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Tuesday, October 02, 2007
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How To Treat a Scorpion Sting
Tuesday, October 02, 2007
How To Treat a Scorpion Sting
From Judy Hedding
Scorpions sometimes sting (they don't bite), and unfortunately we have many types of scorpions in Arizona. But if you stay calm, it is easy to treat a scorpion sting. Even if you are stung by the Arizona bark scorpion--the most dangerous of the Arizona scorpions--it is not likely to be fatal. Local medical centers are familiar with the treatment.
If you want to be able to recognize scorpions when you come across them, here are pictures of some of the most common Arizona species.
Difficulty: Average
Time Required: Hopefully, not much.
Here's How:
- Recognize scorpion sting symptoms: immediate pain or burning, very little swelling, sensitivity to touch, and a numbness/tingling sensation.
- The Arizona Bark Scorpion is venomous. The Arizona Bark Scorpion sting may have additional symptoms such as numbness or tingling of extremities or face, blurry vision, or muscle twitching.
- When stung by an Arizona Bark Scorpion, children may start to exhibit hyperactivity and have roving eye movements.
- If you are victim of a scorpion sting, wash the area with soap and water.
- Apply a cool compress on the area of the scorpion sting. Ice (wrapped in a washcloth or other suitable covering) may be applied to the sting location for 10 minutes. Remove compress for 10 minutes and repeat as necessary.
- Call the Poison Control Center at (800) 362-0101 or (602) 253-3334. If you develop symptoms of an Arizona Bark Scorpion sting, go to the nearest emergency room.
- Keep your tetanus shots and boosters current.
Tips:
- Be careful when camping or during other outdoor activities to make sure that a scorpion has not made a home in your clothes, shoes or sleeping bags.
- Scorpions glow brightly under UV light (black light).
- Scorpions are basically immune to most pesticides. If you suspect your house has scorpions, call a professional exterminator.
- Very few people die from scorpion stings, even the sting of the Arizona bark scorpion. Scorpion stings are most dangerous to the very young and the very old. Pets are also at risk.
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Ego vs. Equity
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
Ego vs. Equity
“A house properly priced is half sold”. These are words of wisdom in any market. Why would an agent allow a seller to overprice their property in a buyers market?
At times, the seller is reluctant to listen to the agent’s advice on pricing. The agent then has a decision to make, take an overpriced listing or no listing at all. The seller in this situation has more ego than equity invested.
Another reason an agent would take an overpriced listing is they feel the seller will learn a lesson as time goes by. And, the agent will reap sign or ad calls from buyers who would rather look at properly priced homes than aggressively overpriced properties. The agent would also qualify for office kudos for receiving another listing, albeit incorrectly priced. This agent will quickly realize that awards are not legal tender.
Why would a seller waste their time and an agent’s marketing efforts trying to obtain a lofty price? Primarily, because the seller is not ‘serious about selling’. Hank Trisler remarked in his book No Bull Selling, that “Price is only important when you don’t want something enough”. This is not a very accommodating market for a discretionary seller.
A seller may improperly price their property due to misinformation. A refinance appraisal is wonderful way to remove all your equity from a house and receive an appraisal that is not worth the paper it is written on. Seldom does an appraisal that is based on historical comps, factor in a declining market, increasing inventories and active listings.
Some sellers may feel they need to realize a certain amount of proceeds because they are, “moving to a more expensive location” such as Palos Verdes, California. It’s enlightening to ask these prospects would the property require a higher price if they were to relocate to Tokyo or London. Or, conversely, would they lower the list price if their relocation were to a less expensive area in the Midwest.
Hopefully, both you and your sellers have more equity than ego invested in your listing inventory.
Housing Counsel: What's a Short Sale
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
Housing Counsel: What's a Short Sale
by Benny L. Kass
Question: We are in financial trouble. Our house will not sell for enough money to even pay off the mortgage, let alone a real estate commission. Our real estate agent suggested that we do a "short sale".
What exactly is this?
Answer: This is a method of disposing of your home without having the lender foreclose on you.
You are unfortunately what lender's call "upside down."
Let's take this example: you bought the house last year for $500,000, and foolishly took advantage of the mortgage broker's sales pitch and obtained a 100 percent loan. Now, the house will probably only sell for $475,000, and you lost your job and cannot afford to continue with the monthly mortgage payments.
A short sale is an arrangement with your lender whereby they will allow you to sell the property for less than the amount of the current mortgage.
Why would a lender permit this? First, you should understand that not all lenders will allow a short sale. Their decision depends on a number of factors: where is your house? how much loss will the lender suffer? What is the possibility that a speculator/investor will buy at a foreclosure sale?
Lenders have their own requirements, so I can only provide general information; you will have to consult your specific lender to determine what they need in order to move forward with the short sale process.
