims that millions and millions of borrowers will benefit, look out.
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U.S. Foreclosure Activity Hits Record High in Q1
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By Daren Blomquist | Thu, 16 Apr 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Foreclosure filings were reported on 803,489 U.S. properties in the first quarter, a 9 percent increase from the previous quarter and an increase of nearly 24 percent from Q1 2008.
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Why Not Streamline Toxic Mortgages?
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By Peter G. Miller | Thu, 09 Apr 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Broad use of the FHA “streamline” concept would instantly make millions of homeowners with toxic loans eligible for financial relief and off the foreclosure rolls.
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Will Judges Modify Your Mortgage?
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By Peter G. Miller | Thu, 02 Apr 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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The House has now passed H.R. 1106: The Helping Families Save Their Homes Act of 2009. If this bill ultimately becomes law it would allow bankruptcy judges to modify mortgages on prime residences.
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Five Reasons Why Good People Can't Get Good Loans
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By Peter G. Miller | Thu, 02 Apr 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Why is it that good people with good credit and cash in their pocket are having so much trouble getting home loans? There are five key reasons which explain why.
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Will The Obama Plan Reduce Foreclosures?
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By Peter G. Miller | Wed, 01 Apr 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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A new deal from Washington that potentially will allow millions of homeowners to lower their monthly mortgage costs and avoid foreclosure was unveiled last month by President Barack Obama
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Foreclosure Investors Rely on Innovative Rental Strategies
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By Octavio Nuiry, RealtyTrac Staff Writer | Mon, 30 Mar 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Increased competition for tenants is forcing investors to outfit their rental properties with upscale furnishing, high-tech devices and posh perks.
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Fannie Revises Investment Property Guidelines
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By Octavio Nuiry, RealtyTrac Staff Writer | Tue, 10 Mar 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Fannie Mae, seeking to break the logjam in the housing crisis, loosened its loan restrictions for real estate investors and second homebuyers last week, issuing a new set of selling guidelines.
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Frustrated Homeowners Take a Walk
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By Joel Cone, RealtyTrac Staff Writer | Tue, 10 Mar 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Sage advice says that a good walk will relieve stress. For an increasing number of homeowners in distress and facing foreclosure, that advice makes perfect sense.
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2008 Year-End Foreclosure Market Report
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By RealtyTrac Staff | Thu, 05 Feb 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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A total of 3,157,806 foreclosure filings were reported on 2,330,483 U.S. properties during the year, an 81 percent increase in from 2007 and a 225 percent increase from 2006.
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Uncle Sam to Foreclosure Buyers: We Want You!
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By Joel Cone | Tue, 03 Feb 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Given today’s lackluster economic climate, real estate investors and buyers who can locate and purchase government-owned foreclosures have a tremendous opportunity to find good deals.
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Will Loan Modifications Change With Washington?
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By Peter G. Miller | Thu, 29 Jan 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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It's a new year in official Washington with a new Congress, a new President and a new chance for bankruptcy reform, reform which will center on the issue of what to do about unpaid mortgages.
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New Loan Mod Plan Open to Investment Property
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By Peter G. Miller | Tue, 27 Jan 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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The goal of the Fed’s new loan modification policy “is to avoid preventable foreclosures.” It is a step forward, but it's a short step.
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Can We Use FHA Loans to Raise Home Values?
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By Peter G. Miller | Thu, 22 Jan 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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With a little tinkering the plan could not only create new housing opportunities for the poor, it could also reduce the stock of foreclosed homes, thus pushing up neighborhood home values.
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Which Remodeling Projects Pay Off?
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By RealtyTrac Staff | Mon, 12 Jan 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Anyone planning to buy or invest in a foreclosure property should budget for the basic cosmetic repairs. But many foreclosure buyers and investors need to go far beyond the basic repairs.
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How To Profit In Today's Real Estate Marketplace
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By Peter G. Miller | Thu, 01 Jan 2009 07:00:00 GMT | |
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The financial headlines during much of the past two years have been largely negative, but we sometimes look past a basic reality: Opportunities for real estate profits are still out there.
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The Curious Case of Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac
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By Peter G. Miller | Tue, 23 Dec 2008 07:00:00 GMT | |
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The latest report shows that Fannie and Freddie owned 30.5 million mortgages at the end of September. Of those loans, 25.4 million were prime mortgages while 5.1 million were subprime financing.
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How Loan Workouts Hide Foreclosure Damage
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By Peter G. Miller | Tue, 16 Dec 2008 07:00:00 GMT | |
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No longer do we have people facing foreclosure just once, instead we have large numbers of borrowers entering foreclosure multiple times on the same loan.
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The FDIC's 7 Percent Foreclosure Solution
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By Peter G. Miller | Thu, 27 Nov 2008 07:00:00 GMT | |
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For the past several months a major experiment has been underway, one which may well suggest how to substantially reduce foreclosure totals.
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Can the Right Foreclosure Prevention Plan Change the Marketplace?
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By Peter G. Miller | Thu, 20 Nov 2008 07:00:00 GMT | |
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For those with an interest in buying foreclosures, new lender policies could make such purchases significantly more attractive.
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Bank-Owned Auctions: Practical Bidding Strategies
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By Octavio Nuiry | Thu, 13 Nov 2008 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Auctions firms are busier than ever. As lenders and homebuilders repossess more foreclosures, they hire more auction companies to find buyers.
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Don’t Dump Investors
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By Peter G. Miller | Thu, 13 Nov 2008 07:00:00 GMT | |
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It's in our national interest to protect investors — unless, of course, they're folks who merely bought a house or two.
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The Government Goes After Loan Officers
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By Peter G. Miller | Wed, 08 Oct 2008 07:00:00 GMT | |
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One of the most galling aspects of the mortgage meltdown is the sense that folks who made bad loans also made big profits, while everyday wage earners and investors are punished.
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How Much for Those Lender Assets in the Window?
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By Peter G. Miller | Thu, 02 Oct 2008 07:00:00 GMT | |
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The question is central to the recent legislation that authorizes the Treasury Department to pay out $700 billion in taxpayer money for financial paper of questionable value.
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No Mortgage Meltdown For These Banks
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By Peter G. Miller | Fri, 19 Sep 2008 07:00:00 GMT | |
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The news from Wall Street in recent weeks has not been good, especially in the world of mortgages.
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Long-Term Solution for Fannie and Freddie Dilemma
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By Peter G. Miller | Tue, 16 Sep 2008 07:00:00 GMT | |
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The time has come for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to end their quasi-government status and join the rest of the risk-taking and tax-paying mortgage buyers who populate the private sector.
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Option ARM Borrowers Running Out Of Time
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By Peter G. Miller | Sat, 06 Sep 2008 07:00:00 GMT | |
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Of all the mortgage ideas developed during the past few years, none tops the option ARM for sheer awfulness. And now the mortgage mess is about to get far worse as millions of option ARMs begin to recast.
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Secrets of Pre-Foreclosure Investing
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By Octavio Nuiry, RealtyTrac Staff Writer | Sat, 06 Sep 2008 07:00:00 GMT | |
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One pre-foreclosure expert says a new federal law will change everything, and short sales and short payoff sales will become the new trend in the marketplace.
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