I believe it’s healthy to take a step outside and perhaps even laugh at ourselves so as not to be caught up in our own pride. Let’s face it; we are where we are. It’s time to fess up, identify it, and move forward.
Citigroup’s expected to announce a $24 Billion write down this week for the fourth quarter and Merrill Lynch, $15 Billion. They’re both running around trying to raise some cash and these losses are largely mortgage related. My question is: what about the home values, circumstances, and predicament for the individual homeowners? Are they quick to fess up?
As the owner of a mortgage company in Florida and taking a lead role in bringing healing back in the marketplace, I’m confronted with this issue daily. So, please don’t misjudge this post. It’s a serious issue. Nevertheless, I’m compelled to take a step outside and laugh at the insanity of the situation to help keep my sanity and boost the morale of my cohorts.
I don’t know how many of you remember the comedian Jeff Foxworthy and his “you might be a redneck” one-liners. They all go something like this:
“If your working television sits on top of your non-working television, you might be a redneck.”
Now for my version of “you might be a short sale.”
“If your mortgage balance is here” (raises hand up high) “and your property value is here” (lowers hand) “you might be a short sale.”
“If you work at Burger King and live in the Taj Mahal, you might be a short sale.”
“If you tap your left front pocket and say ‘checking’ and tap your right front pocket and say ‘savings’, you might be a short sale.”
“If you pay your mortgage payment with your credit card, you might be a short sale.”
Posted by Paul – Florida Short Sales
Meeting mortgage payments with credit cards hits right home. That is what is happening since equity is no longer an option…
Quote:”My question is: what about the home values, circumstances, and predicament for the individual homeowners? Are they quick to fess up?”
So true. They will sweep it all under the carpet and by the time people ask questions and point fingers, the market will be back to normal. By the way, I like the Burger King/Taj Mahal short sale one liner. That one is the best. I fit under the left pocket/ right pocket one.
Paul — funny and to the core of the problem.
Prepare to be copied everywhere.
Good one, Paul.
Since you raise the issue, here’s a fantastic post by Tanta over at Calculated Risk that gives the short sale perspective from another angle. There are all sorts of good reasons for using the short sale tool. Tanta helps those who are unfamiliar with back office servicing protocol understand why some short sales move more quickly than others.
http://calculatedrisk.blogspot.com/2008/01/phone-hustlers-dislike-short-sale.html
Hey Diane, are you trying to threadjack me?
j/k
I enjoy reading CR & Tanta’s commentary.
And yes, there are a whole lot more angles than what I’ve listed in my post. I hold online seminars for homeowners who want to know How To Avoid Foreclosure
Holy crow! Sorry, it never crossed my mind. YOI!
“If when your mortgage company calls and asks if you’ve made a payment, you say ‘it never crossed my mind’, you might be a short sale.”
LOL
Just in case anyone else did not know what threadjack meant. I am in the middle of cyber evolution…lol. I realize that this action is a threadjack so please accept my apologies up front.
Threadjack:
To take over the content of a message thread by changing the subject of discourse to a topic outside the purview of the original subject and/orforum, while maintaining the subject line. A form of amusement for trolls. Threadjacking is distinguished from flaming, as flames are a quasi-personal attack on a poster or on a poster’s style of discourse, where threadjacking is deliberatly steering the discussion offtopic.
OK, well now we really did it.
Hey, Paul. When there is a second mortgage, you are negotiating with the second lender directly, aren’t you? I mean as opposed to the first mortgage lender contacting the second.
Thank you for the definitions Howard. And equally important is the definition of j/k
Diane, if the 1st and 2nd are with different lenders then we will only agree to work the deal if the first is NOT shorting.
The 1st will likely limit $1k to discharge the junior lien and the 2nd typically wants an amount higher than that (i.e. 10% of the balance).
Ah, good rule of thumb. I’ve seen lots of folks spend a whole lot of wasted time pursuing a short on a first without ever talking with the second. We don’t get the order until they’re in the thick of it and it doesn’t end pretty.
Just because an applicant makes say $100k/yr, doesn’t necessarily mean he qualifies for a mortgage loan. In the same way [and contrary to the levity of this thread], just because someone is upside down in a property, doesn’t necessarily mean he qualifies for a short sale.
Ultimately, short sale success will be a function of the BPO and lender/MI co.’s decision, but just as a LO can mitigate the percentage chance of decline for a prequal, a short sale expert can do the same by pre-qualifying the seller by hardship, financial statement, loan type, required net, liens, etc.
“If you’ve worked in the mortgage business in the last 12 to 18 months, you might be a short sale….”
“If you’re in sales and can’t tell your target market a funny joke, you might be a short sale.”
Ouch! I was in the mortgage business for 18 years! I’m qualified to say that!
…all kidding aside, I was a victim of the current mortgage mess and have lots of friends in trouble as a result of it. It’s not just the borrower’s who are suffering.
I was “taking a step outside to laugh.”