Lenders are using a variety of tools to prevent mortgage fraud
Borrowers considering inflating their income, even just a tad, checking the box to indicate they plan to live in the home when they’re not, or exaggerating their job description better think twice. Lenders are turning to websites and other tools to help nab fraudulent borrowers and perjurers looking to bilk lenders out of hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Making sense of the story

• During the height of the market, borrowers could get away with lying about their income, debt obligations, and the like to obtain financing.  But not anymore.  According to a representative from the Mortgage Bankers Association, there are “more fraud checks than ever, and it’s on every loan, not just a sample.”

• More important, perhaps, the focus now is on preventing fraud rather than dealing with it after the fact.

• Sometimes the fraud check is as simple as a quick call to the customer right before the loan is closed to verify information supplied on the loan application.  Such a call to an otherwise unsuspecting borrower can sometimes uncover a lie perpetrated by a corrupt loan officer who’s in it for the commission – or more.

• In other cases, lenders are using sophisticated databanks to spot fraudsters.  One website, for example, provides salary data on various industry positions so the lender can determine if the borrower is overstating his income.

• Another site provides historical wage data, and yet another checks the information supplied by self-employed borrowers, including whether the borrower’s company exists, who the principals are, the number of employees, and the annual revenue.

• There are also sites that will tell lenders where there are judgments against the borrower or liens against other properties the borrower might own.

Read More from Los Angeles Times Real Estate

Stockton Real Estate – Dave Thurman

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• TurboTax – How Short Sales and Foreclosures Affect Your Taxes
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2011 Foreclosure Activity Ends With a Whimper

Little Change in California, as Nevada and Washington Foreclosure Starts Plummet

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Potential home owners often find the proper time to buy is different for every situation. Some real estate agents find it necessary to highlight every month as a “time to buy” when in reality, every individual family or person interested in buying a home is bringing a new background and needs to the table. The time to buy is not only different for every single home buyer, but is also determined by much more than just the most recent statistics and trends from the local real estate market.

In the home buying process, it’s necessary to consider a host of different things when making the proper decision. For example, in Sacramento buyers would be wise to take into account a set of primary matches such as financing, income, recent trends and location. There are certainly a number of other factors that can also come into play; however outlining some initial bases to cover allows the process to run much smoother in the long run.

This year, the Sacramento inventory might not look like a buyer’s paradise, however some of the statistics may match up better for some than others. After much of the nation’s real estate markets dropped a few years back, the market has continued to stay level for the most part in the past two years. The median sale price in Sacramento is $190,000 and they’ve continued to stay steady as well. Another possible factor for potential home owners is the fact that Sacramento apartments are seeing average rent go up. In the past year, the rent has gone up $100, coming close to $980 a month.

The Sacramento market has experienced the same ups and downs that have been present throughout the country, but steady prices for the past three years are certainly telling as well. Some of the markets hit the roughest have continued to fall over time, but Sacramento hasn’t for the most part. While some do believe 2012 will mark a real estate revival, any chance of a total resurgence will largely remain unknown and too hard to predict.

Sacramento’s inventory has gone up with houses in the median price range over time. In the past year, a small dip has hit the total inventory numbers, but the overall rise in the past few years is still telling, because prospective buyers still have plenty of houses to choose from. With a continued overall rise in inventory in the last few years and rent continuing to rise, prospective buyers could start moving more in early 2012.

Regardless of whether or not the statistics and averages of the Sacramento market are perfect for a prospective buyer, the important factors of home buying will always take top priority in the process of finding a home. The difference in every situation will allow the many interested buyers to make different decisions. In the end, there isn’t a truly universal time for buying a home, but simply a right time for each potential buyer. This time is not necessarily determined by statistics and trends in real estate, as much as it is the situation and background of the buyer.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Citigroup has agreed to pay $285 million to settle civil fraud charges that it misled buyers of complex mortgage investments just the housing market was starting to collapse.

The Securities and Exchange Commission said Wednesday that the big Wall Street bank bet against the investors in 2007 and made $160 million in fees and profits. Investors lost millions.

The payment includes the fees and profit Citigroup earned, $30 million in interest and a $95 million penalty. The money will be returned to investors in the deal, the SEC said.

