Minneapolis Homes | Lofts | Condos

I heard from a past client the other day.  They have fallen on some hard times.  Their financial situation has become dire due to a variety of factors.  They have experienced job loss and a significant health crisis in just over a year.  They bought their current home with me back in 2004 when the real estate market was still quite robust.  At the time, they asked me if their house would be a good investment.  As always, my answer was, “Real estate has proven to be a good long term investment.  We are experiencing crazy appreciation right now, but, the market will soon level off.  So, don’t expect your house to appreciate every year as much as it is right now.  If history is any indicator of future events, there will be a market adjustment coming at some point in the future.  Historically, normal appreciation has been 2-3% per year.”  I also used to talk about how, historically, real estate really didn’t depreciate.  It has, according to the records throughout the better part of the 20th century, either been flat or appreciated slightly.  From 2000 through 2005/2006, we saw the statistical graphs shoot up like a hockey stick!   This was atypical, based on the history of the market.  Then, all hell broke loose!

But, the contact from these past clients was not a positive one.  They were very upset that I was not able to advise them better about the decrease of their property value from 2004 to now.  Their words, “How could you NOT have known that this would happen!  We cannot sell our house for anything close to what we paid for it.  We really needed to rely on the appreciation of real estate and now we’re upside down in our value.”  I know these folks are in a really bad way right now, so I tried to explain to them that, while I’m well versed in the historical market information, I cannot see in to the future.  They are not alone in this boat.  There was no way for me to know how significantly this real estate market would reverse itself.  Nor, was there any way for anyone to know how long lasting it would/will be.  While all of us in the industry knew there would be an adjustment, we just didn’t have the “crystal ball” to be able to predict this.

After chatting for a while, they did realize that this isn’t my fault (thank goodness) and that we, as agents, are only able to know what’s going on from day to day just like everyone else.  They calmed down and apologized for blaming me.  And, felt somewhat relieved to know they are not alone in their situation.   We are an important cog in advising anyone about how to conduct a real estate transaction, but, I haven’t met an agent yet that can predict with 100% accuracy what’s going to happen in the future!  Keep in mind, most real estate agents are not out to cause anyone harm.  That would be completely counter productive to building a business, ESPECIALLY since we rely heavily on client referrals.

A HUGE thank you to all of my good clients who believe in me!!! You honor me with your confidence.  Please tell those in need of real estate advice or services to contact me today.  I can give them the benefit of my historical perspective as well as a financial overview of what’s happening now!!

Susan Hofflander is a seasoned real estate professional, providing real estate consultations for home buyers and sellers in the Twin Cities since 1994. Susan specializes in homes for sale in Lake Calhoun/Lake Harriet, Minneapolis, Plymouth, MN, Minneapolis Western Suburban Cities and Downtown Minneapolis Lofts.

Technorati Tags: buying process, homes for sale minneapolis, homes sellers, housing prices, lender mediated, minneapolis cities, Mortgage Info, real estate investment, relocation information

I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again!!!  Shred your old documents. It’s a fact that in today’s market place, one needs to have a good financial standing to qualify for a mortgage.  Identity theft can really impact your ability to prove you have a stable financial picture.  One way to protect your security is to shred all of your old documents.

Luckily, Shred It hosts free shredding events at different locations around the Twin Cities.  The next one is July 17th at the K-Mart on Lake Street in Minneapolis.  Usually, there is a 2 box maximum.  You may stand and watch your items being shredded if you wish!

Here’s a list of more shredding events not to be missed.

When it’s time for you to buy a house and you want to know more, contact me!!!!

Susan Hofflander is a seasoned real estate professional, providing real estate consultations for home buyers and sellers in the Twin Cities since 1994. Susan specializes in homes for sale in Lake Calhoun/Lake Harriet, Minneapolis, Plymouth, MN, Minneapolis Western Suburban Cities and Downtown Minneapolis Lofts.

Technorati Tags: buying process, foreclosures, identity theft, lender mediated, minneapolis cities, Mortgage Info, paper shredding event

Much is being said about the home buyer tax credit extension.  This proposal is part of a larger bill aimed at closing a variety of tax loopholes and to create extensions for other tax policy issues and federal program renewals.  As of Friday, June 18th, the Senate could not get required votes to pass this as is.

Here’s how it works:  Home buyers were to have been under contract to purchase a property by April 30, 2010.   Most home buyers, who met the qualifying income and other criteria, were eligible for the credit, even those that sold a property and purchased another one (as long as the property was/is their personal residence).  First time home buyers would be receiving up to $8000 and repeat home buyers would be receiving up to $6500.