The first step is to contact your financial and legal advisors. Do not contact the lender until you fully understand the potential risks involved. Under Federal law, when a debt is forgiven, it can be treated as ordinary income on which tax must be paid. Thus, if your lender allows you to sell the property to $475, less a 2 percent commission, you will pay off your $500,000 mortgage and have a deficit of almost $35,000. According to many tax professionals, you will have to pay income tax on this amount even though you did not actually receive the money.
Furthermore, you want to make absolutely sure that even should the lender approve the short sale, you will not be obligated to make up this difference, which is called a deficiency. Unfortunately, most lenders will not put their agreement in writing, so your legal advisors will have to satisfy themselves -- and you -- on this matter.
In fact, many lenders have been known to use this "forgiveness of debt" issue as a way of dissuading their borrowers from pursuing the short sale approach.
After you are satisfied that you understand the concept and are prepared to move forward, you should contact your lender. Go up the corporate ladder as high as you can and talk with the manager of the short sale department. Typically, the lender has a "loss remediation" department that handles these matters.
If you have authorized your attorney or your real estate agent to act on your behalf, the lender will need a letter of authorization from you. The Privacy Laws enacted after 9-11 prohibit lenders from discussing personal and financial information with a stranger without such written authorization. This letter will include your name, property address and loan number.
You (or your agent) should then prepare a comprehensive letter explaining why you are requesting the short sale. Emphasize -- but not as a "sob story" -- your hardship. It would also help if you include a market analysis which will show what houses in your area are currently selling for. And finally, spell out your request in detail: what price are you asking the lender to approve, what percent commission will the real estate agent be allowed to accept, and what closing costs will be associated with the settlement. Keep in mind that in many jurisdictions, there is a recordation and transfer tax which is typically split between buyer and seller.
Your proposal should be as specific as possible. You don't want to learn at settlement that you still have to come up with a lot of cash, because your lender did not authorize certain out-of-pocket expenses.
You should also request from your lender the amount of your outstanding balance. The lender has a legal obligation to provide this to you on request, and the burden is on the lender to provide an accurate accounting. Review this carefully to make sure that there are no charges which have been erroneously added. If you have missed some payments, you will be assessed late fees. When you present your proposal to the lender, try to get these charges deleted from the amount of the outstanding mortgage balance.
Your proposal should also include your financial situation. Keep in mind that many loans in the past few years were what are called "no-doc" -- in other words, the lender made the decision to fund your loan based on the value of the property and not on your financial status. In your case, since you lost your job, include proof with your letter.
The more documentation you can provide the lender, the faster the decision will be. However, currently lenders are swamped with these requests, since you are not the only one facing a possible foreclosure.
Thus, the earlier you can start the process, the better chance you have of getting it approved.
But the lender's approval to proceed with a short sale does not end the process. When you or your real estate agent find a prospective purchaser, the contract must state that it is contingent on lender's approval. You have to send the contract to the lender, and it would help if you would include an accounting of all expenses which you will have to pay at settlement, and a final number that the lender will receive when settlement takes place.
In fact, if you can have a HUD-1 settlement statement prepared, this would be helpful and would expedite the process. Your lender will then review the documentation, and may reject certain expenses. For example, if the contract provides that you will give your buyer XX dollars for "closing costs" -- or that you will pay some items which are traditionally the buyer's obligation (such as title search and survey) -- the lender may not allow such payments.
You want to go into the settlement knowing exactly all of the terms and conditions on which your lender will accept the short sale, including whether or not you will have to come up with money at the settlement table.
You are in financial trouble. If you have already missed some payments, your lender may already have reported this information to the credit reporting companies. You should try to convince the lender not to report any more delinquencies, but unfortunately, that's in your lender's sole discretion.
The short sale process works, but is complicated, time-consuming and uncertain. If you can start now -- before you are actually in default -- you will be ahead of the game.
Published: September 17, 2007
How To Do Short Sales
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
Short Sales in Real Estate - How to Handle Real Estate Short Sales
How To Do Short Sales
From
Elizabeth Weintraub,
Your Guide to Home Buying / Selling.
FREE Newsletter. Sign Up Now!
