*Please be sure to read the disclaimer at the bottom of the page*

This landmark court case is being fought in Oregon at the state level and pertains to Banks’ mortgage servicing practices and calls into question whether a given bank has met the criteria required for it to pursue a non-judicial foreclosure. With the logic following that if the Bank cannot prove that it is the beneficiary then of course it cannot foreclose on a borrower for non-payment. The Niday case argued that Mortgage Electronic Registration System (MERS for short) was a tool used by banks to exploit a loophole because MERS didn’t actually own the loan. At the risk of oversimplifying, banks would name MERS as the owner of a mortgage with county and then sell “interests” in that mortgage to various groups without re-conveying the note at the county.

MERS: How To Sell A Mortgage Without Actually “Selling” It

Initially it appeared that GMAC had won however as of 01/08/2013 the case was being heard in the Oregon Supreme Court. According to FindLaw.com, the heart of the matter is this: “any assignments of the trust deed by the trustee or the beneficiary” must be “recorded in the mortgage records in the counties in which the property described in the deed is situated.” ORS 86.735… And it looks like banks just filled in MERS as the beneficiary so they could trade bundled mortgages around on Wall Street without the hassle of actually assigning the loan at county.
Dept Of Justice Niday in The Oregon Supreme Court

Judicial Foreclosure

Oregon has traditionally been a non-judicial foreclosure state (since 1959) which basically means that a bank can foreclose through an out of court process known as a trustee’s sale as long as it meets certain requirements. Niday maintains that the bank did not meet those guidelines due to bank’s selling loans on the secondary market without recording the transfer in the county of the property. This non-judicial foreclosure process was favored because it takes strain off the public court system and is also simpler for banks to process (with the assumption that consumers would save money as a result of banks saving money… yeah, right).

How Does This Affect Us?

No one can say for sure but the fact that hundreds, perhaps thousands of foreclosures were halted over the summer leads myself and many others to believe that prices may settle when those foreclosures start working through the traditional, judicial foreclosure system. Essentially, it seems that the bank can still foreclose on the house, they just can’t use the streamlined Trustee’s Sale. However, it seems that the final word hasn’t been spoken on where this will go at the Oregon Supreme Court.

*Disclaimer: We are Real Estate Brokers, not attorneys. This article is opinion and is written with multiple citations so that consumers may fact-check and educate themselves. This article in no way replaces legal counsel from a lawyer. Borrowers unsure of their situation are encouraged to contact an attorney or we can refer you to a few. Those wishing to complete a short sale are strongly encouraged to call us.

Several factors are keeping real estate down including new appraisal regulations, new loan qualification standards and natural negative buyer sentiment to price increases. Upward price traction has been difficult at best with the amount of distressed properties being a key component in appraisal consideration.

CoreLogic Housing Statistics

CoreLogic of Irvine CA, a company that tracks each resale of the same house in the US, reported today a 0.3 percent increase for the month of November 2012. Nationally CoreLogic expects real estate values to increase about 6% in 2013 however Oregon did not make the top five states experiencing the greatest value gains. The report further states that house values are down 27% from peak 2006.

Happy Valley Market Action Index

This graph shows Happy Valley market action by volume as tracked by Ticor Title Company. Note the activity spike in November along with today’s cooling off rhythm that appears to be similar to the 2008 recession. The question remains as to whether the recent events are signs of healthy market corrections or something worse. The summer 2012 Niday versus GMAC court case has ground the foreclosure process to a halt at the state level which has (temporarily) dried up foreclosure inventory. Now that banks have moved forward to the Judicial foreclosure process the pipeline of REO properties could start to flow again; thereby adding much needed inventory to the marketplace.

Real Estate Market Action Index

Real Estate Market Profile

demonstrates Happy Valley Homes have a market time of 202 days and growing.

Happy Valley Real Time Market Profile

Characteristics per Quartile
Happy Valley is well known for newer, large well-appointed homes.

