Orlando Real Estate Voice

 

Orlando Florida Real Estate Windermere’s Butler Chain of Lakes

 

One of the best places to live in the Orlando area is in the Southwest area of Orange county. In Windermere Florida on the Butler chain of Lakes. You’ll love the canal that connects eleven lakes known as the Butler Chain of Lakes comprised of Lake Down, Little Lake Down, Wauseon Bay, Lake Butler, Lake Louise, Lake Isleworth, Lake Chase, Lake Pocket, Lake Tibet, Lake Sheen, and Fish Lake. The most popular types of boats to navigate the chain are ski boats, pontoon boats, and bass fishing boats. Some popular neighborhoods on the shores of Lake Butler include Isleworth, Lake Butler Sound, and Chain du Lac.

 

 

Did you know that Windermere Florida is a sister city of Windermere England? In England Windermere is known as the Lake District and it would make sense that Windermere Florida is a sister city as it is also set amidst the Butler Chain of Lakes.

Real Estate has historically been more valuable by lakefront settings and Windermere Florida is no exception. Lots starting at a million dollars and up are not unusual especially for the Butler Chain of Lakes if you can find anymore.

Thanks to the surrounding Butler Chain of Lakes the lakefront lifestyle is a top choice for the Windermere home buyers.

If you are interested in finding out more about living on the Windermere Butler Chain of Lakes please feel free to give me a call. 407-580-7011 or visit my website at http://www.JerrySellsOrlando.com or http://OrlandoShortSaleExpert.com

 

 

Below are my Orlando Short Sale FAQ’s

What is a Short Sale?

A short sale is when the lender will accept less than the full amount due on a mortgage

when a property is sold. Usually, the lender will accept the short sale to avoid the time

and expense of a foreclosure. Financially the lender is actually ahead after a short sale.

What is a Foreclosure?

In simple terms: The homeowner has not been making the mortgage payments, and it

is the action the financial institution can use to take the house back. The homeowner

borrowed money using the house as collateral with the agreement that if they could not

pay it back, then the lender could take the house.

What is involved to do a Short Sale?

In order to start negotiating the Short Sale the lender will usually require the

homeowner to submit verification that they are qualified in order to consider the short

sale. The information required and documentation necessary is provided as well as

training on the entire process.

Will the bank come after the homeowner for the difference?

I will always negotiate with lenders to “Not seek a deficiency judgment” against the

homeowner.

Is the seller going to get hit with a tax bill or a 1099 if you do a short sale?

Upon successfully closing a short sale, lenders will always report a loss to the IRS and

issue a 1099. However, the Mortgage Forgiveness Act of 2007 was signed into law on

12-20-07 and is now official, effectively getting rid of the question “will I be taxed on the

Short Sale”. Prior to this action, forgiven mortgage debt due to foreclosure, short sale,

or deed in lieu of foreclosure, was potentially taxable income to the borrower.

This was the subject of much media attention and led to many questions and concerns

from Sellers wondering whether or not they were going to get “hit with taxes” on the

Short Sale.

The new law, however, temporarily waives these taxes for debts forgiven (as high as

35%) from the beginning of 2007 to the end of 2009.

This will effectively put an end to the question from Sellers… will I be taxed on the Short

Sale discount. The definitive answer (at least until the end of 2009) is NO!

For a copy of the Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act of 2007, go to:

http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=h110-3648 or

http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2007/12/20071220-6.html

The bottom line here is that only Acquisition funding can be forgiven by the

Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act of 2007.

Foreclosure, Deed in Lieu and Short Sales are all treated the same in regards to

taxes.

Any cancellation of debt is a taxable event except for any acquisition

funding for your primary residence that you’ve lived in for the last 2 years.

Everything else is taxable. However, please see you tax advisor if you have

a second home or investment property that you are considering a short sale

on. You accountant may advise you that you may have a loss on this

investment property that would offset any gain. Please seek advise from

your tax advisor.

Will the homeowners credit be affected?

