Warning ! Is your Mortgage payments about to increase beyond what you can afford?

If you obtained a loan modification five or more years ago it may soon go back up to your pre-modification payment amount. Back in 2008 and 2009 when loan modification first started to gain traction as a viable alternative to short selling your property or simple letting your home go into foreclosure. Banks granted some short term and some long term loan modifications in order to allow homeowners to get back on their feet before making full payments . So what does this mean? It means not all mod’s are equal Some were for as little as one year others for as long as five years others are for the life of the loan. If you obtained a loan mod and are not 100% sure, I strongly suggest that you check your modification agreement ASAP.

Homeowners were happy when they initially obtained a loan mod thinking that by the time their payment went back up the economy would be back to normal. Well the unfortunate thing is that the economy still has not fully recovered, and not all home prices have gone back to being higher than the amount owed on the home.

Don’t worry, there are several solution, the cheapest is try to get a new loan modification, call the Bank and see what they say. You could refinance your mortgage, there are some loan programs that will  allow you to refinance your home even if you owe more than your home is worth. If all else fails, you can always sell your home or short sell if you owe more than the home is worth and the mortgage payments are still too high for you to afford.

Please do not hesitate to contact me if you are currently facing this problem or an increased mortgage payment is just around the corner. I have close to 20 years experience in Finance and Real Estate related fields, my knowledge may be able to assist you.

 

 

 

 

Karl R Schulz

Lic. Real Estate Broker BK 3238831

1003Karl@Comcast.net

561-379-7881

http://FridayRe.com



 

Should I buy a new home or a resale home??

Buying a new home can be a very exciting process, starting from viewing the model homes to picking a lot and features that meet your taste and budget. Best of all just like buying a new car that comes with a new car smell your new home is going to come with a new home smell! You can watch the neighborhood grown and see as new homes get built and new trees get planted. You can wonder what the people are like that just moved into the other model that you almost picked.

It can also be stressful, delays in building, wrong features, sloppy work and more. Sometimes picking the top of the line new home features may bring little return when going to resell the home down the road. This can be avoided with opting to buy a pre owned house. The pre owned house comes with the same drawbacks as a pre-owned car. The wear and tear that applies to a used car can be the same for a house. Empty homes can be a lot like cars that just stay parked, they do not get any better not being used.

 

Many buyers do not realize that builders do pay Real Estate agents a commission  at no additional charge to the buyer. Builder often conduct broker only open houses with parties to show off new models to for Real Estate Agents to get excited and bring them customer. So just like you would have an Real Estate agent help you find a re-sale home the meets your needs, your agent can help you finds a negotiate the sale of a newly construction home.     

 

If you or anyone you know is looking to buy a new or pre-owned home in Palm Beach County, please have them call me, Karl R Schulz.

561-379-7881

1003karl@comcast.net

http://FridayRe.com

 

 

If you are looking for a New Single Family home with 1/2 acres lots 5 Bedroom plus Loft, Club Room, Computer Retreat, 71/2 baths, 3-Car Garage 5,457 a/c sq. ft., 6,703 sq. ft. starting at $676,900.00 than call me.. Broker commission paid by builder! 





What to do if the IRS can’t find my tax transcript when a mortgage lender request it via a 4506T?

An IRS form 4506T is form that a borrower signs when applying for a home loan. This form allows a Lender (Bank) to contact the IRS and request a copy of the tax payers tax return. Under Federal Law it has been mandatory for several  years that a Lender (Bank) verify a borrowers tax return with the IRS by requesting a copy of the return. This is done with a completed and signed IRS form 4506. The reason being is that it is relatively easy to draft a false tax return showing higher income to qualify for a larger loan. In the hay day of the mortgage boom, Banks had borrowers sign the form, but to my knowledge only did spot check. Now a loan cannot close without that process being completed.

 

A big problem is that lender often do not request the transcript till towards the end of the loan underwriting process. If  the IRS flags a tax return for whatever reason, it could be a long time till the IRS contact the tax payer to get clarification of an issue. Till that happens the IRS will not verify a tax return, this can hold up a loan closing for months.

 

There is a special division, separate from the main IRS, acting as advocates for tax payers. In  recent transaction of mine, the tax payers return was flagged due to a question regarding a dependent deduction. Even after many weeks numerous phone calls and visits to a local IRS office nothing helped.

 

The Mortgage Banker Robert Valene of Choice Mortgage Bank Boca Raton suggested that they contact Senator Marco Rubio and Senator Bill Nelson. The borrowers contact both senators. My thanks go out to the office of Maroc Rubio, they contacted the IRS and within 24 hours the special division of the IRS had provided an Taxpayer Advocate. We are still waiting for Bill Nelson office to call us. All said it took over 60 day to resolve the issue. My advised is to stay on top of the IRS if they cannot find a transcript, can maybe contact your senator within a couple of weeks of not being appointed a Tax Payer Advocate.       

 

 

 

Karl R Schulz

 

561-Three-Seven-Nine-7881

 

www.FridayRe.com

 

 

 

Can I sell my home after it was in my Bankruptcy

Question: I included my home (mortgages/ loans) in my Chapter 7 Personal Bankruptcy, but it’s been over a year and the Bank still has not took the property back, can I still sell the home?

