Tracy CA Homes For Sale

According to a new report by the credit management company TransUnion, more U.S. borrowers are choosing to pay their credit card bills over making a mortgage payment; no doubt due in part to the recession.

Prior to the economic downturn, Americans worked hard to stay current on their mortgages before they paid their other large bills like credit cards and student loans. But now that pattern seems to be changing.

In the last quarter of 2010, 7.24% of U.S. homeowners were delinquent on their mortgages, but current on their credit cards. While Sean Reardon, the author of the study and a consultant for TransUnion, notes there was a decrease of 7.40% since the third quarter, the number of homeowners behind on their mortgage payments remains “72% higher than it was at the beginning of the Great Recession.”

The TransUnion report compared three groups: homeowners 30-plus days delinquent on their mortgage but current on credit cards; those current on their mortgage but 30-plus days behind on credit cards; and those who are 30-plus days delinquent on both their credit cards and their mortgage.

While conducting the report Sean Reardon found there were two primary drivers in making the U.S. “less cash dependent and more credit dependent.” He found Americans first adjusted their “payment hierarchy” from mortgages to credit cards just months after the financial collapse in 2007, and that high unemployment and a suffering housing market left many owing more on their homes than they were worth.

By the final quarter of 2010, 23% of all U.S. homeowners owed more than their homes were worth, according to business information provider CoreLogic.

The inability for struggling Americans to make large mortgage payments, combined with the credit card industry’s decision to tighten lines of credit, has put pressure on consumers to stay current with their credit. It didn’t take long for people to realize missed mortgage payments may have dire consequences down the road, but good credit now is the road to keeping food on the table.

In the chart below, the red curve denotes delinquent mortgages, current credit cards. The green curve denotes current mortgages, delinquent credit cards. The purple curve denotes delinquency on both:

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Yet another lesson in not messing with the Tax Man…..

According to US Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz, fourteen people – including an employee of the Internal Revenue Service – have been charged with using the first-time homebuyers government credit to commit tax fraud.

Mostly from Massachusetts, the defendants were charged in multiple indictments all related to filing false tax returns linked to the federal tax credit for first-time homebuyers.

The IRS agent charged in the case, 44-year-old Michael Doyle, is from New Hampshire and is accused of falsely claiming that he purchased a home in 2008 so that he would qualify for the credit, when in reality he actually bought the property in 2007.

An official with the IRS could not say whether or not Michael Doyle still has his job, and Doyle could not be reached for comment.

The other defendants include Junior Lopez of Southbridge, and Christopher Proe of Michigan, who allegedly filed more than 50 fraudulent tax returns. According to prosecutors, they received about $500,000 in refunds.

Like Michael Doyle, neither Lopez nor Proe could be reached for comment.

In a prepared statement, Ortiz said, “It is critically important that taxpayers who play by the rules do not end up paying for refunds to people who commit fraud and blatantly lie on the forms submitted to the IRS.”

J. Russell George, the Treasury’s inspector general for tax administration, added in his own statement that it is “especially troubling” when an IRS agent is implicated in a fraud case. “Congress created and modified the home buyer credit to stimulate and help taxpayers achieve the America Dream, not to line the pockets of wrongdoers,” he said.

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MDA DataQuick reported Thursday that Silicon Valley’s housing market continued to be weak in February, with resale home transactions in Santa Clara County practically flat; the median home price is at $495,000, down 3% from February of last year.

The report is reflective of sales trends throughout the Bay Area, where sales dropped 0.4% from last year, and the median home price dropped 4.1% to $355,000.

Distress sales — foreclosures and “short sales” for less than the value of the mortgage on a home — were just over half of transactions in the Bay Area, DataQuick reported. Cash buyers accounted for 30.9 percent of Bay Area home sold, the highest level since DataQuick began keeping track of the market in 1988.

Please Note: DataQuick’s report is based on transactions reported to county governments.

DataQuick’s president, John Walsh, warns the public not to rely on the report as an indicator of what the market’s strength will be for the rest of the year. If the economy continues to improve, Walsh says, the market could bounce back in the spring and summer.

John Walsh notes, however, that “sales over the past two months certainly underscore the market’s reliance on investor and cash purchases at a time many potential buyers hesitated to act.”

ORIGINAL ARTICLE

Many people who don’t completely understand the what title insurance actually is might question this item when the closing costs are added up. It is, however, a very important thing to have. As the name implies, the function of this kind of insurance is to ensure the integrity of the title to your home at the time its title legally passes to you as the buyer. Title insurance is designed to protect you in case there are problems or unknown legal complications tied to the title on the property which were caused by the actions or failures of previous owners.

