March 19th, 2010, 12:01 am by Marilyn Kalfus, real estate reporter
Wells Fargo this week becomes the 2nd bank, after Bank of America, to offer 2nd mortgage relief. 
The Associated Press reports:
The program is part of the Obama administration’s mortgage modification program that is aimed at reducing monthly payments to help customers stay in their homes.
The modification program offers lenders who made “piggyback” loans — second mortgages that allowed consumers to make a small or no down payment during the housing boom — incentives to lower payments or eliminate the loans entirely. During the market’s peak, even customers with spotty credit history were extended second mortgages.
By signing up for the program, all customers of Wells Fargo or Wachovia who have already modified their first mortgage through the modification program, known as the Home Affordable Modification Program or HAMP, can also modify their second mortgage.
From HousingWire:
In January, Bank of America became the first to sign a servicer agreement for 2MP participation.
Until then, the HAMP program for second liens — announced in April 2009 and added to the HAMP Web site with administrative process apparently in place — had yet to result in a single servicer contract, prompting some to wonder whether the program was on hold. The Treasury Department, which administers HAMP, told HousingWire in January 2MP was still on track despite reports to the contrary.
Since then, the risk that ’silent’ second liens pose to first lien bond holders in residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) has only grown louder. Investor fears culminated this month in a letter from House Financial Services Committee chairman Barney Frank (D-Mass.) urging the top four lenders to pursue “immediate steps to write down second mortgages.
.
Latest on loan modifications:
Posted in: Wells Fargo • loan mods • mortgage | 6 Comments »
March 18th, 2010, 2:00 pm by Marilyn Kalfus, real estate reporter
First, in recent foreclosure news:
Every week, homes throughout Orange County go to foreclosure auctions. The owners can be millions of dollars in debt, 
or owe just a few thousand.
Often these homes revert to the lenders, who eventually put them back on the market. Sometimes the homes are bought by investors and resold.
Foreclosures affect more than the homeowners involved. They can impact entire neighborhoods. At the very least, they can affect nearby home sales.
All of these homes and addresses have been listed in the public notices, as required by law.
For auction info, click on city:
Read more:
How foreclosure auctions work
Trustee, trustor … what’s the difference? Click here for foreclosure terms and definitions
Top tips for buying investment properties
Note: There are foreclosures in other Orange County cities — yes, we’re light on north county this week — but so far we haven’t had enough available writers to regularly compile foreclosure information from them. We hope to add more cities in the future.
For a map with a partial list of other real estate listings around Orange County, click here
.
FORECLOSURE HEADLINES…
Posted in: Auctions • Defaults & Foreclosures | Post a Comment »
March 18th, 2010, 6:25 am by Jon Lansner
Freddie Mac’s weekly peek at mortgage rates …
- 30-year fixed-rate averaged 4.96 percent vs. last week’s 4.95 percent vs. 4.98 percent last year at this time.
- 15-year fixed this week averaged 4.33 percent vs. last week’s 4.32 percent vs. 4.61 percent last year at this time.
- 5-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage averaged 4.09 percent vs. last week’s 4.05 percent vs. 4.98 percent last year at this time.
- 1-year Treasury-indexed averaged 4.12 percent vs. last week’s 4.22 percent vs. 4.91 percent last year at this time.
Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac chief economist: “Mortgage rates for fixed-rate mortgages were virtually unchanged this week as the effects of the prior storms emerged in recent housing data … New construction slowed by 5.9 percent in February to 575,000 homes. Both the South and Northeast regions had all the declines due to the snow storms. In addition, homebuilder confidence unexpectedly dipped in March according to the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index. With house prices starting to stabilize and even rise, homeowners on aggregate are slowly building back equity in their homes based on figures from the Federal Reserve Board. After losing almost $7.9 trillion in home equity since the end of 2006, homeowners regained almost $1.1 trillion over the past three quarters ending in 2009.”
Posted in: Uncategorized • Freddie Mac • lending | 1 Comment »
March 17th, 2010, 5:00 am by Marilyn Kalfus, real estate reporter
Investors in February bought more than double the number of properties at foreclosure auctions in Orange County than they did in the same month last year, a foreclosure Web site reports.
They bought 287 properties in February 2010 compared to 140 the same month a year ago, but that dipped from the 305 properties purchased in January 2010.
Sean O’Toole,, the founder and CEO of ForeclosureRadar.com, says statewide:
“The courthouse steps remain highly competitive with discounts to market value dropping from 17.5% in January to 15.2% in February.