There are many ways to lose a home but signing away ownership in a manner that destroys credit, embarrasses the family and strips an owner of dignity is one of the hardest. For owners who can no longer afford to keep mortgage payments current, there are alternatives to bankruptcy or foreclosureshort sale in real estate, it means the lender is accepting less than the total amount due. Not all lenders will accept short sales or discounted payoffs, especially if it would make more financial sense to foreclose. If you are considering buying a short sale, there could be drawbacks. For your protection, I suggest that all borrowers proceedings. One of those options is called a "short sale." When lenders agree to do a
- Obtain legal advice from a competent real estate lawyer
- Call an accountant to discuss short sale tax ramifications
As a real estate agent, I am not licensed as a lawyer nor a CPA and cannot advise on those consequences. Be aware the I.R.S. will consider debt forgiveness as income, and there is no guarantee that a lender who accepts a short sale will not legally pursue a borrower for the difference between the amount owed and the amount paid. In some states, this amount is known as a deficiency. A lawyer can determine whether your loan qualifies for a deficiency judgment or claim.
Although all lenders have varying requirements and may demand that a borrower submit a wide array of documentation, the following steps will give you a pretty good idea of what to expect.
- Call the Lender
You may need to make a half dozen phone calls before you find the person responsible for handling short sales. You do not want to talk to the "real estate short sale" or "work out" department, you want the supervisor's name, the name of the individual capable of making a decision. - Submit Letter of Authorization
Lenders typically do not want to disclose any of your personal information without written authorization to do so. If you are working with a real estate agent, closing agent, title company or lawyer, you will receive better cooperation if you write a letter to the lender giving the lender permission to talk with those specific interested parties about your loan. The letter should include the following:
- Property Address
- Loan Reference Number
- Your Name
- The Date
- Your Agent's Name & Contact Information
- Preliminary Net Sheet
This is an estimated closing statement that shows the sales price you expect to receive and all the costs of sale, unpaid loan balances, outstanding payments due and late fees, including real estate commissions, if any. Your closing agent or lawyer should be able to prepare this for you if you do not know how to calculate any of these fees. If the bottom line shows cash to the seller, you will probably not need a short sale. - Hardship Letter
The sadder, the better. This statement of facts describes how you got into this financial bind and makes a plea to the lender to accept less than full payment. Lenders are not inhumane and can understand if you lost your job, were hospitalized or a truck ran over your entire family, but lenders are not particularly empathetic to situations involving dishonesty or criminal behavior. - Proof of Income and Assets
It is best to be truthful and honest about your financial situation and disclose assets. Lenders will want to know if you have savings accounts, money market accounts, stocks or bonds, negotiable instruments, cash or other real estate or anything of tangible value. Lender are not in the charity business and often require assurance that the debtor cannot pay back any of the debt that it is forgiving. - Copies of Bank Statements
If your bank statements reflect unaccountable deposits, large cash withdrawals or an unusual number of checks, it's probably a good idea to explain each of those line items to the lender. In addition, the lender might want you to account for each and every deposit so it can determine whether deposits will continue. - Comparative Market Analysis
Sometimes markets decline and property values fall. If this is part of the reason that you cannot sell your home for enough to pay off the lender, this fact should be substantiated for the lender through a comparative market analysis (CMA). Your real estate agent can prepare a CMA for you, which will show prices of similar homes
- Active on the market
- Pending sales
- Solds from the past six months.
- Purchase Agreement & Listing Agreement
When you reach an agreement to sell with a prospective purchaser, the lender will want a copy of the offer, along with a copy of your listing agreement. Be prepared for the lender to renegotiate commissions and to refuse to allow payment of certain items such as home protection plans or termite inspections.
Now if everything goes well, the lender will approve your short sale. As part of the negotiation, you might ask that the lender not report adverse credit to the credit reporting agencies, but realize that the lender is under no obligation to accommodate this request.
Read more about Before you Buy a Short Sale.
Click Here For Page Two About Short Sales
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Fed cut could buoy housing markets
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Fed cut could buoy housing markets
Half-way home: the big drop in Fed fund rate may offer a little help to a besieged housing market.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- The Federal Reserve's aggressive half-point cut Tuesday could provide support for a slumping housing market.
A quarter-point drop had already been priced into the market for Treasury bills and other instruments tied to mortgage rates, according to Richard DeKaser, chief economist for National City Corp. The deeper cut means mortgage rates may have a little more room to fall, giving support to prices.
The Fed Funds rate affects a range of consumer loans, including home equity and mortgages. Lower mortgage rates would add to the number of home buyers able to afford to make purchases, increasing demand for properties and buoying home prices. Buyers generally care less about the actual purchase price than they do about the size of their payments. If rates drop, so will monthly debt obligations. (Latest home prices)
Interest rates for conforming loans - those of no more than $417,000 - are already reasonably low, averaging 6.31 percent for a 30-year fixed rate loan.
But an important class of loans that might benefit from the big cut: the high-ticket home mortgages known as non-conforming or jumbo loans. These loans have no guaranteed secondary market because they exceed the $417,000 cap and Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae will not buy them.
With investors wary about any loan perceived as carrying the least bit of risk, jumbo rates have risen in recent months. They carry rates about a full point higher than conforming loans. Jumbos are especially important in high-priced housing markets such as New York, California, Washington D.C. and Boston.
