Monthly Archives: December 2012

One recent December 2012 WSJ article mentioned that President Obama recommended Fannie & Freddie help refi “private” (non governmental – i.e., FHA, Fannie or Freddie) underwater mortgages – which places the possible loss against US taxpayers. In a separate WSJ … Continue reading →

This post will be updated from time to time to try to keep track of FHA/HUD news that apply to Buyers and Sellers. In the meantime, here is link to press releases like the information below:  The U.S. Department of … Continue reading →

Solar Panels May Effect Your Home’s Value, In Either Direction. Could this become an issue that the US Supreme Court could hear? April 2012 article in the Atlanta Journal Constitution raised questions about a installation of solar panels v. HOA … Continue reading →

In order to answer where we are going, we need to understand where we’ve been and what is being done differently than before. We’ve been reeling from the impact of artificially inflated home prices and MBS => Tranches => CDOs/derivatives … Continue reading →

11-6-2014: Over 300 gallons of cooking oil was collected in 2013 to help power Smyrna vehicles. Just diverting from real estate in this post, but I get a cold chill each time I see another example how local Governments use … Continue reading →

What FEMA flood maps mean for residents, real estate Have you checked your flood zone status lately? 9-16-2013: FEMA is evaluating flood maps and raising insurance rates for flood insurance – are you prepared? FEMA now requires jumbo-mortgage properties in … Continue reading →

This recent article raised a good point that the lender, by RESPA law, is limited to an annual cushion of 1/6th the annual charge for both property taxes and homeowner’s insurance. HUD requires that loan originators provide borrowers with a … Continue reading →