The big myths that are keeping you in debt

If you are sinking into despair because of an avalanche of credit card debt, then this will be the most important article you ever read.

It tells you how to settle your own credit card debts for a fraction of what you owe. How to do get out of card debt and improve your credit. And how you can do that in a few hours, over a period of 18 months be debt free with a good or great FICO score.

You might think that getting out of debt is hard to do.

That it will take your whole life.

That you have to toil every day just to give your money to the lender.

That you'll ruin your credit if you stop paying.

That bankruptcy is the only option.

Have I got news for you.

Why most people are better off settling their own debts the easy way...
Most folks would rather someone else settle their debts. Take the easy way out, and why not? If someone else can do this for you, then it's a lot easier.

But the truth is, you never get as good an arrangement if someone else does this, than if you do it.

You can file bankruptcy, but you may not have to...and why do it if you don't have to? It is quite easy to get out of credit card debts because of the fact you could file bankruptcy...your creditors would rather deal with you and get something rather than nothing.

Bankruptcy is also not a great option because the law was changed and many folks end up in a Chapter 13 which requires them to repay their debts over many years, while paying big legal fees and getting none of the benefits of bankruptcy.

Another option you have is to hire a credit counselor. But these folks don't actually reduce the amount you owe. They simply pass along your payments to the credit card companies. You pay, and pay, and pay. And they do nothing to improve your credit score...in fact, your credit score will get worse if you deal with them, chances are.

Another option is to go to those "debt settlement companies." They charge an arm and a leg. And don't do anything for you that you can't do better, for yourself.

Because the secret is out. Settling credit card debts is not difficult.

Why it's easy to settle your credit card debts

It's easy to turn the tables on your credit cards and deficiency judgments. And get them to play ball with you.

The reason is that they are a toothless tiger. They have to pursue you through a lengthy legal process, and this is both time consuming and expensive. And in the end, what do they get?

A worthless judgment because you can always file for bankruptcy.

The card companies know this. So they only sue maybe 1% of the cases of those who are delinquent. And even if you are unlucky enough to be sued, their records are usually so disorganized that you can easily prevail at trial (a trial that doesn't even require a lawyer.)

Usually, though, you don't get sued. You just get harassed. And there are strict laws that regulate what they can and can't say to you.

You see, if you know how to deal with them, you have the upper hand and there isn't much they can do!

Here's what they don't want you to know...

You are in the driver's seat. It's up to you to pay or not pay your debts. And your credit doesn't need to suffer...it can actually IMPROVE

MONEY. You work hard to earn it. Why
shouldn't you keep it? Settle your credit
card debt for just dime on the dollar-the
easy way.

Anyone can settle you're the worst debts and pay off a fraction of what they owe, without filing for bankruptcy, using my simple step-by-step secrets. Secrets you can learn in one evening or by listening in your car a few times on your way to the office.

Have you tried calling your credit card company? Are you making your payments? Then they will have told you "sorry, we are giving you the best deal we can give you right no."

So they won't deal, right?

And you are concerned about ruining your credit if you stop paying them, aren't you? In fact, you know, deep in your heart, that you will never pay off these cards. Not if you pay according to their terms...because they will keep you in debt forever.

Imagine growing old and having to work. Being weak and tired. And plodding to the mailbox with a check every month. Seeing what could support you in style going into the mail, to pay yet another payment on the endless industrial dreary conveyor belt that will ultimately deliver you til death do you part.

Now, instead of that, imagine you and your partner on vacations paid for by cash. Driving a snazzy late model (but not new) car, all paid for with cash. And when you mail checks to pay bills, it's just a routine and easy matter rather than a heartache. You have a light head because you have no debts in the world.

Can you get from where you are, to that place of all cash, and no stress or money worries?

Yes, I think you can.... fOLLOW THIS LINK TO LEARN HOW

Warren Buffett's Letter to Shareholder's

If you really want to know what's going on in this crazy economic world, read Warren Buffett's letter to his shareholders by clicking here.

Mortgage Help From Saxson Mortgage

For all homeowners who have a mortgage with Saxon Mortgage you may click here.

Some words of caution:

As have stated repeatedly on our blog. All lenders say they want to help. But they will often offer a plan that is in their best interest, not necessarily the homeowner’s.

This is why it is always good to work with a loan Modification Company like Philadelphia Foreclosure Protection Service Solutions. Philadelphia Foreclosure Protection Service Solutions provides services and options unique to each individual homeowner’s needs.

