Olney, MD

It's estimated that 33 million home owners are at least one month behind on their mortgage payments. If a homeowner falls behind on their mortgage payments, usually a foreclosure or short sale is coming soon. Most homeowners do not know their options in this situation. It can be very confusing, frustrating, and frightening. Often, the lender is aggressively contacting the homeowner, demanding payment and threatening legal action.

WHAT IS A SHORT SALE?
Some people mistakenly believe that a short sale implies that the sale will go very quickly. Ah, quite the contrary! In a short sale, the mortgage company is involved and must approve the terms of the sale (3rd party approval) thus making the process much longer than a typical sale. When homeowners must sell their home because they can no longer make the payments but the amount owed on the loan is greater than the current value of the home, the home can be sold for less than is owed. The proceeds go to the lender and usually the difference in the sale price and the amount owed is written off by the bank. The bank takes a shortage, which is why it's called a short sale.

WHAT IS A FORECLOSURE?
When a homeowner defaults on their loan, the lender has the right to evict the homeowners and take possession of the home. This process is call foreclosure. The lender then owns the home and must sell it. This process usually takes six to nine months from the time the first payment is missed.

The first thing the homeowners should know is that there is help available to them. Most people do not even know where to begin to look for assistance, so here's the Real (Estate) Scoop...

If a homeowner has faced a hardship (i.e. lost job, reduced hours, divorce, illness/disability, drastic rate increase) the first thing they should try to do is a loan modification. Loan Modification is NOT a refinance. There is no credit check or appraisal involved in the transaction. The homeowner keeps their same lender and same loan, the terms are simply modified so that the homeowner is better able to make the payments and the home does not go into short sale or foreclosure. The primary goal of a loan modification is to reduce monthly payments. There are three things that could possibly happen in a loan modification.

1. The term of the loan is extended. For example a 30 year loan would be extended to a 40 year loan, thereby reducing the monthly payment.
2. The interest rate is lowered. This also reduces the monthly payment.
3. The principal amount of the loan is reduced. (This one is rare, but can be done.)

Many states require that an attorney be involved in a loan modification. Maryland is not one of those states, so there are options.

There are FREE or low cost resources available to assist homeowners in dealing with their lender in order to avoid foreclosure. These resources are non-profit organizations and consumer advocacy groups. It's not necessarily going to be easy (as shown by this ABC News video), but it's worth the effort to save your home and save your credit.

• Freddie Mac has a great website with links to credit counselors and foreclosure prevention resources. Check out their page.
• The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) offers help finding a counseling agency near you. Check out their page or call 1-800-569-4287. (This page is also provided in Spanish).
• HUD also has a Guide to Avoiding Foreclosure.

If these options have been exhausted, or the homeowner does not feel comfortable doing the legwork needed to get the loan modification done, there are plenty of reputable lawyers out there who have lots of experience in dealing with lenders and often have much more success getting the loan modification done on behalf of the homeowner. There is a fee for this service. Usually the cost is a couple of thousand dollars. The advantages with this route are:

1. The homeowner has no further communication with the lender. The attorneys & processors speak to the lender on the homeowner's behalf.
2. These lawyers & staff do this for a living. They have years of experience in this field and are good at it. The results (reduction in monthly payment) they get are usually much better than a homeowner could negotiate independently.
3. A few reputable firms offer a money-back guarantee. If they are unable to get the loan modified to the client's satisfaction, the homeowner receives their fees back. In essence, they have a great deal of motivation to get the loan successfully modified. If the deal doesn't get done, they don't get paid

Contact me for information on reputable lawyers!

The Loan Modification process takes anywhere from 21 to 90 days, so if a homeowner is just a few days from foreclosure, it could be too late to get this done. If a homeowner is just a couple of months behind on payments, the Loan Modification is a great option to try and should be pursued promptly.

OLNEY, MARYLAND 20832 - REAL ESTATE TREND INDICATOR

If you are thinking about buying or selling a home in zip code 20832, you should take a close look at the following report that compares the statistics for December with the same month last year. There were 11 new listings in the area and 14 listings went to pending new contracts. There were 14 actual settlements as compared to 17 homes sold last year. The total sold dollar volume was down 25.28%. The average number of days on the market was 143 from 71 days last year. The average sale price was 88.74% of the average list price. The average sold price was $393,871 and the median sold price was $387,950. What does this mean? It is still a soft market which favors buyers. Buyers have the largest selection and the lowest prices that have been available for several years. First time buyers have the benefit of the currently available $7,500 tax credit.

Roy Kelley, Associate Broker, RE/MAX Realty Group

Home Search Website: www.roykelley.com

Email: roykelley@mris.com; Client Assistance: 301-670-8996

ZIP Code: 20832 Olney, MD
From: 12/01/2008 to 12/31/2008 Statistics generated on: 01/07/2009

Source: Metropolitan Regional Information Systems, Inc. - MLS Resale Data
Copyright 2009 - Information deemed reliable, but is not guaranteed.

Please contact us with your questions on the residential real estate market.

Here is the Olney Area (Olney, Brookeville, Brinklow, Ashton, and Sandy Spring) supply and demand chart for October 2008. The Red lines are the active homes, blue under contract, and green are sold. The absorption rate is determined by the number of homes on the market and the number of homes selling that month.

The second half 2008 absorption numbers were surpassing the 2007 numbers, but November 2008 numbers took a beating compared to Nov 2008. Nov 2007 was far above even the Nov 2006 numbers. Nov 2007 was either an anomaly or a trend. Stay tuned for the December numbers.

Absorption Rates:

November 2008 6.2% absorption rate

November 2007 13.9% absorption rate

November 2006 8.0% absorption rate

After an hour's drive to Olney Ale House in Montgomery County to meet family for lunch yesterday, we soon regretted our choice of meeting place.

My husband and I had been looking forward to visiting with our daughter, in town from Texas for just two days, as we enjoyed drinks and appetizers pending the arrival of three others in our family. In spite of the fact that the restaurant was nearly empty, the manager instructed a hostess not to seat us until everyone else arrived. We explained that we wanted to order right away, but she was adamant that we must wait in the cold and drafty entryway until the entire party was present.

Apparently she never learned that "You don't get a second chance to make a good first impression."

I had expected to write a glowing restaurant review in my Maryland Real Estate Blog about lunch in this (formerly) friendly restaurant, with its cozy decor and excellent food. Unfortunately, that first impression was so unpleasant, there was no chance we would leave with a positive feeling about Olney Ale House.

It's hard for me to experience something like this without thinking of the opportunities I have to create a good first impression on potential customers - or not. For example, the first phone conversation with a prospect, the homepage of my website and blog, our first meeting in person, or even the welcome by a duty agent who greets my customers and clients when they arrive at my office, similar to the manager greeting us when we arrived at the restaurant.

All the good food, good ale, good decor, and good business practices of Olney Ale House over several decades went down the tubes for us as a result of our first impression yesterday. If nothing else, I hope I learned (or remembered) something from this experience that will help me avoid making a similar mistake in real estate. I'd like any review of my business to read "Margaret Woda - Fabulous!"

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If you're looking for a warm welcome at a dining establishment in the area, as well as good food, check out these Restaurants and Carryouts in Anne Arundel County, where schools are great, homes are more affordable, and taxes are lower. Click on any restuarants that have a link to read their reviews.

The Long & Foster office in Olney is serving as a drop off point for Toys for Tots. Bring in a new unwrapped toy to the office by December 10.

Please drop off your toy at the Olney/Brookeville office

3402 Olandwood Court

Olney, MD 20832

7 days per week, 9am-5pm until 12/10/2008