Foreclosure Deal Helps Homeowners Who Are Deeply Underwater

Posted on March 19, 2012 by marlenebertrand
Los Angeles Times building in downtown Los Ang...

Los Angeles Times building in downtown Los Angeles, California (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The federal court is finally moving in the right direction with a $25-billion nationwide settlement over alleged foreclosure abuses of five major U.S. banking firms. Bank of America Corp., JPMorgan Chase & Co., Wells Fargo & Co., Citigroup Inc., and Ally Financial Inc. were the banks charged with wrongdoing which included such things as robo-signing, botching, losing, and improperly processing paperwork. In many cases, banks were also accused of lying to customers.

The settlement includes monitoring banks and imposing penalties of up to $1 million for first violations and up to $5 million for second infractions when banks fail to comply with specific terms.

Borrowers will receive forgiveness of debt stemming from missed payments and penalties, plus banks are asked to allow homeowners to sell their homes for less than the mortgage amount.

It all sounds like a great solution, however every borrower who needs help will not qualify. The solution applies to those who have a mortgage with the group of five banks and only if their loan is not backed by government controlled financing firms like Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. So, because of the strict criteria for eligibility, only 5% of the total number of people who have underwater mortgages will qualify for this type of help, leaving the majority of underwater homeowners drowning in a sea of debt.

As an incentive to do the right thing, banks will be given credit (points) for serving underwater borrowers.

The Los Angeles Times has an excellent article written by By Jim Puzzanghera and E. Scott Reckard, Los Angeles Times, March 12, 2012 which offers more details about the issue of banks and how the settlement outlines new mortgage servicing standards. To read their article titled Deeply Underwater Homeowners to Get Most Aid From Foreclosure Deal, click here.

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For more information about real estate, visit www.BertrandRealty.com.

Posted in Banks, Loans, Mortgage, Real Estate | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Tax Benefits of Owning a Second Home or Vacation Home

Posted on February 24, 2012 by marlenebertrand

Since tax season is rolling around I thought it would be a great idea to write an article about the tax benefits associated with owning a second home or vacation home.

It pays to know the subtle details involved with determining whether the home you own as a second home qualifies as a second home entitled to receive 100% in tax deductions or as a second home where you take deductions as an expense. It seems the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has determined that 14 days is the magic number for qualifying your second home as full use or part-time use. In order to receive the best tax position, you need to know the difference.

My article titled Tax Benefits for Second Homes and Vacation Homes answers some basic questions about owning a second home and the pros and cons you need to know about second home ownership. Click on this link to read more about the tax benefits of owning a second home or vacation home.

Tax Benefits for Second Homes and Vacation Homes (MarleneB, HubPages.com)

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For more information about real estate, visit www.BertrandRealty.com.

Posted in Real Estate, Real Estate Investment, Resort, Resort and Second Homes Designation, Second Homes, Taxes, Vacation Homes | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

My San Ramon Valley Domain Name Sold

Posted on February 15, 2012 by marlenebertrand

Domain Name ExtensionsI am excited to report that I have accepted an offer to sell the SanRamonValley.com domain name. There were two bidders who made offers on this domain name. The rest were all talk. Nevertheless, one of the bidders sqwaked and complained about the price all the way to the bid table. The other bidder (the winning bidder) bid just a little over the first bidder and was thrilled to be getting the domain name at that price. So, whose offer do you think I accepted? Yes. I went with the person who was excited and happy to have the domain name versus the person who acted like it was killing him to even be placing an offer in the first place. I didn’t even feel like countering him up to the second bidder’s offer.

Word to the wise – when you are in negotiations, your best strategy should be to remain neutral or at least act like you are happy to make your offer. Put yourself in the shoes of the seller. Sellers want to feel like it is a win/win transaction, not like they just sold their prized posession to someone who isn’t going to appreciate it.

Anyway, thank you to all who considered purchasing the domain name and for all who got the word out for me. The domain name went to an appreciative buyer and I am very happy about the sale.

For more information about real estate, visit www.BertrandRealty.com.

Posted in Domain Name, Real Estate | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

My San Ramon Valley Domain Name Is For Sale

Posted on February 14, 2012 by marlenebertrand

Domain Name ExtensionsListed for sale at GoDaddy.com – SanRamonValley.com. The sale is listed as an Offer/Counter Offer sale. The asking price is $7500, which is far less than the highest offer I have ever received for the purchase of this domain name. During the time I was an active real estate broker, offers poured in, but at the time, I was not ready to sell. Now that I have moved from the San Ramon Valley area, it is time to sell the domain name. Those of you, who know me, know that I used this domain name to attract visitors who were looking to sell their homes and visitors who were interested in buying homes. In conjunction with relocation information, this domain name saw a lot of traffic. The San Ramon Valley encompasses San Ramon, Danville, Alamo, and the southern edge of Walnut Creek. As San Ramon has been claimed to be a destination city, the domain name effectively attracts many visitors from around the world. Just typing “San Ramon Valley” into the search field brought results from San Ramon, as well as surrounding areas, especially Danville and Blackhawk.

I have already let SanRamonValley.biz, SanRamonValley.org, and SanRamonValley.info go, as those domain names brought insignificant traffic, however, SanRamonValley.com brought in significant traffic and I’m well aware of the interest in obtaining this domain name.

I also want to sell this domain name since I have recently moved from the San Ramon Valley area and I am no longer able to maintain the web site as visitors have been accustomed. I removed the site from viewing in order to preserve the integrity of the name.

If you are interested in obtaining the SanRamonValley.com domain name, please go to www.GoDaddy.com , then click on “Auctions”, then search for “SanRamonValley.com”. It is listed for $7500, however, I realize that the buyers are the ones who set the actual price and no matter what anyone has offered in the past, if I really want to sell this domain name, I would be smart to accept the offer in hand. Therefore, the minimum bid is set for $1500 and I will be quick to respond to earnest offers. For fair and transparent tracking purposes, please submit your offers via GoDaddy.com.

If you know someone who is looking for a good, strong domain name for their industry, please share this post with them.

Thank you for visiting!

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Posted in Real Estate, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Visit the Cayman Islands for a Calm Vacation

Posted on February 12, 2012 by marlenebertrand

The Coat of arms of the Cayman Islands

Every other year (in the odd years), my family has a family reunion on the Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines. I haven’t been able to join the family for the past few reunions due to the economic differences between my pocketbook and the price of the vacation package. Nevertheless, I enjoy reading about travel – the places people have gone and what they enjoy on their trips. Today, I read a blog from someone who went to the Cayman Island. And, while there he enjoyed some of the same things I enjoyed each time I went. As I read his experiences, I long to take another Caribbean cruise and be more adventurous. I am inspired to take in a few additional attractions. Like, for instance, the next time I go I think I will make an effort to get to the Tortuga Rum Cake Factory. That’s sure to be a delight.

Click here to read about the many interesting adventures you could have when you go to the Cayman Islands.

Where to go on vacation – The Cayman Islands: A super attractive place for reasonable price. (Hayderix)

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For more information about real estate, visit www.BertrandRealty.com.

Posted in Caribbean, Cayman Islands, Cruise, Uncategorized, Vacations | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment