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California homeowners need to beware of phone, mail or personal solicitations from scam artists offering assistance related to the recent national mortgage settlement. The California Attorney General’s office has issued a warning about this latest scam and REALTORS® are passing on the warning to their clients.
The national mortgage settlement reached last month by 49 state attorneys general and the federal government with five of the largest loan servicers – Bank of America/Countrywide, JPMorgan Chase/Washington Mutual, GMAC Mortgage/Ally Financial, Citibank/CitiMortgage and Wells Fargo/Wachovia provides as much as $25 billion in relief to distressed borrowers and direct payments to states and the federal government. The agreement settles state and federal findings that the country’s five largest loan servicers routinely signed foreclosure related documents outside the presence of a notary public and without really knowing whether the facts they contained were correct. The settlement provides benefits to borrowers whose loans are owned by these banks and to many of the borrowers whose loans they service.
Third parties claiming to offer homeowners access to funds under the national mortgage settlement are likely running a scam. Homeowners receiving such solicitations should not provide any personal or financial information and should report the solicitation to the California Department of Justice or file a complained online at http://ag.ca.gov/contact/complaint_form.php?cmplt=CL.
“Scam artists are preying on the vulnerability of desperate homeowners. Their goal is to make a quick profit through fees for services they claim they can do,” said Suzanne Yost, president of the Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS®.
Californians seeking relief under the state’s $18 billion mortgage settlement are advised to follow these tips to avoid falling prey to such scams:
- Be skeptical of third party phone solicitations. Only your bank/loan servicer can assist you with regard to the recent national mortgage settlement.
- Do not give your personal financial information to a solicitor such as your bank account number, social security number or even the name of your loan servicer. Your bank will already have this information.
- Never pay an up-front fee for mortgage-related services. It is against California law and should be reported to the California Department of Justice.
If you think you may be eligible for relief under the national mortgage settlement, call your bank directly. For additional information regarding the mortgage settlement, please visit: http://oag.ca.gov/nationalmortgagesettlement and http://oag.ca.gov/nationalmortgagesettlement/faqs
For free, trustworthy advice, homeowners may also call a HUD approved counselor at (888) 995-4673, or call Keep Your Home CA at (888) 954-5337.
The National Association of REALTORS® and SILVAR applaud the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s (FHFA) final rule limiting Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the Federal Home Loan Banks from dealing with mortgages on properties encumbered by certain types of private transfer fee covenants and in certain related securities. Transfer fees are contractual arrangements where an owner pays a fixed amount or a percentage of the sales price when transferring the property.
NAR fully supports FHFA’s decision to ban private transfer fees, which it believes increase the cost of home ownership, provide no benefit to home buyers, and do little more than generate revenue for developers or investors. NAR has long been vocal in its opposition to private transfer fees. There is virtually no oversight on where or how the fee proceeds can be spent, on how long a private transfer fee may be imposed. It also often places an inappropriate delay on the transfer of property.
The final rule excludes private transfer fees paid to homeowner associations, condominiums, cooperatives, and certain tax-exempt organizations that use private transfer fee proceeds to benefit the property. Fees that do not directly benefit the property are subject to the rule, and would disqualify mortgages on the property from being sold to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, or used as collateral for Federal Home Loan Bank advances. With limited exceptions, the rule applies only prospectively to private transfer fee covenants created on or after the date of publication of the proposed rule on February 8, 2011. Covenants created before that date, as well as covenants created after that date pursuant to certain agreements entered into before that date, would be exempted from the rule.
The Obama Administration has announced two initiatives to help homeowners and their families. The Administration is reducing fees for Federal Housing Administration (FHA) borrowers seeking to refinance and providing relief to servicemembers and veterans.
FHA is reducing both the upfront and annual fee for FHA borrowers looking to utilize the streamline refinance to take advantage of historically low interest rates. For loans originated prior to June 1, 2009, the upfront premium is reduced to .01 percent and the annual fee is reduced to .55 percent. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) released Mortgagee Letter 12-4, which outlines all the mortgage insurance premium (MIP) changes; increases for new purchase transactions, and decreases for streamline refinances.