Answer: Yes 

It is very common, for homeowners that are overwhelmed with debt, to file chapter 7 Bankruptcy protection and if they owe way more than the home is worth, to include the mortgages (loans) in the Bankruptcy and walk away.

The problem with just walking away is that because the Banks foreclosure department are so overwhelmed, that it can take months of not years for the bank to take the property back. The second problem can be, is that once a person has filed for Bankruptcy, they normally want to re-establish their credit. If you spend 2 years getting your credit back do you really want the bank to foreclose on your old home, this could dramatically negatively impact your credit.

One solution is the list and sell your home. Please consult your Bankruptcy lawyer first. If you would like Market information for your property in Palm Beach County, please feel free to contact me Karl R Schulz.  

Karl R Schulz


www.FridayRe.com

Selling your home? 3 simple things not to do.

Selling your home? 3 simple things, NOT TO DO.

      1)    Do not hang out when your home is being shown. 

2)    Do not leave your home messy. De-personalize your home.

3)    Do not over price your home.

A prime example of all 3 of these issues happened to me on a recent listing. I was not able to successfully sell a listed condo. Yes, that does happen (even to the best of agents) that one agent cannot successfully sell a home and the next agent that list the home sells it.

This home is a Ocean Condo that had been on and off the market several times over the last two years. The sellers hung out when I or other agents showed the condo. In addition at the seller’s request, I had to accompany all showings even when the buyers had a Real Estate agent present. I firmly believe in leaving sellers alone with their agent, the reason is simple. People do not always tell you the truth, maybe they don’t want to hurt your feeling or they don’t want to get into a fight with the sellers or their agent over features or price or politics.

The listed condo is relatively small a 2/2 under 1000 sq feet, anything more than a coffee table and chair will make a small condo look even smaller. The seller blew a fuse when I told them the condo will sell once they move into their new home and the condo was empty. No matter how many times I suggested to sellers to de-personalize the condo, they didn’t want to listen. The condo had way to many personal pictures and furniture.

Price, the condo finally sold (with a different agent) for $168,000 two years after it was listed for close to $60,000.00 more. For the most part, buyers do not like to bid on Real Estate that is overpriced, the thinking is that “they will never come down to what I think it’s worth.

Had the sellers took the advise that I gave them and first de-personalized the unit, took off when there was a showing and priced it at a price the market was telling them to price it at. I personally feel they would have got closer to $185,000.

 



561-379-7881

 

www.FridayRe.com

 

In the need of services of a Real Estate Broker, please feel free to call me Karl R Schulz

 

Home inspection reports are they just for buyers??

Things to think about before your put your home up for sale:

 
Should I get a home inspection report before I list my home for sale?

No if:

You owe more money than your home is worth.

You are no longer able to make your mortgage payments and need to list your home as a short sale.

Your home is in such bad shape, seeing a report will not help you.

Your home is in such a hot area, there will be a bidding war.

Yes if your home is more than 10 years old and the market price is over $350,000 - $500,000, it could be a really good idea. If you have ever watched the TV Show Sell This House, the show finds homes that have been on the market without selling for an extended amount of time. They place multiple hidden cameras all over the house. Than the show host an open house and lets the prospective buyers view the home alone. The video is later viewed with the homeowners, the responses vary. Some homeowners are fully aware of the mistakes while other are in denial. The shows main focus has to do with cosmetic issues not items that a home inspection report will uncover. The reason I brought this up is once you have lived in a home for more than a few years, you will view you home different than a prospective buyer. One man’s castle is another’s dump.  

Investing several hundred dollars in a written report could benefit you in the long run and leave you with more money in your pocket. First by pointing out possible issues that you may or may not be aware of, allowing you to cure the issue before listing. Second a clean inspection report may nudge a fence sitting buyer off the fence.

This all being said, if a home inspection report uncovers flaws that you are not aware of and are not necessarily noticeable to a buyer you have to disclose. A clean report can also help with potential future litigation.

If you have any questions regarding home inspection reports or want to know how much your Palm Beach County Residential Real Estate is worth please do not hesitate to reach out to the offices of Friday Realty LLC.

FridayRe.com

FaceBook.com/FridayRealtyRE.

 

561-379---7881

 





 

FHA Loans / Loxahatchee Cancer Cluster

Question: "Will I still be able to get an FHA loan in the area of Loxahatchee Florida that have been labeled as a potential Cancer Cluster?"

Answer: "You should be able to., there could be some difficulty and additional documentation required." Banks are closing FHA loans in the area of Loxahatchee that are in the "Cluster".

A recent purchase transaction in that area gave the buyers a last minute scare. The buyers used an FHA purchase loan. The day before closing, the Quality Control department of the Bank, (the people at the bank that review the loan packages that are about to close., one more last time, the same people that can kill a deal in the last hours or minutes) noticed that the appraisers had made remarks, regarding the "Cancer Cluster Scare" Since the underwriter is located out of state and this was all news to them, it took some arm twisting and additional documentation such as a hand written hold harmless letter from the buyer to satisfy the QC department.

But the loan did close and the buyers are happy that they will be able to celebrate this years Christmas in their new home.

http://www.FridayRe.com

 

561-379-7881

 

In the market to buy or sell in Palm Beach County? Call Friday Realty.