By Dennis Norman, on April 9th, 2010 Dennis Norman
I thought I would end the week by giving everyone something to dwell on and contemplate over the weekend. Actually, I set out this morning to do a post about the National Association of REALTORS(R) (NAR) Housing Affordability Index for February which was recently published. As I was reviewing the data in the report I started giving “affordability” a lot of thought, went down a few rabbit trails, did a few hours of research and ended up with an analysis of home affordability.
The NAR Report:
Since this was the initial topic I thought I should Continue Reading →
By Dennis Norman, on April 1st, 2010 Dennis Norman
The Treasury Department Plans to Spend $50 Billion on HAMP…Is it Going to “help keep “3 to 4 million Americans in their homes” as Promised Though?
Last week Herbert M. Allison, Assistant Secretary for Financial Stability for the U.S. Department of the Treasury, testified before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform as to “Is the Home Affordable Modification Program Preserving Homeownership?”.
Early in his testimony Allison states that, at the time the HAMP program was announced, President Obama said the program would “enable as many as 3 to 4 million homeowners to modify Continue Reading →
By Robert Fishel, on March 31st, 2010 NEW FHA Policies Go Into Effect April 5th
Applications for FHA-guaranteed mortgages exceeded an annual rate of 3 million in October; nearly triple the level in 2007. In 2006, when subprime and other Wall Street programs were at full speed, the annual rate for applications was less than 600,000. As a result the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) Commissioner David Stevens recently announced a set of policy changes to strengthen the FHA’s capital reserves. The changes announced are the latest in a series of changes Stevens has enacted in order to better position the FHA to manage its risk while continuing Continue Reading →
By Dennis Norman, on March 26th, 2010 Dennis Norman
Back in early December I did a post about a new program that was announced in November, the Home Affordable Foreclosures Alternative (HAFA) Program which is scheduled to go into effect April 5, 2010. There was recently supplemental documentation published as well as FAQ’s about the program and I have to admit, it seems to me the government is getting it right with this program.
THE HAFA PROGRAM:
The Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives Program provides financial incentives to loan servicers as well as borrowers who do a short-sale or a deed-in-lieu to avoid foreclosure on Continue Reading →
By Dennis Norman, on March 23rd, 2010 Dennis Norman
UPDATE: March 26, 2010: Pres Obama signed HR 35909 into law on March 23, 2010. Yesterday the House and Senate approved the final version of HR 4872 and it now goes to the President for his signature (this is the bill that “taxes” real estate to pay for health care as I explained below) – end of update
Unless you live in a cave you have probably heard by now that yesterday Congress passed HR 3590, the “Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act”, or to put it more short and to the point, Pres. Obama’s Continue Reading →
By Robert Fishel, on March 3rd, 2010
Low foreclosures, stable home prices and affordability make eighth-ranked St. Louis a good bet for home buyers, according to a report released by Forbes.com last Friday. Forbes gathered data from the National Association of Home Builders and Wells Fargo’s Housing Opportunity Index (HOI). The index measures median home prices against median incomes. Additional data overlays included Moody’s one-year forecast for the Case-Shiller Home Price Index of home prices and RealtyTrac’s 2009 foreclosure report. Rankings from all of these data sources were considered in determining the overall score. The top ten best housing metro areas: Pittsburgh, PA Louisville – Jefferson Continue Reading →
By Dennis Norman, on February 15th, 2010 Dennis Norman
Last week a friend emailed me a link to a video titled “The Indymac Slap in Our Face” that was created by Think Big Work Small. I watched the video which gave a recap of the failure of Indymac bank back resulting in it’s seizure by the FDIC in July, 2008, and the ultimate sale by the FDIC of Indymac Bank to One West Bank in March, 2009.
According to the video, One West Bank received a cushy, “sweetheart deal” and implied it was related to the fact that the owners of One West Bank include Continue Reading →
By Dennis Norman, on February 4th, 2010 Dennis Norman
Bank of America announced that it is the first mortgage servicer to sign an agreement formally committing to participation in the pending second-lien component of the federal government’s Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP).
Bank of America has systems in place to begin implementing the Second Lien Modification Program (2MP) with the release of final program policies and guidelines by federal regulatory agencies, which is expected soon. 2MP will require modifications that reduce the monthly payments on qualifying home equity loans and lines of credit under certain conditions, including completion of a HAMP modification on the first Continue Reading →
By Robert Fishel, on February 3rd, 2010
FHA loans gained in popularity for borrowers as applications for FHA-guaranteed mortgages exceeded an annual rate of 3 million in October; nearly triple the level in 2007. In 2006, when subprime and other Wall Street programs were at full speed, the annual rate for applications was less than 600,000.
