A short sale, also called a preforeclosure sale, occurs when homeowners can't afford their home mortgage payments and the house is worth less than they owe on it. The lender accepts the proceeds from the sale, even though the price doesn't cover the entire debt.

The knock on short sales is they take too long. A short sale can be done only with the lender's permission, and the lender sometimes takes months to decide whether to accept the buyer's offer. This allows the seller to stay in their home until the Short Sale has been approved buying the seller adequate time to make additional living arrangements.

Finally, the seller gets $3,000 in moving expenses for leaving the house in decent shape.

What A Short Sale Home Owner needs to know:

Lender(s) will agree to the "Minimum acceptable net proceeds" which is a term that represents the smallest amount of money a loan's owner will accept.

This sum and agreement is affected by:

• How much the borrower owes on the first mortgage.
• How much is owed on the second mortgage.
• The unpaid interest racked up.
• Expenses such as closing costs.
• The real estate agent's commission that is to be paid by the lender not the seller.

After a successful close of Escrow, the seller is entitled to a "relocation incentive" of $3,000.

This is very useful information for Arizona Sellers who are considering Short Selling their home.

Contact us for additional information to find out if you qualify for a Short Sale and the $3,000 moving assistance program.

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Why is listing your home online is so important!

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Each one of our seller listings is manually entered into a custom branded MVP Realty Team website www.mvprealtyteam.com that also places syndication to the websites listed below. Each of our listings manually entered contain SEO (Search Engine Optimization) key words placed strategically throughout.

What this means to The Seller:

When a buyer is online searching for a home they will not search for a home by using a specific address. Typically when searching a buyer will enter the City being searched along with a key word. For example: Chandler home with loft. By manually placing keywords such as "Loft, Gated Community, Waterfront, etc." into the listing description it ensures that our seller listings come up first in an online search.

Given the massive amount of competition to get homes SOLD in the least amount of time, we pride ourselves on being top ranked in buyer searches. We also utilize a custom virtual tour website that places additional overlapping syndication to the websites listed below under Previsite Tours. It is important to always be one step ahead of the game in this market and our average days on market are well below average. (See chart listed below)

We take great pride in selling our homes FAST!

MVP Realty Team Days On Market	Keller Williams Days On Market	ARMLS Days On Market
44 ADOM	89 ADOM	64 ADOM

MVP Realty Team Website

Neighborhood-based search, intuitive design, and rich listing content make Point2 Homes a successful and growing source of free leads for Point2 members.

• Google Maps enables potential property buyers to get relevant search results, view a property's location, receive transit and driving directions as well as find details on how to contact the listing representative.

• At HotPads we think that it should be easier to find your next home so we strive to give people the best platform as possible for sharing information about available housing. With our innovative map-based search and dynamic content, HotPads is widely recognized as an industry leader in the housing market. Our national real estate listing service focuses on rental, for sale, and vacation housing and now you can Feature your Listings on HotPads for as little as $0.50 per day! Featured listings increase your exposure on HotPads by 3-5X driving more traffic and leads to your listings.

• Yahoo! Real Estate is #1 real estate website with 5.1 million unique visitors, according to comScore Media Metrix September 2008 rankings. Yahoo! Real Estate provides users with a comprehensive set of real estate listings and home buying information, including new and for-sale home listings, apartments for rent, foreclosures, home values, local schools, detailed neighborhood overviews, and home mortgage rates. Consumers can visit Yahoo! Real Estate at realestate.yahoo.com.

• Harness the power of Cyberhomes™ and AOL Real Estate to display your listings and get more consumer traffic and leads, all at no cost. With access to more than 100 million property records, Cyberhomes delivers the information consumers are looking for home valuations, neighborhood and school information, aerial and heat maps with many more hot features added regularly.

• SecondSpace, Inc. is an online marketing company operating a network of web sites that enable people to connect with the "second home" lifestyle: LandWatch.com and ResortScape.com

• FrontDoor.com is an online real estate listing and information service powered by HGTV, the No.1 source for home-related media content. The site offers listings of homes for sale from top real estate brokerages throughout the U.S. in addition to providing exclusive, original expert advice and videos featuring nationally known talent and a comprehensive library of engaging, interactive tools, guides and information.