Originally, the deadline to close the deal was June 30, 2o10.  The US Senate included a proposal to extend that closing date to September 30, 2010.   This discussion came about because so many lenders and title companies became overwhelmed by the amount of files that needed to be consummated by June 30.  So, because of public outcry and congressional lobbying by big lending, the idea to extend the CLOSING DATE ONLY on these deals was introduced.

Wall Street Journal article from June 11 expresses the idea that this extension could help those trying to defraud the system by back dating their purchase agreements to April 30.  That would mean anybody could, ostensibly, write a purchase agreement anytime and, if all parties agreed to the fraud, put a date of April 30th on the paper work.  Let’s hope everyone has learned their lesson about bilking the government and taxpayers out of these funds, ESPECIALLY lenders!  The last decade was rife for fraud in the mortgage and real estate industry.  If someone introduces this idea to YOU, blow the whistle!!!!

Time for you to sell or buy a house for sale in Minneapolis or any Minneapolis cities?  Contact me today so I can give you the details you need to be an informed consumer.

Susan Hofflander is a seasoned real estate professional, providing real estate consultations for home buyers and sellers in the Twin Cities since 1994. Susan specializes in homes for sale in Lake Calhoun/Lake Harriet, Minneapolis, Plymouth, MN, Minneapolis Western Suburban Cities and Downtown Minneapolis Lofts.

Technorati Tags: buying process, home buyers, housing prices, lender mediated, Mortgage Info, plymouth mn, relocation information

For many Minneapolis home owners, this is a tough time.  We are experiencing significant volatility in the mortgage arena.  The guidelines by which a mortgage may be obtained are much tighter.  Actually, the guidelines are back to where they were 15-20 years ago.  You actually have to prove you can be a responsible home owner.  The paradigm shift that occurred in the early part of the decade, to render anyone who can fog a mirror qualified to be  mortgagor (meaning the person who obtains a mortgage and makes the payments toward total ownership) is now shifting back to those who have a proven track record of on time payments and make enough money to pay their bills.

There were people who met such guidelines when they obtained their mortgages, even in the free-for-all days.  But, many have now fallen on a hardship of some kind.  For example job loss, health crises, divorce, death of a spouse, business failure can all be life changing events that render the Minneapolis home owner unable to honor their commitment to make their housing payments as originally agreed upon.  If that happens, the homeowner needs to find alternatives.

There is help available.  The new programs that will go in to effect on April 5 have provisions to assist homeowners who are experiencing a genuine hardship.  There are many provisions for assistance to forestall the sheriff’s sale until a short sale can be achieved and stricter guidelines that will bring pressure to bear on the banks to provide answers quicker in order to facilitate the short sales to go through.  The new program, HAFA, stands for Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives, was developed last November and the new guidelines will go in to effect April 5, 2010.   Check out the information to see what might help you or someone you love.

Susan Hofflander is a seasoned real estate professional, providing real estate consultations for home buyers and sellers in the Twin Cities since 1994. Susan specializes in homes for sale in Lake Calhoun/Lake Harriet, Minneapolis, Plymouth, MN, Minneapolis Western Suburban Cities and Downtown Minneapolis Lofts.

Technorati Tags: downtown minneapolis, downtown minneapolis lofts, foreclosures, home buyers, homes for sale Champlin Mn, homes sellers, lender mediated, Minneapolis lofts and condos, Mortgage Info, real estate investment

For buyers and sellers of homes for sale in Minneapolis and Minneapolis cities, here is a video that tells you what’s going on as of March 2010.  Take a look and pass it on.

Watch this video about the Minneapolis and Minneapolis cities housing market.

Susan Hofflander is a seasoned real estate professional, providing real estate consultations for home buyers and sellers in the Twin Cities since 1994. Susan specializes in homes for sale in Lake Calhoun/Lake Harriet, Minneapolis, Plymouth, MN, Minneapolis Western Suburban Cities and Downtown Minneapolis Lofts.

Technorati Tags: downtown minneapolis, downtown minneapolis activities, home buyers, homes for sale, homes for sale Minneapolis cities, homes for sale Minneapolis Western suburbs, housing prices, lake calhoun homes for sale, lake harriet homes for sale, lender mediated, Minneapolis lofts and condos, Mortgage Info, plymouth mn homes for sale, real estate investment, relocation information

There are so many buyer classes available.  But, you want to get your education from the best.  The MN Real Estate Team has been the #1 team in the State of MN since 2006.  We’re now #3 nation wide and #8 world wide!!  That’s quite a distinction.  These standings show that we can get the job done.

We are now offering classes in 2 locations!  Burnsville AND Shoreview.  We heard from so many buyers, we had to offer more locations to accommodate everyone.