If the homeowner has to short sale their home they’ve most likely missed payments

already. That in itself has already adversely affected their credit. The key here is to stop

the devastating affect on your credit that a Foreclosure causes. A Foreclosure is the

most damaging record on your credit report – its even worse than bankruptcy.

By working with Jerry LaRose you give yourself a fighting chance of avoiding foreclosure

and start towards the “Rebuilding” process. With our help, your credit will recover

quickly if you keep your other lines of credit in good standing. With Jerry LaRose you

have an experienced team of professionals that will help you through these tough times.

Is a Short Sale right for me and my situation?

Mortgage lenders are increasingly willing to work with borrowers faced with a financial

hardship to accept a discounted payoff on a mortgage. If you are faced with a hardship,

and are unable to meet your obligation on your mortgage, your lender would prefer to

settle the matter with you as opposed to taking the property through foreclosure.

As you consider the option of pursuing a short sale, remember your lender is looking to

limit any potential loss on your loan. By completing a short sale, your lender has arrived

at a solution that is, for them, much better than a costly foreclosure.

What sort of hardship would my lender consider legitimate?

To some extent, that will depend upon the mortgage company considering the short

sale request. Generally, as long as the hardship is real and the mortgage company

believes the loan is likely to become delinquent as a result, the short sale request will be

processed by the Loss Mitigation Department. A big key to getting Loss Mitigation to

accept a hardship is to submit a strong hardship letter. The hardship letter sets the tone

for the entire file.

Will the lender approve a Short Sale even if the homeowner is current on their mortgage?

Yes we have successfully negotiated and received an approval on a short sale even

when the homeowner was current on their payments.

Why would a mortgage company agree to accept a short sale?

There are actually several reasons why a mortgage company would approve a short sale

payoff, including the following:

• Legal Concerns: Mortgage lenders have come under legal pressure to work with

borrowers to equitably resolve situations where borrowers are unable to meet their

mortgage obligation, particularly when the borrower makes an effort to arrive at a

compromise solution.

• Wall Street is Watching Mortgage lenders rely heavily on their ability to package and

sell bundles of loans on the secondary mortgage market. They need to sell these

bundles of loans in order to put the funds back to work by loaning the money again and

collect loan fees along the way. If mortgages perform poorly after they are sold it could

impact the lender’s ability to sell their loans on the secondary market. A successful short

sale gets the loan payoff resolved quickly.

• Asset Management Expenses- If a lender acquires a property through foreclosure, the

property will be managed until it is repaired and resold. It is expensive to manage real

property assets – homes – spread throughout the region, the state and possibly even the

nation. Keeping properties maintained, keeping utilities on, making repairs and the

administrative costs attached to these activities are all costs the lender would prefer to

avoid. A successful short sale eliminates most of these costs.

• Reserve Requirement- Delinquent and non-performing loans place another burden on

mortgage lenders. For all delinquent and non-performing loans lenders must set aside

funds in reserve to deal with potential losses. These funds cannot be put to work

generating new loan fees until the bad loans are resolved. A successful short sale lets

the lender put their money back to work.

Can I still short sale my home even if I have 2 loans?

Yes, it doesn’t matter how much you owe. The lender will evaluate what the current

market value is and then decide how much they will accept.

Can I still do a short sale even if the property is in very bad condition?

Yes. Lenders are more motivated to do a short sale on a property that needs work than

on a property that doesn’t. Lenders know losses start to skyrocket when they foreclose

on a property that needs a lot of repair work. Lenders are in the business of lending

money not property management and home repairs.

If I am behind in my payments and can’t afford closing costs what can I do?

Lenders are understanding when it comes to this situation and will actually pay the

REALTORS® commission and your closing costs.

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Jerry LaRose is an Orlando Area Residential Real Estate Expert, who can assist you with the purchase and/or sale of Real Estate in Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden Florida or any place in the country. Jerry has created a team of professionals throughout Orlando and the country to ensure that you enjoy a smooth transition to your new area. Please visit www.JerrySellsOrlando.com for your real estate needs. Please give me a call if you have questions about the Orlando and Central Florida real estate market.

