Joel Barth

Here are some useful resources for realtors in my neck of the woods:

Habitat for Humanity
www.seattle-habitat.org
(206) 292-5240
Habitat of Seattle/South King County builds decent, affordable homes for families in need. Homeowners invest hundreds of hours of their own labor - sweat equity - into building their Habitat house and they pay a no-profit, no-interest mortgage.

How to apply to Habitat for Humanity: The process of homeownership through Habitat for Humanity begins with potential homeowner orientations. These orientations are scheduled once each year. Send an e-mail to Habitat for more information on their application process and notification of the next orientation dates.

HomeSight
www.homesightwa.org
(206) 723-4355
HomeSight is a nonprofit community development corporation that promotes affordable homeownership opportunities through homebuyer education and financial planning, buyer purchase assistance loan underwriting and origination, and new home construction. Through private and public partnerships, HomeSight provides purchase assistance to qualified first-time home buyers in the form of a low interest loan, and potential borrowers may access up to $70,000 in downpayment assistance.

How to apply to HomeSight: Complete HomeSight's introductory class, "The American Dream: Is Homeownership For You?", then meet with a HomeSight counselor to do a personal Financial Assessment. For the introductory class schedule and to register, visit HomeSight or call (206) 723-4355.

Homestead Community Land Trust
homesteadclt.org
(206) 323-1227
Homestead Community Land Trust (HCLT) is a membership-based, nonprofit community housing development organization that creates affordable homeownership opportunities by removing the cost of land from the cost of buying a home, and protects the affordability of those homes permanently for future generations of Seattleites. Through the HCLT "Advantage" program, your household may receive up to $100,000 at 0% interest and no repayments to help pay for a home, in exchange for keeping the home affordable at resale to the next income-qualified buyer.

How to apply to HCLT: Read more about HCLT Advantage and the community land trust model and then sign up for an orientation by calling (206) 323-1227.

HomeTown Home Loan Program from HomeStreet Bank
(206) 628-0207
The Hometown Home Loan Program is a partnership between the City of Seattle and HomeStreet Bank. Participating employers, City of Seattle, University of Washington, Fred Hutchinson, Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, and other organizations, offer their employees access to free homeownership education, savings on purchases & refinances, and access to downpayment assistance programs.

For more information and a complete list of participating employers: Please email the HomeStreet Affinity Lending Center or call (206) 628-0207.

House Key Plus Seattle from the Washington State Housing Finance Commission
(206) 287-4413
House Key Plus Seattle provides downpayment assistance in the form of a low-interest loan, and must be combined with the House Key State Bond below-market interest rate first mortgage for first-time homebuyers. Qualified buyers may receive up to $60,000 in downpayment assistance.

Visit the website for more information on how to use the House Key Plus Seattle loan or call (800) 767-4663.

Parkview Services
parkviewservices.org
(206) 542-6644
Parkview Services is a King County based non-profit organization that supports people with developmental disabilities and their families. Parkview's Homeownership Program Offers home buying assistance to individuals with developmental disabilities and family members who will live with them. Qualified households may receive up to $127,500 in purchase assistance.

To get started e-mail Parkview, phone Marc Coté at (206) 334-0731, or leave a message on Parkview's voicemail line at (206) 529-4114. Please provide your name, phone, and the best time to return your call.

Seattle Teacher Homebuyer Program
www.partnershiplending.com
(800) 459-5331
Many teachers would like to live and work in the same community. With Seattle home values increasing, the City of Seattle is excited to help our teachers in the path toward home ownership by providing up to $45,000 in additional financing for eligible teachers' first home purchase. Evergreen Home Loans, the Office of Housing's lending partner for the Teacher homebuyer program, will also waive lender fees and discount closing costs.

For more information contact Evergreen's Partnership Lending department at (800) 459-5331 or (206) 938-8900.

Questions for the Office of Housing?

If you have questions about any of the City of Seattle homebuyer assistance programs, contact our Homebuyer Assistance program manager: Mark Ellerbrook (206) 684-3340.

Common Mistakes Made By Real Estate Investors

Real estate investment can be one of the most lucrative forms of investment. However, it can also be one of the riskiest when one is not well versed with the trends and nuances of the real estate market. So if you are contemplating on investing in real estate, it is best to avoid costly mistakes when you invest your hard earned money. Knowing the most common mistakes made by real estate investors helps one steer away from making such mistakes in the future and ensures good return on investment.

Here is the top ten mistakes made by real estate investors, according to bankrate.com. Bankrate has put together the top ten mistakes after speaking to established, full-time real estate investors and other professionals involved in real estate investment such as bankers.

Read on to know them and avoid them.