The first class is Thursday, March 18th from 6:30-8:00 at Cornerstone Mortgage in Burnsville.  The next is in Shoreview on Thursday, March 25th at the Shoreview Community Center.  The Minnesota Real Estate Team Home buyer experts and home loan partners from Cornerstone will walk you through the process from start to finish.  Topics include the home buyer tax credits and how they fit in to your scenario, how the home buying process works, how to obtain a mortgage, all of the special financing programs and SO much more.

Cornerstone Home Loans – 436 Gateway Blvd., Burnsville, MN

Shoreview Community Center – 4580 Victoria St N #203, Shoreview, MN

It’s a good idea to register in advance as seating is limited.  Click here to register

Susan Hofflander is a seasoned real estate professional, providing real estate consultations for home buyers and sellers in the Twin Cities since 1994. Susan specializes in homes for sale in Lake Calhoun/Lake Harriet, Minneapolis, Plymouth, MN, Minneapolis Western Suburban Cities and Downtown Minneapolis Lofts.

Technorati Tags: buying a Minneapolis loft, buying process, classes, classes for home buyers, downtown minneapolis, downtown minneapolis lofts, lake calhoun homes for sale, lake harriet homes for sale, lender mediated, Mortgage Info, real estate investment, relocation information

As a licensed REALTOR® since 1994, I’ve seen many scenarios in the housing market.

The last few years have produced unprecedented high numbers of foreclosed properties.  Most of the time, those properties are left abandoned by the previous owners.  Once the bank is the owner of the house, they arrange for the house to be “vacated”, meaning all of the furniture and “stuff” left behind is disposed of.  So, most of the time, when we show homes that are bank owned or lender mediated, they are vacant and empty.

But, once in a while, we find residents living in a house that’s supposed to be vacant!  I’ve entered homes to see several people running out the back door.  Or, there was the time I walked in to the lower level of a split entry to find a “guy” passed out on the floor.  That was scary because I was alone and I didn’t know what might happen!  I left right away and called the police.  The guy took off before they got there, slipped out the back door.  I’ve walked in on people doing drugs.  And, one other time, I was showing a house that was supposed to be vacant and a barking dog ran down the stairs and started snapping at us.  The house was a mess, littered with laundry, trash, dirty dishes and moldy food.  There were dog feces and urine everywhere as well as 4 or 5 residents that weren’t supposed to be there.  These illegal residents are called “squatters”.  The only way to get them out is to implement legal proceedings to do so.

This is one more reason for neighbors to stay involved in their neighborhoods when they spot suspicious activity.  If they know the house should be vacant, they should report activity to the police.  It may be new owners, but the police can check it out anyway. It will keep the drug activity to a minimum.  And, real estate agents will keep their clients OUT of these houses, not only for their protection but for the agent’s own protection as well.

Take a look at this article to see how this is impacting homes for sale in Minneapolis cities.

Want an agent who keeps you safe and helps you find the home of your dreams?  Contact me today!

Susan Hofflander is a seasoned real estate professional, providing real estate consultations for home buyers and sellers in the Twin Cities since 1994. Susan specializes in homes for sale in Lake Calhoun/Lake Harriet, Minneapolis, Plymouth, MN, Minneapolis Western Suburban Cities and Downtown Minneapolis Lofts.

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As I indicated in Step #1, subsequent to my conversation with the modification representative from Bank of America,  I consulted with my good friend Carrie Guarrero from Cornerstone Home Loans.  She suggested I find out if Bank of America has an online option to fill out the paper work, rather than waiting 45 days or more for it to come in the mail.  I was also told to ask what kind of modifications they would be willing to offer.

Turns out, Bank of America DOES have an online process to begin mortgage modification.   They actually take you through the steps that I went through over the phone a few days ago.  Once the online questions have been answered, a determination is made about whether a borrower is preliminarily qualified for any modification programs.  But, from there, the process is the same.  A borrower would STILL need to wait for the paper work to be delivered in hard copy.  From what I was told, they need actual signatures and copies of things like tax returns and bank statements in order to complete the process.  Once they have the signed paper work back, it will be submitted for review before a board.  Once it passes the board review, they will assign a negotiator that communicates directly with the borrower.

So, while the online process does not help expedite the actual “nitty-gritty” of the process, it does help borrowers determine if they actually fit the scenario that renders them eligible to move to the next step.

Next:  THE PACKAGE and submission of papers.

Susan Hofflander is a seasoned real estate professional, providing real estate consultations for home buyers and sellers in the Twin Cities since 1994. Susan specializes in homes for sale in Lake Calhoun/Lake Harriet, Minneapolis, Plymouth, MN, Minneapolis Western Suburban Cities and Downtown Minneapolis Lofts.

