Cristal Drake, Realtor Fullerton Real Estate

One thing (of many) that makes Fullerton a great place to live is the open enrollment option within the district. However the window is short and it is open right now. From January 3, 2012 through January 20, 2012 the Fullerton Joint Union High School District will accept your application and you will be notified at the end of February of your student’s acceptance.

For more information and the application, visit: http://www.fjuhsd.net/apps/pages/index.jsp?uREC_ID=141381&type=d&pREC_ID=274910.

Fullerton has such nice people, a great downtown, vintage homes, wonderful neighborhoods and great schools. The open enrollment program is an added bonus for Fullerton homeowners and residents who want to send their kids to a particular school that might not be within their residential boundaries. If you have questions on Fullerton home buying, Fullerton schools or any other information, I am happy to answer your questions!

Feeling frustrated because your Fullerton home is upside down and you can’t take advantage of these record low interest rates but your watching everyone one else around you catch a break? There is a chance that you CAN take advantage; read on!

HARP Refinance Program Expanded
Borrowers who are current on their home loans may be able to refinance for lower interest rates, even if they are seriously upside down. The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced today that it will broaden the scope of the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) by removing the current 125 percent loan-to-value cap for fixed-rate mortgages backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Other program enhancements include, among other things, reducing certain fees, eliminating the need for a new property appraisal if the FHFA has a reliable automated valuation model (AVM) estimate, and extending HARP until the end of 2013. New federal guidelines for the HARP changes should be released to mortgage lenders and servicers by November 15.

The basic eligibility requirements for an enhanced HARP loan are as follows:

Existing mortgage loan must be owned or guaranteed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. To check whether you havea Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac loan, go to http://www.makinghomeaffordable.gov/get-assistance/loan-look-up/Pages/default.aspx.
Existing mortgage loan must have been sold to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac before June 1, 2009.
Existing mortgage loan cannot have been refinanced under HARP previously (except for Fannie Mae loans refinanced between March and May 2009).
Current loan-to-value (LTV) ratio must be more than 80%.
Existing mortgage loan must be current, with no late payments in the past six months, and no more than one late payment in the past 12 months.
More information is available from FHFA at http://www.fhfa.gov/webfiles/22721/HARP_release_102411_Final.pdf.

As a local Fullerton real estate professional, I have some trusted lenders that are very familiar with this program and helping folks refinance. Contact me and I will happily point you in the right direction! Even if you don't qualify for a refinance, there are still other options. Most importantly, you are not alone.

I am sorry that I have been out of the loop here for a while but I was away! I hope you don’t mind that this article will be a little more personal than usual but I just had to share that I was fortunate enough to travel to Brazil! This wasn’t just a vacation but a home build through Habitat for Humanity and we built three little homes!

This was such an amazing, emotional and rewarding experience. For me, it just brought to light what a privilege home ownership (among other things) really is. Somewhere along the way I think we sort of forgot about this.

Look at our parents and grandparents. They got married, saved up and bought a home. There didn’t have fancy loans, their rates were high and they wondered how they would ever pay off a $22,000 mortgage! But they did it. And hopefully today they have a home that is paid in full and an amazing investment on their hands.

I know this market feels scary and uneasy. Stocks all over the board people are worried. Then you look at the interest rates; we have never seen them so low! IT is a roller coaster to say the least.

Real Estate is a long term investment. You need a place to live anyway, right? You can pay rent for 30 years and have nothing to show, but if you purchase a house and can keep making that mortgage then in 30 years, it’s yours. Through all the ups and downs your home probably will have substantially increased in value. Somehow we started only looking at short tearm appreciation and loss. I wish I could find the chart that shows real estate over the last 10 years. WE ARE STILL UP (at least Fullerton Real Estate is and so is Southern California for that matter) considerably.

This is America! Sure the market is rough but if you want to see a really bad housing market, there are many places in this world where it is so much worse. I am feeling pretty grateful and I appreciate the opportunity to share with you!

If you are interested in hearing more about Habitat for Humanity’s Global Village the local real estate market, I would love to share!

I hope you enjoy a few photos from my trip!

First timers - I love them! They are excited and starry eyed....about buying their first home. I work with so many first time buyers and last week when I started receiving more email inquiries than usual, I figured it would be a good idea to put a little "Where to Start" article together.

The first place you should start is by talking to a lender (you thought I was going to say Realtor® didn't you?). You really need to find out what your buying power is. Most first timers are a little shocked when they look at all the numbers, the down payment, the monthly payment, mortgage insurance, taxes, etc...

There are also some other important numbers, your fico scores (credit grade) and income. It could be that you might have a late payment showing up or might need to save up a little more money before you start looking and a good lender will help you figure all this out.

Concurrent to shopping for a mortgage professional, you should also be searching for a real estate agent. Your Realtor® should be:

• A full time, hard-working professional
• Fully aware of market local conditions and available financingAssociated with a reputable real estate firm
• Willing to tell you the truth and not whatever it takes to sell the home.Associated with a strong team of lenders, inspection companies and other real estate service professionals.

So many first timers are looking for that sweet little Downtown Fullerton starter home or a house in a Fullerton neighborhood with great schools. Unfortunately for buyers, living in Fullerton does come at a premium so knowing what you can afford and finding a local, assertive Realtor® that can help you navigate through the process will make all the difference in the world.

