HOA's....a little interesting info.

Over one third of all homes in California are in some kind of common interest development ("CID"), and the number is growing. Almost all new developments are in CIDs. Often referred to as HOA (Homeowners Associations). Some CIDs aren't residential at all, such as some office buildings and industrial parks. There are 4 types, but if you want to know what type, don't look at the building, look at the paperwork. There is what's called an "own-your-own", which is the simplest and oldest, but you don't get a deed. These are tough to finance, if at all. Second is a Stock Cooperative where the association holed title to the entire property. These are rare also. Most common is a Condominium, where you own the airspace, but also get a deed, and are normally easy to finance. Last is a PUD (Planned Urban Development), which are normally, but not always, tract housing. When looking at a new home, you should ask what kind of CID it is, it can affect your financing, your control, the value, and your sanity.

Wachovia approval

I just got approved to fast-track anyone that has a home they want to sell that has a Wachovia loan (s) higher than the market value. If the home is in LA County, is your personal residence, has a balance higher than the value of the home plus closing costs, then I can fast-tract, within 45 days, a short sale. I can also negotiate up to $8,500 bonus to the seller upon close of escrow. No promises, the bonus is on a case-by-case scenario. The information needed from the seller is minimal, the contact I have at the bank is direct and one-stop, and they will negotiate a non-recourse deal where you don't have to pay back the loss, and not pay taxes on the loss. I think that a big investor bought a big pool of Wachovia loans when the bank went under and wants to cash out, this is the only reason I can think that would prod a bank to offer this to me. Interested, let me know. Not interested in selling, then you should have me help you get your loan modified. This is probably about the easiest bank to work with out there.

Report: Home Prices Likely to Hit Bottom in March

Report: Home Prices Likely to Hit Bottom in March Home prices in 45 of the largest housing markets are expected to fall another 4.2 percent before they hit bottom in March, according to First American CoreLogic’s LoanPerformance Home Price Index.By October 2010, prices are expected to be heading upward again by about 1 percent compared to 2009.The report warned that this progress could be jeopardized by an increasingly large “shadow inventory” of homes owned by banks but not yet on the market. The problem is particularly acute in Michigan and Ohio cities, the report said. It projected a 12.7 percent further decline in values in Detroit, an 11.4 percent decline in most of the rest of southeast Michigan, and a 6.3 percent fall in Cleveland.The report expects the strongest recoveries next year in California cities. These include:
San Francisco, up 5.7 percent
Los Angeles, 5 percent
San Diego, 4.7 percent
Sacramento, 4.6 percent
Source: Inman
In Pasadena, on a price-per-squarefoot basis, we hit bottom in mid 2010, in all areas except the Northwest quadrant. Source: iTech MLS.

Just got out of a legal seminar

Seminar called "Beating the foreclosure sale hammer". In a perfect world a lender can foreclose on you in 111 days: 90 days in the Notice of Default phase, and 21 days int he Notice of Sale phase. Under certain conditions, the lender may have to give you an additional 90 days to work something out, and certainly there are other ways to delay or stop a sale (short sale, loan mod, or something an attorney would tell you to do). One law goes into effect on Jan 1, 2010 requires a foreclosing lender says that a Notice of Sale must be recorded 20 days before a sale (not 14 as before). This just gives the homeowner a little more time. A big reason why there are so many foreclosures, and not many short sales or loan mods is because people just don't know that to do, they freeze up, and before you know it, 4 months have passed and the house is lost. Keep in mind, for a Notice of Sale to be valid, it needs to be processed 5 different ways, because you have due process rights afforded by the Constitution: 1. Notice must be physically posed on your house (they normally take a picture of the posting), 2. Regular mailings, 3. Certified mailings, 4. published 3 times in a row in a paper, and 5. the notice must be recorded.

Amazing FHA loan

This is amazing. You can get a purchase money FHA 5/1 ARM at 3.75% with 1 point up to $729,750. Fixed is at 5%.

Bungalow Heaven Bungalow

My new listing: http://www.bungalowheaven.info/. Check it out. I think it will sell fast. Very cute.

Loan Mod Law

If you have a loan on your primary residence, and you are still there, and the loan is in default, and you got the loan between January 1, 2003 and January 31, 2007 then a lender must notify you and steer you to a possible loan modification and this must be done 30 days before they file a Notice of Default. If you are in trouble, don't freeze up, there may be ways to save your home, delay the inevitable, or at least help to save your credit.

EPA's ban on R-22 (Freon) refrigerant starts Jan 1, 2010

As of January 2010, R-22 refrigerant, a HCFC (hydrochlorofluorocarbon), will no longer be manufactured. Homeowners may have various types of appliances that contain HCFC-22 (also called R-22) or its blends, including window units, dehumidifiers, central air conditioners, air-to-air heat pumps, ground-source heat pumps, and ductless air conditioners. This refrigerant has been the refrigerant of choice for residential heat pump and air conditioning systems for over four decades.

Consumers won't be required to stop using HCFC-22
Consumers won't be required to replace existing equipment.
Existing (pre-2010) equipment using R-22 can continue to be serviced with R-22.
After 2010, supplies of R-22 will be more limited (more expensive?, I think so).
After 2010, only stockpiled or reclaimed R-22 will be available unitil 2020.

The average life expectancy of an air conditioning unit or heat pump is around 15 years. What this means to homeowners, for example, is if you had installed a new R-22 air conditioning system in the year 2002, you will be able to get refrigerant for your system at least until the year 2020 when it will no longer be manufactured. Chances are, within that much time you will need a new system, so you shouldn't base a purchase on Freon alone.