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Foreclosure Grant Aid From Ohio Housing Finance Agency

Julie Parker — Wed, 05 Mar 2008 11:55:27 +0000

More than $3 million has been sanctioned by the Ohio Housing Finance Agency. It will enable counseling agencies to operate with counseling through 18 centres across the state. This $3.06 million grant emanates from the National Foreclosure Mitigation Counseling Program and it is part of $180 million action taken by the Congress in its fiscal 2008 appropriations bill. The programme funding is being activated through NeighborWorks America based in Washington DC dealing with housing matters.

How much each organization will get is not being specified until finalization of contracts. One of the beneficiaries will be Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission based in Columbus. In south east Ohio, the Corporation for Ohio Appalachian Development was declared qualified for the federal grant to serve the people of that region. Also on the qualified list was Community Action Commission of Fayette County southwest of Central Ohio. More than half of the agencies selected are concentrated in and around Cleveland. Foreclosures have been the highest making it rank sixth in the foreclosure race amongst all the metropolitan cities in the country.

The country is in the grip of a foreclosure tsunami. Although the primary accused is the sub-prime floating interest rate mortgage there are many other factors at play that have aggravated the situation – a situation that has caused whispers of recession being heard. Since 9/11 the stock market has been wobbly. There have been job losses. Detroit is one of the worst hits with the automobile industry floundering. Population levels have also gone down. Together with this medical bills have gone up and divorces being rampant have caused instability in the social structure. To add fuel to the fire a loan culture came to be aggressively sold via the credit card craze. It was thought that with money being pumped into the market by consumers, it would give the flagging economy a kick. Nothing happened. People kept on taking loans to get out of other loans. Into this mess crept in sub-prime loans meant to cater to those who could not qualify for prime loans because of modest income and shaky credit. The loans were aggressively peddled lured by commission and investment hopes. The general public were made pawns to snap up loans they could not run. The scheme backfired with lenders having taken on more foreclosures than they could digest. Foreclosures now dot the desolate land. No remedy has been found – only short term palliatives are being introduced.

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Former Mayor Expresses Grave Concern For Foreclosure Crisis

Julie Parker — Mon, 24 Dec 2007 15:15:44 +0000

In a statement the former mayor of Cleveland George Voinovich expressed his grave anguished concern for the ongoing foreclosure crisis in US. He is a senator from Ohio (R-Cleveland) and a former Governor.

He is especially concerned about the repercussions of the foreclosure crisis. Cleveland is his hometown and it is one of the worst affected zones. In his own locality three houses have been abandoned in front of his eyes – the owners have walked away leaving the properties to the mercy of vandals.

He had pitched in with others to revitalize the region with new sidewalks and saw to the repairs and maintenance works. For house construction he initiated a special tax abatement incentive. Now foreclosure clouds darken these same regions. One such locality is Slavic Village. It has the dubious distinction of ranking first in the foreclosure race. So on a very personal level he understands and realizes the sting of the foreclosure tornado that is sweeping through Ohio.
According to latest reports released by Mortgage Banker’s Association the foreclosure crisis is at its worst with Ohio being one of the hardest hit by it. It stands first with 3.72% of the loans slipping into foreclosures. The new law will allow three-year exception to the matter of debt forgiveness on house loans. There is also a clause that allows house owners to deduct mortgage insurance payments from taxable income.

An overwhelming majority by the House passed the second law, Expanding American Homeownership Act. By it Federal Housing Administration loan limits have been increased so that those facing foreclosures or resetting of interest rates will be easily able to refinance and move into safer harbours. The minor differences between the House and Senate bills will be ironed out and sent for the President’s signature in December.

The bill will give a fillip to the real estate market by bringing down the down payment condition from 3% to 1.5%. Consequently millions of Americans for the first time will get an opportunity to have a house of their own. This law also envisages a new counseling programme that will benefit those in the low and middle-income bracket.

Both pieces of legislation will be tools in the hand of the individual to preserve the sanctity and security of the home and the neighbourhood. There are still things to be done but a beginning has been made.

