Short Sales with HOA

WARNING - if you have a Homeowners Association (HOA) keep paying.

The Short Sale Lenders do not cover delinquent HOA. HOA is considered an extra ~ a "community fee". They will cover the transfer fees, the renewal fees or anything else as long as you are current. If you are not current, some lenders will not pay those fees either. It will rest on the shoulders of the homeowner or the buyer, and frankly most buyers will move on to the next house and the end result will be a foreclosure.

So here is a suggestion. Pay your HOA and not your Property Taxes. In April send 8 months worth of HOA to your lender and keep the rest, then in November pay the remaining 4 months if it didn't sell. I'm sure you are thinking I am crazy by telling you this information but it is a matter of wanting your short sale to be successful or not. If it comes down to HOA or property taxes - you know what my choice is.

Why is this you may ask, well Property Taxes are associated with your home and are mandatory payments by Government. HOA is considered an extra ~ a "community fee", and is not governed by the Government. So when your short sale gets submitted to the lender and if you have a good agent that knows what they are doing, they will get the short sale accepted and closed.

If you have any questions regarding Short Sales give us a call or send me an email. I'll be happy to help. 916-663-6623 or Lisa@ArdaRealty.com.

Is It Safe Yet???

You see many upbeat articles and news casts these days, but is it really true? Is it really safe? Should we all believe it?

This is strictly my opinion...
Hope Now reports a 20% increase in initial foreclosure filings during March. But there was a steep drop in bank repossessions. ~ By Les Christie, CNNMoney.com staff writer

• Government put a moratorium on all foreclosures until March of 2009. Of course there is a drop in bank repossessions and an increase in foreclosure filings.
• Placer County preforeclosure activity for April 2009 - 470 Filings (MLS Tax Records)
• Sacramento County preforeclosure activity for April 2009 - 1000 Filings (MLS Tax Records)

Home Prices on The Rise

• Vacant homes in Sacramento 24,000
• Shadow Inventory in the Sacramento area - the amount of homes that the lenders are holding approx 16,300 +/-.
• So shortage of inventory, low prices, great interest rates = raising prices...what happens when all this "inventory" gets put on the market? What happens when more people loose their jobs and can't afford their homes?

Those are just 2 discrepancies that I see. I'm sure there are more.