Realtors® Pledge Assistance for Obama Guidelines on Foreclosure Fixes

WASHINGTON, March 04, 2009

The following is a statement by National Association of Realtors^® President Charles McMillan:

“NAR’s 1.2 million members are eager to help make President Obama’s Making Home Affordable plan a reality. We are pleased that the president released the guidelines today for refinancing and mortgage loan modifications and that the guidelines will be implemented immediately to help struggling homeowners as well as millions of eligible homeowners who have stayed current in their mortgage payments.

“Housing stabilization must be the key component of any federal recovery plan. Helping families keep their homes is critical to this effort and for the health of our economy and communities across the country.

“NAR has long called for a multipronged approach to address the housing and economic crisis. Allowing eligible homeowners to refinance or modify their loans will help millions of families avoid foreclosure. This in turn will support the housing recovery by slowing the growth in inventory due to foreclosures. Lowering unsold inventory will help stabilize home prices and values. We believe that the incentives the loan modification plan offers to borrowers and loan servicers will encourage additional loan modifications, reducing the default rate.

“Moving forward, we must not only work to prevent foreclosures, but also bring financially healthy home buyers to the market to further reduce unsold inventory. Toward this end, we hope that the president and his administration will continue to look for new and creative approaches that will lower interest rates for all homeowners and buyers.”

For more detailed information on the Making Home Affordable plan, visit www.financialstability.gov.

Posted by on March 11th, 2009 6:07 PMPost a Comment (0)

New Home From Work Brochure for Employers

March 3rd, 2009 7:46 AM

NAR has developed a new brochure for Realtors® to give to employers to explain the Home From Work program and employer-assisted housing benefits. The brochure is downloadable from the Home From Work web site and can be customized with your contact information. Download the brochure.

Give me a call if you have any questions, 405-315-7965, Josh.

Posted by on March 3rd, 2009 7:46 AMPost a Comment (0)

FHA and Conforming Loan Limits Released

February 27th, 2009 4:57 AM

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has released new FHA and conforming loan limits based on changes enacted last week as part of the massive economic stimulus bill.

Under the legislation, loan limits in high-cost areas are increased to $729,750, the same as last year. They had dropped to $625,500 this year before passage of the legislation.

In a Mortgagee Letter released yesterday on the change, HUD says the new loan limit for an area will be based on market calculations from either this year or last year, whichever is the higher of the two calculations

Given current market conditions, many areas are staying at the 2008 mortgage limit.

The loan limits can be accessed in a searchable form on HUD's Web site.

Source: REALTOR® Magazine Online

If you have any questions about this article or Real Estate in general, give me a call at 405-315-7965, Josh.

Posted by on February 27th, 2009 4:57 AMPost a Comment (0)

HUD APPROVES $29.9 MILLION NEIGHBORHOOD STABILIZATION PLAN FOR STATE OF OKLAHOMA

February 24th, 2009 9:16 PM

OKLAHOMA CITY - U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan today announced the approval of the State of Oklahoma’s plan to use its $29,969,459 allocation under HUD's new Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP).

HUD's Neighborhood Stabilization Program was created under the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 and provides nearly $4 billion to all 50 States, Puerto Rico, the District of Columbia and 250 cities and counties experiencing particularly high foreclosure problems and risk of property abandonment. The program permits these State and local governments to purchase foreclosed homes at a discount and to rehabilitate or redevelop them in order to respond to rising foreclosures and falling home values.

State and local governments can use their neighborhood stabilization grants:

To acquire land and property;
To demolish or rehabilitate abandoned properties;
And/or to offer downpayment and closing cost assistance to low- to moderate-income homebuyers (household incomes not to exceed 120 percent of area median income).

In addition, these grantees can create "land banks" to assemble, temporarily manage, and dispose of vacant land for the purpose of stabilizing neighborhoods and encouraging re-use or redevelopment of urban property.

The NSP Program also seeks to prevent future foreclosures by requiring housing counseling for families receiving homebuyer assistance. In addition, the Agency seeks to protect future homebuyers by requiring States and local grantees to ensure that new homebuyers under this program obtain a mortgage loan from a lender who agrees to comply with sound lending practices.

Thinking about Real Estate Investments, call me at 405-315-7965, I can take care of your portfolio, Josh.

Posted by on February 24th, 2009 9:16 PMPost a Comment (0)

100 best places to live and launch: #93: Edmond, Okla.

February 13th, 2009 2:02 PM

Population: 74,400
Pros: Great for families, low unemployment
Con: Downtown lacks residential housing

While many of the residential communities near Oklahoma City are family-friendly, Edmond, located 15 minutes outside of the hub, is attractive to business, too. The city is "growing rapidly on both the commercial and residential sides," says Michael Ogan, director of business development at the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber. Retail is big, but so are education, healthcare, and financial services. Ogan also points to the educated workforce - more than half of Edmond's population has a college degree.

Local business owners can network on the city's superlative golf courses, and relax at nearby Arcadia Lake (great for boating and camping) or at one of the weekly farmers markets. Their families enjoy excellent healthcare and schools - test scores rank well above the national average. -Mina Kimes

Posted by on February 13th, 2009 2:02 PMPost a Comment (0)