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Foreclosure Counselors Overworked With Workload

Julie Parker — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 12:12:16 +0000

Since the last twelve months hundreds of house owners have been knocking on the doors of Stephani Rojas – a mortgage counselor. They are desperately seeking help as foreclosures close in on them. The majority comes when they are just about to be evicted. There is a sense of shame for having failed their families and for the same reason they are reluctant to disclose their names, income or expenses. They do not want to say how many instalments they have missed. Some just collapse and shed tears. Stephanie feels that it is akin to talking to disaster victims. The sufferers have no idea about the rules of the game and are just aware that any day the Sheriff’s men will come and throw their belongings out on the road.

It is the same story with counseling agencies right across Lower Hudson Valley. Most of the foreclosure victims are first-time buyers of property with low income and questionable credit who tried to change their lives by taking advantage of the sub-prime ARM’s. Instead they have been gifted with foreclosures when interest rates began to spike.

Veline Acquah is another such foreclosure counselor at Mount Vernon. She underlines the importance of seeking timely help even before receiving the foreclosure notice. Timely intervention is of invaluable importance in these cases. But once the ball starts to roll it is difficult to bring it back. Time is the key.

Sonyma AND FHASecure ae some programmes launched by New York State and Federal Government. These are for those house owners who have taken ARM loans and are not lagging behind more than two months in payments.

Once the counselor has the relevant details from the foreclosure victim – income, expenses and present capability to make payments after granting of concessions, he or she will be able to negotiate with the dealer for a viable amicable solution that will allow the borrower to continue to live in the house that is the home.

The lenders have some options relating to the circumstances of the borrowers – his or her credit ratings, repayment ability and whether the trouble started only when the rates were increased or because of personal reasons like illness or divorce. In other words is the nature of the problem short or long? The answer to all these questions will be matched by the best solution under the circumstances.

Foreclosures Rise In November

Julie Parker — Fri, 14 Dec 2007 11:52:04 +0000

To avoid recession Federal Reserve has cut down key lending rate. Meanwhile foreclosures triumphantly marched on apace in November. The rate was slightly higher than that of November 2006.

In Racine County last month there were 74 filings. A year ago the number was 71. 729 foreclosures had been filed through November – an 11% rise since a year ago, when the number was 658. This year (2007) has seen high levels of foreclosures in contrast to the past year. From 2005 it was a 34% rise across the states. This year 89 foreclosures have been filed on every working day.

Alarmed at the uncontrolled rise of foreclosures, on Tuesday the Federal Reserve reduced interest rates for the third time during the past four months, aimed at reining in foreclosures. Federal funds also were cut by a quarter point bringing the federal funds rate to 4.25%. It is anticipated that the commercial banks will try to match these steps by pruning their prime lending rates. That would bring down the standard rate for millions to 7.25% – the lowest in a span of two years. Signals are being given out by Federal personnel that further cuts might be imposed if the foreclosure crisis begins to get worse.

The Fed had started pruning rates in September with a move of half point. This was followed by reducing funds rate by a quarter point at 31st October meeting. In addition the Fed declared that it was cutting down on discount rate also by a quarter point – to 4.75%. This is the interest being charged to make direct loans to banks. The idea was that banks could now borrow easily from the Fed. This is of special importance at this point of time when bad loans will compel banks to tighten credit. Without being able to take loans who will buy houses? Without buyers how will the real estate market stabilize?

The Chairperson of Fed, Ben Bernanke and his colleagues are worried about recession and desperately taking measures. Experts opine that this quarter and the one following it will be of vital importance to the economy. The economy is besieged on all sides with social problems dogging its steps. In 2008 the economic growth will record a weak 2.1% in the coming year. It would be the weakest GDP in the last six years. Foreclosures are now stepping into the rural areas with unabated ferocity.

Foreclosure: Problem or Boon

Julie Parker — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 12:12:32 +0000

For any real estate related problem like foreclosure the FHA can be contacted for genuine help. It is a semi-private agency controlled by the government. The aims are to help those with slim purses to become owners of houses. FHA does not itself advance loans but it negotiates with lenders to make the loan taking process smooth and easy.