P.S. If you are listing your home as a short sale in Orange County Florida and Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden, or Ocoee Florida make sure you hire an agent who knows how to do short sales and has the experience to get the job done. We are doing successful short sale packages. Call us at 407-580-7011 to find out more about Orange County Short Sales and Orlando Area Short Sales

 

Included in H.R. 3221, the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008, were numerous additions, and amendments to real estate tax rules.  Below is a brief summary of the tax provisions that were part of H.R. 3221.

Low-Income Housing Tax Credit

• Temporarily increases the volume cap for low-income housing tax credits for 2008 and 2009.

Homebuyer Tax Credit

• The tax credit only applies to first time homebuyers.  A first time homebuyer is defined as a homeowner who has no present ownership in a principle residence or has not had ownership of a principle residence for at least 3-years.
• The tax credit is 10% of the purchase price, capped at $7,500.  The tax credit is reduced when the buyers adjusted gross income (AGI) is over $75,000 ($150,000 married filing jointly).  The amount is reduced by the amount over the allowed AGI divided by $20,000.
• The tax credit does need to be repaid, therefore working more as an interest free loan than a true tax credit.  The credit is repaid out of your taxes over 15-years, or a rate of 6.66% of the credit per year. If the home is sold before the credit is paid back, payments are accelerated in the following taxable years by the amount still owed on repayment over the original amount of the credit.  However, if your gain on the house does not exceed the amount still owed at the time of sale, you will not owe any more repayment on the credit. 
• The home must be purchased between April 8, 2008 and June 30, 2009. The purchase must be of an owner occupied primary residence.
• You cannot get the credit is the property is purchased from a relative, the purchase is financed by a tax exempt qualified mortgage issue/bond, the taxpayer is a nonresident alien, or if the taxpayer disposes of the residence before the close of the taxable year.

Standard Deduction for Property Taxes

• Creation of a new standard deduction for property taxes by nonitemizers in the amount of the taxes, capped at $500 ($1000 for joint filer).

FIRPTA FIX

• Modifies FIRPTA to allow the documents to be given to a qualified substitute instead of the buyer.

Second Home Conversion Tax Offset

• One of the offsets included in H.R. 3221 was the closing of a tax loophole concerning the conversion of a second home to a primary residence and the capital gains exclusion.  This offset ONLY applies when a second home is converted to a primary residence and does not affect the capital gains exclusion when a home has only been a primary residence.
• The loophole allowed it so that if a second home was converted to a primary residence and was used as such for at least two out of the previous five years; the homeowner could use the $250,000/$500,000 capital gains exclusion. 
• H.R. 3221 closes that loophole and will now only allow the capital gains exclusion to apply to gain received once the house became a primary residence
• Any gain earned prior to January 1, 2009 would be affected by this provision and there are some exclusions of this policy for extended military service (with limitations) as well as change of employment, health conditions or other unforeseen circumstances (not to exceed an aggregate period of two years). 
• There is also an allowance of 5-years of gain if a property is converted from a principle residence to a second home.
• The new formula to calculate the gain allowed to be included in the capital gains exclusion would be: Profit from the sale multiplied by the number of days the home was a primary residence over the number of days the home was owned.

Median Sales Price for homes in the Orlando area as we all know has decreased significantly. Everyone is asking, where’s the bottom. Well, I’ll be the first to say that I see the bottom. I will go on record to say that we’re almost there.

I pulled this trend chart from Trulia and it represents the median sales price of homes. The most important lines are the black and red. The black line is actual sales of the median priced home. Notice that this jumped out of proportion during 2003 & 2004. If prices had not jumped due to supply and demand and had just progressed normally at a 3-5% increase, that average which is represented by the red line would be approx. $190,000 today.

