All Forum Posts by: Patrice Boenzi

One of my lenders sent this out yesterday and I thought I would share it... Forbearance is NOT FREE Money!

Many mortgage holders in the U.S. have numerous questions about the specifics of mortgage forbearance and the potential consequences that may result if they request it. I am sure you are hearing a lot about the topic. I would advise caution when it comes to recommending forbearance if the borrowers are not in significant financial hardship. Without a doubt some are; but far too many I fear will sign up simply because they can. It is important to know that no payments are forgiven - they are just pushed down the road, and with some lenders they could be due in a lump sum after a period of time. Other lenders are requiring that at a minimum the monthly payment amount for escrow items (taxes and home insurance) be made each month. There is concern that some lenders will eventually report payments as late to the credit bureaus. All of these factor make the decision to request and participate in forbearance by borrowers a serious one that should be done only after careful counsel and thought. If you know people who are considering forbearance, please advise them to call their current loan servicer and obtain all of the information about the program prior to signing up.

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Offering more insight into the real damage to the mortgage industry that forbearance could cause, I have added a link below to an article that is rather deep and detailed, but very informative.

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I trust you are safe and well. Please reach out with any questions you may have.

@Chad S. I have used this company in the past to screen some tenants. https://www.tenantbackgroundsearch.com/index.aspx?adid=5&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIn7qpkrbW6AIViJOzCh0xagV7EAAYAiAAEgLdj_D_BwE

I feel that the home buying process is too large of a transaction and too emotional for it to ever be done 100% in a virtual world. During this crisis, many agencies are going to virtual showings, marketing etc. However, I hear people, in my world, say, "I would never buy a house from photos or a video!" Then go on to say..."How many times do you see a listing and think you found your dream house only to go in and physically see it and it looks nothing like the photos. 

I feel that the home buying process is too large of a transaction and too emotional for it to ever be done 100% in a virtual world. During this crisis, many agencies are going to virtual showings, marketing etc. However, I hear people, in my world, say, "I would never buy a house from photos or a video!" Then go on to say..."How many times do you see a listing and think you found your dream house only to go in and physically see it and it looks nothing like the photos. 

It is definitely challenging times. However, in the last one I have had 3 of my under contract properties close! We are seeing that the change in FHA criteria has impacted one of our buyers and even though the house was under contract when the changes in FHA loans came into play, the buyer could not get approved as a conventional buyer. I have had two sellers postpone on me, but just had a potential seller call me today about listing their property. In Illinois, we are considered "essential", but the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity just added to our rules for showings: See Below. The Grand Rapids market tends to continue to be hot. My partners and I just closed on a duplex yesterday.

@William Stewart I agree with @Grant Sevek. However, I do not think it is a matter of "it being the right time" to buy. To borrow a quote from my partner: There is no bad real estate just bad terms. Any property for the right price is a deal. I will add I always have two exit strategies in case things go as not expected. 

@Sophie Dolezel what a good questions. In Illinois, Realtors are considered "essential" employees. We are all still moving forward as far as listing properties, showing properties etc. Now, based upon the situation and the sellers preference we are altering some activities. For example, we are not holding open houses. I have a showing on my occupied property today. I told my seller to turn on all the lights, open closet doors, kitchen cabinet doors etc. so the buyer does not have to tough anything. I asked the buyer's agent to leave things as they are found and use extra precaution. Some showing agents are providing masks, gloves and sanitizer for showings. I am encouraging all my sellers to wipe down doorknobs, counters, light switches etc after the showing. Our team also offers virtual showing as we own a Matterport camera. I get the whole "wait" idea, but one thing to consider is that if you do wait and the market "tanks" what will your comps look like. Will they be better than the last 12 months or worse? 

@Courtnye Nicole like everyone said above, but I would check with the specific areas you are looking at. I know Aurora makes you take a landlord class before you can place tenants.

@Michiko Gladman that makes sense. Check out your local apartment complexes. Good luck!

@Daniel Estigoy I guess it depends on what is going on in your market. In my neck of the world, things have slowed down a bit, but we are still getting showings, I just took two new listings and two more on the way. No matter what is going on in the world, please still buy and sell real estate. Now that being said, I agree with what @Stephen J Davis and @Evan Polaski said. You may want to look at the "flip" model and scale it down to see if you can find a buyer who wants some sweat equity or an investor who wants to get in at a cheaper price point. The one thing to consider, regarding holding the property, is that you sell the property twice: once to the buyer and once to the bank appraiser. If you hold it then you will need comps to justify your price. If the market drops significantly over the next 12 months you will not have the comps needed to "push the price". Now, this is all mute if you find a cash buyer.