Entries from Dan Melson's La Mesa Real Estate and Mortgage Website tagged with 'law'
New Consumer Article: The 2010 Good Faith Estimate (Page Three)
Today we have the final installment in the series on the new Good Faith Estimate formThe 2010 Good Faith Estimate (Page Three). Your government that should be protecting you from the worst sort of mortgage provider lies is now actively...
New Consumer Article: The 2010 Good Faith Estimate (Page Two)
The second installment in the series The 2010 Good Faith Estimate (Page Two) is now up. Read it and weep - for consumers nationwide who were hoping the government would provide the solution to their troubles. Didn't happen. Instead, it's...
New Consumer Article: The 2010 Good Faith Estimate (Page One)
It's been a while, but the most recent Transaction From Hell (seller's tenants didn't want to move out - or even let inspectors in) is finally over and I've had a little bit of chance to recover. Today's new consumer...
New Consumer Article: Changes In The Mortgage Market And Transparency Since 2005
It's been a while because I've been both busy and depressed over dis-improvements in the market and their effects upon consumers, but yesterday I found time to write a new article Changes In The Mortgage Market And Transparency Since 2005....
New Consumer Article: How To Keep Listing Agents From Filtering Out Offers
The new consumer article for today is How To Keep Listing Agents From Filtering Out Offers. This is a real, major, and once again increasing problem within the real estate industry. You need to take steps to prevent it from...
New Consumer Article: They Told Me Not To Make My Loan Payment
The new consumer article for today is They Told Me Not To Make My Loan Payment. Ladies and Gentlemen, that's one of the top ways to get yourself in trouble when you're refinancing. What if your new loan cannot be...
New Consumer Article: Student Loans and Real Estate Loans: Default, Repayment vs. Nonpayment and Consolidation
The new consumer article for today is Student Loans and Real Estate Loans: Default, Repayment vs. Nonpayment and Consolidation. These are the three issues that are most common for loan applicants to run afould of....
New Consumer Article: Restricted Sale Property: Very Difficult to Find A Loan
The new consumer article for today is Restricted Sale Property: Very Difficult to Find A Loan. Before you make an offer on restricted sale property, know that your financing options are going to be very limited, and being able to...
New Consumer Article: Who Has A Legitimate Interest In A Real Estate Transaction?
The new consumer article for today is Who Has A Legitimate Interest In A Real Estate Transaction?. This article goes all the way back to first principles to determine who has an interest worth getting hot and bothered over, and...
New Consumer Article: Rental Fraud, Landlord Fraud, and Prospective Tenant Scams
The new consumer article for today is Rental Fraud, Landlord Fraud, and Prospective Tenant Scams. As with everything else out there concerning larger amounts of money, there are rental frauds that renters need to be concerned about, more and more...
New Consumer Article: The Home Valuation Code of Conduct (New Appraisal Standards)
The new consumer article for today is The Home Valuation Code of Conduct (New Appraisal Standards) that are going to be taking effect (appropriately enough) on May 1 ("May Day" or "MAYDAY"). It is going to be almost impossible for...
New Consumer Article: What Are The Note And Trust Deed And What Is The Difference?
The new consumer article for today is What Are The Note And Trust Deed And What Is The Difference?. This is a basic article on the differences and relationship between the two documents; one that documents the debt and one...
New Consumer Article: Title Deeds And The Form They Should Take
The new consumer article for today is Title Deeds And The Form They Should Take, which discusses the mechanism of the title transfer deed and the form it should take....
New Consumer Article: Termite Work, Wood Destroying Pest Agreements, and Lender Requirements
The new consumer article for today is Termite Work, Wood Destroying Pest Agreements, and Lender Requirements. If you know about work that needs to be done, concealing it from the buyer's lender is fraud. Lots of agents are putting their...
New Consumer Article: It Is Illegal Under RESPA to Require Even Prequalification With a Particular Lender
The new consumer article for today is It Is Illegal Under RESPA to Require Even Prequalification With a Particular Lender, debunks the legality of a practice that listing agents are trying to bring back or institute with the increase in...
New Consumer Article: Adverse Possession
The new consumer article for today is Adverse Possession, discussing a method whereby property owners can lose part of their property by failing to defend their rights against squatters....
New Consumer Article: Fake Agent Scams
The new consumer article for today is Fake Agent Scams. Despite how many people get burned by trying to Buy Without an Agent, most of them don't realize how badly they have been taken. In this case, it appears that...
New Consumer Article: Stop Short Sale Bait and Switch
The new consumer article for the day is Stop Short Sale Bait and Switch. I am sick and tired of the fraudulent way that lazy incompetent agents have taken to marketing short sale properties - and it's going to start...
