Ed Butler’s Real Estate Blog

Real Estate Issues Tops 2009 List of 2.3 Million Requests for Legal Services

Posted on February 1, 2010 by Ed Butler

During calendar year 2009, Pre-Paid Legal Services provider law firms in the U.S. and Canada received an estimated 2.3 million requests for legal services. Not surprisingly, real estate-related issues topped the list of these requests. This morning we issued a news release on the top five legal service requests for the year. See the entire press release below.

Real Estate Issues Tops 2009 List of 2.3 Million Requests for Legal Services

Pre-Paid Legal’s Top Five Legal Service Requests Highlight Need for Affordable Legal Counsel

ADA, Okla., Feb. 1 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Real estate-related issues was the leading legal service request among members (customers) of Pre-Paid Legal Services, Inc. (NYSE: PPD) during 2009 followed by 2) consumer finance, 3) family law, 4) collections and 5) estate planning. The top five legal service requests for 2009 is based on the total volume of 2.3 million member requests for legal services to the 40 independent provider law firms that assisted Pre-Paid Legal members throughout the U.S. and four provinces of Canada for calendar year 2009.

“The PPD legal service request list offers a unique perspective on the legal issues that Americans and Canadians face on a daily basis,” said Pre-Paid Legal’s Founder and CEO Harland C. Stonecipher. ”Because these members have a Pre-Paid Legal plan, they have access to affordable legal service to help them manage issues such as foreclosure, credit issues, collections and other life events,” he said.

Of the total 2009 requests for legal services, the top five requests account for approximately 45 percent or approximately 1.1 million of the total requests. The remaining 1.2 million requests were for a variety of other legal services such as traffic-related matters, employment issues and civil litigation.

By category, the top five legal service requests include:

Real Estate, Landlord/Tenant Issues and Foreclosure – Approximately 358,000 requests for legal services that include residential and commercial real estate transactions, landlord and tenant issues and legal counsel related to foreclosure and short sales

Consumer Finance – Approximately 195,000 requests for legal services related to retail transactions for warranties, guarantees and other contracts

Family Law – Approximately 193,000 requests for legal services related to divorce, child support, child custody and child visitation

Collections – Approximately 162,000 requests for legal assistance to support members against other parties and to defend members from third-party debt collectors

Estate Planning – Approximately 160,000 requests for legal services for preparation of wills and other counsel related to final estates

See The Entire Press Release Here

Contact Me Today To Get Your Family Covered

Filed under: Pre-Paid Legal | Tagged: Ed Butler, Pre-Paid Legal, RE/MAX Gateway | Leave a Comment »

In Financial Distress with Your Mortgage? Learn How HAFA Can Help Financially Challenged Homeowners

Posted on February 1, 2010 by Ed Butler

This past November, the Treasury Department released guidelines for its new Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives Program (HAFA), designed to help homeowners who are unable to retain their home under the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP). Under HAFA, homeowners may be able to avoid foreclosure by completing a short sale or a deed-in-lieu of foreclosure (DIL). If you or someone you know is having trouble making mortgage payments, understanding this new government program is essential.

As a Member of the Top 5 in Real Estate Network(R), I have consulted with many clients faced with a distressed property situation. The good news is HAFA is designed to simplify and streamline the use of short sales and deeds-in-lieu of foreclosure by improving the process.

Here’s how:

Help homeowners who are HAMP eligible but nevertheless unable to keep their home
Use financial and hardship information already collected in connection with consideration of a loan modification
Allow borrowers to receive pre-approved short sales terms before listing the property
• Require borrowers to be fully released from future liability for the first mortgage debt and if the subordinate lien holder receives an incentive under HAFA, that debt as well
Use standard processes, documents, and timeframes/deadlines
Provide financial incentives: $1,500 for borrower relocation assistance; $1,000 for servicers to cover administrative and processing costs; and up to a $1,000 match for investors for allowing a total of up to $3,000 in short sale proceeds to be distributed to subordinate lien holders

