Taking a break at the Savannah Book Festival

We took the week end off from work and enjoyed the weekend with John Warley and Pat Conroy at the 5th Annual Savannah Book Festival.  John and Pat are delightful individuals and both are a pleasure to be around.  The two have been friends for 40+ since their college days on the Citadel baseball team.  Both were guests of the President's Quarters Inn and entertained us and the other guest for the entire weekend.

The Savannah Book Festival is held annually the 1st weekend after Valentine's Day weekend.  This  date has become one the highlights of the year in Savannah.

Georgia Foreclosures Filings Continue to Rise

Statewide filings are up 23% from October 2011 and Georgia is ranked 5^th Highest Foreclosure Rate.

Foreclosure filings-default notices, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions-were reported on 12,327 Georgia properties in November, a 23% increase from October, but still 15% below the level reported for November 2010.  Georgia had the 5^th highest foreclosure rate in the nation, reporting one in every 330 housing units with a foreclosure filing in November—1.8 times the national average.

In Bartow County, one in every 143 housing units had a foreclosure filing in November—which is 4 times the national average and 2.3 times the state average.  Bartow County had the highest foreclosure rate of all Georgia counties for the month on November 2011.

Georgia accounted for 5 % of the 224,394 properties with filings reported nationwide in November.  Total U.S. activity decreased by 3% from October and was down over 14% from the level reported in November 2010.  One in every 579 U.S. housing units received a foreclosure filing during the month.  “Despite a seasonal slowdown similar to what we’ve seen in each the past four years, November’s numbers suggest a new set of incoming foreclosure waves, many of which may roll into the market as REOs or short sales sometime early next year,” said James Saccacio, co-founded or RealtyTrac.  “Overall foreclosure activity is down 14% from a year ago, the smallest annual decrease over the past 12 months, and some bellwether states such as California, Arizona and Massachusetts actually posted year-over-year increases in foreclosure activity in November.

“Scheduled foreclosure auctions reached a nine-month high in November, corresponding to a recent surge in default notices, that began back in August,” Saccacio continued.  “Many of the new defaults that’s started the foreclosure process over the past few months are now being scheduled for public foreclosure auction.”

As a Certified Distressed Property Expert- Advanced, I can help you find a dignified solution.  As you can see from the aforementioned statistics, many Georgians face similar situations. You are not alone in this and there are solutions.  I can help you.  Please feel free to contact me for more information.

Rob Sales
Prudential Southeast Coastal Properties
Associate Broker, CDPE Advance,
DPP, REO Specialist, CIAS
912-655-7674

www.smartshortsales.net

*Statistics and Information from RealtyTrac, December 30, 2011

Take action now to turn it around in 2012

Recent economic upheaval has taken a hefty toll. Looking forward to 2012, it’s impossible to know what’s next and the kind of an impact that an upturn or a downturn at the national level stands to have on your family’s finances.

Regardless of what happens in Washington or on Wall Street, two things are very clear: you are not alone and now is the time to prepare for a new normal.

With a national epidemic of unemployment or underemployment, and 25 percent of the homeowners in the country owing more on their home than they could net for it in today’s market, homeownership for many has become a financial liability. Not being able to make payments on a home that you can’t afford to sell feels like an awful trap, but the fact is, there are solutions—and foreclosing on your mortgage is not one of them.

Loan modification is an option for many and banks are increasingly willing to negotiate short sales. In many cases, they’re offering sizable financial incentives to help financially strapped homeowners to get a fresh start on their lives.

As real estate professional who has achieved the Certified Distressed Property Expert (CDPE) designation, it is my mission to give homeowners the gift of a fresh start. 

Contact me TODAY and let’s get started.

Foreclosure Fears Foster True Grief

Reports of foreclosures by the millions have been in the news so much over the past few years that to some, it might seem like the new normal.  

 

But as a real estate professional who is in the trenches with financially stressed homeowners every day, it never for a second feels to me like business-as-usual.

The prospect of losing ones home is right up there among the major sources of grief, and often, it goes hand in hand with other tragic setbacks such as the loss of a job, a divorce, death of a loved one, mounting medical bills or skyrocketing mortgage payments.

Unfortunately, the first stage of grief is denial, and that’s even more the case when the threat of foreclosure is looming. No one wants to talk about or admit financial troubles—even when millions of others have founds themselves in a similar spot.  It’s completely understandable, but for homeowners who are behind on mortgage payments, decisive action is often the most critical step toward ensuring the best possible solution.

