ReReno's Blog, Reno/Sparks Real Estate

How Quickly Could You Build a House?

rereno — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 16:07:22 +0000

We’ve probably all watched Extreme Makeover on ABC where they completely rebuild a home, usually in less than a week.

But, how about in an hour? In thes video a nomadic family in Mongolia erects their house (Ger) in slightly over an hour. Watch and enjoy.

Delays in Thousands of Foreclosure Reviews

rereno — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 03:02:37 +0000

Anyone that expected fast results from foreclosure reviews is in for a disappointment. They are now expected to take a much longer time.

Review time frames have lengthened for other servicers, too, because the detail, scope and complexity of the reviews weren’t fully known last April, says OCC spokesman Bryan Hubbard.

The reviews are for borrowers that faced foreclosure on their primary home in 2009 and 2010 by the nation's largest servicers. This could amount to as many as 4 million borrowers, but they expect to only sample for errors such as unlawfurl foreclosures and excessive fees.

US New Home Sales Drop to Lowest Year on Record

rereno — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 14:39:50 +0000

New home sales dropped to an annual rate of 307,000. This is less than half of what would be expected in a normal economy. With the reduced sales the sales prices have also dropped. The median sales price is now $201,300.

About 302,000 new homes were sold last year. That’s less than the 323,000 sold in 2010, making last year’s sales the worst on records dating back to 1963. And it coincides with a report last week that said 2011 was the weakest year for single-family home construction on record.

Another Green Energy Failure

rereno — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 17:10:01 +0000

Anyone that regularly reads this blog is probably aware that I am not a fan of “green” energy. For example, ethanol gets added to our gasoline by mandate and has only served to make the gas more expensive, and less reliable. Vehicles in winter storage can likely expect to find the carburetor gummed up from the bad gas. It has also served to raise our food prices because the corn has been diverted to motor fuel.

We are also aware of the massive amount of corruption by companies such as Solyndra where a half a billion dollars was “lent” to a bundler for Obama.

Spain invested heavily in solar and nearly bankrupted itself before they realized it wasn’t working. Now, we have this story from Germany where they invested $100 billion in solar and it produces almost nothing.

But you say Nevada is different. We have geothermal and we have solar and we have Harry Reid, who hates coal. I believe no alternative energy source is commercially viable at this time. None of them can be profitable without a government subsidy. And by government subsidy, I mean by us, the taxpayers. A subsidy is where a politician chooses to spend more wisely than you or I could ourselves. Nevada does have sunshine. But it is not enough to overcome the folly of our “rulers.”

Tagged: Government, Green Energy, Money, Nevada, Scams, Solar

Want a Mortgage? Pay Your Rent

rereno — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 03:36:51 +0000

With all the economic problems we have faced as a nation, and even more specific, as Nevadans, the number of renters has increased significantly. But, eventually even most renters would want to change their status and become homeowners.

But, it seems that renters have had a lower credit score and that was always a problem. The credit companies didn't keep records of rent payments except when the renter neglected to make his payments. Then the score was lowered.

Now, with the larger number of renters the Experian recently began to include rent payments as part of the credit rating. CoreLogic and FICO are soon expected to follow. A good rental history can add as much as 100 points to the credit score.

Tagged: credit score, Real Estate

Reno Ranked Number 14th Worst Housing Market in Nation

rereno — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 20:31:23 +0000

Las Vegas was rated as the nation's worst housing market by the website, Housing Predictor. The site published rankings of the 25 best markets, the 25 worst markets among others.

The worst 25 housing markets forecast annually by Housing Predictor are a selection of the worst of the worst markets with the highest probability to reach their projected average home value losses during the calendar year.

Leading the pack was Nevada with Henderson ranking number 13 on the list and Reno at number 14.

View the list: http://www.housingpredictor.com/2012/worst-markets.html

Tagged: Economy, Home Sales, Housing Prices, Money, Nevada, Real Estate, Recession, Reno

Reno Foreclosure Filings

rereno — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 05:35:58 +0000

The number of foreclosure filings has dropped slightly compared to two years ago. Washoe County recorded 7,981 foreclosure-related filings in 2011.

Jason Hidalgo of the RGJ attributes much of the decrease to AB 284 which requires the foreclosure documents to be certified under penalty of perjury. The bill caused the banks to change their foreclosure procedures and ultimately will allow delinquent borrowers to remain in their homes a bit longer.

We can probably expect more delays and longer processing times. We can also expect more short sales. I expect that it will also prolong our crisis.

See The Reno Real Estate Guide for more foreclosure information.

Tagged: Economy, Foreclosure, Government, Nevada, Reno

Fannie Mae Increases Mortgage Help for Unemployed Borrowers

rereno — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 21:11:57 +0000

Fannie Mae followed Freddie Mac by issuing new guidelines for unemployed homeowners facing foreclosure. An unemployed homeowner can receive as much as twelve months forbearance.

The servicer can approve an unemployment forbearance term of six months without obtaining Fannie Mae’s approval, provided that all borrower eligibility requirements are met.

An additional six months can be approved providing the borrower meets the guidelines.

Servicers are forbidden from proceeding with foreclosure during the forbearance period.

Tagged: Economy, Fannie Mae, Financing, Interest Rates, Money

Happy New Year

rereno — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 04:10:24 +0000

May 2012 be the best year ever.

Tagged: Holiday

Merry Christmas

rereno — Mon, 26 Dec 2011 04:51:05 +0000

I wish you a very Merry Christmas.