As a result the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) Commissioner David Stevens recently announced a set of policy changes to strengthen the FHA’s capital reserves. The changes announced are the latest in a series of changes Stevens has enacted in order to better position the FHA to manage its risk Continue Reading →
By Dennis Norman, on January 28th, 2010 Dennis Norman
This week the Treasury Department issed a report which included stats on the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) which is part of the Obama administrations’ Making Home Affordable Program and “is a loan modification program designed to reduce delinquent and at-risk borrowers’ monthly mortgage payments”. The HAMP program got underway around March of this year and is set to expire December 31, 2012. According to the government website HAMP is intended to help keep “3 to 4 million Americans in their homes by preventing avoidable foreclosures.”
Permanent modifications triple in December from November:
According to the Continue Reading →
By Dennis Norman, on December 22nd, 2009 According to NAR 51 percent of recent homebuyers are first-time buyers and 39 percent of recent home sales have relied on an FHA loan
Dennis Norman
The National Association of REALTORS just released a report showing that 51 percent of the homes sold recently have been to first-time home buyers and that 39 percent of all recent buyers have turned to an FHA loan for financing for their home purchase.
I think this clearly illustrates that the first-time home buyer tax credit, coupled with record low interest rates and drastically reduced home prices, is giving buyers, at least Continue Reading →
By Dennis Norman, on December 17th, 2009 Dennis Norman
Last week I did a post about the Obama Administrations’ Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) and showed how it really has not been effective in helping keep families in their homes and avoid foreclosure as was the intention by the administration. When my kids tell me they don’t like the way I want them to do something I usually challenge them with “if you don’t like my way, tell me a better way to do it“. So with this in mind I went looking for an answer to this question.
In my search I ran accross a Continue Reading →
By Dennis Norman, on December 11th, 2009 Dennis Norman
This week the Treasury Department issed a report which included stats on the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) which is part of the Obama administrations’ Making Home Affordable Program and “is a loan modification program designed to reduce delinquent and at-risk borrowers’ monthly mortgage payments”. The HAMP program got underway around March of this year and is set to expire December 31, 2012. According to the government website HAMP is intended to help keep “3 to 4 million Americans in their homes by preventing avoidable foreclosures.”
So is the Loan Modification plan working?
To try to Continue Reading →
By Dennis Norman, on December 4th, 2009 Dennis Norman
Last week the Treasury Department announced the Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives Program (HAFA), the latest program under the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP), designed to offer alternatives to homeowners facing foreclosure.
THE HAFA PROGRAM:
The Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives Program provides financial incentives to loan servicers as well as borrowers who do a short-sale or a deed-in-lieu to avoid foreclosure on an eligible loan under HAMP. Both of these foreclosure alternatives help the lender out by avoiding the
Continue Reading →
By Dennis Norman, on November 19th, 2009 New Site Aimed at Helping More Hispanics Buy Homes
FannieMae announced the company launched a Spanish version of its HomePath.com website designed to help more potential homeowners who speak Spanish purchase Fannie Mae-owned properties.
The new website in Spanish mirrors the English version of HomePath.com featuring an interactive search tool of Fannie Mae-owned properties nationwide, details about HomePath® financing, a mortgage payment calculator, property alerts, as well as information on foreclosure prevention and the Making Home AffordableSM program.
Continue Reading →
By Dennis Norman, on October 20th, 2009 Dennis Norman
By: Dennis Norman
Yesterday the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) reported that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac’s trial mortgage loan modifications under the Obama Administrations Home Affordable Modification Plan (HAMP) were up more than 40 percent in September 2009 from the previous month. According to the report, mortgage loans that are 60-plus-days delinquent increased to 1,401,000 borrowers in July, up a whopping 147 percent from July, 2008 when there were 566,000 borrowers 60 plus days delinquent.
Here are highlights from the report (all the data, unless noted otherwise is from July 31, 2009):
Continue Reading →
By Dennis Norman, on October 9th, 2009 Dennis Norman
By: Dennis Norman
Earlier this week the Treasury Department released it’s eight “Tranche” report updating the status of the TARP (Troubled Asset Relief Program) which includes the Home Affordable Modification Programthat I have written about on several occasions. The report shows that progress is being made with regard to loan modifications with $27.07 billion, of the $50 billion available) committed to loan modifications through September 30, 2009 (see “HAMP” details on chart below). Continue Reading →
By Dennis Norman, on October 7th, 2009 To alleviate some suffering by homeowners, the Obama Administration introduced the “Making Homes Affordable” plan last March. Unfortunately, the plan has not yet had the intended effect.
Article by the Grand Law Firm
Economists debate whether or not the country is actually currently in a recession. Some say that there are positive signs that we have reached the bottom and the economy is turning around. Others, however, suggest that the country still has a long way to go and it may be years yet before we truly reach financial recovery. Regardless of who is right though, one thing is clear: Continue Reading →
By Dennis Norman, on October 5th, 2009 Dennis Norman
By: Dennis Norman
Results have just been released of a study conducted by Rosen Consulting Group as to the effectiveness of the 2009 first-time-homebuyer tax credit and the potential need for an extension of the credits.
The Rosen Consulting Group was retained by Fix Housing First, a coalition that was originally working to convince Congress for a housing stimulus package that they feel would have a more significant then what was ultimately passed, and since has been working to get the tax credit extended beyond its current expiration date of November 30, 2009.