As a real estate professional who has sought out the Certified Distressed Property Expert (CDPE) designation, I help homeowners to deal with every aspect of the grief and uncertainty that accompanies a mortgage which is no longer manageable. In the process, I help them to get on a path of financial solvency. Visit my website for more information, www.smartshortsales.net

If you or someone you care about would like to change the course of a life that’s facing foreclosure, I get it and I can help.

It's Time to Take Another Look at Short Sales

As recently as a few months ago, if you would have told a real estate agent who specialized in short sales that they’d be raving about a lender’s stellar service and rapid approval times—not to mention significant cash incentives for financially strapped homeowners for pursuing a short sale—you’d have gotten some strange looks.

That’s all changed.  And it’s changed faster and to a greater extent than most real estate professionals ever could have imagined.

With a glut of bank-owned properties dragging down the recovery of the real estate market, as well as the national economy, major lenders are more eager than ever before to avoid foreclosure. So they’ve sharpened their focus on short sales. Big time.

The biggest lenders in the country have staffed up to ensure rapid processing of short sale applications. They’ve ponied up with cash incentives at closing for homeowners who pursue a short sale. And they’re proactively reaching out to CDPE agents and putting them in touch with delinquent borrowers.

This is big news and the media has not really caught onto it yet. What’s important for you to know is that whatever you’ve read or heard in the past about long lag times and frustrations with short sales is probably no longer the case.

As a member of the CDPEAdvanced community, I’m tapped into major lenders and on top of major developments affecting short sales and bank-owned properties.  I invite you to visit my www.smartshortsales.net to learn more and feel free to contact me any time at (912) 655-7674 or robsmartshortsales@gmail.com if you or anyone you know is struggling with an unmanageable mortgage.

Renewed Trust for Tough Times

Does it feel like trust is one of the major casualties of the economic meltdown of 2008 – followed by the “Great Recession,” the “Jobless Recovery” and now the threat of a “Double Dip Recession?”

Weren’t we assured that home values were destined to go up and up and up?

There have been lots of promises that help is on the way—and lots of warnings of scams and schemes that have only served to confuse the matter. So where’s a homeowner who’s underwater or overleveraged to turn?

Here’s the bottom line: the choices that homeowners make when they feel they are at the end of their rope will have ramifications for years to come on their ability to qualify for credit, their job prospects, their security clearance and their overall finances. When a family’s financial trajectory is rapidly heading in a negative direction, there’s no substitute for the helping hand of a knowledgeable expert who has the integrity, the experience and the training to reverse the course—someone who is tapped into regulatory initiatives and can separate fact from fiction.

It is my mission to serve as a credible source of information and perspective to homeowners who have found themselves in a tough situation and need help sorting through their options. That’s why I sought out the Certified Distressed Property (CDPE) designation—the most renowned and recognized credential in the distressed property field, and it’s why I continue to stay on top of regulatory and industry developments that impact options available to homeowners who are struggling with their current financial situations.

My message to homeowners who do not know where to turn: there is hope. Foreclosure is not inevitable and neither the government nor your bank wants to see that happen. No one expected to find themselves on the brink of foreclosure, but I have worked with countless clients who have managed to turn their financial trajectory around and get on a path of financial recovery. 

It CAN be done! And it would be my privilege to help.

Handling the Stress of an Unaffordable Mortgage Payment

Whenever I research the latest foreclosure and distressed property statistics, the sheer number of Americans facing the stress of losing their homes amazes me.  It is my goal to help as many homeowners I can either stay in their homes or relieve the burden of their mortgages. Knowing that there are so many that need my help is a driving force for me to continue doing what I do.

In fact, I just released another report that I’ve made available on my website today at www.smartshortsales.net . It explains the CDPE designation and lists 10 options that homeowners can take advantage of to relieve the stress that comes with owing their mortgage lenders more money than they can afford to pay.

The report also draws a contrast between short sales and foreclosures. Unfortunately, there’s a growing trend of “strategic defaulters” who think it’s smart to let their home go into foreclosure. As any one who follows this blog knows, there is nothing strategic about foreclosure; it’s one of the most long-lasting, negative financial challenges you can go through.

I’m excited about acting as a resource for more homeowners who have questions about what they should do. As always, if you know homeowners who may need my help, have them contact me immediately! Together, we can put them back on the path to financial stability.