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Whether a homeowners ’s decision to allow his or her lender to foreclose is based on a presently existing financial hardship, anticipated financial strain over time, or to strategically divest themselves of a bad investment, the debate rages as to whether such a decision on the part of the borrower is morally wrong or [...] Some federal programs established to help people purchase homes and cars or to modify existing mortgage loans are set to end or wind down early next year. Some may be extended, but many may feel the impact of the end of these programs, such as higher interest rates for mortgages and car loans. See the [...] Former President Ronald Reagan used to say that “government is not the solution, government is the problem.” The new FHA condo loan rules are an example of that concept. The Federal Housing Administration’s new lending rules for buyers of condominiums will reduce the number of loans made to condo buyers, which will cause [...] A law passed by Congress and signed by President Obama, the Helping Families Save Their Homes Act, provides protections for tenants whose landlords lose the rental property through foreclosure. The law’s protections are effective immediately and expire at the end of year 2012. With the new law, tenants now have the right to remain in their homes [...] Las Vegas Sun: “Federal law enforcement officials in Nevada are launching a major offensive against mortgage fraud, with the FBI preparing hundreds of complex cases for prosecution against operators who have preyed on Las Vegas’ still-staggering boom-and-bust real estate market. Top sources at the FBI field office said a special mortgage fraud squad [...] Yahoo News: “Even Academy Award winners are suffering from financial woes this recession. Actor Nicolas Cage lost two homes in New Orleans worth a total of $6.8 million in a foreclosure auction . . . .” Arizona Republic: “A Phoenix ordinance banning charity dining halls in residential neighborhoods withstood a challenge by a north-central Phoenix church. . . . a hearing officer, ruled Monday that feeding the homeless at a place of worship can be banned by city ordinance. The decision affects all Phoenix churches with underlying residential zoning. [...] All Business: The Arizona Capitol Times is reporting that the some Arizona banks filed a petition with the Arizona Supreme Court asking the court to throw out the law passed by the Arizona legislature and signed by the Governor that repealed a change in Arizona’s foreclosure law that would have become effective on [...] Arizona Republic: “New federal loan-guarantee rules imposed to fend off future government losses from plummeting condominium prices have rendered condos utterly worthless, Valley real-estate experts said. The Federal Housing Administration rules, which took effect Oct. 1, prohibit any new FHA-backed loans on condo units in projects that include more than 25 percent commercial [...] Arizona Republic: “Meritage Homes has defaulted on its Desert Ridge property, where the home builder planned to put up a 1,200-home gated community called Calasera. The property, at the southeastern corner of 56th Street and Deer Valley Road, is 288 acres. It was the last sizable Desert Ridge parcel to be in private [...] Wall St. Journal: “For nearly 20 years, John Dotson planned to spend eternity at Block 29L, Lot 58, Site 1DD at Parklawn Memorial Park in Rockville, Md. Heaven will have to wait. Plagued by a series of misfortunes at home, from job loss to multiple illnesses, Mr. Dotson has decided to put the [...] Just what the U.S. needs. More help from the government. A proposed new law contains 397 new regulations. One of them would affect almost everyone who buys or sells a home. If Waxman-Markey becomes law, homes for sale that qualify as ‘federally related transactions’ — which is almost all of them — [...] Arizona Republic: “Short-sellers, financially distressed homeowners attempting to burrow out from under an unmanageable loan by selling the home to a third party, face greater challenges today because of a perception that short sales are time-consuming and likely to fail, local housing experts said.” Question: I’m attending real estate school. We were instructed that in Arizona a deed does not have to be recorded to be valid. It can be signed, notarized and maintained by the deed holder. Arizona statutes appear to indicate a deed must be recorded within 60 days. Which is correct? Answer: An unrecorded deed [...] As an estate planning attorney, I have seen too many situations where after the parents’ deaths, the children go to war over the family’s vacation home. If the parents do not create a good post-death master plan for the property, it’s almost guaranteed that the kids will disagree over: (i) whether to keep [...] A Mesa, Arizona, homeowner’s association called Sunland Village demanded that 87 year old Virginia Campbell must move out or evict her 39 year old grandson who takes care of her. The HOA’s rules say only “immediate family” can live in a home, but grandson is not immediate family. Virginia has lived in the [...] Arizona Republic: The federal $8,000 tax credit for buying a new home expires November 30, 2009. Because it can take four or more to close on a home after signing the contract, the practical deadline is much sooner than November 30th. The IRS says over 38,000 Arizona home buyers have taken advantage of [...] Arizona Republic: “Owners of financially troubled Scottsdale-area hotels might choose to do what upside-down homeowners have been doing for the past few years: mailing their keys to lenders and walking away.” Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard met in Washington, D.C., yesterday with Attorney Generals from twelve other states, U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the mortgage fraud problem plaguing the U.S. “Arizona is at the epicenter of the nation’s mortgage [...] They say the what goes up must come down, but apparently that does not apply to Arizona real property taxes. Much of the increase is due to the state equalization tax, which is back after a three-year hiatus. The tax, which helps fund education in Arizona, adds $58 this year for a [...] Arizona Republic: The “home-price decline in Arizona in the past quarter was almost 6.5 percent. Prices were down more than 21 percent in the past year.” Jon Leibowitz, chairman of the FTC said today that the FTC may ban upfront payments made by home owners to companies hired to help the home owners resolve problems with their home loans. Government officials say scammers seeking to take advantage of borrowers in danger of default often charge upfront fees of [...] New home construction in Scottsdale continues to decline. Scottsdale issued building permits for 161 single-family homes during its fiscal year that ended June 30, 2009. The city issued 431 permits during its June 30, 2008, fiscal year end. This decline of 63 percent follows a 43 percent drop from the previous year. The Arizona Republic has a story today called “Valley’s commercial real-estate crisis to worsen.” An unprecedented number of securitized commercial mortgages will reach maturity in the fourth quarter . . . forcing borrowers to pay off the loans or turn over the properties they bought or built on credit. Arizona Republic: Missouri-based Herzog Contracting Corp. sued Metro for $19 million arising from the plaintiff’s involvement in constructing three miles of the light rail on Central Avenue in Phoenix, Arizona. The contractor seeks damages caused by the failure of Metro to disclose the location of utilities along the rail line. The case [...] Question: I formed a limited liability company to help protect me and my wife from things that might go wrong with the property. How do I get the real estate into the limited liability company? Answer: To get real estate into a limited liability company, the current owner(s) must sign a deed [...] Howard Miller, the head of the California Bar Association, complained about lawyers hired to help to homeowners facing foreclosure, but who did nothing except take the homeowner’s money. Crooked lawyers have long besmirched the profession’s image, but the scale of their involvement in the loan modification scandals plaguing California homeowners has taken an unprecedented toll, the [...] A report from Arizona State University says Phoenix valley home resales and foreclosures decreased considerably in August compared with July. Single-family homes sales were 5,995 in August compared to 7,300 in July. Foreclosures went from 4,200 to 3,085. In August 2008 the Phoenix valley had 4,210 home resales. Six months ago Bethany Group, the owner of 13 Phoenix valley apartment groups, went out of business and walked away form its Phoenix apartments because of financial problems. The court-appointed receiver in running the apartments said it has made significant improvements to apartment complex. |
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