• Trulia.com, the best place for consumers to start a real estate search, has revolutionized online home search by offering a rich, intuitive user experience that points consumers directly to the property information on listing broker and agent Web sites for free and enables direct communication with buyers and sellers on Trulia Voices. Over 5 million visitors come to Trulia each month. www.trulia.com

• One of the most popular real estate sites, Zillow attracts approximately 8.7 million unique visitors a month. Point2 can automatically upload your listings to Zillow, complete with multiple photos, company and contact information. Agents can register on the site, for free, and be included in the Zillow Professional Directory. Agents can also purchase ZIP code targeted ads or pay for their listings to receive top billing in the search order. Find out more at www.ZillowPros.com or call 888 957 2706.

• Oodle is reinventing classifieds by offering a trusted, social experience to consumers and a targeted, pay-for-performance business model to local advertisers. Every month, millions of consumers come to Oodle to look for everything from a new home, car or job to a new pet, bike or futon. All of these searches are local and highly qualified in nature. With more than 10 million users each month and 600,000 new listings each day, the Oodle Network is the fastest growing classifieds marketplace on the Web. Through the Company’s 200 partners, including Facebook and MySpace, the Oodle Network combines broad reach with engaged local usage.

• Enhance your listings on the HomeFinder.com Network and be seen in over 130 online newspaper real estate searches including LATimes, ChicagoTribune, Miami Herald and Newsday Long Island.

• Vast is a vertical advertising and search technology platform that provides Point2Agent members with access to millions of consumers searching for real estate at websites they already visit today, such as Overstock.com.

• CLRSearch.com is a Real Estate Search Engine that provides a data rich environment to explore listings, community demographics, and other data relevant to one of the most important decisions of your life.

• The Clickable City Directory provides real estate listings for all cities and all zip codes throughout the United States. Its reach is national; its focus is purely local. Visit YOUR city and/or local zip code at www.LoveMyZip.com. LoveMyZip.com, the online Clickable City Directory. Please phone us at (866) 488-1163 for any further information.

• UltraForeclosures.com is an online subscription service providing its members with access to a comprehensive database of foreclosure property information and other related services.

• Reach a whole new audience - we are a multilingual website based in Europe. We translate your listings to 32 languages.

• A top Real Estate Website featuring Homes for Sale, For Sale By Owner Tools, Real Estate research and Investment Resources.

• TheHousingPages.com is designed as a central resource center for consumers looking to to buy or sell a home.

• Reozom.com wants to help you stick out from the crowd by offering you Online Video Promoting and local area based Click & Pay Advertisement along with other valuable and useful forms of online advertisement, all at competitive pricing.

• VirtualTour.com is designed to be a powerful online search portal for virtual tours. Whether you're searching for virtual tours or wanting to post you own virtual tour for the world to find, VirtualTour.com is the site you want to be on.

• Kazork’s website is seen by thousands of buyers and real estate professionals every day. Kazork is attempting to bring the real estate industry into the internet age by creating a transparent and efficient marketplace.

• NTXHouseHunters.com is a real estate search engine focused on land and residential listings in North Texas. Visitors can save their homebuyer profile and be instantly notified of listings that match their search criteria.

• Rich, deep real estate data. Selected as one of Time.com's top 50 web sites of 2009. Serving professionals, investors, and savvy home buyers since January 1st, 2003.

• VivaReal.us is the official, bilingual real estate portal of the National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals, serving US Hispanic home buyers and sellers to search for listings and to connect to Real Estate practitioners in their area.

• RepeatProperty.com is completely FREE and is built around the idea of organization, community and real time communication. Create a network and stay connected with others in your Real Estate transaction. Save time by having everyone on the same page.

• HomeAway Real Estate is an online global marketplace for buying and selling second homes and vacation properties with rental income potential.

• A Classified Ads Search Engine for Real Estate, Jobs and Cars.

• Property for sale & rent through leading US & overseas estate agents & letting agents. NewsyHomes search tools help locate houses, flats, apartments, new homes & investment property to let or buy in the US & overseas.

• Realty Showcase TV is a cable television network and real estate video service with localized real estate broadcasts in select TV Markets in the US.

• HomeGain is a leading provider of online marketing programs that connect real estate agents and brokers with home buyers and sellers. A top visited real estate website since 1999, HomeGain is your real estate connection.

Do you feel like you are on this road?
Stop Foreclosure!!
We have a 95% Short Sale Approval Rate!
We personally handle all of our Short Sale Transactions!
We do not outsource to a third party, and we get our
Short Sales SOLD and CLOSED!
Facts:

- You are able to live in your home until the Short Sale is completed. Typically 2-5 months, mortgage payment free. (We recommend speaking with financial advisory for all questions)
- Lenders/Financial Institutions are very motivated to Short Sale as this saves the Lenders/Financial Institutions substantial money rather than foreclose on the property.
- Every Short Sale transaction and scenario is different you can expect a decrease in your FICO score, although the reduction in FICO score is drastically less than a foreclosure.
- When choosing The MVP Realty Team as your Short Sale listing Team, you can expect priceless service for zero out of pocket fee. We do not get paid until we have successfully closed your home, and the Lender pays our fees.
- We will walk you through each step of the Short Sale transaction process. We vow to protect your present, and future financial freedom. You are able to walk away owning nothing to the lender for the difference/balance of what the home sold for and what is owed on the property.

