In a word: CASH.

Heading to the court house to buy the home of your dreams (or perhaps just a good solid investment)? Then here are a few tips to get you started.

To bid you need to qualify, which means you will be required to show the auctioneer identification, and cash or cashiers checks sufficient to cover the FULL AMOUNT you wish to bid. Yup, that’s allot of cash, but this endeavor is not for the faint of heart.
Most investors take cashiers checks made out to themselves. If you are not the winning bidder, you can easily redeposit the funds, and if you are the winning bidder, you can endorse the check over to the trustee.

Question: How do I know what properties are going up for auction? What is the opening bid amount?

The information is public, but can be a bit difficult to obtain. To get started, you can do a search right here on my PreForeclosure and Auction search page.

The lender gets to make the first bid, which is called the opening bid. Some now also refer to it as the drop bid, because lenders now often substantially discount the opening bid from the amount owed. The lender / trustee is under no legal obligation to announce the opening bid in advance of the sale.

They typically release the opening bid the day before or the morning of the sale. Sometimes the opening bid is not announced until the sale starts. The research team at ForeclosureRadar works diligently to post opening bids as quickly as possible. The information provided on my PreForeclosure and Auction search page comes from this valuable resource.

Want to see what happens at an auction? Check these video’s out:

Foreclosure Auction on the county courthouse steps

Foreclosure Auction – Take 2

Here’s my take: Buying a property at the county courthouse steps is best left to the professionals.

Don’t get me wrong, buying a home at discounted price is a great thing. There are numerous other aspects of the process that can potentially wreck your financial well-being.

For example:

• What is the true condition of the home?
• Who currently occupies the home? the previous owner? or tenant? or squatters??
• What is the condition of title? is it clear or clouded? are there any other outstanding liens?
• There is no refund! No inspection period. It’s a take it or leave it scenario.

In case you haven’t seen or heard…

My wife and I just made our very first contribution to the population of the planet with our brand new baby girl, Sofia!

Yup, she is a New Year’s Day baby, born during the 49ers game, specifically during that fake field goal for a TouchDown play. (Yes, I’m a bit of a 49ers fan).

8 lbs 10 oz, 22″

Whereas the socio-economic-political status of this world seems quite uncertain; one thing IS certain: the unconditional love that we have for her.

What a total game changer! Whatever thoughts, ideas, preconceptions and feelings I had about what it means to be father…I can pretty much discard.

Something quite special happens at birth. I can’t explain it. Let’s be clear, I’m not one prone to being sentimental about things. But let’s just say, I didn’t quite bawl like a little child being denied his favorite treat, but my eyes did leak a bit.

This year, 2012, is not only shaping up to be a good year, but it’s the absolute best in my personal history book.

I wish you all the best this year! A year of change for the better! A year of turn-around from uncertainty, and a future of unsurpassed clarity!

OpenHouse:
Saturday, February 4th 2-4pm.

Lovely Townhouse in the Charter Square development  of Fremont.

2-Story Home with vaulted ceilings and plenty of Living Space.

2-Car Detached garage with private interior courtyard.

Recessed lighting, private courtyard, 2-car garage.

Great community amenities including tennis court and swimming pool.

Large 2,796 SqFt of living space on a very flat and manageable 13,200 SqFt lot.

A place you’ll be happy to call your refuge and home
Interested? Zap a message to me.

Very affordable!

Lower level condo in recently converted building to 4-unit condos.

All updated fixtures, laminate wood flooring throughout.

Close to Freeways.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Please be safe out there in all that shopping madness.

Just want to take a moment and thank all of you whose lives we’ve touched; whether it through business or personal contact.

Wishing you all blessings of health, happiness and success!

Are you a present or past client? Send a message to me, I’ve got something for ya

Peace out.

Here’s a great opportunity to buy in the heart of the Livermore Wine Country.

Yup, this home got totally tore-up by the previous occupants. Fortunately, it’s pretty much all cosmetic damage. The bank’s loss is your GAIN! With the money you save on the purchase, you’ll be able to fix it up and install the hardware and finishes YOU want

This is an REO / Bank Owned Property.

Space heaters are popular among homeowners in Fremont because, as portable appliances, they can heat a small space quickly and inexpensively. It requires less energy to run a space heater than to raise the temperature of an entire home by a few degrees.

However, space heaters can be dangerous, too.

In its November 2011 report, the National Fire Protection Association reveals that heating equipment was involved in an estimated 58,900 home structure fires, 480 civilian deaths, 1,520 civilian injuries and more than $1.1 billion in damage.

Space heaters caused a disproportionate percentage of the accidents :

• 79% of all home heating-related civilian deaths
• 66% of all home heating-related civilian injuries
• 52% of all home heating-related property damage

If you use space heaters, therefore, please remember to read (and follow) the manufacturer’s instructions for proper usage, and to obey basic safety standards.

First, never place anything flammable within three feet of a space heater. Space heaters get very hot, very quickly and can ignite rugs, paper and curtains.

Next, make sure your space heater is placed on the floor, on level ground. Do not rest it on books, or on furniture.

Also, make sure to turn space heaters off when leaving a room, or when going to bed. Space heaters are not meant to replace whole-home heating and should not be left unattended under any circumstance.

The Underwriters Laboratory makes a list of general safety tips available on its website. Considering how much damage space heaters can cause, the list is worth committing to memory.

Tuesday, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac unveiled lender instructions for the government’s revamped HARP program, kick-starting a potential refinance frenzy across California and nationwide.

HARP stands for Home Affordable Refinance Program. The updated program is meant to give “underwater homeowners” an opportunity to refinance at today’s low mortgage rates.

In the two-plus years since its launch, HARP’s first iteration helped fewer than 900,000 homeowners. HARP II, by contrast, is expected to reach millions.

Lenders begin taking HARP II loan applications December 1, 2011.

To apply for HARP, applicants must first meet 4 basic criteria :

1. The existing mortgage must be guaranteed by Fannie Mae or by Freddie Mac
2. The existing mortgage must have been securitized by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac prior to June 1, 2009
3. The mortgage payment history must be perfect going back 6 months
4. The mortgage payment history may not include more than one 30-day late payment going back 12 months

If the above criteria are met, HARP applicants will like what they see.

For HARP applicants, loan-level pricing adjustments are waived in full for loans with terms of 20 years or fewer; and maxed at 0.75 for loans with terms in excess of 20 years.

This will result in dramatically lower mortgages rates for HARP applicants — especially those with credit scores below 740. Some applicants will find HARP mortgage rates lower than for a “traditional” conventional mortgage.

In addition, HARP applicants are exempted from the standard waiting period following a bankruptcy or foreclosure, which is 4 years and 7 years, respectively.

These two items are inclusionary and should help HARP reach a broader U.S. audience.

HARP contains exclusionary policies, too.

1. The “unlimited LTV” feature only applies to fixed rate loans or 30 years or fewer. ARMs are capped at 105% loan-to-value.
2. Applicants must be “requalified” if the proposed mortgage payment exceeds the current payment by 20%.
3. Applicants must benefit from either a lower payment, or a “more stable” product to qualify

And, of course, HARP can only be used once.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will adopt slight variations of the same HARP guidelines so make sure to check with your loan officer for the complete list of HARP eligibility requirements.