In other words, title insurance ensures that that your ownership rights to your home are protected from any kind of liability arising time before you bought. This is an insurance policy which insures the “before” period of home ownership, unlike ordinary homeowner policies, which cover the “after” period.

After you complete the purchase of your home, if it were to come to light that there had been a tax or mechanic’s lien on it, title insurance would keep you from a disastrous financial loss from the circumstance.

It is all too common that someone will purchase a property and then discover that it has an encumbrance against it because of something that happened with a previous owner. You surely do not want to find yourself coping with such a situation without having the security of a good title insurance policy. Uninsured, you would have been exposed to a financial liability, which could amount to anything from a petty annoyance up to a big debt leading to loss of the property.

Title insurance covers homeowners against any disputes that come up from situations related to the title of your home before you purchased it. For example, if you buy a home that was sold to you in as part of a scam or swindle with illegal documents, the title insurance policy would cover you against any loss you might incur as a result. If any disputes were to arise regarding the chain of ownership of the property you have just bought, your title insurance policy would give you the coverage you need in that situation.

What Title Insurance Is Not

It is not protection against things you might do to jeopardize your ownership. It is strictly limited to ensuring that you have a clear title to the home at the time that title transfers. If you fail to pay the property taxes and a lien is filed, you will still have to take settle the debt yourself. Title insurance will not give you any protection that.

As one last reminder, title insurance does not cover anything related to the belongings or the structure of the property. You also need to take positive steps to insure your home against perils such as fire, theft, and natural disasters with a good homeowners policy. When you purchase your home, both title insurance and homeowners insurance provide different kinds of coverage, and you most certainly must have both of them.

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Here’s some good news for unemployed homeowners in California who are struggling to pay their mortgage…..

CalHFA’s plan to use nearly $2 billion in federal funding to help families in hardship with their Keep Your Home California programs, has been approved by the U.S. Treasury Department.

The programs focus on assisting low to moderate income families stay in their homes when possible, and leveraging additional contributions from mortgage servicers.

Primary objectives for CalHFA’s Keep Your Home California programs include:

– Preserving homeownership for low and moderate income homeowners in California by reducing the number of delinquencies and preventing avoidable foreclosures

– Assisting in the stabilization of California communities

Each program is designed to address one or more aspects of the current housing crisis by doing the following:

– Helping low and moderate income homeowners retain their homes if they either have suffered a financial hardship such as unemployment, have experienced a change in household circumstance such as death, illness or disability, or are subject to a recent or upcoming increase in their monthly mortgage payment and are at risk of default because of this economic hardship when coupled with a severe decline in their home’s value.

– Creating a simple, effective way to get federal funds to assist low and moderate income homeowners who meet one or all of the objective criteria described above. Speed of delivery will be balanced with fulfillment of the specific program’s mission and purpose.

– Creating programs that have an immediate, direct economic and social impact on low and moderate income homeowners and their neighborhoods.

As with most financial assistance programs, Keep Your Home California has a few restrictions:

– The Keep Your Home California programs are only available to homeowners whose mortgage servicing company agrees to the terms and conditions governing the use of the allotted funds.

– A homeowner cannot receive assistance if their mortgage servicer has not signed an agreement with CalHFA MAC. You can find a list of participating servicers and which programs they are currently offering here: Participating Servicers

Find out more about these CalHFA programs at the official Keep Your Home California website: http://www.keepyourhomecalifornia.org/ Or call Toll Free 1-888-954-KEEP (5337)

Most people want to know ways to make a little extra profit every now and then. Other times, you might find yourself with a need to rearrange your life. If you want to organize your possessions, and make a little extra cash while you’re doing it, consider having a garage sale. To have a successful event, follow these simple ideas.

Every worthwhile garage sale begins with a good plan. The first thing to do is to put similar items together. People who like being at your garage sale will probably need a place to sit down and rest a bit, so some extra chairs will be a good idea. Tables are needed to show off your merchandise. Ask your friends or neighbors if they have extra. One thing you don’t need is people complaining because of having to reach down to look through piles and boxes of stuff.

Advertise. Try to advertise well ahead of your garage sale. The importance of flyers cannot be overstated. Place them wherever you can. Remember, the smaller businesses often have a community bulletin board where you can post information about your garage sale. Be sure to check with the management at nearby apartment complex; see if they will let you put flyers near the occupants’ mailboxes. Each flyer should have the key information needed to find your garage sale, including the address, day, date and time and address, and a hint at what you have for sale. If you can, make certain to give a rain date in case the weather doesn’t cooperate.

