Under new Treasury Department rules that take effecton April 5, short sales will be presented as the next possible step for homeowners who are not applicable for the federal Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP).

By offering this option, the administration is acknowledging that the current mortgage modification effort "can't solve the foreclosure problem by itself," says RealtyTrac chief economist, Rick Sharga. He sees positive points in the new guidelines, such as easier, standardized paperwork, financial incentives for both homeowners and mortgage servicers, and limited payouts for second lineholders.

Short sales are not widely used. According to the National Association of Realtors, in January 2010, only 14% of home transactions were short sales. The new program is doubtful to make the short sale transaction any easier, and while it may increase the number of these transactions, some are saying it won't "live up to the hype."

Read more from RISMedia.

Posted in Education And Training, MBI News

The FHA is tightening its belt when it comes to mortgage loans, on the heels of an investigation into 15 FHA lenders whose FHA mortgage insurance claims were markedly high.

Myriad notices and comments about the impending qualification changes have been announced, but will take effect this spring, including raising mortgage insurance fees that borrowers must pay, capping the amount of cash that sellers can contribute for closing costs and requiring higher down payments for borrowers with poor credit scores.

With foreclosure rates tapering off in February compared to January, there is hope on the horizon, albeit rates are still higher than that of the previous year. The FHA is insuring as many as 50% of all purchase loans, as compared to 3% before the collapse of the subprime market.

With the tighter restrictions on FHA loans, the options for seeking other financing simply don't exist, making some wonder if this will add fuel to the fire to the weakened housing market.

Read more at Realty Times.

Posted in Education And Training, MBI News, Buyer Resources, Seller Resources

The Colorado Mortgage Lenders Association (CMLA) and the Everitt Real Estate Center (EREC) at Colorado State University have developed a brief, online, 13-question survey that you can complete here.

Responses are important as the CMLA will use the results to gauge the mortgage market for Colorado in 2010. The survey closes at 11:59 p.m. on March 19, 2010.

Results will be presented at EREC's next event, "Housing, Mortgages and Regulations, Oh My!" on March 25th at the Hilton in Fort Collins. Erin Toll, Director of the Colorado Real Estate Commission is the keynote speaker for the event.

Survey results will also be available online to CMLA members on March 26th.

Click here for more information and to take the survey.

Posted in MBI News

Metro Brokers Exclusive is a branded sector of Metro Brokers, Inc. that showcases premier homes valued at $500,000 and above. This identity program will mark all homes meeting the criteria with new signage to distinguish the category, while streamlining homebuyers and sellers suited to this value category. Additionally, there is a Web site to list and market homes in this upper-end price division at www.metrobrokersexclusive.com.

"Metro Brokers Exclusive is an incredibly efficient tool for our brokers to distinguish their properties and to recruit new members who solely represent high-end homes," said Mark Eibner, member of the Metro Brokers Trademark Committee and broker/owner of Realty Oasis. "Potential homebuyers will come to recognize the Metro Brokers Exclusive brand as a mark of premium value for homes up front, and will benefit from the ease of accessing listings suited to the category through our dedicated Web site."

The Metro Brokers Exclusive identity is the first major variance from the Metro Brokers signature red and yellow sign in the association's 30-year history. The newly designed logo speaks directly to the upper-end housing market and will feature a maroon and gold Metro Brokers Exclusive logo on a white background. The look is recognizably different, yet maintains its association with Metro Brokers.

MetroBrokersExclusive.com will offer a portal for homebuyers to access these premier listings, and other online features include access to available Metro Brokers REALTORS® participating in the program, and the capability for buyers to schedule a showing, contact brokers, save specific homes in their online portfolio, and print brochures from listings of interest. The Web site will also serve as a database for brokers, providing access to upload images and maintain their own property data including their background, contact information and all listings.

Visit www.metrobrokersexclusive.com or call Mark Eibner at 303-268-6000 for more information.

Posted in Marketing, Exclusive Collection, MBI News, Buyer Resources, Seller Resources

The Federal Housing Finance Agency announced today that it would extend the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) to June 30, 2011.

HARP is administered by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and has refinanced 190,180 mortgages since it began last April. The HARP program expands access to refinancing for qualified individuals and families whose homes have lost value.

Read more in the press release from the Federal Housing Finance Agency.

Posted in MBI News