HELLLOOOOO My Wonderful Beautiful Bay Area!!… The sun is out and is hanging out longer these days… more time for us to get out and enjoy our neck of the woods… even after work… plenty of light for all of us!…
Our real estate market all around our Bay Area is coming back by leaps and bounds… Sales have been inching upwards for a few months now… Sellers are reaping the benefits due to very low inventory and Buyers are out in droves vying for a chance at home ownership… taking advantage of the low low interest rates to boot…Not so much fun for buyers since this is a seller’s market… meaning multiple offers for the sellers and buyers are pretty much stuck if they dont offer over list, short times to remove contingencies or the most minimal shortest times to remove contingencies, bigger down payments, very quick close times etc etc…
Nevertheless abit of good news to share with you as sellers, buyers or just plain market watchers…here’s a goodie for you… as a result of a recent listing I had… even tho a short sale… with 2 loans… from the actual list date to close of escrow took a mere 2 months…from date of short sale approval from the bank to close of escrow date took less than 35 days… Now we’re talking!!… it is possible to rise above the Short Sale craziness of months and months and months of delays working through the various bank depts and myriad of bank short sale specialists who never seem to stay very long, who always seem to lose vital information… you can end up triumphant and literally close the transaction in the same amount of time as a normal regular transaction…Not a very usual happening but I do believe the general state of Short Sales are indeed getting better in as far as the length of time they’ve been known to take…
Its very possible the Short Sale process is finally getting more streamlined… I cant declare this sentiment as universal just yet but as the listing agent on this recent short sale… everything worked out super well for sellers, buyers, realtors for both sides, banks and buyer”s lender and escrow officer… it took all of us to work together to make it happen and make it happen we did!!… Huge Congrats… Luis, Melissa, Shayn, Megan, Karen, Randi, Marie & Julian (asset manager)…
If you’re considering putting your home up for a possible Short Sale and more importantly if you’ve already received a Notice of Default (NOD)… please call me at 925.997.2426 or email me at isiwu@comcast.net… Lets Talk… I Can Help!!
HELLLOOOO My Most Beautiful Wonderful Bay Area!!… The “Question of the Day” is … Are you sure your realtor is licensed to do business?
Most sellers, buyers, soon to be in the market consumers and yes even fellow realtors probably don’t think too much about the licensing status of the agents they work with! And we all should know!! In fact its crucial to know… why would you work with someone who isnt licensed, why would you work with someone who has been disciplined or has complaints placed on his/her record?… As with everything else in life we must scrutinize the who, what and whys which includes “making sure your realtor is licensed and current” when it comes to working closely with that person regarding your home or any kind of property and where a huge amount of your life and money is involved… Use a Licensed Realtor!
Jim Malmberg wrote a very insightful article on why its important to know the status of the realtor you work with…please take a minute to read it… and enlighten yourselves… http://bit.ly/A5hHlw
(the DRE – Department of Real Estate License Lookup link is inside Jim’s article… its FREE to use…do yourselves a favor and do this…)
HELLLLOOOO… Good Day to All My Wonderful Beautiful Bay Area!!… Real Estate will always be in our lives… no matter how you look at it… we all have something to do with real estate… we all need it, use it and live in it everyday… so why not strive to make it something you can call your own??… I’d like to be first in line to apply for the job of helping you get there… I am proud to submit as part of my qualifications the following… (please also refer to my testimonial page for your consideration…)
“I have been a realtor in Northern Arizona for the past 25 years. When my daughter told me that she was thinking about buying a home in the Bay Area, the first thing I said to her was “Find a good realtor. One that you like and can work with and someone who has lots of experience and knows the market. ” She did just that when she found Isi Wu. Isi was the perfect realtor for her. She found her a loft that she absolutely loves (one that she might never have found on her own) and that she could afford. Isi negotiated a great price and took care of all the details all along the way right up to closing. She also found a mortgage broker who worked long and hard to get the financing done and closed the loan even before the close of escrow date. For a first time home buyer, Isi’s expertise and professionalism were invaluable.