However, the actual today is at $210,000. Therefore, I see the market still correcting another 10% and possibly more. Nothing says that we can’t go below this line. That may be possible for a short period of time to clear out the foreclosures and short sales. So there it is, my crystal ball is telling me that the market in Orlando will continue to decrease another 10% – 15% overall before we stablize.

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Jerry LaRose is an Orlando Area Residential Real Estate Expert, who can assist you with the purchase and/or sale of Real Estate in Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden Florida or any place in the country. Jerry has created a team of professionals throughout Orlando and the country to ensure that you enjoy a smooth transition to your new area. Please visit www.JerrySellsOrlando.com for your real estate needs. Please give me a call if you have questions about the Orlando and Central Florida real estate market.

P.S. If you are listing your home as a short sale in Orange County Florida and Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden, or Ocoee Florida make sure you hire an agent who knows how to do short sales and has the experience to get the job done. We are doing successful short sale packages. Call us at 407-580-7011 to find out more about Orange County Short Sales and Orlando Area Short Sales.

Buyers:

1. First understand that this process may take 90 days after you’ve submitted your offer. Don’t go into a short sale if you have a specific timeframe that you must have the home closed.

2. Understand that there are no guarantees in a Orlando short sale.

3. The lender may require more cash or a higher price up to the actual moment of closing.

4. The lender will most likely not allow the seller to pay any of your closing costs or give allowances for repairs. Typically, all deals are “AS-IS”.

5. There is likely no certainty of the final price or closing date until just before closing. When the final word comes down from the lender that they’ll accept the offer, typically they’ll want to close in a week or less. Have your inspectors and lender ready to move forward.

6. Be sure there’s an out for the buyer if the contract is not approved by a certain date. You don’t want to be stuck in limbo waiting for the lender. Make it contingent upon some reasonable date.

7. Don’t pay for inspections or any other expenses until you know the lender has accepted your offer.

Short Sales could be a great way to purchase property at a discount as long as you have patience.

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Jerry LaRose is an Orlando Area Residential Real Estate Expert, who can assist you with the purchase and/or sale of Real Estate in Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden Florida or any place in the country. Jerry has created a team of professionals throughout Orlando and the country to ensure that you enjoy a smooth transition to your new area. Please visit www.JerrySellsOrlando.com for your real estate needs. Please give me a call if you have questions about the Orlando and Central Florida real estate market.

P.S. If you are listing your home as a short sale in Orange County Florida and Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden, or Ocoee Florida make sure you hire an agent who knows how to do short sales and has the experience to get the job done. We are doing successful short sale packages. Call us at 407-580-7011 to find out more about Orange County Short Sales and Orlando Area Short Sales.

1. Your credit score may fall 100 points or more.

2. You may be asked to sign a note or take a new loan for the amount of the short fall.

3. The lender may get a judgement against you for the amount of the short fall.

4. You may have to pay income taxes on the amount of the shortfall – it could be taxed as income to you.

5. Understand that you will have to prove that you cannot pay. Similar to how you qualified for the loan, but now you have to prove that you cannot afford this loan. What’s changed/

6. Understand that big discrepancies or a big gap between your income/assets used to obtain the loan may indicate mortgage fraud, unless employment or expense circumstances have drastically changed.

7.You will need to get in writing from the lender that they will approve your contract for a lower payoff.

8. Some lenders won’t talk to you until you’re behind in payments on your mortgage.

9. Make sure you and your realtor disclose everything to the buyers on the front end.

10. Contract must contain ad addendum stating that the sale is contingent upon approval by the seller’s lender of a reduced loan payoff.

11. Property should be sold “AS-IS” to make it as simple as possible for the lender.

12. The home should be listed for sale close to market value at first and the price reduced over several weeks, showing the lender that you tried to sell higher and no one bit on the higher price.

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Jerry LaRose is an Orlando Area Residential Real Estate Expert, who can assist you with the purchase and/or sale of Real Estate in Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden Florida or any place in the country. Jerry has created a team of professionals throughout Orlando and the country to ensure that you enjoy a smooth transition to your new area. Please visit www.JerrySellsOrlando.com for your real estate needs. Please give me a call if you have questions about the Orlando and Central Florida real estate market.