The FHA has launched many programmes that have become popular. As per the 203(b) plan a 3% down payment can be made on a mortgage and not the usual 20% for purchasing or refinancing a house in which the owner wishes to reside or is residing respectively. There is however the condition that a mortgage insurance premium of 1.5% of the principal loan has to be added to the loan amount. That apart a monthly insurance premium on the mortgage calculated to be 0.5% of the main loan has to be paid. This will continue until the loan-to value ratio is 78% or equity of 22% has been built up.

Another programme is FHASecure. It is for people who have good credit ratings and have so far timely paid mortgage dues. This plan will help the borrowers to refinance their mortgage. This programme will save about 240,000 families. Here again there is a condition that those who are eligible for this plan will have to pay mortgage insurance premium. This will take care of the risk FHA is taking without burdening the taxpayer as regards insurance funds. The rate will be calculated according to the risk status of the borrowers. Those standing on shaky ground will have to pay more. The pricing schedule will come into effect from 1st January 2008.

To be eligible the borrower must show that there has never been any previous failure in timely repayments until the time of resetting as well as an unbroken history of employment; the present income must make repayment affordable. Thirdly only those will qualify whose mortgage interest rates fall under the anvil of resetting between June 2005 and December 2009. Fourthly the borrower must have at least 3% cash or equity on the property.
FHA schemes are for good borrowers but who were tricked off the course into high cost loans by initial teaser rates and other blatant temptations. Most of the victims are minorities who need a safe anchor to hold on to which will secure their mortgage and prosperity.

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Foreclosure: Housing Boom Burst By Foreclosure Pinprick

Kevin Simpson — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 15:49:32 +0000

California and the Bay Area have been worst hit by the foreclosure crisis primarily because it was in this region that there had been frenetic housing activity in the form of sub-prime loans and mortgages. This had always been one of the highly priced zones and real estate had been ballooning for many years. Many hoped that this trend would continue.

The lenders and their agents had a wolfish appetite. More and more were trapped into the zone that ultimately led to foreclosures. To willy-nilly push through loans the initial interest was low, no down payment or income proof was required. To increase the loaned amount the value of the house was falsely upgraded causing complications. Investors swooped in trying to use equity on houses as a capital for speculation and investment. Loans were made into packets and bundled off to distant addresses. The stage had been set for the outbreak of a storm of tsunami proportions.

The prices of houses began to fall. House owners found that the value of the house did not add up to the loaned amount. When interest began to rise foreclosures became inevitable.

The situation in California was especially bad because many jumbo loans had been taken here – those worth more than $417,000. These were not insured federally and lenders took on jumbo risks with the loans. The interest rates too were jumbo sized increases. It whizzed past 8% to 12% – being much more than the prime big size loans. It is then little wonder that California is leading the nation in the foreclosure race. Out of 635,000 filings in the entire country, 148,000 are from California. The prediction is that in the coming months the picture is going to worsen.

It is too late to say now that lenders should never have been allowed to play with fire with impunity. But it is not too late to enforce them to do something to clear the mess they are responsible for.

With everybody being included in the grim socio-economic picture, the Governor of California, Schwarzenegger is taking all possible steps to mitigate the crisis – the main focus being on those in the foreclosure zone. The Governor and lenders are also offering refinancing schemes to those who have not defaulted as yet. The lender has realized that this is best option open to them. Foreclosure is as costly, time and money consuming process.

Foreclosures: Officials Pool In To Check Foreclosures

Julie Parker — Mon, 03 Dec 2007 14:10:41 +0000

The statistics in Washington, Sacramento and the Inland Empire is grim with one out of 43 residences stained with foreclosure. Officials are scrambling with funds, legal steps and plans to help the house owners stay in their homes and snub predatory lending methods leading to foreclosures. But the clock is ticking.

Speaker Nunez is pressing for a special Legislative session to deal with the increasing foreclosure crisis. Democrats have joined in proposing remedial packages. Washington remained concerned with the national fall out. Paulson, the Treasury Secretary conferred with bank representatives and lenders to find out ways to keep interest rates at bay. He wants more positive action that shows quick results. At-risk borrowers need to be identified quickly.

