Defering Capital Gains
Do you remember the old lime-green travel agency at 9661 Las Tunas? You may have known the cute little old couple that ran a travel agency business out of it for 25 years or more. Now, that building is their pension fund. One day a few years ago, as we passed it to get our [...]
We’re going to quit making our mortgage payments . . .”
I’ve heard that from more than one acquaintance in the last few weeks. It’s not because they’ve lost a job, or had a medical emergency, it’s just that it doesn’t make sound financial sense to keep making the payments anymore. Defaulting on a mortgage or credit card has become a cool and calculated financial decision, [...]
Tutti Frutti Real Estate
Be careful what you wish for . . . Every time I went to Europe on a business trip, I would come home longing for the kind of coffee and pastry delicacies you could find on the streets of Paris. I would think, “Wouldn’t it be great if we could find just a little of [...]
To Carry or Not to Carry, That is the Question . . .
When higher end homes don’t sell for the price sellers want, it’s common for them to put their properties up for lease instead, and ‘wait the market out.’ Here’s an email I received recently: “Hi Dawn, I have a home in Illinois that I had for sale last summer that didn’t sell, so I finally [...]
What Lenders Won’t Tell you about Short Sales
The short sale business changes every day, every hour, every minute. We may not have the problems here that many areas do, but no place is untouched from the market. The lenders, investors, collections agencies, government agencies and everyone involved in this mess are still trying to figure out what happened, let alone what is [...]
When Escrow is Falling Apart
This week I got a call from a woman and her husband out in Palm Springs. Her 60 day escrow was turning into a 90 day escrow, and there were still no assurances that the deal was going to close. And she needed it to close. They were running out of money to make the [...]
Owner will Carry
I just got back from Seattle. A client of mine decided to pay for a ‘platinum’ consultation, my plane ticket, and excellent wine. Why? Because, despite the fact that the real estate market in is stronger than most, values have fallen for the upper end properties. It’s hard to move a property that’s listed above [...]
When All Else Fails Do a Rain Dance
As a note broker, I’ve had my share of notes that I simply couldn’t do anything with. Here’s one I was presented with recently: A delinquent seller carry back note secured by commercial property in West Palm Beach, Florida. The original deal looked like this: Purchase price:$510,000 Down payment:$76,500 1st TD:$433,500 Interest rate: 7.5% I/O [...]
A Calm Port in the Perfect Storm
One Example of the Powerful Senior Reverse Mortgage By Steve Aranda I recently got a phone call from a past client of mine. She asked how I’d been doing. I told her about my kids, about business, about the things that people talk about in polite conversation when they haven’t spoken for some time. Appropriately, [...]
Green Shoots or Shot in the Foot
Forget 2010 . . . a major mortgage player predicts falling home prices till 2011. U.S. home prices will likely continue falling all through 2010, says a report from mortgage insurer PMI Group. According to bean counters there, home prices in 30 of the 50 biggest metropolitan areas of the U.S. have at least a [...]