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Home modifications save lives, money

By Tom Kelly, Thursday, April 9, 2009.

One of my friends just added a gorgeous, walk-in shower to a first-floor bathroom that sits nicely behind a kitchen pantry and easily is accessible to the kitchen, den and home office. The huge rectangular glass-door enclosure features a sliding shower head that can rise more than 8 feet above the stone floor.

"Are you expecting grandkids that will be 6-foot-7," I laughed.

"That … and if something ever happens to us, we'll need a shower downstairs. That office could quickly become a bedroom." more...

Seniors look to life insurance for fast cash

By Tom Kelly, Wednesday, March 25, 2009.

More and more senior citizens are seeking ways to make their leisure years more comfortable -- or simply to make ends meet. Many are looking to liquidate or tap at least a portion of an asset that historically has gone untouched.

For example, two seniors asked recently if it were preferable to take a life settlement on their life insurance policy or to pursue a reverse mortgage. The answer depends on a variety of individual preferences, plus a person's age, health, policy value, estate needs, home value and future housing needs. more...

Contesting credit blemishes

By Tom Kelly, Wednesday, March 18, 2009.

Flickr photo by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/thetruthabout/2720239113/" target=blank>TheTruthAbout...</a>.

Credit is king. Don't even think about that terrific interest rate -- let alone that dreamy Craftsman home or upscale downtown condo -- if your FICO is out of whack.

It seems that even veteran loan officers are being forced to ask you for the minutest of details before submitting your loan package to underwriting. "I only need two more pieces of information" can easily be a daily request with even the most complete files still drawing intense lender scrutiny. more...

Buyers hurt by tougher credit scores

By Tom Kelly, Thursday, March 12, 2009.

Maybe it's just the point in our lives, but it seems that the availability of home mortgage money mirrors that of college tuition: There are some terrific programs for the needy, the wealthy always find a way, but those in the huge middle category often have few options.

Some longtime homeowners and perfectly qualified "new-generation" buyers who have been on the sidelines are having extreme difficulty in getting financing -- or refinancing their present loan. The pendulum has now swung from "no loan ever rejected" to "no loan good enough for funding." more...

Exploring the 'fairness' of housing rescue

By Tom Kelly, Wednesday, March 4, 2009.

The discussions with industry officials in the hallways at the recent National Association of Home Builders gathering in Las Vegas echoed the conversations at the National Association of Realtors' annual convention in Orlando. They now have become a common consumer topic: Where does "fair" fit in the various economic stimulus plans?

Should banks receive money before the long line of consumers hurting from house payments? Should consumers who knowingly borrowed too much be bailed out at all? How do you determine clear greed from genuine desperation? more...

Seeking value? Think small metros

By Tom Kelly, Wednesday, February 25, 2009.

For the past 25 years, Mike Ela has been a numbers plumber for the housing industry.

He accumulates, analyzes and distributes U.S. property information, pulling from one source to help define and explain another statistic or trend. He has designed tools that determine home values, enabling potential buyers to take a more focused look at specific cities and neighborhoods. more...

Downsizing in a down market

By Tom Kelly, Wednesday, February 18, 2009.

It's been a different winter than usual this year. Roofs have collapsed under the weight of our country's surprising snows. (A white dusting in Las Vegas? Really.) Violent flooding has moved foundations and deposited debris never seen before on lakeside lots and creekside properties.

The repair and maintenance on primary residences has been expensive for many. And, the thought of keeping a weekend getaway in a down economy can really hit home if the kids are grown and no longer around to do the heavy lifting. more...

'Fix-and-finance' a cure for foreclosures?

By Tom Kelly, Thursday, February 12, 2009.

Tom DiMercurio has spent nearly 40 years analyzing, managing and selling foreclosed properties. He is the brains behind BuyBankHomes.com, a Web site that provides foreclosure information to interested parties such as consumers, investors and real estate agents. When a bank finds itself with a ton of real estate-owned (REO) inventory, he's often called on to propose a liquidation strategy.

Now, DiMercurio is spending his own money in offering a solution to a national foreclosure problem that seems to be getting larger every day. He's made two trips to the nation's capital trying to get in front of legislators with an idea that he feels could stabilize neighborhoods torn apart by empty homes no longer properly maintained. more...

America's neighborhoods in crisis

By Tom Kelly, Wednesday, February 4, 2009.

Empty properties add no "life" to a neighborhood.

A significant number of vacant homes in a neighborhood attract crime and drive down the price of adjoining homes. They have no residents to support local businesses and government; they require more public safety dollars and community resources; and they make neighbors feel uneasy and unsafe. Most importantly, they drive down home prices for the entire neighborhood, igniting more forced sales and foreclosures. Once blight reaches a certain level, it's very difficult to turn around. more...

Reverse mortgage for buyers debuts

By Tom Kelly, Wednesday, January 28, 2009.

Reverse mortgages have been available for more than two decades for older homeowners who have accrued a significant amount of equity in their homes. Now, the government is backing a program to help older homeowners purchase a home with the increasingly popular financing program.

The Federal Housing Administration, a component of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, insures the nation's most popular reverse mortgage known as the Home Equity Conversion Mortgage, or HECM. more...

Fewer reverse mortgage options in '09

By Tom Kelly, Wednesday, January 21, 2009.

Most reverse mortgage options have left the market, victims of the global credit crunch. Yet the biggest player with the longest history still remains, and it pushed the industry into positive growth territory for the 19th straight year.

While the 4.3 percent increase in the number of FHA-insured Home Equity Conversion Mortgages (HECMs) was down significantly from previous years, it bettered the negative numbers of conventional, or "forward," loans. The Federal Housing Administration is a component of the Department of Housing and Urban Development and now the main player in the conventional (forward) and reverse mortgage market. more...

Bought a new house? Expect maintenance

By Tom Kelly, Thursday, January 15, 2009.

New versus used -- also known as "pre-owned" or "existing."

There are a variety of reasons why consumers dream about a new home, and one of them is the comfort of knowing appointments, furnishings and appliances will actually work for a specific period of time or be replaced by a competent builder.

If you just received a dynamite deal from a builder eager to reduce his January inventory, don't allow expert craftsmanship to tempt you into thinking your new palace is going to be maintenance-free for years to come. more...

Home financing to get 'creative' in '09

By Tom Kelly, Thursday, January 8, 2009.

Searching for a home can be draining in "normal" times. When inventory is high and home mortgages are more difficult to obtain, the process of finding a property and securing financing can be downright exhausting.

"Creating financing" is one of the items that is "in" for 2009, according to an annual survey conducted by Mark Nash, a Coldwell Banker broker and real estate author who uses a network of 839 Realtors in all 50 states and eight Canadian provinces to acquire consumer responses to a variety of housing questions. more...

Big-name lenders come tumbling down

By Tom Kelly, Wednesday, December 31, 2008.

What is the top real estate story of 2008? Fannie Mae? Lehman Brothers? Washington Mutual?

A year ago, we discussed how the excessive extension of credit that led to defaults, foreclosures, home prices and more expensive mortgage money was the most talked-about story of 2007.

Everyone in the home buying and refinancing process was complicit, including brokers, bankers, securitizers on Wall Street, wide-eyed consumers and real estate agents. more...

Future of mortgage finance

By Tom Kelly, Wednesday, December 24, 2008.

Will the lessons learned from the real estate slowdown spark genuine creativity in marketing and lending to push more sales?

What are the chances that the residential mortgages bought and sold in the secondary markets will revert to the conservative portfolio business that existed before the first securitizations in the early 1980s?

The real estate industry will recover, but it will be different. more...

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