Buying a house is a scary and exciting process. It is most likely the largest investment of your life so who you choose to help you along the way is critical.

So where do you find the all knowing and oh so important real estate agent and lender?
1. The number one way is by referral! Talk to the folks that you trust to see who they trust. 2. Choose a local expert - if they are the local expert with a good reputation then they know about the homes that are coming on the market before they hit the market! This is huge when we are seeing multiple offers in the starter price range in nice Fullerton neighborhoods.
3. Yelp Them!
For more information on the buying process, a lender referral or a free "Home Buyer's Guide", please contact me. I am happy to help.

For more information on how to research your potential real estate agent, please go to: http://cristaldrake.com/?p=262

AHHHH! So many scams; so little time. I feel as if this is all I write about any more! Geez, maybe I should start a column called - The Weekly Real Estate Scam! As if we don't have enough to worry about with the economy, default mortgages and multiple other scams; renting out a property by a fake owner is a growing trend.

I have seen it time and time again; some scoundrel finds a lease listing posted by a real estate agent and posts it as their own. They take the information, the pictures, everything from the agent and posts it as their own. Or, they find a vacant house that is easy to enter and market's that one for lease, usually at a low price or for a low deposit. If it sounds too good to be true; it probably is. If you want to double check that the owner is legit, I would be happy to do that for you.

The following consumer alert was posted by the Department of Real Estate to warn would be tenants of other ways this is happening.

CONSUMER ALERT - BEWARE OF IMPOSTER LANDLORDS

As a result of the mortgage meltdown, and with many thousands of foreclosures, there are abandoned properties in Fullerton and all of Orange County. Moreover, the continued economic downturn has left numerous people displaced and in need of rental housing. The California Department of Real Estate (DRE) has become aware of unscrupulous activity by some persons who hold themselves out as owners of vacant houses (and/or agents of such owners). These people prey on desperate consumers who are looking for some place to rent. These cons are able to convince potential renters into paying money, which may include a first and last month's rent and a security deposit, as well as follow up rental payments, for a house that is not owned by the supposed landlord.

Sometimes it does not take much to fool potential tenants into believing that they are dealing with the real owner of the house. Here are some ploys these scammers use:

They gain access to vacant houses by unlawfully breaking into the houses, changing the locks, securing the properties and giving the illusion of ownership.

They go to great lengths to obtain documents which are used to falsely assert to prospective tenants that the houses are owned by them. For example, they sometimes access the county assessor's website and obtain a document called a Preliminary Change of Ownership Report. Normally, this report is filed with the assessor's office in connection with certain deeds to assist the assessor with property tax valuations. The crooks download and complete the Preliminary Change of Ownership Report document, sometimes obtaining a "filed" stamp, and then offer the document as evidence that they own the property to be rented. This might also make a prospective tenant believe that the person(s) he or she is dealing with is legitimate. Another scenario like this is where a bogus landlord makes payment of a small tax lien on a house not owned by them, and then provides evidence of that payment as so-called proof that he or she owns the house.

They send out bogus letters, emails, and other documents which appear legitimate, instructing existing tenants to cease rental payments to the property owner and redirecting the tenants to pay their rent to these new "illegitimate" frauds. They may also prepare false leases or rental agreements to make everything look official.

They advertise houses they do not own for lease or rent on Craigslist or other sites for classified ads of rental properties. While the DRE is seeing the fraud discussed in this warning in connection with houses offered for rent, the crooks sometimes advertise apartments in this manner. Care should be exercised with respect to all rentals offered.

PLEASE DO NOT BECOME A VICTIM; THINGS TO DO TO PROTECT YOURSELF

There is rampant fraud occurring in the house rental market in some parts of California. The con artists are looking for quick, up-front monies to be paid to them many times over.

Additionally, because these operators generally use false names, it is difficult to track them down and bring them to justice. Sometimes they set up bogus corporate, company or partnership names and the entities are just shells. Therefore, you must do your homework to avoid becoming victimized. It would be in your best interest to ask anyone offering a house for rent to provide you with proof that they own the house, and to show you their government issued picture identification. Then scrutinize the proof of ownership, as well as the identifications since there is also the risk that their identifications can be false.

If you think that you are dealing with an owner's/ landlord's representative, you should check with the DRE to see if that representative or agent is licensed. This is because a real estate license is required, with some narrow exceptions, for a person to offer a house for rent as an agent of the owner. Look up and check out the license records through the DRE web site (www.dre.ca.gov) and make sure you are working with legitimate licensees.

If you are an existing tenant, you should check with the County Recorder's office in the county in which you live to verify the property's owner of record. If the house has been foreclosed upon, you should contact the new owner and verify with the current owner the person to whom you should be forwarding your rental payments.

If you are considering renting or leasing, consider the following before entering into a rental agreement and turning over your money:

• Check with the County Recorder to determine if the house being offered for rent has a Notice of Default recorded. If the property has been foreclosed, call the lender, servicer or owner to obtain the name of the company or individual who is their representative.
• Do as much research as you are able to avoid more financial loss and distress to you and your family.
• Be aware of those with fancy titles or claims of being connected to a legitimate person, business or the government.

If you feel you have dealt with a scammer in the area of a housing rental or have been defrauded in connection with rental of a house, please feel free to contact the Department of Real Estate at the following telephone numbers:

Consumers in the Los Angeles area, (213) 620-2072

For Spanish-speaking consumers, call 1-877-DRE-4321