Avoid Mortgage Fraud in Chico CA
December 20th, 2007 Categories: Chico CA Foreclosure Listings, Chico CA Real Estate News
Are you facing foreclosure on your Chico Home?
If you have fallen behind on your mortgage payments, you need to be acutely aware of the “foreclosure rescue schemes” being played out all over the United States. As a Chico homeowner in distress, you are more likely to be more vulnerable to mortgage fraud.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cS2HsaBA5No[/youtube]
Freddie Mac is working hard to get the word out on mortgage fraud. You can read their recent article in full here “Avoiding Mortgage Fraud.”
Stay informed, and avoid signing any documents without first consulting your lender.
After all, the last thing the bank wants to do right now is foreclose on your property! They will most likely counsel you thoroughly on your legal options, and work with you to find a solution. Please protect yourself, and guard against talking with strangers or anyone who can’t clearly identify himself as your actual lender.
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Looking to buy or sell Chico CA Real Estate? Need a Top Producing Chico CA Realtor? Call Sandi Bauman 530-864-5407 or email [email protected]. Specializing in REO, residential, relocation, investment & ag property.
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Let’s support our troops, Chico CA!
December 11th, 2007 Categories: Just for Fun!
Let’s Say Thanks!
Let’s join our voices here in Chico CA and Support our Troops!
Send a LetsSayThanks post card from you and your families! Xerox has made this easy to do with their user friendly site. It’s easier than composing an email. I want to challenge all of Chico CA and surrounding areas and my Chico CA Real Estate community to share your well wishes to those sons, daughters, brothers, sisters, husbands, wives, mothers and fathers who have spent time away from their loved ones for our freedoms!
As we comfortably gather Christmas morning or snuggle close to our families at night, let us remember them and the sacrifices they make daily. May we all take a moment of our time and click two clicks away to send a postcard from our families!
“The mission of Let’s Say Thanks is to provide a way for individuals across the country to recognize U.S. troops stationed overseas. By submitting a message through this site you have the opportunity to send a free personalized postcard greeting to deployed servicemen and women.”
The postcards, depicting patriotic scenes and hometown images, were selected from a pool of entries from children across the country. It takes less than one minute to hit the send button! Sometimes the smallest of gestures mean the most. Won’t you join me in wishing our Troops a Happy Holiday?
Lets Say Thanks and
send a quick post card from you and your families!
You can also visit
Give2TheTroops
Looking to buy or sell Chico CA Real Estate? Need a Top Producing Chico CA Realtor? Call Sandi Bauman 530-864-5407 or email [email protected]. Specializing in REO, residential, relocation, investment & ag property.
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What to expect from your Chico CA Realtor.
December 5th, 2007 Categories: Chico CA Real Estate News
A Chico CA Realtor (or any Realtor, for that matter) owes specific duties to his or client, as well as other parties that may be involved in a Chico CA real estate transaction.
If you are a buyer or seller, it’s important that you know what you are entitled to from your Realtor. After all, your relationship is going to be a very important one, considering that a home is probably the largest investment you will ever make in your lifetime!
Your Realtor will be your “fiduciary.” A fiduciary is a person who holds a special position of trust and confidence, and one who is held by law to high standards of conduct. It is the job of your Realtor to work with your best interests in mind.
Specifically, your Chico Realtor owes you these fiduciary duties:
1. Reasonable care and skill
2. Obedience and utmost good faith
3. Accounting
4. Loyalty
5. Disclosure of material facts
What does all this mean in a Chico CA real estate transaction?
1. Reasonable care and skill. If a broker or salesperson causes his client harm due to carelessness or incompetence, the broker will be held liable to that client. A Realtor should not overstep his experience or ability at the expense his client.
2. Obedience and utmost good faith. A Realtor must follow the instructions of his client, in accordance with the intent of the clients wishes. (Just for the record… please don’t ask THIS Chico Realtor to do anything illegal or immoral on your behalf- we would have to investigate terminating our relationship!)