New Consumer Article: New Good Faith Estimate and HUD 1 Form Approved
The new consumer article for the day is New Good Faith Estimate and HUD 1 Form Approved. The government has come up with new regulations on the Good Faith Estimate (Mortgage Loan Disclosure Statement in California) and HUD 1 Form....
New Consumer Article: Offers Where The Buyer Knows About A Problem With Your Property
Today's new consumer article is Offers Where The Buyer Knows About A Problem With Your Property, in which I consider the differences between an offer where the buyer knows about a defect with the property, versus an offer where they...
New Consumer Article: Advertising a Sold Property As Available on MLS
Today's new consumer article is Advertising a Sold Property As Available on MLS, talking about the basics of what forms that these loans take, the Home Equity Loan and Home Equity Line of Credit. Had some kind of stomach flu...
New Consumer Article: "Buy and Bail" or Buying One Home Before Foreclosure on Another
Today's new consumer article is "Buy and Bail" or Buying One Home Before Foreclosure on Another, describing lender response to what has become a widespread phenomenon, as people think they are somehow saving themselves money try to defraud lenders in...
New Consumer Article: The Return of Portfolio Lending
Today's new consumer article is The Return of Portfolio Lending, on the subject of what a portfolio loan is and the differences between portfolio and security based lending, and what the return of portfolio lending means, even to those who...
New Consumer Article September 16th, 2008
Today's new consumer article is Wells and Community Water Systems, which talks about some basic issues having to do with one of the classic reasons for real estate fights: Water....
New Consumer Article September 10, 2008
Today's new consumer article is The Are No Schools That Teach What A Good Agent Needs to Know, which directly takes on the canard that since being an agent doesn't require a college degree, therefore there's nothing special about it...
New Consumer Article September 3, 2008
Today's new consumer article is What Do Loan Qualification Standards Accomplish?, which talks about the good that having and adhering to standards of qualification does, and the problems it avoids for all concerned....
New Consumer Article August 28th, 2008
Today's new consumer article is Rent to Own and Lease With Option to Buy, which talks about one alternative to the traditional sale that usually gets a seller a higher price, while not requiring a buyer to come up with...
New Consumer Article August 25th, 2008
Today's new consumer article is Negotiation Basics: On What to Offer and Whether to Offer, Which talks about the process of putting in an offer and negotiation, and what effects a couple of common things have upon the process....
New Consumer Article August 21, 2008
Today's new consumer article is The Moment of Truth, Signing Bad Loan Documents and the Right of Rescission, which discusses the Moment of Truth that happens in every loan - when the loan documents are presented. Ideally, there should be...
New Consumer Article July 23, 3008
Today's new consumer article is Procuring Cause and Multiple Agents, which talks about multiple agents and which one gets the commission....
New Consumer Article July 22, 2008
Today's new consumer article is What Does It Mean To Fall Out Of Escrow?, which talks about the process of escrow and what really causes escrows to fall apart - and that it is not something to fear....
New Consumer Article July 21, 2008
Today's new consumer article is Buying Teardown Properties and Condemned Buildings, a discussion of the basic issues of buying property with condemned buildings, or ones that you just don't like and want to replace. There's another article set to...
Non-Recourse Purchase Money Loans in California
do you agree that a non recourse loan on a single family home is loaned with out financial risk to the borrower... if they do not want to keep their home when the market drops below what they owe,...
Demands Listing Agents Make That Aren't in Their Clients Best Interest
One of the things I see all the time is notations made on the listing that demotivate buyers agents, or give them a reason not to show the property. This practice has had a drastic fall off of late, with...
You Are Never Obligated To Sell to a Given Offer
Must you sell if you list at a specific price and the broker comes up with a qualified buyer? in the US in general, no you do not have to sell, but you could still be liable to the...
Protecting My Buyer Clients Good Faith Deposit
As I wrote a few days ago, the buyer's deposit is always at risk. This is just a fact of real estate transactions. I could pretend it's not so, but that wouldn't keep the deposit from being at risk...
Buying Out A Partner - With Complications
First of all I love the information on the site. I've done some research into buying a home and have talked to several people who have bought homes and I can never believe the stories I've heard. My response...
Is The Good Faith Deposit At Risk?
Many agents seem to answer this question differently depending upon whether their client is the prospective buyer or seller. When their client is making an offer, "No, your deposit could never possibly be at risk," while when their client...
