2010—The Year of the Realtor!

I can see more clearly now than ever, that next year will be the year of the Realtor in Real Estate here in Arizona. I have had the unique opportunity to speak to a number of the Stakeholders in our real estate transactions and in each case it was made clear that, more than ever, the Realtor is a central focus for everyone’s plans going forward.

The Asset Manager’s I have spoken with have said that during this moratorium, they had the chance to go through in detail their Realtor network, and what they found was that a number of the early Realtors that got into their REO group, were not the right ones and they were not only re-evaluating but literally getting new Realtors who have the ability to best service their housing portfolio’s.

7 of the 10 Banks we met with were initiating short sale programs, with the emphasis being on communication and quicker turn times on answers for Realtors when making offers on their properties.

The banks we have spoken with have clearly learned that this housing challenge CANNOT be solved through just an REO outlet, we need a strong short sale program, with quality realtors involved and engaged in the program, with communication being the focal point. The Banks that don’t make this a priority will see many of their listings, NOT EVEN SHOWN, by top Realtors in the market as they can’t get answers for their buyers, and wait weeks to even hear a “NO” from a Bank.

Lastly, the Government programs, which offer assistance to consumers for purchasing or fixing up homes, need the Realtors to educate their clients on the programs, in order for the 30 plus million dollars, allocated throughout Maricopa County to be spent, the Realtor will need to be an educator and a promoter of the government programs, or else our State will not have the funding dollars renewed.

No matter which way you look at it, the Realtor is getting back to the front of the Transaction and will be critical to the success of this housing market and for markets across the US.

Steve de Laveaga
SVP Sales and Marketing
Fidelity National Title
steve.delaveaga@fnf.com

Great web site for Home Buyers Tax Credit Information!

Here is a good site to direct your clients to for general information on the new Tax Credits for both 1st time home buyers and move up repeat buyers.

www.federalhousingtaxcredit.com

Jason Servais
Bank of America

Win The Paperless Fight Contest!

Fidelity National Title of Maricopa County is proud to announce their new Green Initiative. Historically speaking, the Title Industry has been amongst some of the worst offenders in the over use of paper and printing. Fidelity will be launching the program Win The Paperless Fight November 11, 2009.

The launch of this program comes in conjunction with Fidelity joining Phoenix’s Green Chamber of Commerce.

With the launch of Win The Paperless Fight, Fidelity will be hosting a contest for Real Estate Professionals with the prize being a one year individual membership to the Phoenix Green Chamber of Commerce.

Here are the contest details:

· Enter by sending an email fidelity@winthepaperlessfight.com with details of how you, as a real estate professional, have cut paper usage in your business.
· The most unique and submission with the best environmental outcome will win.
· The judging panel will include but may not be limited to: Mara DeFilippis, founder of the Phoenix Green Chamber; Jean Clements, Marketing Director for Fidelity National Title; and Carrie Morgan, KWPR PR and Web 2.0 Strategist. All judges will be members of the AGCC.
· Contest submissions close at 5pm on December 31, 2009, and the winner will be notified January 31st, with membership for the Green Chamber.
· The winner must meet the Chamber’s basic prerequisites and comply with all normal chamber membership application processes. Submission of an entry for this contest grants Fidelity to use the information in any manner deemed appropriate, including media visibility. The winner may be requested to talk with local media as a part of public relations efforts.

If you have any questions please send an email to fidelity@winthepaperlessfight.com

SUBMIT YOUR ENTRY TODAY!

Report: Phoenix home prices to drop another 23%

Yesterday, we unveiled our Short Sale Lead Generation program for our Fidelity Elite Short Sale Agent Group, and we handed out 18,000 leads throughout the state of Arizona and it is clear, that the Agents and Lenders, that get in front of this problem now, before the next wave of REO comes out, will get a better return for both consumers and banks. Below is some very sobering forecasts on Arizona and what is still to come in terms of the housing decline in values…..Steve de Laveaga, Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing with Fidelity National Title

Report: Phoenix home prices to drop another 23%
Reported by: Tim Vetscher

PHOENIX -- Valley homeowners, brace yourselves for more bad news.
A new report indicates home prices will continue to shrink nationwide, with an especially sharp decline here in Phoenix.

"That's real scary," said Tempe resident and homeowner Linda Weinberg. "I hope that's not conceivable. It's pretty scary."

