Charlotte Short Sale Advisors

Are you in need of home loan assistance? Do you have a Bank of America home loan? You may be in luck!

BofA has recently launched a new website dedicated to helping its loan customers no matter what situation they may be in. Whether you think you may miss a payment soon, just missed one home loan payment, missed more than one loan payment or have received a forclosure notice. This easy to navigate website will give you assistance into understanding your situation and where to go from there.

 www.bankofamerica.com/homeloanhelp

To find a real estate agent who will understand what you are going through and can help you through a short sale process or relocating, click here.

Have you thought about looking for an “”easy-fix” for mortgage problems you are experiencing? Don’t sign up for just any program. Due to an increasing amount of scams that take advantage of homeowners, the Federal Trade Commissio FTC has issued regulations protecting consumers against relief fraud. 

Everyone could benefit from learning about these regulations and by downloading this free report you can protect yourself from potentially fraudulent activity.

A recent article by Carrie Bay for DSNews published on March 24th, 2011 stated a survey has found that nearly half of economists see a double-dip in home prices happening before year-end. 111 economists and real estate experts were polled and none of them foresee property values recovering for at least five years. The following is an excerpt from this article,

“The survey was conducted by New Jersey-based MacroMarkets, which was founded by Robert Shiller, real estate sage and namesake of the closely-watched Case-Shiller Home Price Index.

‘Overall, the sentiment among our expert panel regarding the U.S. housing market outlook continues to deteriorate,” Shiller said. “Now they are expecting only a weak recovery, and even that is not until 2013.’

Shiller added, ‘This uninspiring view must be influenced by the persistently weak market fundamentals – high

Just a few months ago, in December 2010, a similar survey showed only 15 percent of economists predicting a double-dip. Terry Loebs, MacroMarkets managing director gives insight in the DSNEws article,

“Loebs believes many more experts are now projecting a double-dip after witnessing what he describes as “the double-dead cat bounce” that came in the wake of expired government stimulus programs, namely the homebuyer tax credits.

The half of the panel that’s forecasting a new low for home values may not be too far off base.

Loebs notes that after weak performance in the last quarter of 2010, actual home prices at the national level are now less than 1 percent away from establishing a new post-crash low, and several firms that conduct regular price studies have already warned that the numbers are edging dangerously close to double-dip territory.”

Full Article

For more information on affordable and available homes in Charlotte NC Metro & Surrounding Areas.

The research firm, Capital Economics, has found that housing has never been this undervalued, according to an article by Carrie Bay published in DSNews. The following is an excerpt from the article.

“The continuing depreciation of residential property values at the end of last year has made housing look more undervalued relative to income than ever before, according to analysts at the research firm Capital Economics.

Based on the latest Case-Shiller home price index, Capital Economics’ study shows that in the fourth quarter of 2010, housing was 21 percent undervalued when compared with disposable income per capital.

Looking at data included in the index published by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), the firm found that housing in Q4 was 15 percent undervalued as measured against individuals’ disposable income.

Capital Economics says its results illustrate “housing is exceptionally undervalued,” and the gap is getting bigger. In its third quarter 2010 report, the research firm pegged the Case-Shiller index readings as 19 percent undervalued and the FHFA index as 14 percent below what would constitute a balanced housing value in relation to income.

The recent fall back in house prices, coupled with low rates, explains why the initial monthly mortgage payment on a median priced house bought with a 20 percent down payment has fallen to a record low of 13 percent of the median income, Capital Economics pointed out in its report.”

With home prices hitting a new cycle low in 29 states in the fourth quarter of last year housing now appears to be closer to fair value when set against rents.

“Such favorable valuations mean there is plenty of scope for housing to perform well in the medium-term, according to Capital Economics, but over the next year, the firm says the combination of weak demand, high supply, and more forced sales of foreclosed properties will push prices lower.”

With the sharp fall of the mortgage delinquency rate at the end of 2010, there will be fewer homes in the foreclosure pipeline but the increase of defaulted properties still in process means home values will continue to be negatively effected by these distressed properties for a while. In addition to the low prices, mortgage rates have recently been on the decline as well. When you add low mortgage rates into the equation with declining home prices, Capital Economics says, “The incredibly favorable affordability and valuation environment is the housing market’s one big positive.”

Full Article

For information on finding affordable and available homes in the Charlotte Metro and surrounding areas, contact Showcase Realty.

Nancy Braun, Owner and Broker-in-Charge of Showcase Realty, LLC will be on the 10:00pm news on FOX News Charlotte speaking on luxury short sales in the Charlotte, NC area. Make sure to tune in – we will also be posting this video in the near future.