To be eligible for HAFA, homeowners must meet the basic eligibility criteria for HAMP:

The home must be your principal residence
The first lien must have originated before 2009
Mortgage delinquent or default is reasonably foreseeable
The unpaid principal balance cannot exceed $729,750 (higher limits for 2- to 4-unit dwellings).
The borrower’s total monthly payment exceeds 31% of gross income

Under HAFA, the forgiven debt due to a short sale will not be taxed if the amount of forgiven debt does not exceed the debt that was used to acquire, construct, or rehabilitate a principal residence. Check with your tax advisor. Please also know that while the debt will be forgiven, the short sale will be reported to credit agencies and have some degree of negative impact on your credit. Short sale agreements must be executed and returned no later than December 31, 2012.

If you think that you or someone you know can benefit from the HAFA program, please contact me.

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Ed Butler
(Licensed In Virginia)
RE/MAX Gateway
Two Offices For Your Convenience

7521 Virginia Oaks Drive
Gainesville, VA 20155

Brambleton Office Coming
Summer of 2010

4090-B Lafayette Center Drive
Chantilly, VA 20151

When It’s SOLD, The Butler Did It!

Filed under: Active Adult Communities, Ashburn Virginia, Beacon Hill, Belmont Bay, Belmont Country Club, Blooms Crossing, Centreville Virginia, Clifton Virginia, Dominion Valley, Dominion Valley Country Club, Fairfax National Estates, Fairfax Virginia, Fawn Lake, Foreclosures, Gainesville Virginia, Golf and Country Club Communities, HAFA, Haymarket Virginia, Heritage Hunt, Lake Manassas, Lansdowne on the Potomac, Leesburg Country Club, Leesburg Virginia, Manassas Park Virginia, Penderbrook, Piedmont, Piedmont Country Club, Raspberry Falls, Real Esate Information, River Creek, River Creek Country Club, River Falls, Round Hill Virginia, Sellers, Selling My Home, Short Sales, Short Sales & Foreclosures, South Riding, South Riding VA, Stoneleigh Country Club, The Regency at Domion Valley, Tysons Corner, Vienna, Virginia Oaks, Woodbridge Virginia | Tagged: Ed Butler, RE/MAX Gateway, Short Sale, Distressed Property, Foreclosure | Leave a Comment »

How to Help Your Home Stand Out and Sell Faster

Posted on January 22, 2010 by Ed Butler

In today’s buyers market, home-selling clients are always asking me what they can do to help their homes stand apart from the competition. As a Member of the Top 5 in Real Estate Network^®, I have seen how effective home staging can make all the difference in not only a quicker sale but a more profitable sale, as well.

First, it’s important to realize that home staging does not refer to the usual steps taken when your home is placed on the market, like painting the front door, taking away personal photos, and baking something in the oven. Staging, rather, is the professional merchandising of your home. This helps create an instant connection with potential buyers as they walk through the door. Just as new homebuilders create a model home for buyers to envision themselves living in, home staging does the same for your existing home.

Here are some important facts to be aware of before embarking on the home-staging process:

Make sure your home stager is knowledgeable about real estate and, in particular, your local market. Knowing what other homes in your area sold quickly provides the stager with important clues as to what buyers are attracted to.
Real estate agents, especially Top 5 Members like me, are excellent sources for referrals on home stagers in your area. Be sure to ask your neighbors as well.
Staging seeks to minimize the furniture in any given room in order to create the right spacing, while displaying as much floor space as possible. Be prepared with a convenient storage solution before you begin the staging process.
According to the International Association of Home Staging Professionals (IAHSPR), there is a growing trend toward eco-friendly home staging, where stagers provide specific “green” materials to sellers. This creates unique appeal to today’s environmentally conscious consumers.
Home staging is also on the rise among short sale and foreclosure properties where homes might be in need of special care. If you are in a financially challenged situation and need to sell your home, talk to your real estate professional about staging. Certain lenders are working with stagers in order to expedite these types of sales.