“Despite fewer foreclosure sales overall in February, as well as smaller discounts due to competitive bidding, 3rd party investors purchased more foreclosures, at 23.2%, than at any other time since we began tracking trustee sales in September 2006.”
.
Latest on foreclosures:
Posted in: Defaults & Foreclosures • Distressed | 3 Comments »
March 16th, 2010, 2:00 pm by Marilyn Kalfus, real estate reporter
First American CoreLogic analyzed 80 million loans provided through its Mortgage Fraud Consortium and identified trends. The report will come out at the end of this month, but in the meantime, they’ve released some key findings:
- Nationwide, 1 in every 200 funded loans is fraudulent, according to Tim Grace, senior vice president, fraud analytics, at First American CoreLogic.
- The fraud rate has been decreasing since 2007 and is now about 25% lower than when it peaked in the 3rd quarter of 2007. Since then, lenders have been more aggressive in curtailing mortgage fraud. “In 2010, 2011 and 2012 you won’t see nearly the amount of (fraud) reports that you’re seeing today,” Grace said.
- The states where the highest number of fraudulent loans were found: California, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina.
- The highest risk ZIP codes in the U.S. for fraud: Jamaica, N.Y.; Orlando, Fla; Miami, Fla.; Atlanta, Ga.; and Detroit, Mich. These cities have an average fraud rate 3 to 4 times the national level. Orange County ZIPs to come in a future post!
- Most home equity fraud has been in the Los Angeles and San Francisco Bay areas. Multi-lien fraud was one of the fastest growing schemes.
- 25% of foreclosures show fraud in the initial application.
- 30 to 70% of early payment defaults show fraud in the application.
.
Latest on fraud:
Posted in: Fraud • mortgage | 5 Comments »
March 16th, 2010, 1:06 pm by Jon Lansner
According to DataQuick’s monthly report for Orange County housing for February …
- The number of defaults — first step to foreclosure — was 1,775 – that’s +13.8% vs. the previous month and -35.3% vs. a year ago.
- Homeowners losing their homes through foreclosure numbered 600 – that’s -9.4% vs. the previous month and -22.1% vs. a year ago.
Other Orange County lending stats for last month, including the average down payment on homes financed, share of adjustable loans used to buy; and the estimated monthly mortgage payments for financed buyers — by month and year-to-date averages …
| Slice |
Last month |
Vs. prev. mo. |
Vs. year ago |
YTD average |
Vs. year ago |
| Defaults |
1,775 |
13.8% |
-35.3% |
1,668 |
-32.5% |
| Foreclosures |
600 |
-9.4% |
-22.1% |
631 |
-21.4% |
| Avg. down payment |
19.3% |
-0.2% |
7.2% |
19.4% |
10.3% |
| Adjustable loan share |
6.0% |
-1.2% |
106.9% |
6.6% |
127.6% |
| Monthly payment index |
$2,195 |
-0.9% |
1.3% |
$2,205 |
0.1% |
More DataQuick coverage …
Posted in: Bad debt • dataquick • Trends | 4 Comments »
March 16th, 2010, 5:00 am by Marilyn Kalfus, real estate reporter
The gap between mortgage delinquencies and foreclosure auction sales is growing in California, says Sean O’Toole, founder and CEO of ForeclosureRadar.com. 
That site’s latest report:
“After reaching the lowest level in a year last month, Notice of Defaults, the start of the foreclosure process, increased by 19.7% in February. The number of properties scheduled for foreclosure sale remained near record levels, yet foreclosure sales, either back to bank or sold to 3rd Parties, dropped by 11.9% total.
“The disconnect between delinquencies, and foreclosure sales continues to widen. While efforts to slow foreclosures are clearly working, it remains unclear that anything has yet addressed the core problem of excess household mortgage debt.
“After four consecutive months of decline, Notice of Default filings bounced up by 19.7% to 31,004 filings. Filings of Notices of Trustee Sale, which sets the date and time of the foreclosure auction, increased slightly as well, rising 3.6% to 28,195 filings.
“Foreclosure sales decreased 11.9% in February, with the portion going back to bank dropping by 14.3% and the portion to 3rd parties dropping by 2.7%. Despite our prediction that we may see a wave of cancellations as the administration pushed to make trial loan modification permanent, cancellations remained flat, likely indicating that the Home Affordable Modification Program conversion drive is failing.”
.