New HECM Loan Limit $625,000

Home Equity Conversion Mortgages

Today, our partners at wsb mortgage infomed us of these changes for HECM's

Under ARRA, the national FHA loan limit for HECM will increase from $417,000 to $625,500 (from 100 percent to 150 percent of the conforming limit). HECM loan mortgagors do not undergo the same procedures for credit approval as do mortgagors for forward mortgages. FHA does not deem the credit approval process to be complete until the HECM loan is closed. Therefore, HECM loans closed on or after the date of this Mortgagee Letter are subject to the higher maximum dollar amounts.

As of today the new lending limit is $625,000 on Reverse Mortgages, get a quote today for those high value homes!
Jeffrey Bangerter
Certified Reverse Mortgage Advisor
President
WSB Mortgage Services, Inc.

Posted February 24, 2009 10 Keys to Getting Real Estate Short Sales

Posted February 24, 2009 10 Keys to Getting Real Estate Short Sales
By Mark David

A real estate short sale is when a lender agrees to sell a property at a price that is less than what is owed.

Although short sales sometimes do result in buyers getting a good deal, they are often murky, nerve-wracking transactions that can overwhelm an uninformed buyer.

Here are 10 things a short sale chaser can do to minimize the risk and agitation that can accompany real estate short sales.

1. Choose carefully. It's important to work with a licensed real estate agent with short sales experience. An experienced agent is invaluable in successfully guiding a novice short sale buyer through the many complexities of this type of purchase.

2. Assess the situation. Many states do not require that sellers market a short sale property as a short sale, so it is important to find out the status of a property before requesting a tour.

3. Be prepared. There’s really no point in a buyer making an offer on a short sale property they will not qualify to purchase. Learn the difference between a pre-qualification and a pre-approval letter. In a traditional property purchase, a seller may proceed with negotiations with a pre-qualification letter. However, a lender on a short sale property will require a pre-approval letter and proof of funds for the down payment and closing costs in order to even look at an offer.

4. Do your homework. Find out who is the title holder of the property, whether the lender has begun foreclosure proceedings, how much is owed to the lender(s) and at what price comparable properties in the area are selling. This will help determine how much to offer on a short sale property. Keep in mind that not all short sales are in default.

5. Grill the listing agent. Do not hesitate to pump the listing agent for vital information about a property. Be sure to ask about the following:

Find out if the seller has been approved for a hardship sell. In order for a seller to qualify for a short sale, they are required to prove to their lender that they cannot afford to keep the property. If the seller has not already been or cannot be approved for a hardship sale, any negotiations between buyer and seller may be moot.
Find out if the bank has approved the asking price. Ultimately, it's the lender who decides what amount they will accept as a short sale. If a home is priced at $500,000 and a lender has not approved that figure as an asking or purchase price, a buyer may just be spinning their wheels making an offer of $450,000 if in the end the bank will require a buyer pay $550,000 in order to accept the short sale.
Find out if the loan has private mortgage insurance, which protects the lender in the event of default. Sometimes it's financially advantageous for the lender to foreclose and collect the insurance rather than accept a short sale.
Find out if the seller has stopped making payments on the property. Although the seller must provide clear title on a property in order to close, sometimes buyers are asked to cover any amounts owed in unpaid mortgage payments, back taxes and liens. Should this happen, buyers should always negotiate for the lender or the seller to cover those costs.
Find out if there are any received offers the seller is currently waiting to hear back from the bank about. If there are already a number of offers on the property, a buyer may choose to back away from the property or they may choose to put in a strong offer knowing they have to rise above any other offers already on the table.

6. Beware of a second mortgage. Find out if there is a second (or third) loan on the property and who holds them. Also be aware of any lines of credit that have been extended to the seller. All lenders and lien holders on a property must approve the short sale price in order for the transaction to close.

7. Do inspections. Short sale properties are typically sold “as is,” and lenders often will not pay for things that sellers usually do such as a home protection plan or a pest/termite inspection. Make sure your contract reserves the right to conduct inspections. Although a buyer is unlikely to convince the seller or the lender to fix any problems that are revealed in an inspection, the buyer should know exactly what issues there are with the property before buying.

8. Get a leg up. Consider taking a mortgage from the same lender that holds the first mortgage. Whatever amount a lender loses on the front end of a short sale is easily made up many times over during the life of the loan. This can be an attractive incentive for the lender to move forward with a particular buyer.

9. Watch your back. Lenders can be capricious, and typically reserve the right to change the terms of a short sale contract at any time. In some cases, the sales contract you submit to the lender is not the same one that is returned. As tedious as it may be, read every word of the bank’s contract and consider having a real estate attorney review the documents because real estate laws differ from state to state. Ask your agent to add a clause to the contract that gives you the option to terminate the contract if the short sale is not approved or closed by a certain date.