Decide on Prices. It is much easier in the long run to get this done well in advance. It is very disconcerting to have a crowd of people flood you with questions about prices because you don’t have the prices marked on your stuff. You might try using colorful tags so shoppers can immediately see the price for each item.

As a guiding principle, always try to make the sale. After all, the goal is to rid your home of this unnecessary stuff. During the day of the sale, make certain to lower the prices incrementally.

At the end of the day, consider lowering the prices to significantly lower levels to get everything out of there. Any items left over can be given to a charity. If you itemize, all your donations are tax deductible.

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If you like what you see, call me today! Tony Martin (209) 610-3431.

This 1,815 sq. ft. custom built Ryland Homes property located in the Tracy, CA Edgewood subdivision has 3 bedrooms and 2 ½ bathrooms.

Custom breakfast bar in kitchen with gas stove and dishwasher; separate dining room, family room off kitchen, living room with fireplace.

Custom backyard, fully landscaped front and back.

Located in Jefferson School District. Available February 15, 2011.

If you like what you see, call me today! Tony Martin (209) 610-3431.

If you like what you see, call me today! Tony Martin (209) 610-3431.

This 2-story home is located in Cintra Park in Tracy, California.

4 bedrooms, 3 full bathrooms, 2100 sq. ft., 3-car garage; spacious kitchen with gas stove and plenty of counter space; dining area, fireplace, central heat & air.

New paint, fully landscaped yards; close to schools and shopping.

If you like what you see, call me today! Tony Martin (209) 610-3431.

Author: Karen

Opportunities and positives abound when considering investment in foreclosure homes. Competition in this field is fierce because all homes in this market are priced below their real value.

Instant riches is not what this type of vocation is about, however the long term results can make foreclosure investment worth the time and effort of entering the field. Foreclosure investment as a career requires learning the market and then checking market and sales reports on a daily basis so no changes are missed.

A career in foreclosure and real estate investment is filled with hard work. This area requires commitment because the investor’s return depends directly on how much effort they invest in opportunity and market condition research.

Part of the daily tasks is contact with property management firms as well as brokers who have current listings of foreclosure properties. Brokers in real estate are assets to the foreclosure investor because the have the resources to help locate foreclosure properties sooner. Even the local library can contain listings buried in various rooms which will help lead the dedicated researcher to foreclosure properties.

In some states in the US some individuals may be allowed to buy their property back or redeem it and until that stage is passed the investor is unable to make an offer or participate. Once the foreclosure property reaches a certain stage in the court proceedings the investor can step in and initiate the procedures required to make an offer and purchase.

Not all foreclosure investment properties are in top condition but even the shabby ones can be worth the effort spent in finding, purchasing and making them saleable. When a home is run-down it is often wise practice to repair it and put it in shape for a sale. Landscaping may need to be done and often major repairs must be initiated. These expenses can be difficult if it is not a home that the investor lives in, because no money can be realized until the house is sold.

The key to success in foreclosure investment is to assure that you; the buyer can maintain the mortgage on the investment property for a minimum of six months. Further the money should be available to repair the property, pay the taxes and maintain the house until a deal is negotiated with a buyer. If an investor fails to make the mortgage or maintain the taxes they could lose the house and all their investment to someone else.

These are difficult economic times and no one can predict when a home may go into foreclosure, emergencies occur, jobs are lost, or even a divorce can occur and the borrower can’t make their mortgage payment. When the foreclosure process begins the bank will take steps to repossess the home and begin the legal foreclosure process. At that point, they will begin the search for interested foreclosure investors.

Foreclosure investment carries risks with it which can be partially mitigated by understanding the market and there is always a demand for homes in any economic climate.

Source: ARTICLE ALLEY

St. Joseph’s Medical Center will be providing low-cost mammography screenings for women in Tracy, CA on Wednesday, January 12 from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at the Safeway store located at 1801 W. 11th Street.

The mammograms are part of innovative program created to bring mammography services to women who have limited resources and may not otherwise have access to preventative health care.

Low-cost mammograms will be available for $80. Women enrolled in certain medical programs may be eligible for a free mammogram. The screenings are available by appointment to any woman with a physician’s referral.

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Early detection is one of the most important factors in the fight against breast cancer, and a mammogram, in combination with a yearly doctor’s exam and monthly breast self-exam, makes it easier than ever for early breast cancer detection and survival.

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