P.S. If you are listing your home as a short sale in Orange County Florida and Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden, or Ocoee Florida make sure you hire an agent who knows how to do short sales and has the experience to get the job done. We are doing successful short sale packages. Call us at 407-580-7011 to find out more about Orange County Short Sales and Orlando Area Short Sales.

 

Too many agents are afraid to take on short sales, as they should be. They’ve heard that these short sales in Orlando are too complicated, the lenders are uncooperative (and sometimes hostile), or the property gets foreclosed on before they find a buyer. Any of these can happen, but mostly to agents who are unaware of how to successfully negotiate and close a short sale.Let me tell you, if it was that easy, every agent in Florida would be rolling in cash by now.  Our Services include:

• Presenting a solution to the lender and negotiating favorable terms
• Allowing the borrower and her/his family to get a fresh start
• Expediting the process with a fast resolution.Our success rate is among the highest in Orlando. Many of our services are FREE OF CHARGE to the borrower and our consultation services are always FREE.  If you are considering doing a short sale on your property give me a call and we can discuss the in’s and out’s of doing a successful short sale. You need a Short Sale Specialist and now you’ve found one. Call me today for a Free Consultation at 407-580-7011********************************************************* 

 Jerry LaRose is an Orlando Area Residential Real Estate Expert, who can assist you with the purchase and/or sale of Real Estate in Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden Florida or any place in the country. Jerry has created a team of professionals throughout Orlando and the country to ensure that you enjoy a smooth transition to your new area. Please visit www.JerrySellsOrlando.com for your real estate needs.  Please give me a call if you have questions about the Orlando and Central Florida real estate market.P.S. If you are listing your home as a short sale in Orange County Florida and Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden,  or Ocoee Florida make sure you hire an agent who knows how to do short sales and has the experience to get the job done. We are doing successful short sale packages. Call us at 407-580-7011 to find out more about Orange County Short Sales and Orlando Area Short Sales.

 

Do I qualify for a Short Sale? Do You….

• Owe more on your Orlando area property than what you could sell it for, especially after real estate commission, closing costs, late payments, interest, etc?
• Have difficulty covering your expenses each month?
• Not have money in the bank to cover the difference of what you could sell your house for and what you owe the bank?

Are You Having Trouble Making The Payments? Are You….

• Feeling the stress mounting with each missed payment and phone call from your bank?
• Have difficulty covering your expenses each month?
• Getting confused as to what your options are at this point?

Foreclosure Sale Date Approaching?

•·        Are you behind on your payments?

•·        Do you owe more than your home is worth?

•·        Have you lost your job, fell ill, or lost a loved one?

•·        Did your “ARM” adjust & you can’t keep up?

•·        Do you want to just walk away and not owe a dime?

Many Luxury Homes are also facing foreclosure. If you have a Luxury home in Windermere, Winter Garden, or the Orlando area Yes, you can do a Short Sale on Luxury Homes. Call me and I can help!

******************************************************************************************  Jerry LaRose is an Orlando Area Residential Real Estate Expert, who can assist you with the purchase and/or sale of Real Estate in Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden Florida or any place in the country. Jerry has created a team of professionals throughout Orlando and the country to ensure that you enjoy a smooth transition to your new area. Please visit www.JerrySellsOrlando.com for your real estate needs.  Please give me a call if you have questions about the Orlando and Central Florida real estate market.P.S. If you are listing your home as a short sale in Orange County Florida and Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden,  or Ocoee Florida make sure you hire an agent who knows how to do short sales and has the experience to get the job done. We are doing successful short sale packages. Call us at 407-580-7011 to find out more about Orange County Short Sales and Orlando Area Short Sales.

The Orlando Real Estate Market is a changing market. Are we at the bottom? Well, no one knows for sure. However, I do want to share with you the statistics from the Orlando Regional Realtors Board that are compiled monthly.