1. Not planning up ahead. Lack of a proper plan is the biggest mistake made by novice investors. Finding a house after forming a proper investment strategy is the right way instead of looking for a house to fit the plan. Many make the mistake of buying a house because it seems to be a good deal and then trying to see how they can fit it into their plan. Instead of buying a house and thinking one can plan in due course, investors should rather concentrate on the numbers and try to make offers on multiple properties. This will ensure a good property that not only matches their investment model but also works out well with the numbers they had planned for.

2. To believe you can make money quickly. The second major mistake that real estate investors make is to think it is very easy to get rich in real estate. This is only a myth and the reality is that investing in real estate is a long-term project.

3. Doing it single-handedly. For becoming a successful real estate investor one needs to build a team of professionals who would assist the investor in his deals. This would ideally include a real estate agent, an appraiser, a home inspector, a closing attorney and a lender.

4. Making excess payment. One another reason that investors in real estate goof up in their investment is by paying too much for the properties they buy. Paying too much and locking up all the funds in the erred property deal will leave you with no money to redeem yourself.

5. Leaving out the groundwork. Not doing your homework could be a costly mistake if you were a real estate investor. Every field of business needs sufficient amount of homework to be done, and real estate investment is no exception. Learn the fundamentals and then venture into investing in properties.

6. Throwing caution to the winds. Investors have to exercise a certain degree of caution and take earnest efforts while making a deal. New investors often fail in this regard and sign a deal without doing adequate research on the property.

7. Miscalculating money flow. Investors whose strategy is to buy, hold and rent out properties need to ensure sufficient cash flow for maintenance. Property managers could be expensive and the owner has to incur more expenses such as mortgage, taxes, insurance, advertising costs etc. Investors have to allocate their budget such that all these expenses are taken care of, or end up having their asset turn into a liability.

8. Lowering the volume. A larger volume of deals or transactions helps in increasing the profits by reducing the impacts of marginal deals.

9. Getting trapped in your own deal. Having more number of options at hand for the property you buy is a wise strategy. This helps one to be prepared for fluctuations in the real estate market. Plans to rent out the house could go awry when the rental market slumps. Having alternative plans helps you cut down losses and tackle unexpected situations.

10. Making incorrect estimates. People who plan to rehab their house need to check if they will still reap the benefits at double the time that they had estimated. This ensures they do not miscalculate and lose money on the deal.

Consider having your client find an attorney which specializes in forensic loan audits. This may give them the leverage they need to get a deal done or otherwise get out from under a predatory loan.

A mortgage loan, for most consumers, accounts for a large proportion of one's income. Therefore, it is imperative to ensure that the mortgage loan agreement has been drafted correctly in terms of both structure and validity. Even a minute error, on a lender's behalf, in carrying out the mortgage agreement could potentially cost the consumer thousands upon thousands of dollars. Unfortunately, many Home Equity Loans, Fixed Rate Mortgages that have been either refinanced, sold, or involve an escrow account, and Adjustable Rate Mortgages contain at least one error in its construction or calculations. Errors in loan documentation is more common than you think and a lender could be subject to serious financial damages for something as simple as a TILA (truth-in-lending) violation, miscalculation, or omission.

For additional information, please visit http://www.northwestcapitaladvisors.com

It perhaps seems undisputed that we are now in a buyer's real estate market nationally and locally. According to recent statistics provided by RealtyTrac; the foreclosure rate is up 88% in Washington since last year alone. While these might certainly be troubling times for the economy overall, this is perhaps the best opportunity many of us will ever have to buy a home at a deep discount. While many buyers may want to acquire a foreclosure they may not know where to begin. We will carefully evaluate each property via a search of the MLS, public records, comparables, and title search. An automated valuation report or broker's price opinion can also be generated. We provide a physical site inspection and supply you with color photographs and any notes regarding the condition of the property. All data is provided in a customized report sent via email with a 24-hour turn-around. We will also work with you to help remove hold-over occupants. Purchasing a property with undesired occupants presents a whole new set of risks. We also can provide buyers with access to financing to acquire short sales, pre-foreclosure, and trustee sale properties. Investors no longer need to show up with cash to close the deal!

For additional information; visit www.shortsaleinvestmentgroup.com

By Joel Barth:

Foreclosures are increasing nationwide, and so are scams that promise to "rescue" homeowners from foreclosure. What these scams do is take your money, ruin your credit record, and wipe out any equity you have in your home.

