Quality Office Space Available in Eltingville

Quality Office Space Available in Eltingville.

4350 Hylan Blvd between Richmond Ave and Seacrest Ave. Click here for map

Lower Level is currently available and set up as two offices but it can be converted to suit any needs. Upper Level is a Dentist office and is not available. Call 917-731-6547 for information on monthly rent, common charges and any other questions.

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July 2010 – Updated Government Loan Modification Stats

Since I was a little late on the June stats, I already have the July 2010 number for the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) ready to go.

• Successful Completions are at 421,804, up from 389,000 in June
• Program Drop-outs are at 630,000, up from 530,000 in June.
• The program now has a dropout rate of over 48% of the 1.3 million applicants

July 2010 Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) Stats

The finger-pointing continues, as the banks blame the government for rushing unqualified applicants into the modification process and the government denies placing any pressure. But the reality is that the government and banks were both forced to act quickly at the onset of the financial crisis. That fact continues to lead to an increasing rate of applications being drop from HAMP.

And where will the majority of these applicants end up? Sadly, most will end up in foreclosure. The backlog of applicants that will ultimately be dropped will set off a wave of foreclosures that will last for years to come.

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June 2010 – Updated Government Loan Modification Stats

The Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) continues to perform much worse than originally forecasted by the Obama Administration.

Over 1.2 million Americans have started the government backed Loan Modification Program as of the end of June, of which 389,000 homeowners (31%) have completed the process and 531,000 (43%) have been dropped. The number of homeowners dropping out has increased by 91,000 from the prior month. This negative trend has been continuing the past few months. 

What’s most troubling about the updated data we get each month is that certain elements were reported incorrectly. The actual number of permanent modifications that have lasted more nine months through the end of May was just 4,764. And 14.9 percent of those borrowers re-defaulted again. The original number was 2.4 percent, more than 6 times less.

The number of permanent modifications for borrowers that have lasted at least six months is 53,041. Of those about 6.1 percent have re-defaulted, up from the originally reported 1.7 percent. And these stats only include those that are 90 days or more late. There are plenty of other borrowers in the nine-month and six-month categories that are 60 or more days behind – 19.6 and 10.1 percent, respectively.

How does this kind of mistake happen?

“We are confident that this data table correctly reflects the performance of the permanent modifications over time. Early program results indicate that the vast majority who receive permanent modifications through HAMP benefit from them and remain in the program,” said Treasury spokesman Mark Paustenbach.

Fannie Mae spokesman Brian Faith said his company found “an issue in its implementation of the delinquency statistic methodology.”

“Fannie Mae has now corrected the implementation and validated the revised table through review and verification by an independent third-party consultant contracted by Fannie Mae’s Internal Audit Group,” Faith said.

Well, we’ll hope the folks at Fannie don’t have the same issues for the next reporting period. Wall Street will be heavily scrutinizing these numbers and will surely bring to light any faults in the “delinquency statistic methodology.”

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Just Reduced over 50K, Center-hall Colonial in Tottenville

8 Wood Lane

TAX ABATEMENT AVAILABLE FOR APPROX SEVEN YEARS

Click Photo for Additional Media and Enlargement

(Click for Virtual Tour) Status: SeeAgent MLS#: 1061062mv Type: One Family Detached ListPrice: $524,999 Address: 8 WOOD LN YearBuilt: 2009/APROX   STATEN ISLAND, NY 10307 Style: Colonial Area: Tottenville BldgDim: 47X22 County: Richmond BuildingSqFt: 2,064 SqFt Condition: Excellent $/Sqft: $254.36 LotSize: 2,440 SqFt Rooms/Unit: 6/ LotDim: 72X34 Bedrooms: 3 Garage: BuiltIn/2 Car(s), OffStreet, OnStreet TotalBaths: 3 Basement: Full/Finished Full/3/4/Hlf: 1/1/1 Taxes: $0 Zoning: R3-1 Abated: Yes CofO: Y ParcelID: 07996-0001 Rented?: / Directions: ARTHUR KILL ROAD ADJACENT TO MEAGAN LANE

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Habitat for Humanity ranks as 8th largest Home Builder

The not-for-profit group Habitat for Humanity has joined the ranks of the nation’s largest home builders. Habitat was 8th on a recent list released by Builders Magazine, whose rankings were based on number of homes sold and closed in 2009.

While Habitat’s ranking is both surprising and impressive, their sales were still down 3% year-over-year. But if you consider some of the other major homebuilders on the list, like Ryland (down 30%) and Hovnanian (down 50%), you can see why Habitat was ranked for the first time in this highly-watched list.

It’s still likely that this will be a one-time event. Habitat is expected to build approximately 5,000 homes in 2010 while other homebuilders have been ramping up construction. It’s still nice to see a not-for-profit organization gain more recognition, and perhaps result in more donations of time and funds. For example, Wells Fargo donated $8 million in June to fund Habitat’s neighborhood rehabilitation program.

I’ll be back in Newark on July 22nd to help out on a new project. I’ll be updating everyone on that as soon as I can.