Please remember we are here to help, and time is of the essence!
CONTACT@MVPREALTYTEAM.COM
480.603.3462

What is a short sale?
A short sale is the process of reducing a mortgage’s principal balance because the owner can no longer afford the monthly payments. They are in an “Upside Down” situation or are “Under Water” on their Tempe Home. Every Short Sale Mortgage Lender handles the short sale process a little differently. An important thing to remember is that you do not need to wait until you are behind on your payments to start the discussions with your lender! If your lender is telling you that you need to be 90 days late on your mortgage… THEY ARE LYING! If you have missed one or more mortgage payments on your home, contact an Arizona Short Sale Real Estate Team ASAP! Time is of the essence! Our job and main focus is to battle and negotiate with the Loss Mitigation departments to accept a purchase offer lower than the outstanding balance on the loan. There has been a huge increase in REO properties in Tempe! Mortgage loan companies are now leaning towards accepting a Short Sale Negotiation! By choosing The MVP Realty Team to facilitate your Short Sale Tempe Listing you are choosing a professional, skilled, fully staffed Team!

How do you buy a Short Sale in Tempe, AZ?
Thinking of buying a Short Sale in Tempe? Can you buy a relatives Short Sale listing? How do you buy a Short Sale Listing? Are these questions you have found yourself recently asking? We STRONGLY suggest using a skilled and trusted Tempe real estate agent with short sale experience! We have seen many Short Sale home buyers spend endless months waiting on a Short Sale to provide them with answers! The MVP Realty Team urges you to look at our current Tempe Short Sale Listings! We feel confident in our ability to close our Short Sale Listings FAST! We provide both you as the buyer and the Short Sale seller with weekly update status reports  that come directly from our full-time Short Sale In House Negotiator.

How do you Short Sale in Tempe, AZ?
We STRONGLY urge you to contact us ASAP if you are considering a Short Sale! We can have an offer written and submitted to your lender IMMEDIATELY! Through the relationships with have built with several Loss Mitigation departments and our large rolodex of contacts within the Asset Management Departments we can move your Short Sale Process FAST! Often times bypassing many tedious hoops they require! We will also END the phone calls that come from the Mortgage companies day in and day out! We will handle those calls professionally, and with knowledge of your RIGHTS!

Can a Relative Buy My Home if it is listed as a Short Sale???

How to obtain financing for Real Estate in the U.S. as a Canadian citizen.

RULES AND LIMITATIONS TO LOAN:

·        Purchase or refinance with no cash out

·        Purchase price up to $595,000 unless down payment is provided for difference

·        Loan amount up to $417,000

·        Minimum of 30% down payment

·        30 year fixed only, no temporary buy downs

·        2nd home only Cannot own another house in the United States

·        All documents must be in English

·        Cannot have diplomatic immunity.

·        Must be able to verify Canadian citizenship and proof they are allowed to be in the United States.

·        Single family, condo/townhome unit property only (No duplexes/ multi-family units)

Employment Verification Process

Credit

We obtain a Canadian credit report.

Proof of 24 month history of credit

4 trade lines

For additional information and questions on investing in Arizona feel free to email or call us today!

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How do I buy a home?

Whether you plan on taking advantage of the $8,000 stimulus first time home buyer tax credit, you are a Canadian investing in Arizona Real Estate, or you are a seasoned

Real Estate investor: The one indisputable common thread is the necessitate in locating an Expert Tempe Real Estate REO/Bank Owned/Foreclosure/Short Sale Investment team.

·         The first step in your Tempe Real Estate property investment plan should be to interview and consult with a Tempe investment home Real Estate agent/ Team- The MVP Realty Team is a fulltime Arizona Real Estate Team. We are equipped with specialty Real Estate agents to service every type of client and their customizable Real Estate needs. Our team of agents specialize in differing areas located within the greater Phoenix Metro area to make certain we have vast knowledge and insight into what neighborhoods are in transition, declining, revitalizing, and which areas will likely bring the best return on their investment down the road.