The announcement includes several efforts to support servicemembers and veterans who were wrongfully foreclosed upon, wrongfully charged higher interest rates, and who were forced to sell their home for a loss due to a permanent change in service. Foreclosure protections under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA) are being expanded and $10 million will be paid into the Veterans Housing Benefit Program Fund. This relief will be provided by loan servicers Bank of America, JP Morgan Chase, Ally, Citi, and Wells Fargo.
Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) has introduced S. 2144, a bill that would make the mortgage debt forgiveness rules permanent. The rules that currently provide relief for homeowners on short sales, foreclosures or loan modifications expire December 31, 2012. This relief is essential to affected homeowners so they will not have to pay tax on the forgiven debt.
A companion bill in the House will be introduced soon. See additional information here.
The California Association of REALTORS® is OPPOSING SB 1220 (DeSaulnier), which imposes a transfer tax to generate funds for affordable housing.
C.A.R. is opposing SB 1220 because it will add to the cost of buying a home at a time when the housing market is struggling to recover. While C.A.R. is an aggressive advocate for affordable housing, the association believes it sets bad precedent to fund affordable housing by making housing less affordable.
Stay tuned for more information and a potential Red Alert!
On Thursday, SILVAR President Suzanne Yost updated members of the Cupertino/Sunnyvale District on the state of the Association. Yost announced the Association is financially secure (SILVAR hasn’t raised dues since 2002) and stressed that SILVAR highly values its membership.
SILVAR offers many valuable member benefits, including PRDS Forms, a complete line of paper and online forms for residential purchase and sales transactions. PRDS Forms were developed specifically for Silicon Valley’s REALTORS® by Silicon Valley REALTORS® who saw the need. These forms are highly acclaimed and available online free of charge as a SILVAR member benefit.
Yost assured members their dues dollars are very well spent, especially on government affairs. She highly credited SILVAR Government Affairs Director Adam Montgomery for his work in successfully warding off many point of sale and transfer tax proposals that could have hurt homeowners had they passed. A recent example is proposed regulations that would have included sewer lateral inspection and compliance mandates at the transfer of property for homeowners in southern San Mateo County. She added since it is a large association with a strong government affairs staff and many accomplishments, “SILVAR has a footprint” at the local, state and national REALTOR® level.
Yost noted SILVAR’s District Council system is an especially good model that emerged upon the merger of the five boards in 1995. This model provides another level of opportunities for leadership. Having more people “with ears close to the ground” helps ensure that the Association meets the needs of agents working in all five districts.
Members are very lucky to be doing business in Silicon Valley, said Yost. Recent speaking engagements before the New York State Association of REALTORS® and the Michigan State Association of REALTORS® brought home this fact, she said. While REALTORS® everywhere have had to face tough markets during the past three years, Silicon Valley’s housing market is improving due to its location and strong tech and other innovative industries.
SILVAR’s president encourages members to take part in the Association. Join your District Council, get involved in activities at the District and Association level, volunteer for RSVP (REALTOR® Service Volunteer Program) and help others in your community, Yost urged.
“We always want to develop new leaders and give you the opportunity to become leaders,” she stressed.
Yost is excited about a couple of new Association components this year. There is SILVAR’s Young Professional Network (YPN), which welcomes all members – the young, as well as the seasoned professionals. SILVAR is also developing a Global Business Council, an initiative which will have a strong education component to help REALTORS® learn how to effectively work with international buyers. She added that SILVAR highly values its Affiliate members and a group is currently working on written policies and guidelines for Affiliates.
Last, but not least, Yost urged members to continue to stay positive. “The numbers are getting better,” said Yost. “2012 is the year we’ll come out of this. 2012 will be better.”
Wednesday, May 2, is Legislative Day. This is the day REALTORS® from all over California will meet with their elected officials in Sacramento and discuss critical legislation that can affect REALTORS®, homeowners and private property rights. Members of the Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS® will be participating in this annual one-day event in Sacramento.
Once members arrive in Sacramento, they will receive a special briefing from California Association of REALTORS® lobbyists, REALTOR® leadership and honorable guests. A luncheon will follow the briefing. California Governor Jerry Brown has been invited to speak at the event.
After lunch, SILVAR members will have meetings with all of the legislators in Silicon Valley, including Senators Elaine Alquist, Sam Blakeslee and Joe Simitian, and Assembly members Jim Beall, Paul Fong, and Rich Gordon. At these meetings, our REALTORS® will have the opportunity to discuss important real estate issues, such as private property rights, legal reforms and housing opportunity policies.