Latest on foreclosures:
Posted in: Defaults & Foreclosures • Distressed | 6 Comments »
March 13th, 2010, 6:00 am by J. GALLEGO
Randy Johnson, president of Independence Mortgage Co. in Newport Beach, author of “How to Save Thousands of Dollars on Your Home Mortgage” and a mortgage broker since 1983, answers questions…
Q. Is there any difference from paying an extra bit each month or one full payment a year or bi-weekly payment to pay off the debt faster or easier? The problem I have with my bank is to pay bi-weekly, they want a full month’s payment in advance to set it up. Then I heard just divide the monthly payment into 12 months & pay that extra principal each month and it comes out the same? Is that true? Thanks for clarifying it for me
A. First, I want to commend you for trying to eliminate your mortgage debt early. Shortening the period even just a few years may not seem like much of a benefit now, but I will guarantee you that as you get closer to the end you will appreciate it much more.
As to when to make payments, Pamela, do it at your convenience. I am not much of a fan of the bi-weekly programs because most lenders charge such a hefty set-up fee. Whether you add a little bit each month or do it sporadically when you have had a profitable month, it makes little difference. Many people make a lump sum payment when they get their annual bonus or when they get the tax refund.
The important thing is to set a goal as to when you want your loan paid off. I encourage you to keep a spreadsheet to keep track of your progress. There are many calculators on the Internet that can help you get started with the right payment to achieve your timetable. . Try the ones at the Mortgage Professor’s website.
I think that this issue is especially important to the many people who have refinanced into new 30-year loans. Maybe they were 7 years into the old loan. They may have lowered their monthly payment but added tens of thousands of dollars to their total interest bill. Instead, they should keep making the old payment and convert the interest rate savings into principal reduction. That knocks years off the payment period.
That’s it. If you want Johnson to answer a question, email it to Julie Gallego at jgallego(at)ocregister.com. Include your name or nickname and the city you live in — that information will be published with your question. Johnson will answer up to three questions each week, so keep checking back for a response.
Read more questions and answers by clicking on the headlines below…
Posted in: Mortgage Answers | 6 Comments »
March 12th, 2010, 3:55 pm by Jon Lansner
Our periodic recap of who got nabbed breaking mortgages laws!
Posted in: Uncategorized • lending • nabbed | 1 Comment »
March 11th, 2010, 7:16 pm by Marilyn Kalfus, real estate reporter
Courtesy: reader Randall Marquis
Federal and local law enforcement agencies raided the United Law Group’s offices in Irvine today, as part of a loan modification fraud investigation, The Register’s Irvine reporter Sean Emery writes.
Officials shut the office at 2525 Campus Drive as they carried out the search. No arrests were reported.
Emery writes:
“Investigators in their affidavit for a search warrant allege that the United Law Group is a company ‘permeated by fraud.’ Interviews with clients and former employees indicated that the company collects upfront fees of between $1,500 and $12,000 as a retainer before work begins, although investigators say they were unaware of any cases where the company completed a successful loan modification, beyond the ones cited in their advertising campaign, according to the affidavit.”
You can read the story HERE.
Posted in: Fraud • Investigations • loan mods • mortgage | 3 Comments »
March 11th, 2010, 12:30 pm by Marilyn Kalfus, real estate reporter
First, in recent foreclosure news:
Every week, homes throughout Orange County go to foreclosure auctions. The owners can be millions of dollars in debt, or owe just a few thousand.
Often these homes revert to the lenders, who eventually put them back on the market. Sometimes the homes are bought by investors and resold.
Foreclosures affect more than the homeowners involved. They can impact entire neighborhoods. At the very least, they can affect nearby home sales.
All of these homes and addresses have been listed in the public notices, as required by law.
For auction info, click on city:
Read more:
How foreclosure auctions work
Trustee, trustor … what’s the difference? Click here for foreclosure terms and definitions
Top tips for buying investment properties
Note: There are foreclosures in other Orange County cities — yes, we’re light on north county this week — but so far we haven’t had enough available writers to regularly compile foreclosure information from them. We hope to add more cities in the future.
For a map with a partial list of other real estate listings around Orange County, click here
.
FORECLOSURE HEADLINES…
Posted in: Auctions • Defaults & Foreclosures | 1 Comment »
March 9th, 2010, 2:00 pm by Marilyn Kalfus, real estate reporter
Real estate appraisers today announced their opposition to part of an Obama administration plan to pay homeowners in trouble to move if they agree to a short sale, saying the program will lead to mortgage fraud.