·         Once you have chosen and interviewed the Real Estate Agent/Team you would like to hire for your Tempe Real Estate investment home needs, make a loyal commitment to them! You pay absolutely ZERO dollars for their expert services! By making a solid and honest commitment to your Realtor; you both have communicated your desire in working hard to make the entire transaction smooth, enjoyable, and above all successful-Your agent does not get paid unless they find the right home for you!

·         There is an overwhelming behind the scenes amount of paperwork, research, and time your Real Estate Tempe Bank Owned Investment team puts forth to ensure they successfully guide the process from contract to close. If you are loyal to your Realtor, they will be loyal to you and will be a significant asset in your future Tempe investment home plans. To be a prosperous home investor (the first Arizona Real Estate purchase you make qualifies you as an investor) you must realize the importance of having a high-quality fulltime real estate agent in your corner.

·         Hiring the MVP Real Team can provide you with the added security of knowing you have a Tempe REO, Foreclosure, Bank Owned, Pre Foreclosure Real Estate expert fighting your battles. Locating the right Arizona investment property can be a time consuming and confusing process, we are here to save you an incredible amount of time- From negotiating the contract, to setting up the inspection, to working with the lender, appraiser, Title Company, the list goes on and on.

·         If you use an informed Tempe Arizona Investment properties Team to buy the home, use the same Team to help you sell your Investment property? (Why not, they know all about the Real Estate property and were there from start to finish). If you stay loyal to the Realtor, guess what? They will become a “bird dog” for you and start finding YOU the deals! Now that is what I call Success!

Real Estate Investor + Realtor Loyalty= Success

Invest in Tempe Real Estate properties today! Just do not go at it alone, hire the right Real Estate Bulk REO/ Foreclosure/ Bank Owned/Short Sale Investment team in order to reap the maximum rewards Real Estate can bring to you.

Start shaking the money tree today!

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December 2009 Tempe Short Sale Real Estate Statistics and Tempe REO Real Estate Statistics

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Article courtesy of msnmoney.com

If you owe more than your house is worth and can't afford your payments, you might be able to sell it for less than you owe -- without having to pay the lender the difference.

If you can no longer make your mortgage payments and your home is now worth less than you owe on it, foreclosure may not be your only option.

A short sale, in real-estate terms, is the sale of a house for less than what the owner still owes on the mortgage. If the lender agrees to a short sale, the rest of the homeowner's debt typically is forgiven. Lenders sometimes agree to the procedure in order to take a small loss and avoid the lengthy and costly foreclosure process.

While there are some significant negative consequences to a short sale, an ever-increasing number of properties are being advertised with that label.

Short sale: Win-win-win situation

The beauty of short sales is that they can be a win-win-win situation for seller, buyer and lender. Here's how:

The seller gets out of the mortgage liability without facing bankruptcy.

The buyer gets the home at a reduced price.

The lender agrees to a loss it considers minimal without going through a foreclosure and being saddled with an unsalable property.

While it may seem surprising that lenders would agree to accept less than what they are owed, they benefit from the process, too.

"The lender benefits by not having to go through the protracted process of foreclosing on the borrower and then having to put the property on the market and go through the whole marketing process," says Stuart Wilson, a real-estate agent with Paragon Real Estate in San Francisco.

A market saturated with foreclosures can cost lenders billions -- and as much as $50,000 per foreclosure -- according to a study by the congressional Joint Economic Committee.

A Buyer's Dream

For a buyer, a short sale is a boon since he or she is getting a property at a reduced price. However, the process of waiting for a lender to decide whether to agree to a short sale can make a lengthy home-buying process longer and more arduous.

Wilson, who has represented both buyers and sellers in short-sale deals, advises working with an agent who's familiar with short sales.

He also suggests that buyers looking to negotiate a short-sale deal come armed with enough documentation to convince the lender that settling for the lower price is the best option.

"You'd better be armed with recent comparables that show unequivocally that the lender's price is out of line," says Wilson. "You can't do this with a cover letter or a conversation. It will need to be done with the kind of documentation that an appraiser would come up with.

"When you go into a short sale, you have an institutional lender, and it is an anonymous entity," Wilson continues. "You don't get a chance to talk to these people, you don't know what their guidelines are, you don't know what their time frames are, and you don't know if your contract will be approved in six weeks or six months. It's a real crapshoot."

Lenders are most concerned with the financial situations of the seller when they ultimately make their decisions. If a seller can handle the mortgage payment, there's no motivation for the lender to let the seller out of the mortgage at a lower price.

