Anaheim Hills 4 Bedroom Single Story Home

8400 E. FOOTHILL ST, ANAHEIM HILLS 92808

SOLD! Spacious Single Story 4 Bedroom 2 Bath Home on Huge Lot. New Designer Interior Paint. Upgraded Kitchen with New Granite Counters, New Lighting and New Stainless Appliances.  Call 714.694.0880 for more information.

CitiMortgage offering $12,000 average to borrowers to Complete a Short Sale

Citigroup offering incentives to short sale home

Citigroup's mortgage servicing branch CitiMortgage is offering an average of $12,000 to borrowers who complete a short sale this year. By comparison, the mortgage servicer was offering $1,500 payments on average in 2009, and $3,000-$5,000 payments in 2010.

"Incentives will be offered to customers experiencing financial hardship who need funds to proceed with the short sale," a Citi spokesman said. "The amount, which is agreed upon up front, varies according to the borrower's individual circumstances and loan characteristics. It is disbursed to the homeowner when the sale is completed."

CitiMortgage has also reduced its short sale process from 120 days in 2009 to 83 days. The company claims this is due, in part, to the firm reaching out to borrowers in trouble, instead of just waiting for the distressed homeowner to contact the bank for short sale information.

Fannie Mae to Fine Lenders for Foreclosure Delays

Mortgage servicers who have delayed the foreclosure process for delinquent borrowers may now get fined. Fannie Mae announced it will retroactively fine mortgage servicers for failing to process severely aged loans in foreclosure, HousingWire reports.  Fannie Mae would not disclose the amount of the fees, but the fees are to be “based on the outstanding principal balance of the mortgage loan, the applicable pass-through rate, the length of the delay, and any additional costs,” HousingWire reports. 

Foreclosure Myths

Although there are a number of programs available to help homeowners who have defaulted on their mortgages keep their home, the large amount of misinformation tends to result in troubled homeowners failing to contact their lender until it is too late.
Making sense of the story

• Some homeowners believe, incorrectly, that contacting their lender early in the process will draw attention to their situation and result in a quicker foreclosure.  In reality, contacting the lender or servicer is an important first step, and the sooner, the better.  Contacting the lender provides the homeowner with an opportunity to explain their situation and the steps necessary to deal with it.
• It is a common misconception that missing one mortgage payment will lead to foreclosure.  However, the foreclosure process doesn’t begin until payments are 90 days delinquent.  Lenders generally have a financial interest in keeping homeowners in their homes, so making contact as early as possible could help lenders modify terms of the mortgage or devise a repayment plan.
• Once homeowners are behind on their mortgage payments, it becomes challenging to dig out of the hole.  Some homeowners try to solve this by depleting their savings or dipping into their retirement accounts to become current on the loan.  Most financial experts advise against this.
• Delinquent homeowners may think they should stop making mortgage payments to get their lender’s attention, which often isn’t the case.  When possible, homeowners should stay current on their mortgage payments and continue to contact their lender on a regular basis.
• Homeowners who have applied for assistance or loan modification programs in the past and were turned down are advised to reapply.  Program parameters are constantly changing, so the rules might have been liberalized since the last time the borrower sought help.
• A number of free, government-sponsored housing services are available through the Dept. of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).  A list of HUD-approved agencies can be found at http://www.hud.gov.      Los Angeles Times

Yorba Linda Single Story Condo

23566 CAMBRIDGE RD, YORBA LINDA - SOLD

Single Story 2 Bedroom 2 Bath Lower Level Condo located at the end of street. 2 Car Garage. Clean and Ready to move in. Freshly Painted. New Carpeting. Includes newer Stainless Refrigerator and newer Washer/Dryer. Association Pool, Spa, Park & Play area. only $244,500

Chapman's Economic Forecast - No Double Dip

Orange County’s economic future is based largely on the housing industry.

Orange County’s economic recovery is indeed slowing, but ears of another recession or “double dip are unfounded, according to conomists at Chapman University.

The highly anticipated midyear economic update, presented by the A. Gary nderson Center for Economic Research at Chapman University, today confirmed hat both the regional and national economies have been buffeted by a series of actors that have combined to put the brakes on the weak, but steady recovery over he past 18 months. Soaring gas prices, the Japanese earthquake and the end of overnment stimulus spending, as well as the federal budget impasse, have impacted manufacturing output and chilled consumer confidence, and therefore spending, since January.

However, Chapman President James Doti still predicted today “the recovery is downshifting, not reversing itself.” Speaking to more than 750 business and civic leaders at the Costa Mesa Hilton, Doti said this is not entirely unexpected when rebounding from a recession, particularly one as deep and unprecedented as the most recent downturn.

The wild card in the recovery picture, Doti said, is housing prices, which were down 4.3 percent for the first three months of this year after slight gains in 2010. Falling home prices have a direct and negative impact on personal wealth and generally cause consumers to curb or stop spending on durable goods altogether, triggering a domino effect that hurts retail and manufacturing. The other significant concern with declining home prices is the risk of more foreclosures and ultimately more stress and troubles for the nation’s banks.

“Housing is the key,” Doti said. “Although affordability has rarely been better than it is today we are still faced with a lot of mixed signals and concerns on
the housing front.”

Although the foreclosure rate has peaked, Doti said it may take another three years before the unprecedented foreclosure chapter in this recession is finally
over. As many as 3 million more properties are at risk nationally and, ultimately, must be refinanced or sold before we reach normal foreclosure levels in a healthy economy.