Shop Loans By The Total Cost To You, Not By What the Provider Makes
When it comes to mortgage loans, people get distracted by the darnedest things. Let's look at Wal-Mart. You think they got to be the largest retailer in the world by making less money than their competition? I assure you...
Dangers of a Poorly Written Real Estate Purchase Offer
There's an old literary tradition that cautions the reader to "Be careful what you ask for. You may get it." Many real estate purchase offers are good illustrations of that principle. The rule followed by good agents is, "Never...
Can a Lender Legally Stop Loan Funding After Signing?
That question brought someone to the site. The answer is "Yes, they can". As a matter of fact, just because they have you sign those documents does not in any way obligate that lender to actually fund your loan. There...
My Sixty Second Public Service Announcement about Buying Real Estate
Here was an idea I had: Pack a list of the most important things consumers need to know about buying real estate, as packed into the words I can say in sixty seconds without sounding like an over-clocked squirrel. Here...
Another Scam: "Negative Equity? Sell and Get Cash!"
Notice that it doesn't claim that you can do so legally. I saw another of these signs on the way to the office this morning. When things are going sour, there are any number of scam artists who will...
Altering the Mortgage Contract: The Lender Trying To Add A Prepayment Penalty After the Fact
I recently closed a mortgage loan. The loan officer told me there would be no prepayment penalty. When the documents came there was none and the loan funded and closed. Two weeks later I got an e-mail stating some...
Pro-rated Property Taxes
my prorated property taxes came were paid at closing but now I'm getting a delinquent tax bill You mean they were supposed to be paid at closing. There are two major possibilities: 1) They were not, in fact, paid...
Steering: The Most Violated Law In Real Estate
I just picked a random ZIP code in my local MLS, and out of the first twenty listings I came to, ten had explicit violations of one or more of the sections of RESPA regarding steering right there in the...
Should Negative Amortization Loans Be Banned?
Having written several articles on Negative Amortization Loans, telling of the details of what is wrong with them, and even destroying the myth of Option ARM cash flow, I sometimes get asked if I would like to see them banned...
Dual Agency: Using the Seller's Agent as Your Buyer's Agent
Is it unwise to use the listing realtor as your purchase realtor? A house I'm interested in purchasing is being sold by the realtor selling my house. Although she's done a decent job selling my house, I fear she...
Recourse Loans and Non-Recourse Loans
do mortgage companyies usually seek a deficiency judgment on home foreclosures Depends upon whether it is a recourse loan or not. A recourse loan is one where the lender can come after you for any excess amount of money...
Why All The Fuss Over Real Estate Transactions?
Why doesn't real estate just sell for the asking price instead of having to go thru all the paper work...? Wouldn't it be easier to just put a price on it and sell it for that price? We don't...
The Mechanics of Inheriting Real Estate
How do you transfer house ownership after someone dies and leaves you the house in a will? The will must be probated. Once all debts of the estate are paid and the court agrees to a final disposition of...
The Lender's Rules of Mortgage Payments
Every so often, someone who thinks they're a wit sends me a copy of The Rules For Relationships According To Women. Unlike those rules, which might have been funny around the time Nefertiti was a debutante, these rules are real...
Do Furnishings Convey With The Property?
If a home for sale has a refrigerator included on the listing report, and the buyer's agent does not write that it goes to the seller in a contract, is the buyer actually entitled to the refrigerator. I am...
Real Estate Liquidation Auctions
With the market turndown, Liquidation auctions are becoming a big thing. They were just advertising one on all the stations around here. The other agents in my office asked if I was going, and I told them, "There will...
What if Your Partner Refuses to Pay Their Share of a Loan or Mortgage (or Won't Pay on Time)?
what happens if partner refuses to pay his half of the mortgage? The lender will hold you each responsible for payment in full. That's the long and the short of it. You both agreed to the loan contract, and...
Disasters and the Mortgage
after Katrina I am upside down with my mortgage. my house is uninhabitable. My flood insurance check doesn't payoff the mortgage. How can i get a short payoff due to financial hardship - i.e. relocation loss of jobs and...
I'm Sorry, Did You Think Your Good Faith Estimate (Or Mortgage Loan Disclosure Statement) Meant Anything?
Somebody asked, "What are my legal options when there's a change on a good faith estimate." Short answer: Sign the documents or don't. Same thing with a Mortgage Loan Disclosure Statement here in California. Neither one means anything binding; that's...
Loan Documents - Contracts of Adhesion
Got a search for "mortgage closing documents do not sign changes." Unfortunately for this person, the documents you get at closing are what legal folks call a contract of adhesion. This means you can either accept it, sign, and adhere...