"A lot of lenders aren't even going to consider a short sale unless it seems like (the homeowner) is in financial distress," says Natalie Lohrenz, director of counseling for Consumer Credit Counseling Service of Orange County in Santa Ana, Calif.

Also, if the home has a second mortgage with another institution, a short sale is less likely to be approved, since that second institution would have to agree to forfeit all or part of the money it's owed.

Last gasp only

While getting a lender to agree to a short sale may seem like an answer to the prayers of a homeowner who wants to unload a house, it's not a good move if you're merely looking to find a new place. It's generally a last-ditch effort when the only other option is foreclosure.

Should you go for a short sale? It depends on how deep a financial hole you're in and how likely it is you'll be able to overcome those financial difficulties.

"If they're just having a short-term problem -- short-term disability or maternity leave or layoffs, but they have good prospects to find something soon and they can weather the storm and hold on to the profit through that -- obviously they wouldn't want to think about a short sale," says Lohrenz.

"But if the choice is foreclosure or short sale, generally a short sale is going to be a better idea."

Before you think about asking your lender to consider a short sale, it would be a good idea to get your paperwork lined up.

Be ready to show the lender you are serious about your situation. Get together a hardship letter (an honest explanation of your financial situation and how it occurred), pay stubs, bank statements, tax returns, an appraisal and documentation of your debts.

3 critical safeguards

If you're considering a short sale, experts advise you to take the following steps to meet potential negative consequences head-on.

1. Get it in writing. Make sure the lender agrees in writing that the short sale will absolve all debts.

"If they owe $300,000 on the house and the short sale is for $280,000, is there any possible way that the lender's going to come after them for the $20,000?" Lohrenz says. "Most lenders will put that in the agreement that they're not going to come after the deficiency."

2. Protect your credit rating. Ask the lender how it will report the short sale on your credit report.

"Most of the time, a short sale shows simply that a debt is satisfied," says Lohrenz. "But theoretically, a short sale could reflect on the credit report as 'settled for less than the full balance.'" Such a designation is a negative mark on your credit report, though it wouldn't hurt your credit as much as a foreclosure would.

3. Get professional tax advice. Short sales often have tax repercussions, since lenders can claim the forgiven debt as income that they provided you.

That means if you agreed to a short sale for $50,000 less than what you owed the lender, the lender could issue you a 1099 for $50,000, which you would have to pay taxes on.

But there are two "outs," says Lohrenz. "If you meet the IRS' definition of insolvency at the time the debt was forgiven, then you generally don't have to pay taxes on it."

Or, if your home loan is a nonrecourse loan, you're also likely to escape this tax. With a recourse loan, whoever signed the note is personally liable for the debt, and in a short sale, the debtor would have to pay tax on the difference. A nonrecourse debt is one secured by the loan collateral -- such as the house itself -- and the debtor would not have to pay tax on the sale shortfall.

The most common case is that mortgages secured by the property -- especially for buyers who made a 20% or more down payment -- is a nonrecourse loan. But it is absolutely critical you consult a tax attorney before you make such a move to ensure that you don't dig a deeper financial hole as a result of the tax situation.

This story was reported and written by Tamara E. Holmes for Bankrate.com.

Have questions about short sales? Contact us today!

Average Listing Price

$299,039  (down -$2.872 1%)

Median Sales Price

$175,000 (down $28,500 14%)

Most popular neighborhoods:

Optimist Park NE

Avg Listing Price: $222,063

Optimist Park SE

Avg Listing Price: $305,712

Dava-Lakshore

Avg Listing Price: $205,451

Sunset

Avg Listing Price: $136,135

NTNA – West Rio  

Avg Listing Price: $125,557

Tempe Summary:

Average price per square foot for Tempe AZ was $140, a decrease of 1.4% compared to the same period last year. The median sales price for homes in Tempe AZ for Aug 09 to Oct 09 was $175,000 based on 515 home sales. Compared to the same period one year ago, the median home sales price decreased 14%, or $28,500, and the number of home sales increased 16.8%.

Schools in Tempe:

Tempe Elementary School District 3 (Public PK-8) 24 Schools Students: 13,234

Tempe Union High School District 213  (Public 9-12)  9 Schools   Students: 13,787

Getz School (Public)

Tempe Preparatory Academy (Public) 6-12

Pinnacle Charter H.S. – Nogales (Public) 9-12

Community Info for Tempe:

Information courtesy of Trulia.com

For listings in Tempe, Arizona – Contact us today!

Questions and Information:

Who Needs a Short Sale?

