LawsonGroupMediation

Mortgage News Daily just reported that as the unemployment rate is approaching double-digits, in the first half of 2009, there have been almost 2 million foreclosure filings, more than 15% higher than the same period in 2008.  This is a massive missed business opportunity.
You could say that most foreclosures are missed opportunities for short sales.  Continue reading...

Besides my career in law and a short stint as a real estate agent, I also served in law enforcement.  I was a State Trooper in Wisconsin for 9 years and a Special Agent for Maine Drug Enforcement Agency.  In addition, I was a police officer in municipalities for 4 years.
As a result, I have Continue reading...

Over the last two decades, a new profession has emerged and become fairly widespread in the court systems: that of the mediator.  The standards for professional mediation has become quite varied with some states requiring a doctor’s degree in areas such as law or psychology.  Other states, however, have very low standards, with no educational Continue reading...

I am often asked questions about real estate agent or broker liability.  Specifically, I am asked whether agents are held liable for only fraud or wheth an agent can be held liable for negligence as well.
Rather than quote cases right now, which would distract you from understanding how to apply the law to a variety Continue reading...

In a news article July 8, 2009 in DS News (http://www.dsnews.com/index.php/home/news_story/3202/1/0), it is reported that over the last two years, lenders often believe they will make more money from a foreclosure than from workouts such as loan modifications and short sales.  This would especially be true of the servicing lenders.
In a number of geographical regions, Continue reading...

HUD backed properties that have sustained damage due to fire, flood, earthquate, tornado, or homeowner neglect may be sold in a short sale.  However, the lender will need to obtain prior approval from the USDHUD National Servicing Center before submitting the short sale for HUD approval.  They will first need to obtain the government’s cost Continue reading...

I am continually asked about the requirements for HUD approval.  The latest question concerned the signed HUD form 90035 and 90036.  Following is a summary of HUD requirements for an FHA loan on a property submitted for short sale approval.
Remember that the servicing lender may or may not be the owner of the mortgage note.  Continue reading...

I reported earlier that Bank of America and others were developing plans to reduce short sale processing to only a week or two. This would necessarily require the SMI’s to speed up their processing as well. To date, I have seen no action that is shortening the process.
If any of you see signs of this Continue reading...

There are a lot of books and training materials available. However, after attending several short sale training seminars, purchasing expensive courses, and reading several books, I found that most of them were filled with errors?
Why is there so much misinformation and errors? The main reason is that short sales have changed dramatically over the last Continue reading...

Great news! Representatives Childers (D-MS) and Miller (R-CA) introdced on June 26, a bill numbered HR 3044 which calls for an 18 month moratorium on HVCC, the Home Valuation Code of Conduct that is detrimental to real estate agents everywhere.
If you remember my blog about this practice, the HVCC has a number of features that Continue reading...