Price Trends for Happy Valley Oregon

November showed strong results, with the question remaining; which way are things headed?

Upon completing a short sale transaction I ask the sellers to briefly write about their experience with us. We take pride in our work and our clients are our best reference. If you are interested in eliminating mortgage debt please feel free to contact me directly at:

503-473-8001

In The Client’s Own Words.

Bruce,
The completion of our short sale is very good news. It is never a pleasant experience when dealing with financial institutions and all the paper work that it entails. Not to mention the road to a short sale. But with your help and guidance we were able to navigate the road in an orderly manner. These are difficult times for folks with the home foreclosures and short sales. You and your team helped make this process less troublesome. We are grateful to both you and Richard. Thank Richard for us as well.
J H

Recovery Has Been Slow

Our nation’s slow economic recovery has not resulted in a fairy tale ending for most families. And, while slight improvements in home values are certainly good news there are still many home owners facing the strong possibility of being under water on their mortgage debt for years to come. Mortgage debt is a family issue often involving medical bills, distant job transfers, maternity leave, layoffs and sometimes just the inability to balance the family budget.

Regain your freedom, we can help because we know how. You do not pay us money, we only get paid out of the proceeds only after the house sells. You pay us nothing. We eliminate unwanted mortgage debt. In today’s tough housing market we want to be part of the solution and not part of the problem. Our commitment to quality service has been instrumental in our maintaining our relevance through the housing crisis.

Is Getting Relief From Mortgage Debt Your Priority?

Our SFR ( Short Sale Foreclosure Resource ) designation signifies that in addition to being state licensed real estate brokers we have also completed the National Association of Realtors’ SFR program. In addition to SFR certification, as specialists we have devoted countless hours to settling mortgage debt for our clients and pass this valuable experience on to home owners. As leaders and top sellers of distressed properties, we put our experience in settling mortgage debt to work for our clients in big ways; we use our successes in closed transactions to help us continually refine the best techniques and proven strategies. Furthermore, while we can’t predict the future our track record with a wide variety of banks gives our clients insight in what to expect during the process.

Call To Learn How a Short Sale Realtor Can Help You 503-473-8001

How Does The Fiscal Cliff Affect Oregon Home Owners?

Anyone who’s tuned in to CNN, read articles on social media or picked up a newspaper has at least heard about the “Fiscal Cliff”. So, what does the Fiscal Cliff have to do with real estate? As it turns out, a lot to do with Oregon home owners! In recent days congress voted to extend mortgage debt relief through 2013 which will save countless struggling home owners from a staggering tax load. Home owners also benefit from the extension of mortgage interest deductions which will save home owners on their tax returns and may also help bolster the very new housing recovery. As Realtors we have a close pulse on what’s happening in the housing market but we should not be confused with attorneys or accountants so consult with the appropriate professional. If you need to short sale your house we can certainly help you with that.

The latest burst of closed real estate transactions in combination with the low number of new listings has caused extremely low levels of available inventory. At best the housing market is peculiar with no real economic synergy behind the increased sales activity.

Meanwhile the FED has recently taken further action to avert a repeat recession and mussed that low economic activity will reach well into the later part of 2015.

The looming fiscal cliff has households on edge as politicians refuse to take on the responsibility we hired them to tackle. Oil prices have dropped due to the instability of the US economy as the world watches lawmakers bicker over US spending and tax policy. Low fuel prices are good for consumer but not enough to turn consumer sentiment in a positive direction. Consumer confidence has been on a steady decline the last few months.

The FED reported US manufacturing levels recently dropped and new unemployment claims rose.

Possibly home buyers fear the uncertainty the fiscal cliff presents on unknown future interest rates.

These RMLS charts speak for them selves.

RMLS Portland Home Sale Data

RMLS Portland

Hi Bruce- I really do appreciate the way that Rich handled my short sale. It was a very nerve wracking experience knowing that the potential of foreclosure was always there. However, every time I called to get an update, Rich knew exactly where my house was in terms of negotiations with the bank and the buyer. I appreciated that he was very straight forward and detailed with me in providing information. It helped me stay calm through the process. Thank you to both you and Rich for helping me!
Anon.