According to Fiserv, a financial information and analysis firm, home prices in Phoenix are expected to lose another 23.4 percent by June of next year.

"Such is the state of the market," said Chandler resident and homeowner Mark Siebel. "Just like anything it can go up or it can go down. It's unfortunate if it would go down another 23 percent."
One bright spot in the report is that Fiserv expects the losses to be less than 5 percent the following year compared to other markets where the declines will continue to be steep into 2011.
Fiserv estimates home values have already collapsed by 54 percent here in the Valley.

"(The report) means I consider going into foreclosure or short sale," said Gilbert resident and homeowner Bruce English. "Or being stuck with a home for 15 years before reaching break even to sell it."

Short Sale... A Dignified Solution to a Homeowner's Financial Crisis

Short sale: mentioned a lot, but not fully understood by many. A short sale is a traditional sale between a Seller, the owner of record, and a Buyer, with a third party contingency requiring approval from the Seller’s lender to sell the property “short” of the debt due to decreasing values and documented hardship by the seller.

A short sale happens when a homeowner NEEDS to sell their home, but cannot because the value has dropped below what they owe. The “needs-to-sell” determines who qualifies for a short sale. In the eyes of the lender, this “need” is a circumstance or series of events that has made it impossible for the homeowner to continue to pay the monthly mortgage payments. Also called hardships, these circumstances could be a reduction in income as a result of a pay cut or loss of commissionable income, a job loss, a divorce, a job transfer or new hire out of the area forcing a move, the death of a family member, prolonged illness, any serious family medical condition causing a forced move, increase in medical bills, sustained medical leave of absence from the work force or disability. In many situations there is a combination of factors that when compounded, the probability of a homeowner losing his/her home increases.

A short sale may be the solution after the homeowner has tried the other options available to ease his/her financial crunch: Seeking advice, from the lender, for a possible refinance, loan modification or forbearance are possible ways to stay in the home while reducing monthly financial obligation. Visit www.makinghomeaffordable.gov to research the viability of these programs for each situation. If those avenues don’t produce successful results, a short sale may be the best alternative.

To read the rest of the article Click Here

By: Gayle Henderson, CDPE Advanced, RE/MAX Excalibur Realty, www.azavoidforeclosurenow.com

Sell a house in 43 days – in this market?

Direct Listing URL's are the newest way, according to Go Daddy, that Realtors and Home Owners are advertising their properties and, the properties are selling!

See how Go Daddy tracked this and how other Realtors are using this tool:
Direct Listing URL Article

To order a Direct Listing URL from Fidelity National Title, CLICK HERE, they are only $19 per listing for 1 year!

Short Sales - Real Estate Agents Need to Know the Facts

As many people know, Fidelity Title of Maricopa County in Tempe hosts an invitation-only monthly Short Sale Mastermind Group, loaded with the Valley's top talent when it comes to handling distressed properties.

This month's presenter was Desiree Montgomery from Realty Executives. Her overall message was that real estate agents can't wing it when it comes to short sales, it is critical to have established processes for consistent success.

Here is a rundown on her key points that you might be interested in:
· When it comes to negotiating a short sale with the lender, don't stop at the loss mitigation level. Find out who the decision makers are, and bring them into the mix. Their 10k public documents can be helpful.
· When you have a first and a second mortgage on a short sale home, work both of them at the same time.
· If both liens are not serviced by the same bank, the first does NOT have the right to dictate what the second can negotiate to mitigate their loss, according to the Office of Controller of Administration for National Banking.
· Have your seller keep making payments, even if they are partials. Lenders want to mitigate their loss, but are hesitant to offer an unsecured note to sellers that don't show effort and responsibility for their situation.
· Anything related to taxes, credit reports and legal issues are not an agents area. Don't advise them - pass them through to experts in these areas. Anything else puts the agent at risk of losing their license. There are many issues that will impact the seller long after the closing, and selling that house is the ONLY thing the agent is responsible for.
· 52% of sellers do not do a short sale after discussing their options with legal counsel experienced in real estate law. It is not always the best solution.
· To protect yourself, surround yourself with professionals with a deep understanding of banking and real estate law. Referral your clients to them repeatedly in writing.

Thanks for the GREAT advice, Desiree!