3. Accounting. A Realtor needs to account for any funds that he receives on behalf of his client, and avoid mixing them with his own money. That good faith deposit check does NOT belong in the Realtor’s checkbook! It should be deposited into escrow according to the broker’s standards.
4. Loyalty. A real estate agency relationship is based on confidence that the Realtor will remain loyal to the client. The Realtor needs to keep his clients interests first and foremost. Most commonly we see this violated when a Realtor reveals confidential information to a third party, such as how low of an offer a seller might be willing to accept on his home.
5. Disclosure of material facts. A Realtor needs to inform his client of any facts that might influence the clients decisions. Communication is a BIG factor here, particularly with a seller. The agent must present ALL offers, inform the seller of the TRUE value of the property, disclose any relationship between the agent and the buyer, and reveal a dual agency, should it exist.
In addition, your Chico CA Real estate professional owes the OTHER party a duty of reasonable care and skill, a duty of good faith and fair dealing, and a duty to inspect the property!
Although it sort of sounds like a conflict of interest of their fiduciary duty, your Realtor is also held responsible if his negligence of incompetence harms the buyer or seller on the other side of the deal. A Realtor must disclose all known material facts about a property, and avoid mistakes in their presentation of facts. Lastly, the Realtor must perform a reasonably competent visual inspection of the property and disclose his findings to the buyer.
Looking forward to more posts like this?
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Looking to buy or sell Chico CA Real Estate? Need a Top Producing Chico Realtor? Call Sandi Bauman 530-864-5407 or email [email protected]. Specializing in REO, residential, relocation, investment & ag property.
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Chico CA Real Estate Mortgage Meltdown
December 3rd, 2007 Categories: Chico Financing
by guest writer Mike Wiegert, broker, Chico Homes
SUBPRIME! TEASER RATE! ADJUSTABLE RATE MORTGAGE!
Locally, these terms were once only known to those people that worked in the Chico CA real estate or mortgage business and a small percentage of people that took an actual interest in the workings of national mortgage markets. Today, these words are commonly known to anyone who reads a newspaper or watches a daily news program.
Our newfound familiarity with mortgage terminology is primarily due to the recent crisis surrounding a near collapse of the sub-prime mortgage markets. Why do they call it market? Because, essentially that is what it is, or was. In recent years, Chico homebuyers and those refinancing existing Chico home loans had a huge array of loan programs to choose from. Much like your favorite grocery store, some of these products were sensible and had value in the long run. Other products were just a quick way to get a new homebuyer, often with low or marginal credit scores into a Chico property with little regard for future events.
A commonly used mortgage in the sub-prime market is the 2/28 ARM. This is an adjustable rate mortgage where the rate is fixed for 2 years, and is then reset to equal the value of a rate index at that time, plus a margin. Because sub-prime margins are high, the rate on most 2/28s will rise sharply at the 2-year mark, even if market rates do not change during the period. This means that while the loan is affordable to the borrower at the initial rate, it may not be affordable after two years when the rate is reset. This type of mortgage is really only of value to borrowers who are assured of certain events that involve a significant increase of income, a situation that is unusual to most of us.
For the average wage earner, a dramatic increase in housing payment is a formula for disaster. Therein lies the problem: a sharp rise in mortgage defaults and foreclosures of those once euphorically happy homebuyers. So whom do we blame? We could blame the eager and enthusiastic Chico mortgage lenders who promoted the loans, rationalizing the validity with the forecasts of increasing appreciation of the homes. We might take a swing at aggressive Chico CA Realtors, also believing that these products were the only possible way for their customers to realize the great American dream of homeownership. We could hold responsible the Chico homeowners themselves for getting caught up in the buying frenzy with little or no regard for their own future.
How many people out there have ever bought a car that they couldn’t afford, only to have to sell it for a loss and absorb the shortfall? Why blame any particular person at all? We all got into this mess together, and we all are feeling the results as the issue resolves itself. So, how is this glob of knots going to untie itself? I don’t think that anyone has a convincing answer to that monumental question.
Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson discussed a plan at a meeting with top banking regulators and industry representatives last Thursday and is expected to announce details of the proposal this week.
The plan would freeze mortgage rates for stressed borrowers who took out loans with low teaser rates that are due to reset to a much higher level. The obvious benefit of such a plan would be that these borrowers would, for the time being, be able to hold on to their homes. At the same time, the lenders won’t be inundated with foreclosures, thereby forced to open large departments to deal with holding, maintaining and marketing these properties.
Many folks are really angry that the Federal Government would step in and bail out lenders that are experiencing high rates of foreclosures, and help individuals desperately unable to afford the higher payments of their newly reset mortgages.
Ultimately, they feel that these foolish lenders and borrowers will be sponsored by the American taxpayer and in truth, they are right. It’s always the taxpayer dollar that is used to support a national crisis, isn’t it?
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Looking to buy or sell Chico CA Real Estate? Need a Top Producing Chico CA Realtor? Call Sandi Bauman 530-864-5407 or email [email protected]. Specializing in REO, residential, relocation, investment & ag property.
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Foreclosures: What you should know BEFORE you make an offer, Part 3
November 18th, 2007 Categories: Anatomy of a Chico CA Real Estate Transaction, Chico Buyers, Chico CA Foreclosure Listings
This is part 3 in a series of helpful hints to purchasing foreclosures in Chico, CA.
Did you miss parts 1 and 2? Read here!
Foreclosures: What you should know BEFORE you make an offer, Part 1
Foreclosures: What you should know BEFORE you make an offer, Part 2
Chico CA real estate buyers and investors LOVE foreclosures.
The problem is, there aren’t that many to go around! Many areas of California have experienced a high influx of foreclosures thanks to the recent mortgage meltdown. Chico, CA however has fared a little better in terms of relative numbers of repossessions.
Chico CA buyers are competing to snatch up the bank-owned (REO) property when it DOES come along. It’s important to remember, however, that purchasing an REO property can be quite a bit different than a traditional Chico CA real estate purchase.
Before offering on a Chico, CA REO property, you should know:
1. It’s important to have a preapproval letter from your lender. Most of the banks I’ve dealt with require that the preapproval be submitted with your initial purchase offer. Without it, they won’t waste their time reviewing your paperwork. While this makes good sense anytime you are offering on a property, it’s critical for an REO listing.
2. The bank also wants to prequalify you themselves.
They want to see the letter from your preferred lender, but they won’t necessarily trust it! Oftentimes, you will be required to fill out their credit application just so they can verify that you do indeed qualify for the loan amount, or are otherwise financially stable. Although they would be happy to process your loan, you are still pursue a loan through the lender of your choice.
3. The bank is picky when it comes to title companies.
Typically, a buyer has some say about which title company they prefer, and even which officer they would like to work with. The bank really doesn’t care if your friend Sue is the best title officer in the county and her office is only 2 blocks from your new house. Most of the time, they already have a title company and officer designated, and the point is non-negotiable. The best part? The title company is usually out of the area, and unfamiliar with local practices.
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Still want to be part of the foreclosure frenzy taking place in Chico CA real estate? Contact me, and I will work to find you the perfect Chico REO property for your needs.
Sandi Bauman, Chico CA Realtor: 530-864-5407.
Related reads:
Short escrow? Get your ducks in a row BEFORE you make an offer.
What is the Difference between Prequalification and Preapproval?
Why Should I Get Preapproved for a Chico, CA Home?
Looking to buy or sell Chico CA Real Estate? Need a Top Producing Chico CA Realtor? Call Sandi Bauman 530-864-5407 or email [email protected]. Specializing in REO, residential, relocation, investment & ag property.
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Foreclosures: What you should know BEFORE you make an offer, Part 2
November 16th, 2007 Categories: Anatomy of a Chico CA Real Estate Transaction, Chico Buyers, Chico CA Foreclosure Listings
This is part 2 in a series of helpful hints to purchasing foreclosures in Chico, CA.