Buyer's Agency, Due Diligence, and the Illusion of Comity
Somebody sent me this story via e-mail: Feeling Misled on Home Price, Buyers Sue Agent Marty Ummel feels she paid too much for her house. So do millions of other people who bought at the peak of the housing...
Deadlines in Real Estate Transactions
Not too long ago on a property I was selling I called an agent up on the day a transaction was supposed to close. He asked me the question, "Well who says it has to close today?" "The contract that...
Buying and Selling Properties with Unpermitted Additions
Unpermitted additions are popular in California because of property tax implications. You see, due to Proposition 13 back in 1978, taxable assessments are based upon purchase price plus no more than 2% per year since acquisition (although if you...
Incorrect Legal Descriptions on a Trust Deed
"Trust Deed Incorrect Legal Description" There are all kinds of legal descriptions. Lot, Block and Map, or just Lot and Map, are probably the most common. Sectional portions (Portion A of Section B of Township C, Range D) are probably...
Real Estate and Mortgages: Back to Basics?
Over the course of the last few months, I've gotten mass messages from basically every lender I do business with, saying it's time to "get back to basics". About a week ago, my favorite A paper lender became the last...
Power of Attorney for Real Estate Transactions
I got a search for how one spouse could sign while the other was out of town, and act on their behalf. Since both spouses usually need to sign real estate papers, this is a real concern. Actually, almost anybody...
Quitclaiming Property with a Mortgage
I am currently living with my parents and they wish to deed of gift their house to me but they still have a remaining mortgage on it. Is it possible to do this or do they have to pay off...
Legal Late Payments on Your Mortgage
I got a question about legal late payments in California. Unfortunately, there really is no such thing as a legal late payment. You borrowed the money, signed a contract, and it accrues interest according to that contract. You owe this...
Homesteading and Declaration of Homestead
One topic I haven't covered yet here is homesteading. This has nothing to do with the Homestead Act of 1862 that encouraged settling the western United States. A declaration of Homestead basically protects your equity. In many cases, you may...
Read The Full Note
Just got a search "how can I tell if my prepayment penalty applies to selling my home" Read The Full Note. You need to do this before you sign it. I know that many people are just thinking "Sign this...
Making Prepayment Penalties Illegal
I got a search for "which states allow prepayment penalties". I'm not aware of any that don't. If you are, I'd like to know. Any such states should immediately be renamed "Denial". I really hate prepayment penalties, for a large...
Refinancing Has No Effect Upon Property Taxes
do your property taxes go up in California when you refinance your property This is one of those urban legends. People are concerned that because the house is appraised by the lender, the assessor is somehow going to find...
Condo Assessments
I bought a condo in DELETED, CA. Zero down. For 7 months I paid every bill on time - mortgages, HOA and taxes until... The Homeowner's Association told us that we MUST pay a $20.500 special assessment. My realtor...
Do You Have to Lose Your Home in Bankruptcy?
That was a question I was asked via email. The answer is "No." You don't have to lose your home in bankruptcy. I've done loans for many clients who kept their homes through bankruptcy. But they kept their mortgage payments...
How to Avoid A Repeat of the Housing Market Mess
HR 3915 is not the answer. We've been here before (in the early 1990s), congress did something remarkably similar except a little bit more sane. It didn't work then. Why would we expect it to work this time? Among many...
The Economics of Housing Development
HT to Unrepentant Individual, who also has some good information on what it means. The genesis of all of this is Something's Gotta Give, a report (.pdf format) from the Center For Housing Policy. Furthermore, there is an article in...
Is This Supposed to be Helpful Legislation? (A bad example from Illinois)
A reader named Terri at Educating the Wheelers sent me an email giving me a heads up on the antics of the state of Illinois. here is the link. Here is the original article at blackprof. The link to the...
Adding People to Title for Multiple Residence Property
My husband and I are on title and loan to a piece of property with 4 homes on it. We want to add 3 people to title. Can we do this if they are not on the loan? Also, any...
Mineral Rights: They Can't Sell What They Don't Own
I am buying a home, but the contract said they wont sell the oil rights, what does this means? should I buy That was J Paul Getty's great contribution to real estate, and why he got so rich. He retained...
"Fixes" for the Mortgage Meltdown - You Can't Keep A Bad Idea Down
Scapegoating, anyone?Brian Brady notes Barney Frank's misplaced quest for one. 1- Prohibition of "yield spread premium" as compensation to originators. 2- Mandatory licensing of mortgage originators by a Federal registry or state regulator. This Bill does direct the Office...