Governor Schwarzenegger of California saw to the sanctioning of a $1.2 million education awareness programme to help both lenders and borrowers wiggle out of the stigma of foreclosures. The forthcoming four to six years will see thousands of California’s residents threatened by a scheduled jump in interest rates.

The government fears that if foreclosures are allowed to go unchecked there will be a further slump in the real estate market causing increasing loss – a vicious circle of no return. So the plan has to be such that people can stay in their own homes and yet the mortgage industry will continue to be active and healthy.

One idea is to encourage lenders to continue with the low ‘teaser’ rates for some more time. It will allow the market to get back on its rails and consequently the borrower will get a chance to refinance with the house price stabilizing. Then it will be a smooth entry from the floating into the fixed prime mortgage zone before defaults start off. Schwarzenegger had made similar suggestions after talking with four lending giants in California. California tops the offenders in the foreclosure crisis with a ratio of 1:88.

The stumbling blocks the new plans are coming up with is that the traumatized borrowers are reluctant to even talk to the lenders although the latter have sent out signals that they are willing to be amenable. In more than half the foreclosure cases the loan officials have failed to reach the borrowers. But soon it will be too late.

In Sacramento the Democrats have funded $10 million for counseling purposes. Bans will be imposed on bonus incentives for agents and also on penalty charges.

Michigan Foreclosed Homes

Kevin Simpson — Thu, 27 Sep 2007 12:21:22 +0000

In the Michigan real estate business the top option by many home buyers is to go in for Michigan foreclosed homes. This is based on sound reasoning that the Michigan foreclosure process is caused by many eventualities, namely bankruptcy, financial strain, death of house owner or shifting of residence to another place and the like, thereby the property owners defaults in repayment of the mortgage. The mortgage lenders are initiating the process of foreclosure for retrieval of their loan. Here the point to be noted is that the lender would have already got back a portion of the loan through paid installments and the remaining portion should only be recovered. So the mortgage lenders, private and public sector institutions like HUD, Banks and Insurance Companies, are ready to dispose of the property through foreclosure and are keen on getting back only the amount due to them. Michigan foreclosed homes also have this unique advantage.

Selecting the best location for purchase of a property is of paramount importance. The State of Michigan gets the merit of location ideal for investment as explained below:

The mid-western State of Michigan of the U.S.A. located in the east north central portion of the country, bounded by four great lakes, is blessed with the longest shoreline of freshwater in the world and second best in U.S., next only to Alaska. This is the only bi-peninsular state divided into Upper Peninsula and Lower Peninsula.

The State capital is Lansing and the largest city is the famous Detroit, a world-renowned automobile manufacturing venue. Michigan ranks 8th in the U.S. population-wise and has nearly 10 million people available for the realty market business.

Michigan has a humid continental climate throughout the state, irrespective of the two peninsular divisions, the Upper Peninsula being densely surrounded by green forests. More than 80% of the population is white Americans descended from Europe and the realty business is designed to suit their tastes in housing properties.

Economy wise Michigan State houses for high-tech employment in information technology, life sciences, engineering and heavy manufacturing inclusive of automotives. Apart from automobiles the State holds a pivotal position in manufacturing technology equipments like computers, hardware and software, bio-technology, Research and Development of technologies, aero-space equipments, which are mostly white-color jobs. The state provides ample scope for tourism development with its natural resources of forests in abundance and the related opportunities of employment. The personal per-capita income is assessed to be of 20th rank in the country. The important information for realty business is that Property taxes are assessed on the local level and not State level.

Hence, arising out of the factual advantages of location described above, Michigan also right on timing for realty business, particularly in Michigan foreclosed homes. The fact that increased availability of foreclosed homes due to downward trend in economy and mortgage lending interest rates, as prevalent elsewhere in the country is catching up Michigan also.