Did you miss part 1? Read here.
Bank-owned property (REO) is some of the most sought-after Chico CA real estate of all time. In a market where many buyers are sitting on the fence waiting for the bottom to fall out, savvy investors are picking up REO‘s as fast as Chico Realtors can churn them out!
It is important, should you be considering purchasing a bank-owned (REO) listing, that you understand up front what exactly you’re getting yourself into. For the uninitiated, a look into the world of REO can be quite surprising. (In case you’re wondering, I don’t necessarily mean that in a good way.)
Before offering on a Chico, CA REO property, you should know:
1. Most REO property won’t leave you feeling all warm and fuzzy.
First time home-buyers are often gleeful when they get their first look at the home they will eventually buy. “It’s just so CUTE!” they declare. They oooh and aaah over the carefully groomed, staged and scented home visualizing Thanksgiving Dinners and Christmas trees.
REO property often takes a little more imagination. You have to try to pretend that the yard is not dead, the house isn’t lime green, the walls don’t have holes in them, the kitchen appliances and fixtures are actually there, and the flooring isn’t all torn up. That is, if you can get past the unbelievable stench and filth of lives gone horribly wrong.
To be fair, there are nice, clean Chico REO properties to be had- there are. But oftentimes, an REO house is one that shows evidence of severe neglect and outright abuse on the part of an angry or desperate previous owner.
2. Don’t expect the bank to pretty it all up for you!
The banks usually prefer to sell “as is.” Minimally, they will do an initial “trash out” to remove the belongings left in or on the property. In addition, they will re-key, board up windows, and winterize. It is unlikely that measures will be taken to add appeal- if the sinks, lights, appliances and windows are missing, they are likely to stay that way. Exception: if the buyer’s lender requires a repair (or 10) to fund the loan, the bank may negotiate the cost of the repairs. In a competitive REO market, however, they won’t need to do any repairs- a cash buyer will snatch it right up in it’s current condition.
3. The bank won’t tell you what’s wrong with the house, because they don’t know.
A traditional seller is required to provide you with a laundry list of everything they know to be wrong with the property. In the case of an REO property, the seller has never even seen the property, let alone lived in it. The bank has no idea if the handrail is loose, if there are barking dogs next door, or if meth was manufactured in the second bedroom. Make sure that you do any inspections necessary to ensure that you have a good grasp on the condition of the property- very little information will be provided to you by the seller.
Coming soon! What you should know BEFORE you make an offer, Part 3.
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By the way, if you like the yellow house in the picture…. it can be yours for ONLY $79,900! That is $55,000 less than any other stick built home in Paradise CA!!
Give me a call right away 530-864-5407– it’ll be gone quick.
Looking to buy or sell Chico CA Real Estate? Need a Top Producing Chico CA Realtor? Call Sandi Bauman 530-864-5407 or email [email protected]. Specializing in REO, residential, relocation, investment & ag property.
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Chico CA pictures, Bidwell Park in early October 2007
October 26th, 2007 Categories: Chico California Photos, Living in Chico
One of the best things about living in Chico, CA?
The unbelievable change in seasons! Chicoans enjoy a truly spectacular fall, with a virtual palate of colors evident, especially in areas like Bidwell Park. In this photo, the colors are just beginning to show… kind of like a preview for the main event. Talk about curb appeal for our Chico, CA real estate… the foliage can’t be beat!
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Looking to buy or sell Chico CA Real Estate? Need a Top Producing Chico CA Realtor? Call Sandi Bauman 530-864-5407 or email [email protected]. Specializing in REO, residential, relocation, investment & ag property.
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The View from a Canoe- California Park in Chico, CA
October 25th, 2007 Categories: California Park Neighborhood, Chico California Photos
Take a ride with me!
The California Park residential neighborhood is the only one in Chico, CA that boasts lake frontage.
Truly, the view from the water is unlike anything you will see from the road!