Cheryl K
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HELLLLLOOOO My Wonderful – Beautiful Bay Area… The news is out… A number of major banks have volunteered to temporarily suspend foreclosures in 23 states and Bank of America is temporarily suspending foreclosures nationwide…
This situation is changing daily… this is just part of what we know so far… so far only Bank of America has extended its foreclosure moratorium to California, where the vast majority of foreclosures are conducted without a court order… the other 22 states are processed through the court system. However non-judicial foreclosures in California do have legal requirements that lenders must follow… Other lenders and servicers placing foreclosure moratoriums are… Goldman Sachs Group Inc’s Litton Loan Servicing, Ally Financial Inc‘s GMAC Mortgage unit, JPMorgan Chase and PNC Financial… please keep in mind they are only Temporarily halting the foreclosure process until they have reviewed whether some lenders/servicers were following correct procedures prior to foreclosing on properties. This is all taking place voluntarily there has not been any mandates by either State or Federal entities. The bigger question is… just how long will it really take to straighten this mess up??!!!
The immediate impact of this moratorium on your transactions may cause delays and may even remove the listed foreclosures.
Lets all hope these latest events will be resolved swiftly to minimize the impact on our housing market in the Bay Area!
Stay tuned in and check back for updates as they become available…
Isi
Isi Wu… the realtor for you
Serving Clients All Over the Eastbay!
Greetings My Wonderful Beautiful Bay Area!!… Today I want to revisit what can happen to you if you enter into a Short Sale or if the Bank Forecloses on your property and sells it.
There is NO FREE LUNCH when it comes to the IRS… whenever your home is sold… whether by regular conventional means or if you sold your home at a loss and you paid the difference or by short sale approved by the Bank or involuntarily by foreclosure… be warned you may be subject to taxes!
It doesn’t seem fair and what’s worse… you may not even find out that you owe taxes until the day you open your mail and find a 1099.
The IRS has tax rules for foreclosures or repossessions by lenders of homes belonging to owners who have fallen behind on their mortgage payments. There can be severe and unexpected tax consequences for any owner who simply walks away just because he or she has little or no equity and the lender takes over and sells the property. When a mortgaged property is foreclosed or repossessed and the bank re-acquires it or the bank knows the owner abandoned the property… the bank will send Form 1099 to the owner and the IRS… it will include the foreclosed bid price, the actual debt (loan) amount and the amount short of the debt amount… that amount will be taxed as ordinary income… the same as for your salary.
Sellers of residences acquired within the past two years or so are going to incur losses. Even assuming no price declines, losses will result because of expenses for real estate brokers, lawyers and the like. Sellers will not be able to deduct those losses… it makes no difference that they are forced to sell because of ie)… job changes or health reasons.
** There’s also information floating around that Banks where distressed properties have overtaken the area in certain markets…are taking steps where even after they approve and close a property for short sale… they will be actively tracking the owner of that short saled property over the next 6 years… during that time if their credit rating goes up and if they attempt to purchase another home they will be pursuing them for the “short amount” they lost when they approved that person’s short sale 6 years prior… This bit of information is not fact – as of yet here in California… yet people… Everyone please do everything you can to protect yourselves BEFORE A FORECLOSURE OR SELLING… PLAN AHEAD… especially before attempting to sell on a short sale or going through a foreclosure… please get legal and tax advice… do the planning BEFORE ITS TOO LATE!!…
Thanks for checking in…
Isi
Isi Wu… the realtor for you
Serving Clients All Over the Eastbay!
Hello My Beautiful Wonderful Bay Area… Its just a fact these days… many many people are in need of a way to earn some money for food, shelter and basic necessities… I happened to come across this article and thought it might be helpful and might shed some great ideas to keep going… at the bottom of the 24 ideas are various comments made by readers… pros and cons to ideas suggested but give it a whirl and check it out… Please share with others if you find it helpful…
http://bit.ly/bDcUW7
I wish everyone a way to find some sunshine in their lives…
Thanks for checking in…
Isi
Isi Wu… the realtor for you
Serving Clients All Over the Eastbay!
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