The study noted Continue Reading →
By Dennis Norman, on September 30th, 2009 Dennis Norman
By: Dennis Norman
In an effort to help delinquent borrowers obtain Loan Modifications under the Affordable Refinance Program of the Making Home Affordable Program Freddie Mac has hired a company to come to borrowers homes and help them put together the documents and complete other actions needed to begin their three-month trial payment periods under the Affordable Refinance Program.
The company hired by Freddie Mac, Titanium Solutions, will target late-paying borrowers with Freddie-Mac owned mortgages who have not responded to letters or phone calls from their lenders or those who have responded but need to provide additional Continue Reading →
By Dennis Norman, on September 16th, 2009 Dennis Norman
According to a study conducted by First American CoreLogicentitled “How the U.S. Consumer Has Benefited from Mortgage Finance Programs in 2009”, projections are there will be $2.3 billion in mortgages refinanced as a result of the Fed’s “Making Home Affordable” plan. According to the study, the median individual monthly savings was $120.
“ The quantitative easing policies of the Federal Reserve and refinance activity made possible by the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) have allowed more than 2 million consumers to reduce their monthly mortgage debt obligations and put more money in their pockets,” said Mark Fleming Continue Reading →
By Dennis Norman, on September 15th, 2009 Dennis Norman
Before the sub-prime mortgage implosion Karen Weaver warned of the coming crisis. Karen Weaver, the Global Head of Securitization Research for Deutsche Bank, said last month that she expected home prices to continue to drop through the 1st quarter of 2011. She also predicted that nearly half of the homeowners with mortgages would end up being underwater on their mortgages.
Yesterday Ms. Weaver said that in spite of the recent positive news on the housing market that she had not changed her position and is still predicting home prices to fall another 10 percent before finally reaching Continue Reading →
By Dennis Norman, on September 14th, 2009 Dennis Norman
Included in the “Making Home Affordable” program from the Obama administration is the “Home Affordable Modification Plan” (HAMP) designed to help 3 to 4 million home owners by modifying their existing loans to help them be more affordable. Last week, Michael S. Barr, the Assistant Secretary for Financial Institutions, testified before a congressional sub-committee on the status of these programs. In his testimony Mr. Barr said that weakness in the US housing market developed over many years and that during this period “inadequate regulation of lending and securitization practices, including lax underwriting standards, helped cause widespread over-leveraging Continue Reading →
By Dennis Norman, on September 1st, 2009 Lawrence Yun, Chief Economist, NAR
By: Dennis Norman
Today the National Association of REALTORS(R) issued their Pending Home Sales Index Report for July showing pending sales in the U.S. were up for the sixth consecutive month, the best streak since NAR began the pending home sale index in 2001.
Here in the Midwest pending home sales for July were not as strong showing a 2.0 percent drop from June, however still 8.1% above a year ago. The only other region that saw a decline in month to month pending home sales in July was the Northeast with a Continue Reading →
By Dennis Norman, on August 31st, 2009 Dennis Norman
A surge in litigation tied to real estate appraisals, loan modifications and foreclosures contributed to a 54 percent increase in mortgage-related lawsuits, according to the second quarter Mortgage Litigation Report from MortgageDaily.com.
During the second quarter, 125 cases were tracked, jumping from an already active 81 first quarter cases. The second quarter of 2008 had just 42 cases.
Continue Reading →
By Dennis Norman, on August 4th, 2009 Lawrence Yun, Chief Economist, NAR
By: Dennis Norman
Today the National Association of REALTORS(R) issued their Pending Home Sales Index Report for June showing pending sales in the U.S. were up for the fifth consecutive month, the first time in six-years for such a streak.
Here in the Midwest pending home sales were only up 0.8% from May, but were up a whopping 11.6% from this time a year ago, the largest year over year increase of the four regions in the U.S.
The pending home sales index for the Midwest rose 0.8% to 89.9 from a level Continue Reading →
By Dennis Norman, on July 23rd, 2009 Dennis Norman
By: Dennis Norman
The National Association of REALTORS(R) released its existing home sales report for June showing an increase in sales for the 3rd month in a row as well as higher prices in June.
Existing home sales, including single-family, town-homes, condominiums and co-ops increased 3.6% in June to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.89 million units. This rate is almost identical to last years sales at the same time which is a first in a quite a while. May’s rate was down 3.6% from a year ago and June is down just 0.2% from a Continue Reading →
By Dennis Norman, on July 16th, 2009 By: Dennis Norman
Recently the The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency issued a Consumer Advisory. The Advisory contains consumer tips for avoiding mortgage modification scams and foreclosure rescue scams.
The advisory states; “Scams that promise to “rescue” you from foreclosure are popping up at an alarming rate nationwide, and you need to protect yourself and your home. If you’re falling behind on your mortgage, others may know it too – including con artists and scam artists. They know that people in this situations are vulnerable and often desperate.”
The OCC suggests that before you do business with someone Continue Reading →
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