.
Under the plan, which takes effect April 5, delinquent borrowers who couldn’t get a loan modification can get $1,500 to move if they sell for less than the balance of the mortgage. Banks and second mortgage lenders would get $1,000 to process each of these short sales.
The plan will allow a lender to use real estate brokers — not appraisers – to come up with a home’s value, a figure that won’t be given to the owner. If an offer comes in equal to or higher than that amount, the lender will have to accept.
The appraisers object to the “broker price opinions” to be used to determine the value of properties to establish a minimum offer, a procedure also used in government loan modification programs.
The letter a coalition of appraisers sent to Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner states:
“We strongly believe continuing to allow ‘broker price opinions’ (BPOs) in the property valuation component will not adequately protect the public interest (consumer, borrowers, etc.) or the interests of the various parties to the loan (lenders, loan servicers, etc.) and is likely to exacerbate mortgage fraud.
“According to an independent fraud investigation firm, bank-owned fraud attributed directly to schemes involving shorts sales and REO inventories has increased by nearly 50 percent over the past year and 100 percent over the past two years.The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network and other major law enforcement officials have also issued advisories and notices highlighting fraud scenarios involving loan modification, which oftentimes include short sales.
“Generally speaking, real estate agents and brokers are not independent or properly trained valuation specialists. They have an inherent bias towards quick results and action which produces a fee for themselves irrespective of whether the lender/services/investor/property owner/borrower gets a fair return on the short sale. We believe that such conflicts can and should be mitigated by implementing basic requirements reestablishing independence and competency in the valuation process.”
See the N.Y. Times story on the program HERE.
See the full letter HERE.
Latest on foreclosures:
Posted in: Defaults & Foreclosures • short sales • lending | 41 Comments »
March 8th, 2010, 3:09 pm by Jeff Collins
More than 1 million U.S. households have lost their homes to foreclosure since the end of 2008, new figures from Irvine-based Realty Trac show.
About a fifth of those foreclosures occurred in California alone, according to figures from MDA DataQuick, another real estate data firm.
In response to a Register inquiry, Realty Trac recently released its latest figures for the total number of REO’s, or homes repossessed by banks during the foreclosure process.
Here are the cumulative REO numbers, which hadn’t been released by Realty Trac before:
- There were 918,376 REO’s nationwide in 2009.
- That’s up 6.6% from 2008, when 861,664 U.S. homes were lost to foreclosure.
- In January, the latest month for which figures are available, there were 87,648 REO’s in the nation.
- That brings to 1,006,024 the total number of REO’s that have occurred in the United States since 2008.
REO’s actually are a subset of total homes lost to foreclosure since they don’t include homes sold to third parties at foreclosure sales. If nobody bids on a home, then the property reverts back to the lender.
DataQuick tracks the actual number of California homes that were lost through foreclosure, including those sold to third parties. Those figures show:
- 190,360 California homes were lost to foreclosure in 2009, or 20.7% of the U.S. REO total.
- That’s down 19.4% from 2008, when 236,231 California homes were lost to foreclosure.
- In 2008, California foreclosures amounted to 27.4% of the U.S. REO total.
- Orange County had nearly 9,200 foreclosures in 2009.
- That’s down 26% from 2008, when nearly 12,400 O.C. homes were lost to foreclosure.
Other news:
Posted in: Defaults & Foreclosures • REO • dataquick • Realty Trac | 6 Comments »
March 8th, 2010, 6:47 am by Mary Ann Milbourn
Homeowners who are in over their heads but have been unsuccessful at getting a loan modification may get some different help from Uncle Sam — $1,500 to move if they sell for less than they paid for the house, reports the New York Times.
Under the Obama Administration program, banks and second mortgage lenders would get $1,000 to process each of these so-called short sales. Homeowners would get $1,500 in “relocation assistance.”
Experts say it may be a better and faster way to get these properties moving than loan modifications, which lenders have been reluctant to do and which many homeowners can’t qualify for.
The banks will probably get more for the property than in a foreclosure and homeowners, who are about to lose their house anyway, at least get some money to move.
The $1,000 the second-mortgage holders would get isn’t much, but in a foreclosure they would probably get nothing.
Read the full New York Times story HERE.
Did you miss these recent stories on foreclosures:
Posted in: Defaults & Foreclosures • Distressed sales • loan mods • short sales • foreclosures • lending • short sales | 77 Comments »
