Am I a "First Time Home Buyer"? (short sale, apartment)

[Elke Mariotti]

Originally Posted by longislandmike

Seriously...doesn't the possibility of, the "cram down", proposal, "cancel" the clamor, for First Time Mortgage Give Aways ?

I believe the biggest impact the cram down proposal will have is with short sales.

[longislandmike]

Originally Posted by Elke Mariotti

I believe the biggest impact the cram down proposal will have is with short sales.

QUESTION ONE.....And, could you share with us, "what", "short sales" are ?

And aren't ALL sales, "short sales", these..."groan"...... days ?

Meaning......."if" short sales are....

1) "For owners who can no longer afford to keep mortgage payments current, there are alternatives to bankruptcy or foreclosure proceedings. One of those options is called a "short sale.""


2) "When lenders agree to do a short sale in real estate, it means the lender is accepting less than the total amount due. Not all lenders will accept short sales or discounted payoffs, especially if it would make more financial sense to foreclose; moreover, not all sellers nor all properties qualify for short sales."

and, 3) "Except for certain conditions pursuant to the Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act of 2007, be aware the I.R.S. could consider debt forgiveness as income, and there is no guarantee that a lender who accepts a short sale will not legally pursue a borrower for the difference between the amount owed and the amount paid. In some states, this amount is known as a deficiency. A lawyer can determine whether your loan qualifies for a deficiency judgment or claim."

Short Sale in Real Estate - How to Handle a Real Estate Short Sale


QUESTION TWO..... How much of a percentage, of a real estate agents sales ARE these type of sales, these...GROAN...days ?


Thanks

[Elke Mariotti]

Originally Posted by longislandmike

QUESTION ONE.....And, could you share with us, "what", "short sales" are ?

And aren't ALL sales, "short sales", these..."groan"...... days ?

Meaning......."if" short sales are....

1) "For owners who can no longer afford to keep mortgage payments current, there are alternatives to bankruptcy or foreclosure proceedings. One of those options is called a "short sale.""


2) "When lenders agree to do a short sale in real estate, it means the lender is accepting less than the total amount due. Not all lenders will accept short sales or discounted payoffs, especially if it would make more financial sense to foreclose; moreover, not all sellers nor all properties qualify for short sales."

and, 3) "Except for certain conditions pursuant to the Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act of 2007, be aware the I.R.S. could consider debt forgiveness as income, and there is no guarantee that a lender who accepts a short sale will not legally pursue a borrower for the difference between the amount owed and the amount paid. In some states, this amount is known as a deficiency. A lawyer can determine whether your loan qualifies for a deficiency judgment or claim."

Short Sale in Real Estate - How to Handle a Real Estate Short Sale


QUESTION TWO..... How much of a percentage, of a real estate agents sales ARE these type of sales, these...GROAN...days ?


Thanks

Quick answer first: Q2: at the moment, a very small percentage, partly because not many agents have enough knowledge to properly present offers to lenders; I do see that changing later this year--and there will continue to be "short sales". Most agents also don't want to spend the time involved in doing short sales.

Q1: You seem to have researched the subject, and I'm not going to write a long post here rehashing part of it and adding more, sorry.
Bottom line is, lenders insist on having the property listed with a Realtor, and the homeowner must prove true hardship with regard to their inability to pay. The ding on your credit with a short sale is a lot smaller than a foreclosure or bankruptcy.
Oh, and in this (declining) market, deeds in lieu are not usually an option.

[longislandmike]

Originally Posted by Elke Mariotti

Quick answer first: Q2: at the moment, a very small percentage, partly because not many agents have enough knowledge to properly present offers to lenders; I do see that changing later this year--and there will continue to be "short sales". Most agents also don't want to spend the time involved in doing short sales.

Q1: You seem to have researched the subject, and I'm not going to write a long post here rehashing part of it and adding more, sorry.
Bottom line is, lenders insist on having the property listed with a Realtor, and the homeowner must prove true hardship with regard to their inability to pay. The ding on your credit with a short sale is a lot smaller than a foreclosure or bankruptcy.
Oh, and in this (declining) market, deeds in lieu are not usually an option.

Thank you for explaining it, as best you could.

I'm guessing there will be NOTHING but short sales, for agents, because there won't be very many other "situations", as the Economy, will continue to "contract", to the point, where.....drum roll...The Beneficent Federal Government, in the New Province of Washington DC....hi-hat.....will dictate this to you.

They are so...ahem, far ahead of themselves, on the "details", they will be making it up as they go along...like they have EVERYTHING, since January 20.

Of course, because your Living depends on The Details, as ALL OF OURS DO NOW, they present the "outline" first, and the details, depending on the outcome of Focus Groups.

At least, they are giving us THE REALLY BAD NEWS, first, to prepare us FOR THE REALLY BAD NEWS, later.

How kind.

[kshahin]

Dear Elke,
My situation, My wife boaught a co op when I was not in usa. My name is not in the co op mortgage. Still I am not qualifying as a first time home buyer?

Please
Thank you,

[Elke Mariotti]

Originally Posted by kshahin

Dear Elke,
My situation, My wife boaught a co op when I was not in usa. My name is not in the co op mortgage. Still I am not qualifying as a first time home buyer?

Please
Thank you,

Sorry to tell you, if either spouse owned a home (including co-op) during the last THREE years, you don't qualify.
If it was almost three years ago, then "timing" the closing could work by planning the closing, however, as of now, eligibility expires Dec. 1, 2009.

[Elke Mariotti]

Originally Posted by longislandmike

I'm guessing there will be NOTHING but short sales, for agents, because there won't be very many other "situations"

While I'm sure there will be a lot more short sales than currently, I don't agree about NOTHING BUT--simply because not everyone will qualify. "Hardship" is indeed hardship as defined by lenders and that's a lot "harder" than most people think

[HomeFinder15]

Ksahin-
I checked with my mortgage contact (they are the #1 lender in the US) and if you are not on the current mortgage for the co-op then you can qualify as a first time homebuyer on the new home, as long as you are a permanent resident alien. So you will be able to reap the benefits of the first time homebuyers deal as long as it is just you on the new mortgage. !!!!!!

[Elke Mariotti]

Originally Posted by HomeFinder15

Ksahin-
I checked with my mortgage contact (they are the #1 lender in the US) and if you are not on the current mortgage for the co-op then you can qualify as a first time homebuyer on the new home, as long as you are a permanent resident alien. So you will be able to reap the benefits of the first time homebuyers deal as long as it is just you on the new mortgage. !!!!!!

OK, after some headscratching , I decided to go on the IRS website - after all, this is a tax issue, not a mortgage issue, and here is the link to FAQs regarding the tax credit:


Moderator cut: sorry to remove so much information, but we need to be careful of copyright infringements .

CPAs are going to be busy this year, answering lots of questions about the tax credit...

In the above quote, at issue here is "any other main home", and I wouldn't want a mortgage company interpret an IRS rule for me (but that's just me).
[/font] [/font]

[nancy thereader]

Please watch the copyright infringements as per the TOS. Thanks.