The first time we put our canoe in the water, we were in awe of the variety of home styles: we saw everything from “southern charm” to “ultra modern.” Each back yard had something different to offer. There were private boat docks, a sand beach, hammocks, landscaped terraces, gorgeous waterfalls, weeping willows, and my all time favorite: bright red canoes!
If you have the opportunity to visit the California Park area, a tour from the lake is a fun way to explore. (Note: The lakes are private. You must actually be a resident or guest.) There are 2 lakes, and two of them connect under a bridge on Lakewest Drive. There are several idyllic coves in which you will find residents enjoying the lifestyle unique to Cal Park. You might wave hello to a grandpa teaching his grandson to fish, view one of several large, grassy park areas, or (if you are REALLY lucky) spot one of the turtles that calls the lake home.
The neighborhood also boasts a series of cascading duck ponds which delight young and old alike. It is such a treat to visit the lakes in time to watch the baby ducks! There are usually families that include lots of fluffy babies, all chasing after the mama duck. The lake is shallow enough in many places to view the fish swimming below. And, if you’re paying attention, you can hear the tell-tale “ker-plop!” of a bullfrog jumping in the blue-green water!
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If you would like information on Chico, CA real estate and foreclosures in the California Park neighborhood, please feel free to call the neighborhood expert: Sandi Bauman at 530-864-5407.
Chico Homes is thrilled to have their new office located with water front views of California Lake at 2580 Sierra Sunrise Terrace, Suite 120.
Looking to buy or sell Chico CA Real Estate? Need a Top Producing Chico CA Realtor? Call Sandi Bauman 530-864-5407 or email [email protected]. Specializing in REO, residential, relocation, investment & ag property.
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Vallombrosa Avenue near Bidwell Park in Chico, CA
October 18th, 2007 Categories: Chico California Photos
Vallombrosa Avenue is a beautiful Chico, CA street that parallels lower Bidwell Park. It is coveted for it’s convenient location to the many walking trails and access to Little Chico Creek. Visitors will find a wide variety of Chico CA real estate in this location: everything from mid-century modern to bungalows to contemporary homes built this year.
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Looking to buy or sell Chico CA Real Estate? Need a Top Producing Chico CA Realtor? Call Sandi Bauman 530-864-5407 or email [email protected]. Specializing in REO, residential, relocation, investment & ag property.
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My perspective: The Chico, CA Real Estate Market is not THAT bad!
October 7th, 2007 Categories: Chico CA Real Estate Market Stats, Chico CA Real Estate News, Chico Sellers
Call me a hopeless optimist if you like, but I don’t think the Chico CA real estate market is half as bad as everyone makes it out to be!
The power that the media has on people’s perception of reality is both amazing and frightening.Considering the facts stated below, can anyone really argue that the Chico CA real estate market is all that horrible?
These numbers represent all class of property including single family homes, residential income, commercial, manufactured homes, vacant land, ranches and farms, year to date as reported by the Sierra North Valley MLS.
Year Listed Sold % Listed Sold Avg List Price Avg Sold Price List/Sold DOM
2007 6498 2067 31.81% $303,327 $289,171 95.33% 92
2006 7401 2430 32.83% $302,084 $290,848 96.28% 73
I’m thinking the numbers look pretty gosh darn good! My biggest caution to sellers would be to expect an extra 20 days on the market for a reasonably priced house to sell.
To sum it up, approximately 40 less properties per month have sold in 2007 than in 2006. Nearly 400 Chico Realtors have closed at least one transaction this year!
Compared to the statistics that are being posted for other regions in the United States, I really think that Chico CA has faired very well. Take Ponciana, FL for instance. Only 1.77% of their total inventory is actually selling! It appears that Chico CA property is a safer investment than you might find somewhere else.
Am I really the only one seeing this glass half full?
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Looking to buy or sell Chico CA Real Estate? Need a Top Producing Chico CA Realtor? Call Sandi Bauman 530-864-5407 or email [email protected]. Specializing in REO, residential, relocation, investment & ag property.
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