10. Relax. Patience is indeed a virtue when it comes to short sales. A short sale transaction moves at the pace of the lender and no one else. Although it is possible to close a short sale in 30 days, many take four to six months and sometimes even longer.

Hear our Financial State of Affairs

December survey statistics unveil numbers that show how bad things were over the holidays.

Dear Ron,

December survey statistics unveil numbers that
show how bad things were over the holidays.

Check this out:

Last month, the AARP released the results from their
December survey:

1. 57% of people aged 45-54 and 63% of people aged 55-64
who suffered investment losses now expect to work
longer because of these losses.

2. 68% of individuals surveyed have cut entertainment
spending.

3. 64% of respondents are going out to eat less.

4. 52% had difficulty covering basic expenses like food,
medicine and gas in 2008.

5. 36% stopped putting money into a 401K or other
retirement account.

6. 17% prematurely withdrew retirement funds

And these are the people who, according to demographics,
have the most money to spend!

So if you're waiting for the economy to rebound soon,
don't. You're going to have to make your own good
times.

Chris McLaughlin

Short Sales As One Solution To The Real Estate Crisis

Eli Tene Issues Open Letter Advocating Short Sales As One Solution To The Real Estate Crisis

Woodland Hills, CA (PRWEB) February 23, 2009 -- Eli Tene, CEO of I Short Sale, Inc., has issued the following open letter to officials of the new government. In it, he notes the failure of current methods to solve the real estate crisis and explains why short sales would minimize losses and help preserve home prices. The text of his letter follows, an official list of recipients of letter available upon request:


foreslosure
An Open Letter to the New Government: Distressed Homeowners Seek an Immediate Change

In the battle against the financial meltdown, the government gives a blank check to banks while being misinformed about what is really going on in this battlefield. Being on the front line as CEO of I Short Sale, Inc., one of the largest private loss-mitigation advisory firms, I can testify that the situation is deteriorating rapidly.

Most banks' modification programs simply dig a deeper hole for the real-estate industry. The homeowner who had interest-only payments ends up paying interest and principal on the existing balance, so his payment just goes higher. Without a balance reduction, the loan modification of today is clearly the foreclosure of tomorrow.

The Short-Sale Solution
The best solution to today's crisis is in short sales, or selling a property for less than the mortgage balance. The advantages:
1. Protecting the homeowner's dignity by avoiding the degrading eviction process.
2. Allowing for a fresh new start at an affordable cost to the homeowner.
3. Minimizing the damage to the homeowner's FICO score, thus allowing for some breathing space in the current credit crisis.
4. Creating tax revenue at the municipal and state levels.
5. Getting the real estate industry moving, thereby providing work to millions of people dependent on this industry.
6. Maximizing recovery for the lender, getting rid of bad paper and minimizing the losses incurred during the expensive foreclosure process.
7. Significantly slowing down the rapid decline in home prices by stopping foreclosures.

I first approached the banks to short sell properties 19 years ago. At that time, they were not aware of the great potential of this tool. There have been hundreds of thousands of short-sale negotiations since then but still loss-mitigation departments don't see their potential.

I propose the following:

For modifications:
1. Force banks to start modifying balances (very few do, and, if they do, it is just for non-performing negative ARM loans). This should apply to all loans, including negative amortization loans, fixed-rate loans and investment properties.
2. Allow interest-only payments in modifications.
3. Allow tax forgiveness, including property owners that don't fall under the owner-occupied category.

For short sales:
1. Provide tax credits to homeowners and investors who buy short sales.
2. Create incentives to lenders who will encourage homeowners and investors in default to short sell properties.
3. Develop a campaign to educate homeowners regarding their options.
4. As with modifications, allow tax forgiveness, including property owners who don't qualify in the owner-occupied category.

I sincerely believe that the government's first priority is to the American people. In order to make a significant impact, however, the government must choose a more direct and more effective method than pouring taxpayer dollars into financial institutions.

As we all know, this matter is urgent and every day that goes by, the situation is getting worse. This is a request to meet with you as soon as possible to present to you these tools in greater depth. Since I assume that you will be in Washington DC, I will be willing to fly to Washington DC to meet with you there. I wholeheartedly believe that this will have a dramatic effect in helping the housing crisis.

What Percentage Of Major Real Estate Markets Have Lost Value In The Past 5 Years?

There’s a really interesting article on today’s CNN Money Real Estate page that makes projections for the next year in the top 100 US real estate markets. In typical CNN fashion, this article is literally 3 months old, even though it’s on the front page of their real estate section for today.