Jumbo rates may come down if the cut makes consumers more confident, according to Mark Zandi, chief economist for Moody's Economy.com.
However, the real problem in the housing market is not interest rates, according to Keith Gumbinger, vice president for HSH Associates, a mortgage industry publisher. It is that there is not enough money available for making loans.
"The liquidity problem hasn't changed," Gumbinger said. "The primary issue is trust between buyers and holders of debt." Investors holding worthless or heavily discounted paper are not eager to buy more.
As a result, Gumbinger said problems in the housing market problems are too entrenched for a Fed rate drop to have an immediate impact.
Trust can take time to rebuild. Something that might speed the rebuilding process is better-than-expected earnings from the major Wall Street banks. Tuesday, Lehman Brothers' reported higher-than-forecasted profit, which allayed fears about the wallop that the mortgage crisis may inflict on Wall Street. Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and Bear Stearns are due to report earnings later this week.
Home prices in many parts of the country remain out of reach for average Americans, leading to slow sales and lengthening inventories of houses on the market. Also adding to listings is a flood of new foreclosures hitting the market.
That inventory is weighing heavily on housing markets, according to Zandi, and much of it will have to sell through before prices start to rise again.
It didn't help market confidence that venerated ex-Fed head Alan Greenspan came out and opined on the possibility of double-digit housing price declines, according to Dean Baker, an economist and co-director of the Center for Economic and Policy.
"That has to be very worrisome for anyone lending into these markets," said Baker
http://money.cnn.com/2007/09/18/real_estate/low_impact_rate_drop/index.htm?postversion=2007091815
Housing inventory glut gets fatter
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Housing inventory glut gets fatter
More homes are on the market with more discounts for buyers.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- The number of homes for sale around the nation jumped over the past year, according to figures from ZipRealty, a California-based real estate broker.
Zip monitors 18 metro-area markets from all four regions of the country. For the 12 months ended July 31, only Boston and San Diego showed drops. Boston's inventory fell 5.8 percent and San Diego's dropped 2.1 percent. The average for the 18 cities was a 19 percent increase in homes on the market, a total of 810,566.
In contrast, Seattle inventory has exploded, up 56 percent to 32,647 in the past 12 months. Other big increases were recorded in Miami (34 percent to 77,055), Orlando (34 percent to 34,900), Las Vegas (33 percent to 28,905), Baltimore (31 percent to 9,601) and Chicago (26 percent to 82,622).
In Los Angeles, inventory has soared since Zip started tracking it two years ago. The number of homes on the market has risen from about 30,000 to more than 106,000, but the population of the area it covers, which is nearly 13 million people, should be taken into consideration.
Tampa has one-fifth the population of Los Angeles but almost half the inventory at about 57,000. Per capita, that's about two-and-a-half times as many homes for sale.
The high inventory numbers may even be an undercount. In slow times, more sellers remove their properties from the market for several months, perhaps spruce it up a bit, and re-list, often at a lower price. In the meantime, the home doesn't count toward the inventory totals.
Much of the inventory in many young Sun Belt cities is in new housing. Developers overbuilt during the boom and, when the slump hit, they were left with large numbers of empty houses built on spec, and many were left vacant by cancellations. In some places, whole streets or subdivisions were unsold, their interiors were not even completed.
Builders, like Toll Brothers, facing hard times.
The wait for tenants may be a long one. It's much harder to get a loan these days for all but the best borrowers.
Borrowers, for the most part, now must put more money down, document their income and assets, have few dings against their credit worthiness and show that they can afford the payments.
Those tightened lending restrictions eliminate potential buyers from the market, reducing demand even as more supply hits the listings due to big jumps in foreclosures and builders finishing up projects initiated before the slump took hold.
With stocks foundering lately and economists pushing back their expectations for a housing recovery, short-term prospects for any reduction of inventory is poor.
Even the National Association of Realtors (NAR), which is not noted for its pessimism, isn't predicting any improvement in home sales for many months.
In a press release Wednesday, NAR's senior economist, Lawrence Yun, said, "Mortgage disruptions will hold back sales over the short term, but long-term fundamentals are favorable. A modest upturn is projected for existing-home sales toward the end of the year with broader improvement to include the new-home market by the middle of 2008."
Before that happens, motivated sellers may have to slash prices to move properties. Already, in Sacramento, 48 percent of sellers have discounted from their original listing price. Some 47 percent of Orange County, California, sellers have dropped their price and more than 45 percent of sellers in both Boston and Phoenix have done the same.
http://money.cnn.com/2007/08/10/real_estate/home_glut_worsens/index.htm?postversion=2007081018
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