Mike’s Real Estate Show

Our foerclosures seem to be limited to production housing areas and certain zip codes. We have a heavily hispanic area where many, many sub-prime loans dominated the buying landscape 2-3 years ago. It’s been a bloodbath there. Both areas are “Westside” areas with the most affordable price points and primarily first time homebuyer neighborhoods and investor activity.
  The “Eastside” of our town seems to be less prone to the scores of foreclosures happening in those other areas though we have had a few in the higher price points $700,000+ which have seen “Short-Sale” issues. Those mega “Option-Arms” where they advertised you could buy a home for $1,000,000 with -0- down and payments based on some slick and sick 1.75% teaser rate!!
  However the first bit of legislation will give way to more substantial bills which might delay the sub-prime asteriod’s crater when it fully hits home. The latest decent bill pastsed Dec 14 and forgives, up to $2,000,000 and for 3 years,  debt forgivness issues on primary residences.
  The “Durbin” bill would have the greatest impact but would force the defaulting or troubled homeowner into Chapter 13 (wager earner’s bankruptcy) and would give the bankruptcy judge the power not only to modify the loan terms but the AMOUNT of the loan! Kinda like doing a short sale to yourself!! There’s going to be “pain” as the homeowner must seek Chapter 13 BK but the end result will be a homeowner who can stay put, not put another “Short-Sale” or “REO” into the mix and get his loan amount reduced to “Market value” and have the terms of the loan, payment, interest rate, changed to suit their work out budget.
  This is huge as the “Equity” issue has always been at the heart of the issue. Now you’ve got protection from debt relief also. The Durbin bill might complete the parlay.