Nevertheless, there’s some really interesting and useful information in the chart (I’ll give you the link in a moment). The most interesting thing to me is this golden nugget:

98 of the top 100 U.S. real estate markets is showing a GAIN in value over the past 5 years. Even Miami (+94.8%), Las Vegas (+60.8%) and Phoenix (+60.9%) are up substantially over the past five years, after factoring in the recent market turmoil!

There are only two major markets that have shown a price decline in the past five years, and both are in Michigan: Detroit and Farmington Hills. Furthermore, most of the cities in the top 100 markets have shown very significant double-digit gains over the past five years.

This is even more data showing that the market weakness experienced right now in some markets across the USA does not represent a fundamental problem with the U.S. real estate market. Rather, the problem is an artificial one created by the over-availability of credit that was in part brought on by poor economic policies espoused and supported by the former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan.

Will the Plan Actually Work?

Unfortunately our friends in the media know little about the housing crisis that we're living through, but let's start talking about this new "Homeowner Affordability and Stability Plan" that was announced by the President.

They are saying that the plan will enable "up to 4 to 5 million responsible homeowners to refinance." That's true...and a great boom for loan officers and title companies, but let's look a little more at these claims that they will stop foreclosures. It helps folks who right now aren't the ones really struggling...and ignores the folks under water on their mortgage beyond 5%.

Let's read directly from the White Houses' summary:

"Consider a family that took out a 30-year fixed rate mortgage of $207,000 with an interest rate of 6.50% on a house worth $260,000 at the time. Today, that family has about $200,000 remaining on their mortgage, but the value of that home has fallen 15 percent to $221,000 - making them ineligible for today's low interest rates that now generally require the borrower to have 20 percent home equity. Under this refinancing plan, that family could refinance to a rate near 5.16% - reducing their annual payments by over $2,300."

Yep, they sure can do that ... but guess what? Most of the folks who will take advantage of this are not the folks that are in foreclosure or currently facing foreclosure! If they have a conventional mortgage with Fannie and Freddie, they aren't the issue right now ... for the most part, the subprime garbage is.

But there's a magic number out there...105%. Yes, that's what we're talking about. If the loan is less than than 105% of its current market value, they might be eligible for refinance. But come on! Most of the people in foreclosure purchased with 100% financing ... you know, the 80/20 loan. Most homes lost at least 15% of value last year, and in California, Nevada, Arizona and Florida, just double that to at least 30%. This plan does nothing for these homeowners.

Now let's think about this further. In order to refinance with Fannie and Freddie, you have to not only have equity in your home (or in this case you can't be under water more than 5%), but you also have the meet the guidelines for a loan refinance. That means you have be employed. You must have a job. NINJA (no income, no job, no assets) loans aren't around anymore. So everyone who just lost their job doesn't qualify for this help.

But is this a good idea, regardless of whether it won't help people facing foreclosure? Yes. If we can reduce mortgage rates that will allow more Americans to have more money in their pockets, which translates to more consumer spending. Frankly I like this idea a lot more than the $400 a year tax credit that will do little to actually help our economy.

Unfortunately, with 80% of distressed properties having a first and second mortgage, modifications for those who were over leveraged is going to be next to impossible unless they've been paying extra payments to bring down their loan balance. So what did Obama signal that he supports?

Cram downs.

What is that?

That's when a bankruptcy court judge steps in and basically modifies loans and cuts its principal. But here's the rub: if you violate the sanctity of contracts, you will add uncertainty to the end investor, which means he's not willing to pay as much for the loan portfolio, which drives up interest rates.

Will cram downs slow short sales?

NO! Come on folks, the reason people do short sales is to save their credit and stop a foreclosure. Do you think those doing short sales want a bankruptcy on their record? No, those are the individuals that don't want to a short sale anyhow ... those are the ones that really want to stay in the home and believe with a modification they can afford it.

What cram downs may do is create an incentive for lenders to approve more short sales and modify more loans. Why? Because they don't necessarily want to roll the dice with a bankruptcy court judge.

But I read that these banks are putting moratoriums on foreclosures? Won't that mean fewer REOs and short sales?

Who owns the majority of loans in trouble? It isn't the banks! It is the investors that purchased these loans. They then hired a servicing company to service that loan on behalf of Collateralized Debt Obligation A23GE63 in Singapore. This is critically important: the majority of homes in foreclosure are not owned by banks, they are owned by investors who bought mortgaged backed securities.