SILVAR REALTORS® who plan to attend Legislative Day should register for the event by calling SILVAR at (408) 200-0100, or sign up online at ims.silvar.org no later than Monday, April 23. See flyer for cost and more details.
The proposed fiscal year 2013 budget for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) includes information on upcoming premium increases for the Federal Housing Administration (FHA). Due to a provision in the Temporary Payroll Tax bill from late last year, FHA is required to implement a 10 basis point increase to annual premiums for all new FHA loans. In addition, FHA intends to increase premiums on “jumbo” loans (those over $625,500) by 25 basis points (for a total of 35 basis points on those loans).
In order to protect the financial stability of the program, FHA also says it may implement additional premium increases. The budget likewise states that FHA is reducing permitted seller concessions from 6 percent to 3 percent or $6,000, whichever is higher. A proposed rule regarding this is expected later in the month.
The budget revealed that for FY2012 (the current budget year), FHA’s re-estimates of revenues showed that FHA would actually need (for the first time in its history) a subsidy from the federal government of $688 million. Although it now will not request that money because it received more than $1 billion from the settlement with the banks over robo-signing, there will be intense pressure from Congress to re-evaluate FHA and its fiscal position.
For the last several years, FHA has had sufficient reserves to cover claims and losses, but its excess reserves have fallen far below the mandated 2 percent level. It now appears that for the current year, FHA’s losses exceeded its profits, requiring this additional money. The good news is the budget request anticipates the FHA fund will return to full solvency and mandated reserve levels by 2015.
The budget also included premium increases for FHA multifamily loans (221 (d)(4)) by 20 basis points. This won’t apply to loans with Section 8, low-income housing tax credits, or risk-sharing.
Last, the budget cuts contract renewal funding for Section 8 project-based projects. As has been done in the past, FHA will only partially fund renewals of these contracts, and owners expect there to be significant delays in Housing Assistance Payments (HAPs). These funding cuts will need to be approved by Congress.
The 2012 leadership team of the Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS (SILVAR) was installed Jan. 12 at Villa Montalvo in Saratoga. California Association of REALTORS® (C.A.R.) treasurer Chris Kutzkey administered the oath of office to the association’s 2012 president Suzanne Yost and the board of directors.
The Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS® represents over 4,000 REALTORS® and affiliates engaged in the real estate business on the Peninsula and in the South Bay. SILVAR promotes the highest ethical standards of real estate practice, serves as an advocate for homeownership and homeowners, and represents the interests of property owners in Silicon Valley.
Yost is a broker associate with Alain Pinel Realtors, Los Gatos. Also on the leadership team are Carolyn Miller (RE/MAX Real Estate Services), president-elect, and Phyllis Carmichael (Coldwell Banker), treasurer.
In addition to the three lead officers, the following members sit on the 2012 board of directors: Gene Lentz (RE/MAX Distinctive Properties), past president; Jeff Bell (Coldwell Banker), Region 9 chair; Chris Isaacson (Coldwell Banker), Menlo Park/Atherton District chair; Cassie Maas (Luxor Real Estate Group), Los Gatos/Saratoga District chair; Niki Miller Maroko (RE/MAX Real Estate Services), Cupertino/Sunnyvale District chair; Jane Volpe (Midtown Realty), Palo Alto District chair; Denise Welsh (Intero Real Estate), Los Altos/Mountain View District chair; John Tripp (Foundation Trust), NAR director; David Barca (Alain Pinel Realtors), Bill Moody (Referral Realty), Bill Rehbock (Coldwell Banker), Bryan Robertson (Sereno Group), David Tonna (Alain Pinel Realtors), directors at-large; and Richard Miller (RateComb.com), affiliate chair.
A graduate of California Polytechnic State University – San Luis Obispo and Santa Clara University School of Law, Yost was named REALTOR® of the Year in 2006 by the Santa Cruz Association of REALTORS®, Salesperson of the Year in 1982 by the San Luis Obispo Board of REALTORS®, and has served as director and chair of a number REALTOR® committees at the national and state level. She was SILVAR’s 2009 Professional Standards Committee chair, a 2010 board director, and 2011 co-chair of the Bay Area REALTOR® Leadership Academy. Yost is a Los Gatos resident.