Thanks for the good word and we’re pleased to count you among our satisfied customers. When you’re ready to get a great deal on a purchase don’t hesitate to contact us. We’re getting in new inventory every day and we’re excited about how we can help our repeat clients. Be sure to check back with our site to get the latest information on the changing foreclosure marketplace or just drop us a line.
RL

Oregon Rail Heritage Foundation

Oregon Rail Heritage Center is open to public and admission is FREE.
Donations are accepted with a no pressure donations bucket.

Oregon Rail Heritage Center is the permanent home of SP 4449 the only class GS-4 steam locomotive of its kind and one sweet ride. Follow this link for SP 4449 specifications and use.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_Pacific_4449

This handsome 72 year old gigantic locomotive weighs in at 475,000 lbs and can exceed 80 mph. Indeed there is nothing small about this bad boy and you can see this locomotive in action along Oaks Bottom Spring Water Trail during the Holiday Express Runs.

OK,,, yes I went there,,, and wow in a really big way. The trains are gigantic to say the least and very impressive.

Oregon Rail Heritage Foundation hours and information.

Portland’s Holiday Express

All Aboard!

For Holiday Fun take a ride on an honest steam train from Oaks Bottom (next to Oaks Park) through a wetland nature preserve on into Portland and back.

After your ride take walk about the decorated streets of Classic Sellwood Oregon.

Happy Holidays From The Lockwood Team at Oregon Realty.

No Charge To Homeowners

We do not charge sellers any services fees including Negotiator Services Provided or Real Estate Commissions and there are no hidden seller fees. Our commission and fees are paid through escrow from the sale proceeds payable to the investor or the mortgage note guarantor such as Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. Banks often only act as a loan servicer on behalf of MERS and other financial entities; often, the underlying investors take a loss or the guarantor takes all or part of the loss, not the bank & not you.

The Federal Reserve released job data stating the unemployment rate will remain elevated through late 2015. Unemployment and under-employment continue to weigh heavily on the US economy as 17,000 Americans filed new unemployment benefit applications this week. According to the Federal Reserve the US needs over 200,000 new jobs created each month to break even with newly minted graduates entering the work force. 151,000 new jobs were created in November 2012 with 4.5 million Americans unemployed. As such, it seems more than plausible that short sales will remain a part of the economic landscape at least for the time being. Associated Press released its survey of the nation’s top economists which anticipates 2013 GDP growth to be 2.1% below the 3.5% threshold of real economic growth able to pull the US out of the sluggish housing recovery. Economists noted the tepid growth remains consistent with the past 3 years and expect no significant change in 2013.

New Housing Starts Down

New housing starts are back down again after the short lived influx from Super Storm Sandy. Super Storm Sandy destroyed an estimated 40,000 homes that will be rebuilt next year but that is still not enough building activity to move the national new construction data significantly. Housing starts on the West are down 19% while housing starts on the East Coast are down 26%.

Is Supply Keeping Up With Demand?

The total numbers of sold residential homes was up only slightly year over year 2011 – 2012 as many cost-conscious consumers are feeling budget restraints. Home values made modest gains in 2012 which has not been enough to relieve the financial stress of many underwater mortgage holders. New Foreclosure rate cooled slightly as many states have been working though court challenges to foreclosure procedural process raised by homeowners in default. Recently most of these court challenges have been resolved or expected to be resolved shortly. HUD remains consistent with its outlook of gaining additional foreclosed home resale inventory 2013.

Distressed Properties

Distressed properties including short sales are maintaining similar inventory levels as the year prior and are not expected to decline in volume during 2013. Banks have sough relief from foreclosure losses as repossessions are costly and present problems with title transfer and other issues after the reconveyance of the deed is completed. Overall US home sale volume saw an increase of 5% over last month due to favorable interest rates.