Mortgage Foreclosure and Taking of Other Assets
if our house is being foreclosed, can they take our retirement or make us sell our cars? we both have 2006 cars that are paid off. Can they take our cars or make us sell them to pay them...
The Seller Always Knows More About the Property Than the Buyer
Real Estate information is asymmetrical. One of the central facts of real estate transactions is that the seller always knows more than the buyer. They've lived in the property for years, and had to deal with any defects first hand....
Low Equity (or Worse!) Relocations in a Buyer's Market
Hi, Dan! I just came across your website and you strike me as the type of guy who has answers for our situation: My husband and I built our home 2.5 years ago. We took out a second mortgage...
Should Lenders Be Permitted to Sell Real Estate?
My answer is yes. National Association of Realtors is very proud of their sponsorship of legislation to keep lenders out of the business of real estate. They quote the legislation keeping banks out of the real estate business as being...
Disclosure Issues and Failure to Disclose
One of the most important things for the buyer in any transaction is confidence that the seller has disclosed all known problems. One of the things most people don't realize, or act like they don't realize, is that it's at...
Changing the Contract
What is the reasonable amount of notice to give when changing contract terms in California That was a search I got. Unfortunately for this person, a real estate contract is not something like Lando Calrissian's bargain with the Empire,...
How Can You Tell If A Buyer is Qualified?
A high percentage of buyers out there have no idea of how qualified they really are themselves. They have no clue as to any of the major factors in determining credit-worthiness. To be fair, there are dozens, if not hundreds,...
"My Payment Is Too High and I Can't Make It"
I found you on the Web after doing some research for my parents regarding short sales and foreclosures. I appreciate your straight talk regarding the whole loan and real estate process which I know they find incredibly intimidating. Right...
How Easy Scams Are
Hi, my name is DELETED, I need help. I bought a house (a few months ago) because my boyfriend persuaded me to. This was supposed to be a real estate investment between us. I put the house in my...
The Effects of Divorce on Real Estate
The bottom line on this question is always, "Whatever the courts say." Divorce law is complex and even when you think you've got a clear message in the law as written, the courts may interpret it differently, or there may...
There's No Real Way to Take The Complexity Out of Real Estate
Every so often I get e-mail asking why real estate transactions are so complex. The answer is, "Because they're for a lot of money, and because there's a lot of money involved, con artists and other people will make a...
Undisclosed Marriage or Domestic Partnership and Title
I purchased a house in DELETED with two friends. Unbeknownst to us, one of them was in a legal domestic partnership relationship that she withheld from us (we knew about the relationship, just not about the legal part). We...
What Does Escrow Do?
This is a question that gets asked a lot. Escrow is nothing more or less than a neutral third party that stands in the middle of a real estate transaction and makes certain all of the i's are dotted and...
Straw Buyers and Their Liabilities
Over the last few years, a lot of folks have gotten used to zero real scrutiny of transactions. With values increasing rapidly, it was hard to lose money on real estate, whether you were purchaser or lender. One of the...
Lowballing versus "Junk Fees"
One of the things that most mortgage and real estate consumers get mixed up on is the distinction between low-balling and junk fees. Junk fees are when they add fees that really aren't necessary to what you're paying. Low-balling is...
Dual Agency and Sellers Wanting to Keep a Buyer's Deposit
What can a seller do to get the deposit when the buyer backed out after the time limit and just won't sign off on the money? My real estate agent is not helping at all. The real estate office...
Second Trust Deeds and Loan Subordination
When you have more than one loan on your property, there are some issues you should be aware of. Keep in mind the fact that some states still use the mortgage system, requiring court action to foreclose, as opposed to...
The Three Day Right of Rescission
One reason to check your referral logs every day: Sometimes you can find great material for an article. I got one about the three day right of rescission. This is a feature (or bug, depending upon your situation) with every...
Rebates: Be Careful Not to Commit Fraud
With many people pushing various "cash back to the buyer" schemes in real estate, a note of caution is needed. Actually, it's more like an entire symphony of caution. Because if there is a loan involved, you run the risk...
FSBO Horror and Failure to Disclose Property Defects
I keep getting search result hits for the string "fsbo horror." It's an amalgamation because I haven't done any postings on this specific subject. Both buyers and sellers have problems relating to For Sale By Owner issues. For sellers, the...
Prorated Property Taxes in California
July first marks one of the turning points in the year for California real estate, as property taxes are collected for a period running from July 1 through June 30. They are paid in two installments, the first due due...
Real Estate Sellers Giving A Buyer Cash Back
When we sold our home just over a year ago we were talked into selling for a bit more than the original offer so the person could get money back to do renovations... I objected based on percentages and...
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