CRR Blog

You gotta see these....

Simi Valley 3 BR/1.5BA on a large lot...   1542 Agnew Street

The lender was owed $460,000.00 in Principal and back payments...

The minimum bid was going to be $377,081.00

The bank did not want the property.

The dropped the bid to less than half of that figure.

The property was purchased for $196,300.00 at the sale by someone like you, with over $80,000.00 in equity!!!

Lancaster  3 BR/3 BA...      2119 E. Lightcap Street

The lender was owed $380,000.00 in Principal and back-payments...

The minimum bid was going to be $316,091.00

Again, the bank did not want the property.

They dropped the opening bid to less than $100,000.00!!!

Someone bought it for just $102,000.00, getting $100,000.00 in equity immediately.

Desert Hot Springs REO Property bought by the bank....

3 years new 4BR/2BA on a large lot, walk to the golf course....  15055 Tarbutton Rd.

The lender was owed $335,000.00 in Principal and back-payments...

The minimum bid was going to be $273,000.00

The bank did not want this beautiful desert home in a new Country Club setting.

The dropped the bid to just $84,000.00

But you weren't there to bid.  So the bank bought the house for that low price.

It is now an REO, owned by Long Beach Mortgage, and you could make an offer today.

These houses sold yesterday at the Trustee's Sale.....

3 BR/1BA in Anaheim...  Purchased $70k below Comp Value!!!!

Just a few blocks away from Downtown Disney...

822 S Helena St

Over $530k was owed to the lenders

The estimated bid was to be $514,780.00

The lender did not want the property, so they reduced the opening bid to just over $200,000.00!

It sold to someone like you for only $220,600.00!!!   wow!

4BR/2.5BA in Yucaipa...  Built new in 2005

Over 3000 sq ft on over 25,000 sq ft lot....

13077 Sycamore Ln

Huge House!!!

Horse property with all the Bells and Whistles...

Over $755,000.00  was owed to the lenders...

The estimated bid was to be $626,506.00

Again, the lender chose to "Drop" the opening bid to about half of what was owed!

It sold for only $387,200.00!!!  Nice Job!

More later...

Yesterday, 1-27-09, at the Placentia Courthouse (401 E. Chapman) there were a number of Tustee Sales.

Two notable sales to someone just like you were:

1310 S Van Ness Ave.  2 BR/1BA Single Family Home  1,119 sq ft

Loan Amount:  $495,000.00  

Sold for Only:  $160,000.00

1208 S Mohawk Dr.  3BR/2BA  Single Family Home  1,231 sq ft

Loan Amount:  $514,250.00

Sold for Only:  $228,100.00

What did you buy yesterday?

Yesterday's Article in the Los Angeles Times by William Heisel noted some facts about the foreclosure situation that we as a Foreclosure Trustee have been experiencing, and gave some insight into what is to come.  We encourage you to read his article.  The following comments are our own related observations.

California NOD's dropped dramatically in October of 2008, a month after Senate Bill SB1137 came into effect in September of that year.  The slowdown was also enhanced by voluntary reductions and moratoriums in filings by various national lenders as they chose to limit the negative effects that they were having on consumer confidence and the overall economy.  The lenders also responded to demand for some action in terms of providing loan modification options.  Countrywide/BOA also began efforts to meet loan modification requirements as specified by a legal settlement. The cumulative effect was a "Bump in the Road".

Beginning on September 6, all trustees and lenders were required by SB1137 to add an additional step to every foreclosure called "Due Dilligence".  Here a lender or Trustee must warn the property owner/borrower of an intent to foreclose before an NOD may be filed.  It slows down the act of foreclosure by a factor of 30 days so that the lender can present any options they may choose to make available to the owner/borrower, and do so in a manner which is documented.  This meant that new NOD filings had to wait 30 days.

Mr. Heisel's article also points out that while the last quarter of 2008 saw a 20% drop in NOD filings, the actual number of properties going into default went up significantly.  By December, the number of NOD filings had risen again to nearly 40,000, putting things back on track to where they had been going before SB1137 went to effect. 

Note that unemplyment filings, according to the article, mean we will see ongoing foreclosures where homeowners will be unable to make payments on conventional loans.  On Monday, over 60,000 job cuts were announced, and this trend is expected to continue. 

This means that the there will a large number or properties going into NOD status this quarter where a "Subject to" offer makes perfect sense.  Remember that taking over an existing conventional loan in this market is essentially a smooth way in to a property that is immune to the "Credit Crunch" that experts say limits new loans and equity loans that investors normally use to purchase REO's and properties at the Trustee's Sale. 

More Later....

On Friday, the 23rd of January... 

A Trustee's Sale/Auction took place where yet another dream house sold for less than half of what the bank was owed. 

The Estimated Minimum Bid was supposed to be $572,987.00!!!

The total loan balance prior to foreclosure had been over $700,00.00!!!

The house sold for just $226,747.30!!!

This home on Canyon Lake has a boat dock and much more.

This is the best time to buy, ever...  

What are you going to buy today?

Yesterday a subscriber called to let us know about a very special gift he had purchased for the woman in his life.  This couple has been buying foreclosures for some time, but had yet to buy the home where they were going to spend the rest of their lives.  That changed a few weeks ago when their Short Sale offer was accepted by a seller who was desperate to avoid the Trustee Sale.

Their story is as follows:

The couple had been looking for months in the area around Perris, CA.  They came across a listing for a beautiful lake-view custom home on two acres.  The photos were stunning.  It was literally Everything they were looking for.

The seller was asking $730,000.00, and the listing was over 6 months old.  They didn't want to pay that much, but they knew they wouldn't be able to pay less if they didn't ask.  So they asked.

As it turned out, the seller had paid $600,000.00 for the house over a year ago.  He'd been trying to sell it ever since.  His original asking price had been $900,000.00, with no takers.  He dropped his asking price to $730,000.00 just six months later.

One month after that, he recieved a Short Sale offer of $550,000.00 from a potential buyer.  He agreed to it so he could cut his losses.  Comps at that time were still above $600,000.00 for homes in the area, so the bank refused to bend.  The offer was rejected.

5 months later, our couple came upon the property.  They checked comps at that time and found tract homes 5 miles away on 1/4 acre.  The recent sale that most closely matched the dream property was just $380,000.00.  They knew it was not a true match for this gem, but they decided to try.

Using this comp, they offered $360,000.00 CASH for the home of their dreams.  The bank balked again.  This time though, the bank asked for only $380,000.00.  The new comp had worked.

The couple repeated their offer of $360,000.00, but also pointed out property problems and damages that they knew were nothing to speak of.  The bank came back with a final counter of just $370,000.00, less a 3% credit toward closing costs, plus a cash rebate of $1500 for fixture repairs that wound up costing under $500.00 

They bought the home of their dreams, made the repairs, and banked the $1000.00

You can see their Dreams Come True on www.Zillow.com .

The address is 14041 Grande Vista Avenue in Perris, CA 92570.

Not bad for a month's work.

And NO, its NOT for sale.