Foreclosure con artists take advantage of people who have fallen behind on their mortgages and face foreclosure. Con artists know that people in these situations are vulnerable and likely to be desperate. Potential victims are easy to find: mortgage lenders publish notices before foreclosing on homes. After reading such notices, con artists approach their targets in person, by mail, over the telephone, or by e-mail. They advertise their services on Web sites or publications. They often refer to themselves with titles that sound official, such as "foreclosure consultant" or "mortgage consultant," and market themselves as a "foreclosure service" or "foreclosure rescue agency."

Your mortgage lender - or any legitimate financial counselor - can help you find real options to avoid foreclosure. If someone offers to negotiate with your lender and offers to arrange to stop or delay foreclosure for a fee, carefully check his or her credentials, reputation, and experience. To protect yourself, follow the recommendations contained in this Consumer Advisory.

WATCH OUT FOR FORECLOSURE RESCUE SCAMS

Lease-Back or Repurchase Scams - Be very suspicious if someone offers to pay your mortgage and rent your home back to you. This scheme often involves signing the deed to your home over to the con artist. The con artist may promise to sell your home back to you, but this may be very difficult, if not impossible, under the terms of the contract.

Signing over the deed gives the con artist the power to evict you, raise your rent, sell the house, or steal the equity you have in your home. You will still be responsible for your mortgage, so if the con artist stops paying it, your lender would have the right to foreclose on your home, and the foreclosure and any other problems would go on your credit record.

Refinance Fraud - Look out for people posing as mortgage brokers or lenders and offering to refinance your loan so you can afford the payments. Con artists may trick you into signing over the ownership of your home by saying that you are signing documents for a new loan.
Signing over the deed to your home exposes you to the dangers described above. Even if you are a victim of fraud, you could still lose your home.

Bankruptcy Schemes - Several scams attempt to abuse the bankruptcy laws. For example, a con artist may ask you to give a partial interest in your home to one or more persons. Each holder of a partial interest can then file bankruptcy, one after another. The bankruptcy court will issue a "stay" order each time to stop foreclosure temporarily. However, the stay does not excuse you from making payments or from repaying the full amount of your loan. In another kind of scam, a con artist may offer to obtain refinancing or negotiate a payment plan with your lender. If you may make payments to the con artist, he or she may keep the money rather than pay the lender on your behalf. The con artist may even file a bankruptcy case in your name, without your knowledge, as a part of the scam. Bankruptcy laws provide important protections to consumers. Scams can only temporarily delay foreclosure, and they may keep you from using bankruptcy laws legitimately to address your financial problems. Signing over ownership of your home, or even partial ownership, can result in serious financial harm.

HOW TO PROTECT YOURSELF FROM SCAMS

Know what you are signing. Read and understand every document you sign. If a document is too complex, seek advice from a lawyer or an approved, trusted financial counselor. Never sign documents with blank spaces that can be filled in later. Never sign a document that contains errors or false statements, even if someone promises to correct them later.

Get promises in writing. Oral promises and agreements relating to your home are usually not legally binding. Protect your rights with a written document or contract signed by the person making the promise. Keep copies of all contracts you sign. Make your mortgage payments directly to your lender or the mortgage servicer. Do not trust anyone else to make mortgage payments for you.

Be very careful about signing over your deed. Foreclosure scams often require you to sign over ownership of your home to a con artist or another third party. Never sign over your deed without getting the advice of your own lawyer, financial advisor, or other independent person that you know you can trust. Understand the terms of the deal you are making. By signing over your deed, you lose your rights to your home and any equity built up in the home.

Report suspicious activity to the Federal Trade Commission and to your state and local consumer protection agencies. Reporting con artists and suspicious schemes helps prevent others from becoming victims.

HOW TO FIND LEGITIMATE HELP FOR YOUR FINANCIAL PROBLEMS

Contact your mortgage lender or mortgage servicer as soon as you think you are unable to make your mortgage payment. Lenders are often in the best position to help, especially if you are current on your loan or not seriously late on your payments. Your mortgage lender or mortgage servicer may be able to identify options to help you bring the loan current or to modify your loan.

Contact a legitimate housing or financial counselor to help you work through your financial problems. To find one:

Call (800) 569-4287, or visit www.hud.gov/offices/hsg/sfh/hcc/hccprof14.cfm to find counselors approved by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

Call the Homeownership Preservation Foundation at (888) 995-HOPE, or visit www.995hope.org, to reach a nonprofit, HUD-approved counselor through HOPE NOW, a cooperative effort of mortgage counselors and lenders to assist homeowners.

Visit the following Web sites for information:

NeighborWorks America, www.nw.org/network/home.asp.

Federal Trade Commission, www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/homes/rea04.shtm

The bottom line is that help is out there but you need to take action. Don't be like a deer caught in the headlights!

For Additional Information:

http://www.shortsaleinvestmentgroup.com