A short sale can be one of the best options for many homeowners. In the past, it was a route primarily for borrowers who were in financial strain. This is no longer the case as new legislation has allowed for more people to take advantage of this type of transaction. YOU DO NOT NEED TO BE IN ANY KIND OF FINANCIAL STRAIN TO EXECUTE A SHORT SALE!

Did you buy your home in 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006 or 2007?

If you didn’t put a sizeable down payment into your purchase, you may be upside down- Being upside down means that you could not sell your home today for the same amount as when you purchased it. With many loans being issued at 90, 95, and 100% of market value when the purchase was made, this generally means that one would have to bring capital to closing in order to consummate a sale. A short sale takes care of this problem.

Without being in any kind of financial strain, you may be able to still take advantage of a short sale. With recent changes in the tax code, there may be no ramifications for executing this, allowing you to dispose of substantial mortgage liability. If you could buy your next-door neighbor’s house for $200,000 less than what you owe on yours, and there was no penalty to do so, wouldn’t you?

Are you in a Pay Option, MTA, or Negative Amortizing Loan Product?

If so, each day you are increasing the amount that you owe on your loan. This “teaser” rate does not pay the full interest due each month, and thus increases the balance that you owe daily. Mixed with a declining real estate market, this can prove to be a financial disaster. Many have found that they were sold on their mortgage product based on a minimum payment to qualify for the loan. Additional problems arise when a mortgage “recasts”; the interest rate goes up, which adds additional monthly mortgage commitment. Mortgage payments can go up astronomically, forcing many into a foreclosure situation.

A short sale can stop this downward spiral. Many homeowners would need another historic real estate boom in order to ever get out of being upside down. Some analysts say that it will be 10-12 years before values will again rise to 2005 prices.

Are you having trouble making your payments? Are you facing foreclosure or bankruptcy? If you are having trouble making your mortgage payments, please choose to act quickly! Time is of the essence, and it is not on the borrower’s side. Short sales are not immediate fixes and do take time. Most lenders will not review a short sale package prior to having a purchase contract. While we can often have an investor place a contract on your property to buy time, it is always best to give the property ample time on the market in order to generate a true offer. Please see “What are the ramifications of foreclosure?” for additional information on what can happen if you do not act today.

A short sale is one of the best ways to avoid foreclosure. Lenders would much rather approve a short sale than foreclose on a property and take it into REO (Real Estate Owned). Foreclosure proceedings can cost as much as $75,000 to a lender.

Market View for Scottsdale, Arizona

Average Listing Price ñ +$1,868

$788,710

Median Sales Price ò - $52,132

$303,000

Average Listing Price $788,710 + 0.2%

Median Sales Price $303,000 -14.7%

Average price/sq ft $161 -20.3%

Number of Sales 2,142 +34.4

Most Popular Neightborhoods

South Scottsdale (link)   $356.432 -1.3%

Scottsdale Summary

Average price per square foot for Scottsdale AZ was $161, a decrease of 20.3% compared to the same period last year. The median sales price for homes in Scottsdale AZ for Jul 09 to Sep 09 was $303,000 based on 2,142 home sales. Compared to the same period one year ago, the median home sales price decreased 14.7%, or $52,132, and the number of home sales increased 34.4%.

Schools in Scottsdale

Paradise Valley Unified Sd 69   Public   PK-12 Schools: 49

Scottsdale Unified School District 48  Public K-12  Schools: 32

Howard S Gray Education Program  Private 5-12 ¬¬¬¬¬  Parent Rating

Sonoran Sky Elementary School  K-6   Public  ¬¬¬¬¬  Parent Rating

Internation School of Arizona PK-5  ¬¬¬¬¬  Parent Rating

Info Courtesy of Trulia.com

For listings in Scottsdale, AZ, Click here! 

By Andy Sullivan and Corbett B. Daly

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Senate's top Democrat and top Republican each voiced support on Wednesday for extension of a soon-to-expire $8,000 tax credit for home buyers, but left unclear when the chamber would act.

"There has been general agreement by a significant number of senators, Democrats and Republicans, to get this done," Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Democrat, said on the Senate floor.

The chamber's top Republican, Senator Mitch McConnell, also said most senators support the measure. "I certainly share his view," McConnell said.

The tax credit for first-time home buyers, which has helped lift the housing market out of its worst slump since the Great Depression, is set to expire on November 30 and senators have been negotiating over how best to extend it.

Under an agreement reached by key senators, the tax credit would be extended through the end of April and be expanded to cover repeat buyers who have been in their homes at least five years, sources familiar with the plan said.

