SHERRI SCHWARTZ
HOMESMART
602 390-0083

RSS Feed Metro Phoenix real estate agents fight new MLS data system Many metro Phoenix real-estate agents have been dealing with data and technology glitches over the past few weeks. The problems affected several home sales in the region, according to blogs, tweets and Facebook postings. Local agents’ main source for marketing homes and tracking numbers on comparable sales is the Arizona Regional Multiple Listing Service, or ARMLS. A few months ago, the Realtor-owned group decided to change its data provider and system from IMAPP to Corelogic’s Realist. Neither firm is based in Arizona, but IMAPP receives its Arizona data from local providers. The changeover happened earlier this month, and within hours, real-estate agents were ... read the rest of this post Homeowners eligible $26 billlion don't have to wait for lenders to call them Last week’s $26 billion dollar settlement with the nation’s five largest lenders continues to receive mixed reviews. Some critics don’t think the deal went far enough; others don’t believe it’s the right way to help homeowners. Others are just glad lenders are being held more accountable for bad foreclosure practices. Many homeowners eligible for some of Arizona’s $1.6 billion piece of the deal don’t want to wait for lenders to contact them, particularly since the lenders have three years to handle the settlement. The Arizona Attorney General’s office listed contact numbers for the five lenders involved in the settlement. Housing advocates are ... read the rest of this post Ariz. legislation to help underwater homeowners re-introduced Legislation to launch a program allowing Arizona homeowners, underwater on their mortgages reduce their interest rates and monthly payments, has been re-introduced. Formerly known as Senate Bill 1039, the new legislation is SB 1451. It’s ardently backed by Sen. Michelle Reagan, R-Scottsdale, and passed the Senate’s Committee on Banking and Insurance earlier this week. Reagan’s program stalled last year in the Arizona Housing Commerce Committee. Then the senator said she wasn’t giving up because “too many Arizona homeowners are doing the right thing and paying their mortgage when they owe so much more than their house is worth.” The new bill creates the Arizona ... read the rest of this post Home prices climb in Phoenix Metro Phoenix’s median existing home price climbed again in January to $121,500, according to the Information Market.  The region’s home values ended the year on a high note when the median climbed to $120,000 after falling to $112,000 last August. The recent increases come after a triple dip for the region's home values. But many housing market analysts are confident metro Phoenix is past the market's bottom and should keep slowly improving. I'll keep tracking the numbers... ... read the rest of this post Arizona to get $1.6 billion from natl. lender settlement, $10 million from BofA lawsuit Arizona will receive $1.6 billion of the $26 billion settlement over bad foreclosure practices that government officials reached with the nation’s biggest lenders today. Separately, the state will receive $10 million from Bank of America to settle its  lawsuit over alleged mortgage fraud the Arizona Attorney General filed against the lender in December 2010. The settlement of that lawsuit, reached late last night, had to happen for Arizona to participate in the national settlement. BofA is also part of the nationwide settlement. The $26 million deal is the largest industry settlement since the multistate tobacco deal reached in 1998. The money will ... read the rest of this post

There are major differences in completing a short sale than going into foreclosure

ISSUE	FORECLOSURE	SUCCESSFUL SHORT SALE
Future Fannie Mae Loan- Primary Residence	A homeowner who loses a home to Foreclosure is ineligible for a Fannie Mae backed mortgage for a period of 5 years.	A homeowner who successfully negotiates and closes a short sale will be eligible for a Fannie Mae backed mortgage after only 2 years.
Future Fannie Mae Loan- Non Primary	An investor who allows a property to go to Foreclosure is ineligible for a Fannie Mae backed investment mortgage for a period of 7 years.	An investor who successfully negotiates and closes a short sale will be eligible for a Fannie Mae backed investment mortgage after only 2 years.
Future Loan with any Mortgage Company	On any future 1003 application, a prospective borrower will have to answer YES to question C in Section VIII of the standard 1003 that asks “Have you had property foreclosed upon or given title or deed in lieu thereof in the last 7 years?” this will affect future rates.	There is no similar declaration or question regarding a short sale.
Credit Score	Score may be lowered anywhere from 250 to over 300 points. Typically will affect score for over 5 years.	Only late payments on mortgage will show and after sale mortgage will be reported as paid or negotiated.  This will lower the score as little as50 points if all other payments are being made.  A short sale’s affect can be a brief as 12 to 18 months.
Credit History	Foreclosure will remain as a public record on a person’s credit history for 10 years or more.	Short sale is not reported on a credit history.  There is no specific reporting item for ‘short sale’.  The loan is typically reported ‘paid in full, settled’.
Security Clearances	Foreclosure is the most challenging issue against a security clearance outside of a conviction of a serious misdemeanor or felony.  If a client has a foreclosure and is a police officer, in the military, in the CIA, Security, or any other position that requires a security clearance in almost all cases clearance will be revoked and position will be terminated.	A Short Sale on its own does not challenge most security clearances.
Current Employment	Employers have the right and are actively checking the credit regularly of all employees who are in sensitive positions.  A foreclosure in many cases is ground for immediate reassignment or termination.	A short sale is not reported on a credit report and is therefore not a challenge to employment.
Future Employment	Many employers are requiring credit checks on all job applicants.  A foreclosure is one of the most detrimental credit items an applicant can have and in most cases will challenge employment.	A short sale is not reported on a credit report and is therefore not a challenge to employment.