An article in the Wall Street Journal today noted that these investors are now threatening to sue the servicer if they screw up a modification or mishandle a foreclosure. "The securitization has split the interest in the home loan among so many different parties that it is difficult for servicers to make a modification without fear that some significant party may sue or do something else that hurts the servicers," Kurt Eggert, a professor at Chapman University, told the Journal.

So, we've talked about loan refinance and cram downs. What about the modification for those who are in foreclosure? What is that all about?

First, the lender reduces the interest rate on the mortgage to no more than 38% of the borrower's income. (Note: what if they don't have a job...kinda hard to do, huh?)

Second, the government will match dollar for dollar the reduction from 38% to 31% debt to income ratio (government is buying down interest rates, not a bad idea, but the investor has to take the hit getting to 38% which many of them won't do).

Third, lenders must keep the modification in place for 5 years.

In order to incentivize lenders, the government will pay the $1,000 for the initial modification and then will give a $1,000 payment for the next three years if the loan is current.

Then the government will give a carrot to the homeowner of a $1,000 principal reduction for up to $1,000 each year for the next 5 years.

So does this do anything to really stem the foreclosure tide? Unfortunately not really ... because lenders know the nasty statistics that most folks don't want to talk about.

But the New York Times told it to everyone on its front page today. Guess what? Read it for yourself: "The nation's 14 largest banks reported that more than half of the loans they modified last year were delinquent again after just six months, according to the federal bank regulator, the comptroller of the currency."

Yes, after just six months over half of the modifications that were done went back into foreclosure. Why? First of all, a lot of people that never should have been homeowners became homeowners with 100% financing. They aren't ready for the responsibility of owning a home and aren't able to manage their finances accordingly. Second, the economy has a lot of folks wiped out and they've lost their job. And third, after paying for a property that they know is $75,000+ underwater, at some point they just walk from it because it frankly doesn't make economic sense to keep it, especially since their credit is shot already because they've missed so many payments. They can bail out now, rebuild their credit, and buy something again in a few more years (with a short sale they only have to wait 2 years).

So what really happened yesterday? A big mess just got messier. False hope was given to millions of people facing foreclosure that own homes that are never going to get refinanced or modified in a meaningful manner.

contributed by: Chris McLaughlin

Please note: Every homeowner situation is different. To discuss your best options please contact Philadelphia Foreclosure Protection Service Soulutions.

send me an email to ronole@gmail.com

Stop Foreclosure in Philadelphia, Bucks County & Montgomery County, Pennsylvania

8 Out of 10 Homeowners want to keep their homes.

With new policies being implemented in congress, right now is the time to seek professional help in getting you loans restructured.

Every one knows the smartest thing to do is contact your mortgage company right away if miss one or two payments.

Unfortunately, you have to be careful. Lenders are going to suggest plans that get them the most money the fastest, not the best plan for you; the home owner.
This is where we come in.

At Philadelphia Foreclosure Protection Service Solutions we work on behalf of the homeowner to provide a repayment plan in favor of you, the homeowner.

To view our web site, just click the title of this article. Or click right here now.

Uncle Sam May Own 40% of Citigroup

Rumors of nationalization of Citigroup continued today, with a suggestion that the banking giant would convert the government's current 7.8% stake of preferred stock into a stake of 40% of common stock, as reported in today's Wall Street Journal. This would give the government its second largest position in a major financial institution - it now owns 80% of AIG.

CNBC reported today that Citigroup approached the government plan to convert the $45 billion in preferred shares into a new convertible stock which can then be converted over to common equity. This might not call for additional money from the government, but instead it would boost Citigroup's "tangible common equity," or TCE.

The TCE is a measure of a bank's capital and therefore strength. As the Obama administration begins to "stress test" the nation's banks, many believe that the TCE will be a key measure of the health of a bank and is even more important than Tier 1 capital ratios. Currently Citigroup's TCE is 1.5% of assets, but regulators want to see a TCE of at least 3% of more.

And in other banking news, New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo has filed a motion in court today suggesting that Bank of America is improperly interfering with his investigation over the bonuses that were paid to Merrill Lynch's executives before its acquisition by B of A. "Thain claimed that his refusal to answer these relevant questions was based on an instruction from Bank of America; however, Bank of America has no authority to issue such an instruction," said David A. Markowitz, the head of New York's Investor Protection Bureau, in a court filing.

This should come as no surprise to the readers of this letter: the economy is expected to get much worse before it gets better. The National Association for Business Economics suggested that the unemployment rate for the US, which now stands at 7.6%, is headed to 9%. Chris Varvares, NABE President, said: "The steady drumbeat of weak economic and financial market data have made business economists decidedly more pessimistic on the economic outlook for the next several quarters."

contributed by: Chris McLaughlin