Weekly News Round-Up

Let’s start off with some good news for a change! According to an Associated Press story yesterday, mortgage companies (in all their wisdom) will be expediting applications for homeowners in trouble. This means that if you are a borrower who is defaulting on a loan, and you apply for loan modification or a new kind of loan, that the lending agency will (hopefully) respond to you in a reasonable amount of time. Mind you, this is not binding legislation, it is a voluntary effort on the part of the lenders, but it could help ease the anxiety many mortgagees feel when in arrears and close to losing their home.

Warning: I am wearing my cranky pants today. Beware. Yahoo Finance ran a piece by Walden Siew of Reuters that is probably meant as strictly a report on business losses due to the mortgage crisis. Some may feel it is an attempt to pity the banks, lenders, and credit corps that are getting financially spanked. I, on the other hand, just felt angry. The article, “Home price drop means $4 trillion in lost capital,” explains about the huge losses facing the financial markets. To me, these markets created the problem, gambled on the backs of homeowners, lent fraudulently, and are now taking a hit. Of course it is a write-off, or write-down, or whatever financial analysts call it, but I refuse to feel sorry for them. They, like many homeowners, gambled and lost. The difference being they can take tax write-offs, have other investments to keep them afloat, and will probably get government help on some level, whereas the little guy gets screwed.

Speaking of the mortgage crisis, Bloomberg.com reports the FBI is shifting agents in certain field offices from investigating general financial crimes to focusing on mortgage fraud. Hot spots include Florida, Georgia, California, Nevada, Arizona, Texas, New York, Ohio, Michigan, Illinois, Indiana and Minnesota. With a 31% increase in potential mortgage crimes, agents will probe loan-origination fraud, both on the part of borrowers and lenders.

Sue McAllister, over at The Square Feet blog, has an interesting post on home insurance that all of you should read. “Getting to know your ‘limitations and exclusions,’ and other mysteries of homeowners insurance” is a good reminder that we need to document our contents, on paper, photos, video, in order to be properly reimbursed should a disaster (natural or otherwise) occur. Let this be the stimulus that calls us to action. Plan to spend a few hours this weekend documenting inventory: write down all valuable items, document with camera or camcorder, and tuck all safely away in your safety deposit box. Doesn’t hurt to be prepared. Good going, Sue.

The headline on Dataquick this week is “Southland home sales back to record low; median price slips again.” Not the news you wanted to hear, I expect. The article starts of with some good news for sellers, followed by some bad, but buyers should be happy: “Bargain shoppers helped push Southern California home sales higher in May compared with April – a normal, seasonal lift – but it was still the slowest May in more than 20 years. The median price paid fell a record 27 percent from a year ago, the result of sluggish high-end sales, more sellers dropping their asking prices and lenders selling off more of their aggressively priced, repossessed homes.” With median home prices hitting $370,000 last month, more buyers should be getting on the bandwagon, so you sellers just need to be patient.

Zillow Blog reports that San Diego real estate company Wellsford Realty is offering an unusual incentive for gay couples in California or those who might venture to California to take advantage of the recently passed same-sex marriage law: If you buy a home, condo, or vacation home using their servicesin the San Diego area, you will get your wedding reception or honeymoon paid for by the realty company. Dubbed “Pride Promotion,” newly married couples under the Same Sex Marriage Law in California can now have a place to call home in California with one call to Wellsford Realty. (Wellsford Realty extends the offer to traditional couples as well.) Wellsford will even provide a concierge service assisting with the marriage license, wedding reception and honeymoon plans. (The caveat is that Wellsford Realty will rebate 33% of its commission which can be used to celebrate on the wedding day or to plan that long-awaited perfect honeymoon.)