Guy Adams

By: Diane Tuman, Zillow Content Manager | August 5, 2009

Three U.S. homes of convicted Ponzi-schemer Bernie Madoff and his wife, Ruth, will be put on the market soon, with the proceeds going to Bernie Madoff's victims, according to CNN.com.

The real estate includes:

• a 3,000 sq ft Montauk beach house feds feel is worth $7 million
• a waterfront Palm Beach getaway that has a hoped-for $7.5 takeaway, and
• a Manhattan penthouse on the Upper East Side, pegged at $7-$8 million

Other assets the Madoffs own that have been seized by authorities include Bernie's 55-foot yacht "the Bull" and a vacation home on the French Riviera (Côte d'Azur). The yacht is said to be worth $1.5 million and the Cote d'Azur vacation home was already sold for $1.48 million.

Taken all together, experts feel the four pieces of real estate, plus the boat, will net around $25-$30 million - a far cry from the $50 billion in investor losses.

While Bernie is in North Carolina, beginning his 150-year term, his wife, Ruth, must report to a bankruptcy trustee whenever she spends more than $100 on herself.

Here's a look at the Madoff homes:

Montauk home:
216 Old Montauk Hwy, Montauk, NY 11954

Palm Beach home:
410 N Lake Way, Palm Beach FL 33480

Manhattan home:
133 E 64th St, New York, NY 10065

By: Diane Tuman, Zillow Content Manager | August 5, 2009

Pending home sales are up for the fifth consecutive month, the first time in six years for such a streak, according to NAR.

The Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator based on contracts signed in June, rose 3.6 percent to 94.6 from an upwardly revised reading of 91.3 in May, and is 6.7 percent above June 2008 when it was 88.7. The last time there were five consecutive monthly gains was in July 2003.

Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said a combination of positive market factors is fueling the gains. "Historically low mortgage interest rates, affordable home prices, and large selection are encouraging buyers who've been on the sidelines. Activity has been consistently much stronger for lower priced homes," he said.

"Because it may take as long as two months to close on a home after signing a contract, first-time buyers must act fairly soon to take advantage of the $8,000 tax credit because they must close on the sale by November 30," Yun said.

Here are the regional figures from the Pending Home Sales Index:

• The Northeast rose 0.4 percent to 81.2 in June and is 5.8 percent above a year ago.
• The Midwest increased 0.8 percent to 89.9 and is 11.6 percent above June 2008.
• The index in the South jumped 7.1 percent to 100.7 in June and is 8.9 percent higher than a year ago.
• In the West, the index rose 2.9 percent to 100.4 but is 0.2 percent below June 2008.

Source: NAR

Helping home owners appeal their tax bills can be a lucrative side business for real estate practitioners - particularly this year when legions of home owners are considering appeals after prices have crashed.

The going rate for a property tax consultant, who makes the pitch to the appeals board on behalf of the home owner, is often 25 percent to 50 percent of the amount saved in the first year.

Winning an appeal requires persuading an assessor or appeals board that the current assessment is inaccurate or outdated. Often the window for appeal is very small, so it pays to have key information gathered and ready.

The National Taxpayers Union offers these tips for filing an appeal:

• Check the assessors' information on file for accuracy, including lot number, zoning category, sales records, land value and dimensions, and significant features.
• Make sure that defects like a leaky basement that could lower the value of the property are on record.
• Provide three to five comparables that prove the point that the property is over-assessed.
• Get a full appraisal if the information on file appears to be hopelessly incorrect.

Source: The Wall Street Journal, M.P. McQueen (07/16/2009)

The Federal Trade Commission and prosecutors in 19 states filed 189 legal actions on Wednesday against loan modification consultants, accusing them of cheating desperate home owners.

All but one of the lawsuits were filed in the U.S. district Court for the Central District of California. At a press conference in Los Angeles, California Attorney General Jerry Brown and the FTC alleged that U.S. Foreclosure Relief, Lucas Law Center, Loss Mitigation Services, and Apply2Save did practically nothing to help home owners and charged them one month's mortgage payment or more in advance.

Brown said, "they ripped off thousands of home owners desperately seeking mortgage relief."

Source: The Associated Press, Jacob Adelman, and Inman News (07/15/2009)