The 2011 Appreciation Awards were presented to Julia Truesdale Keady (Alain Pinel Realtors), REALTOR® of the Year; Richard Miller (RateComb.com), Affiliate of the Year; Eileen Giorgi (Alain Pinel Realtors), Spirit of SILVAR; and SILVAR board attorney Dave Hamerslough (Rossi, Hamerslough, Reischl and Chuck) and Vickie Naidorf (legal counsel for Coldwell Banker), President’s Award.
As 2009 president, Keady spearheaded the Bay Area REALTOR® Leadership Academy, a leadership program designed to identify, train and develop existing and emerging leaders to serve and advance organized real estate. She was also recognized as 2011 C.A.R. Region 9 chair. Presenting the award, 2011 president Gene Lentz noted Keady “has performed in an exemplary fashion in every single committee or assignment that she has been given. They take huge effort and dedication.”
Affiliate of the Year Miller was recognized for “unequivocally embracing and adopting the principles, goals, and purposes of the association.”
As chair of the REALTOR® Service Volunteer Program (RSVP), a free REALTOR® service assisting senior homeowners with household tasks, Lentz said Giorgi, who also served as 2011 president of the Silicon Valley REALTORS® Charitable Foundation Trust, “personifies the essence of this award, through her hard work in making RSVP the success it is today.”
Lentz thanked Hamerslough and Naidorf for educating REALTORS® on legal issues and for their efforts in updating the association’s PRDS Forms purchase contract and creating the counties’ advisory.
Charitable Foundation Trustee Lydia Kou presented a $2,000 check to Myllicent Hamilton, board director of the Westwind 4-H Handicapped Riding Program, a 2011 grant recipient, at this morning's Palo Alto District tour meeting.
The Silicon Valley REALTORS® Charitable Foundation, the charitable arm of the Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS® (SILVAR), donated $53,500 in the form of grants and scholarships in 2011. The Charitable Foundation is a trust which makes grants available to organizations from donations by members and friends of the local trade association.
The 2011 grant recipients are non-profit organizations that help homeless and low-income individuals and families in Silicon Valley. They include Assistant League of Los Gatos/Saratoga, Community Health Awareness Council (CHAC), Edgewood Center for Children & Families, Friends of Deer Hollow Farm, Housing Industry Foundation, JW House, JustREAD (on campus of Mountain View/Los Altos Union High School District), Partners for New Generations, Peninsula Association for Retarded Children & Adults (PARCA), ProjectREAD – Menlo Park, West Valley Community Services, Westwind 4-H Handicapped Riding Institute and YWCA of Silicon Valley.
As part of its annual Scholarship Program, the Charitable Foundation likewise presented a $1,000 grant to each of 18 graduating seniors from public high schools in Silicon Valley. The Foundation has been assisting students with the scholarship grants for the past 12 years. The Charitable Foundation grants included donations from SILVAR’s districts to their local community nonprofit organizations.
“Like last year, our local nonprofits have been hit hard by the weak economy and continue to need our help. We thank our members and friends for being so generous in their support of the Foundation this year,” said John Tripp, 2012 president of the Silicon Valley REALTORS® Charitable Foundation. “We urge our members to continue their support this year, so we can continue our commitment to the welfare and prosperity of communities where we live and work.”
The Charitable Foundation trustees meet quarterly to evaluate grant applications. Serving on the 2012 Silicon Valley REALTORS® Charitable Foundation Board of Trustees are Tripp, Lehua Greenman, Jimmy Kang, Lydia Kou, Carolyn Miller and Susan Sweeley.
Non-profit organizations operating within the areas served by the Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS® are eligible for grant consideration provided they meet the evaluation criteria below. Grant applicants are evaluated on the following guidelines:
• The community need for the expenditure, as well as the number of people who will be served;
• The impact on the recipient organization;
• The location of the community served; (Although requests for state, national and international projects are considered, preference is given to projects with a more local base.)
• The financial soundness and efficiency of the organization;
• Accuracy and completeness of the application;
• The structure of volunteer organization and level of volunteer support; and
• Appropriate use of the Foundation’s previous grants (if applicable).
For more information and details about the Charitable Foundation grants, visit www.silvar.org or call SILVAR at (408) 200-0100.
Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS® says ... 