In the current real estate climate, homes must be merchandised and marketed wisely.

Selling A Home? Click Here

Buying A Home? Click Here

Ed Butler
(Licensed In Virginia)
RE/MAX Gateway
Two Offices For Your Convenience

7521 Virginia Oaks Drive
Gainesville, VA 20155

Brambleton Office Coming
Summer of 2010

4090-B Lafayette Center Drive
Chantilly, VA 20151

When It’s SOLD, The Butler Did It!

Filed under: Market Information, Real Esate Information, Sellers, Selling My Home, Staging My Home For Sale | Tagged: Ed Butler, Home Staging, Market Information, RE/MAX Gateway, Staging Your Home For Sale | Leave a Comment »

New HUD Policy Created to Allow Quicker Foreclosure Re-sales!

Posted on January 20, 2010 by Ed Butler

Effective February 1, 2010 the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) will relax FHA rules that prohibit insuring mortgages on homes that are owned by the seller for less than 90 days – a move that could help expedite the rehabilitation and resale of foreclosure properties.

In a housing market where tighter lending requirements have made FHA financing the only option for some buyers, this 90-day policy has (1) kept some homebuyers from being able to purchase affordable homes and (2) prevented the quick resale of foreclosed properties, which affects the ability of communities to stabilize and rebuild.

Research has shown that the buying, fixing, and reselling of foreclosed properties is often achieved in less than three months time.

The temporary waiver, which will expand access to FHA mortgage insurance to many, will be in effect for a period of one year, unless extended or withdrawn by the FHA. With this in mind, now may be an excellent time to contact clients who have recently purchased a foreclosed property and those who may be on the fence about purchasing a foreclosure as a short-term investment.

“FHA borrowers, because of the restrictions we are now lifting, have often been shut out from buying affordable properties,” said FHA Commissioner David H. Stevens. “This action will enable our borrowers, especially first-time buyers, to take advantage of this opportunity.”

To ensure FHA borrowers are protected from inflated prices, the policy has certain restrictions, including:

All transactions must be arms-length and there can be no identity of interest between the buyer and seller.
If the sales price of the property is 20 percent or more above the seller’s acquisition cost, the lender must meet specific conditions for the waiver to apply.
The waiver is limited to forward mortgages, and cannot be used under the Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) purchase program.

Read The Full Text Of The Waiver

Selling A Home? Click Here

Buying A Home? Click Here

Ed Butler
(Licensed In Virginia)
RE/MAX Gateway
Two Offices For Your Convenience

7521 Virginia Oaks Drive
Gainesville, VA 20155

Brambleton Office Coming
Summer of 2010

4090-B Lafayette Center Drive
Chantilly, VA 20151

When It’s SOLD, The Butler Did It!

Filed under: Market Information, Mortgage Information, Real Esate Information, Short Sales & Foreclosures | Tagged: Ed Butler, FHA, Flipping Rules, HUD, Market Information, RE/MAX Gateway, Seasoning Rule | Leave a Comment »

Heritage Hunt Homes For Rent ~ Gainesville VA Real Estate

Posted on January 20, 2010 by Ed Butler

The Marque At Heritage Hunt

While not affiliated in any way with the Heritage Hunt community, the Marque at Heritage Hunt is Northern Virginia’s first luxury active adult rental. It derives it’s name because it is located just outside the entrance to Heritage Hunt, Northern Virginia’s premier active adult community. Purported to be a “virtual cruise ship on land”, The Marque provides amenities that will pamper it’s residents and make the most of each golden moment with world-class recreational facilities, social and business amenities, and a full complement of services including concierge, theatre, health club, available underground parking and gated entry.

Contact Me Today For More Information

Selling A Home In Heritage Hunt? Click Here

Buying A Home In Heritage Hunt? Click Here

Ed Butler
(Licensed In Virginia)
RE/MAX Gateway
Three Offices For Your Convenience