Citigroup neither admitted nor denied the SEC’s allegations in the settlement.

“We are pleased to put this matter behind us and are focused on contributing to the economic recovery, serving our clients and growing responsibly,” Citigroup said in a statement.

The penalty is the biggest targeting Wall Street firms that mislead investors ahead of the 2008 financial crisis since Goldman Sachs & Co. paid $550 million to settle similar charges last year. JPMorgan Chase & Co. also settled similar charges in June and paid $153.6 million.

All of the cases have involved so-called collateralized debt obligations. Those are securities backed by pools of other assets.

In a civil lawsuit filed Wednesday, the SEC said Citigroup traders discussed in late 2006 the possibility of buying financial instruments to essentially bet on the failure of the mortgage assets being put together in the deal.

Rating agencies downgraded most of the investments that Citigroup had bundled together just as many homeowners stopped paying their mortgages in late 2007. That pushed the investment into default and cost its buyers — hedge funds and investment managers — several hundred million dollars in losses.

Among the biggest losers were Ambac, a bond insurer, and BNP Paribas, a European bank. Ambac had sold Citigroup protection against losses on the investment, allowing Citigroup to bet against it.

I found this article reading [recordnet.com]

After Big Jump in August, Foreclosure Starts Fall Again

Realty World – Dave Thurman

On Saturday, September 24, 2011 from 12:00 Noon to 4:00 PM, you are invited to our Open Office at 2652 East Main Street in Stockton. If you are looking for residential, commercial, or investment properties in this area, don’t miss this opportunity to visit and meet with Dave Thurman, REALTOR®. Appointments are not necessary!

• Pick up a free list of homes!
• Foreclosure auction dates & information.
• Get pre-qualified for a home loan.
• Ask questions about foreclosures and short sales.
• Discuss agency and disclosure requirements.
• Become a member & start up your own Shaklee business $299.
• First-time buyers and investors are welcome.

IT’S FINALLY HERE! ARE YOU READY FOR THE BEST EXPO YET?

The biggest real estate of the event is finally upon us! CALIFORNIA REALTOR® EXPO 2011 starts on Tuesday, Sept. 20, with PRE EXPO at the San Jose McEnery Convention Center, and continues through Thursday, Sept. 22. This is an event that you simply can’t afford to miss. The free professional development and abundant networking opportunities that EXPO offers will help you achieve a competitive edge in the market and show you how to increase your bottom line.

Come to EXPO for:

• Social media training
• Sales tips
• Technology tools and trends
• A look at the economic landscape
• Financing insight for clients
• Short sales, REO, and foreclosure knowledge
• And more!

To see a complete schedule of PRE EXPO and EXPO sessions, and an exhibitor list, visit expo.car.org. Additional fees apply to special events such as PRE EXPO, luncheons, and certification classes. Take your business to the next level at CALIFORNIA REALTOR® EXPO 2011!

Register online for CALIFORNIA REALTOR® EXPO 2011 and PRE EXPO by visiting http://expo.car.org/, or calling toll-free (800) 242-2732. You also may register onsite at the San Jose McEnery Convention Center.

See you in San Jose!

California housing production declined 45 percent in July compared with a year earlier, and posted the lowest monthly permit total since January of 2009, according to the California Building Industry Association.

Statistics compiled by the Construction Industry Research Board (CIRB) show that permits were pulled for 2,248 total housing units in July, down 45 percent from the same month a year ago and down 53 percent from June, representing the lowest monthly permit total since January of 2009 when 2,104 permits had been issued. Permits for single-family homes totaled 1,436, down 30 percent from June 2010 and down 39 percent from the previous month, while multifamily permits totaled 812, down 61 percent from a year ago and down 67 percent from June.

Mike Winn, CBIA’s president and CEO, noted that in addition to dismal economic conditions, CIRB attributed some of the decline to secondary effects of the costly green building code changes and fire sprinkler mandates that went into effect on Jan. 1.

“Permits that had been applied for back in December to avoid the costly new regulations had not actually been issued yet and needed to be issued by July 1,” said Winn. “This caused more permits to be issued through the end of June which could account for some of the decline in July, according to CIRB’s analysis.”

Brought to you by the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®