First-time buyers would continue to get an $8,000 credit, while repeat buyers of primary residences would be eligible for a credit of $6,500, the sources said.

They said the credit would be available for individuals making up to $125,000 a year and couples earning up to $225,000 per year.

TIMING OF A VOTE UNCERTAIN

While extending the credit enjoys widespread support, its fate is caught up in a spat between Reid and McConnell over unrelated issues.

Reid had wanted to attach a bill to extend the homebuyer credit as an amendment to legislation to lengthen insurance benefits for unemployed workers. The Senate voted to take up the insurance benefit bill on Tuesday, but did not attach the homebuyer tax credit to the measure.

Despite that apparent roadblock, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, who has been involved in negotiations over the tax credit, told Reuters late on Tuesday that he expected the Senate would vote on the bill sometime this week.

"There are various paths and whichever works first is the one that is going to be" followed, he said, referring to the possibility that the Senate could vote on the bill independently or as part of separate legislation.

A spokeswoman for Reid said the unemployment insurance measure could get pushed to next week as lawmakers try to resolve differences over unrelated issues, which would delay consideration of the homebuyer credit extension.

"We will get this extension passed," she said.

A report last week showed sales of previously owned homes hit a two-year high in September as buyers rushed to take advantage of the credit before its expiration date. However, a report on Wednesday showed new home sales, a much smaller segment of the market, tumbled unexpectedly last month.

Separately, a report from the Mortgage Bankers Association on Wednesday that demand for mortgages has fallen for the past three weeks as buyers move to the sidelines.

A buyer would have to close on the purchase of a home before November 30 to take advantage of the current tax credit.

(Additional reporting by Lisa Lambert; Editing by Leslie Adler)

Read the article at the source here

To take advantage of the tax credit, contact us today!

Time is Running Out for First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit

by Bob Hunt

The clock is ticking. Time is running out. To be exact, time runs out midnight, November 30, 2009. Many readers will know what I am referring to. Under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, November 30 is the last day for a home purchased by a first-time home buyer to qualify for the $8,000 tax credit. The purchase must be closed and title transferred by that date. It will not be sufficient simply to be under contract or in escrow.

 By way of a brief refresher:

The tax credit is for first-time home buyers only. For the program, the IRS defines a first-time home buyer as someone who has not owned a principal residence for the past three years.

The credit does not have to be repaid.

The tax credit is equal to 10% of the home’s purchase price, up to a maximum of $8,000.

The credit is available for homes purchased (closed) on or after January 1, 2009 and before December 1, 2009.

Single taxpayers with incomes up to $75,000 and married couples with incomes up to $150,000 qualify for the full tax credit.

The credit can be taken for either 2008 or 2009 taxes. In the former case, an amended return can be filed.

By all accounts the program has been extremely popular – which is to say, successful. The National Association of Realtors® (NAR) estimated that, by September, about 1.1 million first time home buyers had used the program; and another 700,000 are expected to do so. Already, the Treasury Department has reported nearly 315,000 people have claimed the tax credit after filing an amended 2008 return.

As enacted, the program is set to expire at the end of November. A number of bills have been introduced to extend and/or expand it. Representative Eddie Johnson (D-Texas) introduced a bill to extend the program through 2010. Another would also expand it to all home buyers. In the Senate, a bill co-sponsored by Johnny Isakson (R-Georgia) and Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) would expand the tax credit to $15,000 and make it available to any buyer regardless of income.

One would think that at least the modest proposal for an extension would be a no-brainer. It is a government program that is working, for goodness sakes. But even that legislation is in doubt. Two obstacles are cited. One is the cost. Extending this program would result in reduced future revenues. The second problem is that such a bill will have a hard time receiving any attention while the Congress is – for the next foreseeable months – focused on considerably higher profile items such as health-care and Afghanistan.

The first so-called problem seems just crazy. Suppose an extension generated an extra 1 million sales. That would result in $8 billion in unrealized tax revenues. Now that is a lot of money; but it is chump change compared to the amounts that have been lavished on financial firms and auto makers, with yet to be determined beneficial effects. The tax credit program only costs money if it works. Its cost is proportional to its success. If it didn’t work at all, it wouldn’t cost a dime. Imagine that for a government program.

The second problem is realistic. There’s a lot of heavy-duty stuff going on. But, it would seem a simple extension of the program could be achieved with very little ado and virtually no distractions from the “big issues.”

Meanwhile, what should interested parties do?

If you are a first-time home buyer, you had better get off the dime. There’s certainly no guarantee the program will be extended.

If you are a real estate agent, pass #1 along to every potential first-time buyer that you know.