There are totally 143,918 foreclosed homes available for sale, listed in the MLS of Michigan at an average price of $169,900 and the Michigan foreclosed homes available are 39,169 Nos. at an average price of $96,999. With the above basic information, you are invited to get all the help, guidance and assistance in locating the exact Michigan foreclosed home of your choice as well as finalizing the deal amicably by visiting www.foreclosurelistings.com

Foreclosures Rising In Twin Cities Of St. Paul And Minneapolis

Julie Parker — Tue, 25 Sep 2007 12:21:36 +0000

The foreclosure virus is spreading. ACORN is a national organization scrutinizing its effect on low and middle-income communities. ACORN is working to empower communities to fight for social justice. Its report is very exposing and revealing. In April this year 535 families of St. Paul and Minneapolis were served foreclosure notices. In St. Paul the number was 24 times greater than in the same month the previous year. There were 5995 foreclosures, which meant 167% increases from 2005. It records the second largest percentage increase in US. . Minneapolis and St. Paul Bloomington have the 83rd highest foreclosure figures in US. Northern Minneapolis is the worst affected with seven of the top ten units being located here. It is apprehended that the situation is going to get the worse as the year advances. Interest rates of sub-prime loans are rising steadily. With more borrowers being unable to bear it foreclosures are inevitable. Initially floating interest rates had seemed attractive because there was the possibility of rates going down. Moreover the interest rates were lower than the conventional loans. But in reality the reverse has happened. Rates have begun to more than double in the jump. The situation is untenable for borrowers.

Sixty five year old Al Ynigues is a music instructor who has known his loan broker for five long years. A feeling of trust and confidence had been established. He now feels let down by this predatory lending. Ynigues is already two months behind in payments but he is still hopeful that the lender will negotiate for new terms.
ACORN has taken an aggressive stand for the sufferers and trying to enforce negotiation. Lenders use violence and abuse to threaten families. They are now being called upon to modify loans to make it viable. There is the option of a temporary foreclosure freeze. ACORN has given out a clarion call to all the jumbo sub-prime mortgage firms to suspend foreclosures for three months and to utilize this time to work out a schedule beneficial to both parties in the long term. The prime focus is on people continuing to live under their own roofs.
The ball is now in the court of the brokers. Ynigues says from his experience that lenders will never bend. Nevertheless with organizations coming forward aggressively he too is starting to nurse hopes.

Socially Committed Bank Comes Forward To Fight Foreclosures In Novel Way

Julie Parker — Sat, 22 Sep 2007 11:36:17 +0000

The South Side Bank, Shore Bank is a bank with a difference. It lays great stress on community welfare. It has started a new high-interest account on the Internet to attract those savers who are socially committed. Long-term gains are tied to the health of the land and the people who live on it. It is foolish to ignore this fact. The bank is of the opinion that there are many who may be termed as responsible investors in equities.

Joseph Hasten joined the bank as its CEO last spring. He feels that there are many who have kept their investments in market or bank funds but may be persuaded to try out the offers of Shore Bank. Hasten wants to use these deposits to hasten development of community by taking head on the problems of the lending and borrowing. The focus is on 10,000 borrowers in Chicago South and West who are facing foreclosures. Refinancing and debt consolidation schemes are part of the strategy to bail them out.

Within the next year and a half these borrowers will be facing increased high rates of interest. Time is running out. The community needs immediate help. The country is sitting on a socio-economic time bomb kicked off by the sub-prime market that might explode any moment unless properly diffused.

Shore Bank’s new Saving Account, ShoreBank Direct offers an annual interest of 5%. It is more or less at par with other competitors like ING Direct paying 4.5% and EmigrantDirect offering 5.05%. The country’s average for passbook accounts is 0.44%. ShoreBank has provisions for clients to use a pc to route funds from any checking account to that particular Savings Account. Hasten is optimistic about raising $350 million. Since the past few years a number foundations and large corporate bodies have already come forward. Now the focus is on individuals.

The project is drawing attention. Forty nine year old David Farr is a resident of Ravenswood. He is by profession an architect and planner working for environmentally sustainable ventures. The online banking account attracts him for two reasons. He has a penchant for ShoreBank and secondly he is averse to going personally to banks. The idea of leaving his desk is anathema to him. So the basic plan of getting transactions operable through the computer is definitely interesting and likable.

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