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Loan Modification Failures Officially Tip the Scale in May

If you remember from April… (http://www.therealestateledger.com/2010/05/loan-modification-program-has-nearly-as-many-failures-as-successes/):

Over 1.2 million Americans have started the government backed Loan Modification Program, of which 299,000 homeowners (25%) have completed the process and 277,000 (23%) have been dropped. The number of homeowners dropping out has increased from 155,000 the prior month, leaving me to believe that next month will have more failures than successes.

…the Loan Modification Program was about even in terms of successful/unsuccessful completions. The Treasury has released updated figures as of May 2010 and, to no suprise, the increasing rate of failure has continued. The latest figures show the number of failures has risen to 436,000, up from 277,000 last month. The number of successful completions, those leading to permanent loan modifications, has also risen (but at a much slower pace) to 340,000, up from 299,000 the prior month. There are still 464,000 of the total 1.24 million applicants who are in the trial phase. 

The concern resonating from the latest updates is that a large majority of the loan modification failures will result in foreclosures down the line. And if you’ve been following this foreclosure crisis, you’ll know that an increase in foreclosures will put a damper on any type of recover in the housing market.

Look for updates on this subject in the middle of July. I’ll also try to graph the data out again to illustrate the rolling three-month trend.

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Relay for Life – Staten Island – June 11th

Please donate and attend the event on June 11th. All are welcome and you’re support is always appreciated!

http://main.acsevents.org/goto/tledger41

You may also donate via cash and/or check. Every $50 donation enters you into a raffle to win a grand prize of $5000.

2010 Relay For Life of Staten Island, NY
June 11, 2010
Latest Updates

Location:
Wagner College
Staten Island, NY
Event Directions Map

Email: staten.island.relay@cancer.org

The American Cancer Society Relay For Life is a life-changing event that gives everyone in communities across the globe a chance to celebrate the lives of people who have battled cancer, remember loved ones lost, and fight back against the disease. At Relay, teams of people camp out at a local high school, park, or fairground and take turns walking or running around a track or path. Each team is asked to have a representative on the track at all times during the event. Because cancer never sleeps, Relays are overnight events up to 24 hours in length.

Although every Relay For Life is different, there are certain traditions at all Relays, no matter where they are held. These traditions help participants celebrate, remember, and fight back.

Celebrate – The Survivors Lap
Relay starts with a Survivors Lap an inspirational time when survivors are invited to circle the track together and help everyone celebrate the victories we’ve achieved over cancer. The Survivors Lap is an emotional example of how Relay participants are creating a world with more birthdays like those of each individual on the track.

Remember – The Luminaria Ceremony
After dark, we honor people who have been touched by cancer and remember loved ones lost to the disease during the Luminaria Ceremony. Candles are lit inside bags filled with sand, each one bearing the name of a person touched by cancer, and participants often walk a lap in silence.

Fight Back – The Fight Back Ceremony
Last, there is a Fight Back Ceremony, where we make a personal commitment to save lives by taking up the fight against cancer.

No matter where you are, there’s a place for you at Relay and you can make a difference today by signing up online to start your own team or by simply making a donation.

Thanks to Relay participants, we are creating a world with more birthdays a world where cancer can’t claim another year of anyone’s life.

For more information about Relay For Life, visit our Relay For Life information page.

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Four Bedroom Center-Hall Colonial in Tottenville

Here’s the link to the page, which is auto-updated from the MLS. Check it out!

http://www.therealestateledger.com/featured-homes/8-wood-lane-staten-island-ny-mls-1061062/

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Alleviating the Short Sale Headaches

Just some quick updates on the short sale process:

• The government will pay to move you out – the Obama administration will be giving $3,000 for moving expenses for homeowners who complete a short sale or agree to turn the deed over to the lender
• The banks will know the offer they’ll accept – lenders will be forced to set a minimum bid that they will accept before the home is put on the market. If the offer is above that, the lender must accept.
• Short sales will become a bit faster and more frequent –  the change in setting a minimum bid, if followed, should speed up the process and produce short sales for homes that normally sit in limbo until they fall into foreclosure.

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Loan Modification Program has nearly as many Failures as Successes

Over 1.2 million Americans have started the government backed Loan Modification Program, of which 299,000 homeowners (25%) have completed the process and 277,000 (23%) have been dropped. The number of homeowners dropping out has increased from 155,000 the prior month, leaving me to believe that next month will have more failures than successes.

One of the conditions for completing the program is making three payments on time, and when this does happen, borrowers are paying an average of $516 less.

And what about the other 600,000 who have neither finished or dropped out? They are continuing to be caught up in bureaucracy and paperwork. Exactly what I was warning about months ago.

The high number of failures is a bit misleading, however. The majority of dropouts result from the borrower defaulting on the property again. The screening process is to blame here, as borrowers are only asked to verbally detail how much they earn at the beginning of the process. Really?…

Treasury officials will now be directing lenders to require two recent pay stubs before the process even begins. This should result in less failures, but also less applicants. In turn, creating less paperwork and speeding up the applications already in process.

Posted in Foreclosure, Home Owner, Sellers | 1 Comment »