Technorati Tags: downtown minneapolis, foreclosures, homes Plymouth mn, homes sellers, housing prices, lender mediated, minneapolis cities, minneapolis condos, Minneapolis loft, Mortgage Info

As many gentle readers of this website may know, my family is experiencing a bit of a crisis right now.  My husband is ill with lung cancer.  Dealing with all that entails, there is a very real financial aspect of having a family member who is gravely ill.  As a result, I will be exploring a mortgage modification.  I suspect this information will be of use to many of my readers, so I decided to write about the experience.  Hopefully, my readers will benefit from my mistakes as well as my successes.

My mortgage is with Bank of America.  Initially, we secured our loans through Countrywide, but with the downfall of Countrywide, they were bought out by Bank of America.  So, this “journal” of my experience will involve only the communication with Bank of America.  Experiences with other lenders may vary.

I made my first phone call before Christmas.  That proved singularly unfruitful.  I kept pressing the option to talk to someone about mortgage modification, but every time I pressed the correct key, the recording said, “I’m sorry, there is no one available to help you at this time. Please return to the automated system.”  So, I called back and pressed the key to talk to customer service.  When I got a customer service representative, I explained what happened.  He said it was not surprising.  Many people reported that, even if they got through to the department, they were on hold for 40 minutes or more!  This gentleman then gave me several phone numbers that would take me directly to the Hardship Department.

Today, I called one of those phone numbers.  I was on hold for twelve minutes before I got a “live” person.  She did a preliminary pre-qualification of my circumstances to make sure that my situation met minimum guidelines.  It was determined that our situation does qualify, so she transferred me to another representative who works specifically in the Modification department.  I was on hold for another 7 minutes.  The next rep took me through the same set of criteria as the first rep.  She drew the same conclusion and deemed us, preliminarily suited for some sort of modification.  There will be a packet of information sent to us, including an affidavit regarding my husband’s health situation which we will need to have notarized, and other forms pertaining to our hardship situation (i.e. request for bank statements, tax returns, etc.).  We are told to expect those in approximately 45 days.  They also indicated that there would be a temporary reduction of our monthly payment in order to alleviate the immediate situation while our file is being reviewed.

Because the rep talked so fast, it felt like she was reading this disclosure.  And, upon further questioning, she didn’t really seem to know how the rest of the process will work.  At this point, I will assume that I will confer with an employee more educated about the process than she in the future.  That was the end of my conversation.  I then called my friend, Carrie Guarrero at Cornerstone to ask for some educated feedback.  She mentioned that I should see if there was an automated way to expedite the procedure.  So, I’ll call back tomorrow to find out if there is an online way to submit the information they require.

While these kinds of procedures are uncomfortable, frustrating and somewhat scary, in many instances, it is absolutely necessary to face the harsh truth.  I’ll put in my next entry once I submit the paper work.  It will be informative and interesting, as well as helpful to understand how this whole process works.  It will make me a better educated REALTOR®!

Susan Hofflander is a seasoned real estate professional, providing real estate consultations for home buyers and sellers in the Twin Cities since 1994. Susan specializes in homes for sale in Lake Calhoun/Lake Harriet, Minneapolis, Plymouth, MN, Minneapolis Western Suburban Cities and Downtown Minneapolis Lofts.

Technorati Tags: buying process, downtown minneapolis, downtown minneapolis living, foreclosures, home buyers, housing prices, lender mediated, minneapolis cities, Mortgage Info, real estate investment

I post a fair amount on this blog about the importance of identity protection.  I’ve recommended many times for consumers to protect themselves by shredding old documents that contain sensitive information.  M & I Bank has hosted several free shredding events at their location. They haven’t had any since November.  So, I’ve been searching high and low for other entities that will host free shredding events.  Found one!!   Saturday, January 9th you can bring your sensitive documents to American Bank at 1578 University Ave., St. Paul (it’s in the Midway).  Shred Right is providing these free services in the next few months.  There’s no charge, but they are taking donations for these services if you feel so led.  It’s still cheaper than trying to pay for these services.

This website will offer you more information.

Do you want to buy a house?

Make sure your credit scores are protected.  Protect them by keeping your identity information secure.  That way, when the time comes to buy a house for sale in the Lake Harriet or Lake Calhoun neighborhoods of Minneapolis or homes for sale in any other Minneapolis cites, you’ll have a sound credit score to show the under writer.

Contact me today!

Susan Hofflander is a seasoned real estate professional, providing real estate consultations for home buyers and sellers in the Twin Cities since 1994. Susan specializes in homes for sale in Lake Calhoun/Lake Harriet, Minneapolis, Plymouth, MN, Minneapolis Western Suburban Cities and Downtown Minneapolis Lofts.

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