Whether you are a Realtor® or not, if you believe in extending the program, let your representatives know.

If you are a member of the Realtor® organization, respond to NAR’s call for action, supporting its lobbying efforts.

 Info courtesy of Realty Times, to read the article from the source - click here

The United States is seeing more and more foreclosures than it has ever experienced before. Investors in real estate are picking up on this new venture to profit from an extremely profitable new opportunity.

‘Bulk REO Investing’ is the name of the new strategy, and it’s captured the attention of many real estate investors out there.

The basis of the Bulk REO business is foreclosures, so let’s examine the forclosure process now.

As a borrower becomes increasingly behind in his/her mortgage, the lender regularly calls and writes the borrower with default warnings and threats. The lender directs the imminent timing of the actual foreclosure proceedings. The ‘pre-foreclosure’ time starts with filing of foreclosure paperwork and concludes at public auction.

The defaulted property is ultimately auctioned, which completes the foreclosure process. If the property is not purchased at auction, ownership goes back to the original lender. The designation of ‘REO’ (Real Estate Owned) is then attached to the foreclosed property.

Local real estate agents are usually used to resale REO properties at retail price to the general public. However, REO properties are now frequently sold for far less than their book value. Lenders are willing to do this in exchange for the buyer’s agreement to purchase a ‘package’ of REO’s rather than a single property.

One of the best ways to take advantage of Bulk REO Investing opportunities is with a regarded source of funding. Some sources of funding for these transactions are: personal funds, hard money lenders, commercial lenders and non-conventional sources such as private investors and hedge funds.

Are you an investor looking to purchase BULK REO? Contact us for more information!

Investor Report: Investment Buying Tips

by Kenneth R. Harney

Foreclosures and bank REOs are pulling a new wave of novice investors into the market, some of whom "are just plain clueless, to put it bluntly," says Robert Cain, a long-time rental market and real estate management specialist based near Tucson, Arizona.

"They see the price and they way, wow! I can buy that house and turn it into a rental," says Cain, who lectures around the country and online about investing intelligently.

"But they don't understand the local market, they don't understand landlording, and don't even necessarily visit the property," Cain said in an interview last week with Realty Times.

For example, a property manager in Tennessee called Cain for advice recently. The manager had a simple question: "Should I fire my client?" who lives in California and purchased rental real estate 3,000 miles away in Tennessee -- sight unseen because the low price made it sound like a steal.

But the property had a long list of defects requiring costly repairs, and it was slow to rent - causing the absentee owner-investor to blame the property manager for the cash drain.

"We see it constantly," said Cain. "New investors think it's easy. They buy on emotion, on low pricing, rather than buying with a disciplined plan.

What are some of the key rules for freshman class investors? Here are a few of Cains' that have served him well since the early 1980s:

Number one: Due diligence is never optional. You've got to understand the local market - and that includes not just where prices are headed, but specific market demand for rental real estate in this price segment, and even the local government's plans for the area where you're thinking of buying.

Number two: Buy with a written plan - that's right, just like the large professional investors use, with an entry strategy and an exit strategy. How long are you going to hold onto the property, how much will it earn you during your period of holding?

And what's the endgame - a sale to another investor? Conversion to condos? Tear it down and build something that's closer to the underlying real estate's highest and best use?

"Write it all down," says Cain. That way you can analyze it better.

Number three: Calculate the actual costs of the property in advance - not just the bargain basement price, but how much you'll need to fix it and feed it - the management costs, rental commissions, vacancy costs, taxes, to name just a few.

"If you don't know these things up front," says Cain, "you are flying blind. And there are no good surprises in real estate."

 To read this article from the source, click here.

Looking to invest? Contact us today!

Phoenix, Arizona has always been one of the strongest markets in North America and has attracted 'snowbirds' and investors alike. There has never been a better time for Canadians to buy Arizona real estate.

 Why Arizona? Many Canadian residents are drawn to Arizona because they are impressed with the minimal property taxes. While some other states such as California and Florida penalize investors and/or second home buyers by adding additional property taxes. Arizona does not. Arizona Property taxes run about 1.2% of the assessed value of a home (i.e. a $150,000 assessed home is around $150 per month)

Financing for Canadian citizens is extremely easy!!! Documentation needed for a U.S. mortgage approval is as follows:

1. Copy of Passport
2. Verification of funds needed to close
3. No Credit Report needed
4. No income verification requirement

(*subject to additional information*)

 Hurry and take advantage of this great market!!! 

 To view current Arizona foreclosure listings not yet on the market email or text or call us today!