Chapman economists predict that housing prices in the county and California will show a 4 to 4.5 percent decline in 2011 and virtually no appreciation in 2012.

In terms of gas prices, another major drag on the recovery since January, Chapman predicts the price per gallon will remain steady between $3 and $4 through the year, barring any unexpected oil supply disruption.

On the all important jobs front, most industry sectors will continue to show positive growth through 2012. The fastest growing jobs will be in the professional and business services, leisure and hospitality, and education and healthcare. Doti forecast that Orange County will have a net job gain of 20,000 or 1.5 percent by the end of this year and about 30,000 jobs or a 2.2 growth in 2012, roughly the same as California.

Doti characterized this level of job growth as positive and added it will improve personal income and ultimately consumer spending.
From OC Metro BY STEVE CHURM

7 Highest-Performing Major Housing Markets

Several real estate markets are starting to show signs of improvement with home prices in the last quarter as the industry demonstrates more signs of stabilizing, according to Clear Capital's latest monthly Home Data Index Market Report.
REO saturation rates have improved in the majority of the country’s largest markets. However, many areas are still battling year-over-year price declines. Clear Capital’s index reports that quarter-over-quarter home price declines were 2.3 percent in the latest quarter, which is less than half compared to the previous month. 
“The latest market report results through May suggest that home prices are starting to ease back from the heavy declines seen over the winter,” says Alex Villacorta, director of research and analytics at Clear Capital. “We are still far away from the strong demand needed to fully turn things around for the housing market. However, it is clear from the initial spring sales data that prices are softening, suggesting stabilization in the market."
The High Performers
Seven of the top 15 markets posted quarter-over-quarter property price gains in this month's report, compared to none in last month’s, according to Clear Capital. Here are the seven highest-performing major real estate markets, according to the report.
1. Washington, D.C.-Arlington, Va.-Alexandria, Va.
Quarter-to-quarter home price change: 4.5%
Year-to-year price changes (May 2010-May 2011): 4.9%
REO saturation: 17.5%
2. St. Louis, Mo. 
Quarter-to-quarter home price change: 2.2%
Year-to-year price changes: -11.4%
REO saturation: 35.3%
3. Pittsburgh, Pa.
Quarter-to-quarter home price change: 1.6%
Year-to-year price changes: 0.3%
REO saturation: 10.9%
4. New York, N.Y.-Long Island, N.Y.-No. New Jersey, N.J.
Quarter-to-quarter home price change: 1.5%
Year-to-year price changes: 1.4%
REO saturation: 9.6%
5. Virginia Beach, Va.-Norfolk, Va.-Newport News, Va.
Quarter-to-quarter home price change: 1.4%
Year-to-year price changes: -13.2%
REO saturation: 22.4%
6. Miami-Ft. Lauderdale-Miami Beach, Fla.
Quarter-to-quarter home price change: 0.6%
Year-to-year price changes: -5.2%
REO saturation: 39.6%
7. San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, Calif.
Quarter-to-quarter home price change: 0.5%
Year-to-year price changes: -5%
REO saturation: 25%
Tthe lowest-performing market for the fifth straight month was Detroit-Warren-Livonia, Mich., with a 13.2 percent decrease in quarter-over-quarter home price change and a 58 percent REO saturation rate. 
Source: “Clear Capital Reports Quarterly Home Price Decline Slows; Signs of Market Stability as Summer Approaches,” Clear Capital (June 9, 2011)

Real Estate Median Home Price History

California Median Sale Price

California Home Values - Interactive chart

Foreclosures Costing Some Borrowers Their Jobs

Foreclosure can mean more than just a blemish to borrowers’ credit record--it can jeopardize their job too. Federal contractors and employees are finding a foreclosure can cost them their federal security clearance and ultimately their job. It can take years to restore a security clearance so they can work again too. 
Many employees who have security clearances are required to report mortgage defaults and other financial issues to their company’s or agency’s security officer. 
About 70 security clearance appeals involving foreclosures and other distress sales were reported from January 2006 through January 2010 by the U.S. Defense Department’s Office of Hearings and Appeals. Of those 70 cases, 62 clearances were revoked or denied, according to reports.
"Losing your security clearance is like losing your most marketable aspect for employment," Travis John, a real estate broker, told the Orlando Sentinel. 
David P. Price, a lawyer who specializes in security clearance cases, says he’s seen financial related security clearance problems double in recent years. 
For borrowers at risk of foreclosure, they usually have more success at keeping their security clearance if they can prove that their mortgage was a sensible loan that did not overextend them at the time and also show they’ve tried to find a work-out solution, such as a short sale. However, Price says that even a short sale doesn’t put borrowers in the clear since it can take a long time to complete such transactions and increase the chance of a foreclosure.
Source: “Foreclosures Put Workers’ Security Clearances at Risk,” Orlando Sentinel (June 7, 2011)

Orange County Real Estate Market Trends

This graph shows the monthly number of listings and sales in Orange County for 2011 for Homes up to $1 million. Real Estate is local, contact us for a market trends report for your neighborhood.











ESTATE HOMES MARKET TRENDS
This graph shows the monthly number of listings and sales in Orange County for 2011 for homes over $1 million. This market is strongly in the Buyer's market range.

Mortgage Rates Continue to Fall

Spacious Orange County Affordable Estates

Need a BIG home? These are some of the largest homes listed in the SoCalMLS by all real estate brokers, Over 4,500 sqft and listed for $789,000 to $1,150,000, excluding short sales. Contact us for Details.