Posted by Annalisa Burgos | October 15, 2009
Live next door to the President of the United States — the Obamas’ Chicago neighbors have put their home on the market.
Apparently, Matt Garrison, the listing agent with Coldwell Banker, hasn’t put an asking price on the house and will let the market dictate its value. How appropriate.
According to a report in The New York Times, the current owners paid $35,000 for the 6,000-square-foot house at 5040 South Greenwood Avenue in 1973. Other homes in the Hyde Park area have sold for $1 million to $2.5 million. But surely the appeal of living next to the President should tack on a few more mil. I wonder what kinds of background checks you’ll have to go through to close this deal.
About the property: The turn-of-the-century home is directly next to the Obama’s home, and the neighborhood is filled with Chicago’s business, political and intellectual rock stars. From this distance, you could ask the President for his famous chili recipe, borrow a cup of sugar from First Lady Michelle, or watch “First Daughters” Sasha and Malia, as the current owners often did.
The home was built in 1906 by A.R. Clark, who was also the original owner of President Obama’s home at 5046 South Greenwood. During World War II, the home was used to house officers, and eventually became a boarding house for a small military school.
The current owners purchased the home from the Colonel who ran the school. The home needs a little restoration, but still has all the original woodwork, stained glass windows, 6,000 square feet of living space, and a hefty yard by Chicago standards. Plus, as long as you don’t mind the occasional security hassles and Secret Service agents milling about, you can’t beat the location.
Posted by Annalisa Burgos | June 19, 2009
I’m in Washington, D.C., for a conference of the National Association of Real Estate Editors and got to hear from some of the key players in the federal government’s housing recovery efforts, including Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Shaun Donovan, Federal Housing Finance Agency Director James Lockhart and some of the congressional representatives on the banking and housing committees. We heard a lot about the Obama administration’s refinance and loan modification programs as well as the massive overhaul of the financial regulatory system.
Some of the notable stats from Thursday’s speakers:
–40% of those displaced by the foreclosure crisis are renters.
–16 mortgage servicers are participating in the federal government’s loan mod program. They handle about 80% of all mortgages.
–So far, 200,000 loan mod offers have been made under the federal program.
–Potential source of real estate growth is the rental market in college towns. That’s because each coming year, we’ll see a record number of high school graduates.
–Another potential demographic shift is the growing population of non-traditional households (“traditional” meaning a married couple with children).
Check out this video of HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan talking about the mission of Obama’s proposed Consumer Financial Protection Agency, a new watchdog agency that would protect consumers from the kind of predatory lending practices that got us into the current mortgage mess and foreclosure crisis.
Posted by Annalisa Burgos | March 4, 2009
Starting today, homeowners can apply for a loan modification with lenders under Obama’s $75 billion refinance and mortgage modification program. The Treasury Department says the “Making Home Affordable” program will help up to 9 million homeowners avoid foreclosure.
Lenders will receive financial incentives to modify mortgages of at-risk borrowers who have not yet missed payments and to remove second liens on loans. You can modify through Dec. 31, 2012.
Eligibility:
* Loans originated on or before Jan. 1, 2009
* First-lien loans on owner-occupied properties with unpaid balance up to $729,750. No investor-owned, vacant or condemned properties.
* Borrowers must show a recent tax return and two pay stubs and sign an affidavit of financial hardship.
The plan sets industry-wide standards for modifying a home loan, including using a “net present value” (NPV) test to determine the benefit of a loan modification. This test includes ways to determine property value, assume home price appreciation and estimate foreclosure costs.
Under the plan, a borrower’s monthly payment must be reduced to no more than 31 percent of gross monthly income.
To do this, the lender must go through a series of steps:
1) reduce the interest rate, at a floor of 2 percent
2) extend the life of the loan for a maximum of 40 years
3) forbear principal (i.e. offer interest-free forbearance on part of the principal)
Check with your lender to see if you qualify.
And don’t forget that borrowers with mortgages held by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are also eligible to refinance through June 2010.
Stay tuned for more exclusive real estate news, only on FrontDoor Unlocked!
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