Please Click Here to view the Market Snapshot

 You can see that prices came down and sales responded by picking up every month this year through June. July sales typically fall a little behind June, and this year was no exception. Look for August to be a little slower still as school resumed this week. September will also be a little behind the summer numbers, but we usually see a rebound in October. Of course, there is a huge number of pending sales that could finally get closed creating a sales spike primarily from Short Sales. Many homes were put under contract as a short sale in the last 60 days that have yet closed. I’m guessing we’ll show a bit of a spike in September and October this year.

******************************************************************************************  Jerry LaRose is an Orlando Area Residential Real Estate Expert, who can assist you with the purchase and/or sale of Real Estate in Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden Florida or any place in the country. Jerry has created a team of professionals throughout Orlando and the country to ensure that you enjoy a smooth transition to your new area. Please visit www.JerrySellsOrlando.com for your real estate needs.  Please give me a call if you have questions about the Orlando and Central Florida real estate market.P.S. If you are listing your home as a short sale in Orange County Florida and Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden,  or Ocoee Florida make sure you hire an agent who knows how to do short sales and has the experience to get the job done. We are doing successful short sale packages. Call us at 407-580-7011 to find out more about Orange County Short Sales and Orlando Area Short Sales.

Short Sales in Orlando Florida – What’s Needed?

When you go through the short sale process your lender will require certain documentation.  Remember, the lender does not want to take the home back through foreclosure. That is a last resort for both the homeowner and the lender.  The lender would rather accept a short sale as long as the borrower can show an inability to pay the mortgage.Each lender has their list of required documentation.  Therefore, the first step is to give your Realtor signed authorization to speak with the lender about your account. Your Realtor will then request a “short sale package” from the lender.  Most lenders require the following documentation.

• Exclusive right of Sale Listing Agreement
• A copy of the executed “AS-IS” Sale and Purchase contract
• Letter of Authorization to the bank to release Information.
• HUD-1, which is the estimated net sheet from a title company.  The settlement statement will show all of the expenses related to the sale with the seller receiving zero.
• Hardship letter.  A handwritten letter may be better to explain the borrower’s situation and requesting a short sale. It should describe why the borrower cannot make their mortgage payments and their fear of possible foreclosure.  It should be a plea for the lender to consider a short sale. Document to support Hardship (termination of employment, substantial medical bills, disability letter, etc.
• Personal Financial Statement form 1126, which includes current debt, payments and a household budget.
• Two years of tax returns and W-2′s.  Remember to provide signed copies of tax returns.
• Two most recent bank statements and retirement account statements.  Be sure to copy both side of double-sided statements.
• Two most recent pay stubs
• A current Comparative Market Analysis (CMA) from a real estate broker or appraiser
• Buyers proof of Funds or Loan Approval letter
• Lastly note on the submission package that they need to order the BPO immediately and a negotiator needs to be assigned.

Make sure that when you submit the package it is COMPLETE. Some times it may be better to wait a day and ensure that it’s complete than to submit an incomplete package. Remember the Loss Mitigator is dealing with possibly hundreds of files at a time.Lastly Note: With a short sale your Realtor should negotiate for the lender to waive their right to file a deficiency judgment. **IMPORTANT***************** 

Jerry LaRose is an Orlando Area Residential Real Estate Expert, who can assist you with the purchase and/or sale of Real Estate in Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden Florida or any place in the country. Jerry has created a team of professionals throughout Orlando and the country to ensure that you enjoy a smooth transition to your new area. Please visit www.JerrySellsOrlando.com for your real estate needs.  Please give me a call if you have questions about the Orlando and Central Florida real estate market.P.S. If you are listing your home as a short sale in Orange County Florida and Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden,  or Ocoee Florida make sure you hire an agent who knows how to do short sales and has the experience to get the job done. We are doing successful short sale packages. Call us at 407-580-7011 to find out more about Orange County Short Sales and Orlando Area Short Sales.