This townhome at Country Villas, Shalimar, Florida has been approved as a HAP (Homeowner Assistance Program) sale.  HAP is a program designed to assist United States military service members who have orders to relocate bases, and are upside-down in their mortgages.  Meaning, they owe more on their mortgage than their current market value.

Just how quick was this HAP approval?

The property went under contract two weeks ago.  The seller, an Eglin Air Force Base service member, sent HAP his final application documents, a copy of the real estate contract and a Broker Price Opinion which I provided.

HAP approved the sales price within one week.

Another week later, HAP approved the service member for benefits! 

The next steps?  The HAP Government Aquisition program (also called augmented sale) will buy the home from the servicemember, pay his remaining balance on his mortgage, and re-sell the property to the buyer.  HAP will use its own title agency to purchase from the airman, and we can choose a local title agent to facilitate the purchase between the government and the buyer.

If you are an Eglin AFB or Hurlburt Field airman, consider using the HAP program if you are PCSing and upside-down in your mortgage.  And contact an agent who specializes in HAP.

It’s Wendy!

Wendy Rulnick, Broker, Rulnick Realty, Inc.

Call toll-free 1-877-ITS-WNDY (1-877-487-9639) or local 850-650-7883 ext 204

Email Wendy: itswendy@rulnickrealty.com

Fort Walton Beach Florida Real Estate

Crestview Florida Short Sales & Pre Foreclosure Help.

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1.  The first story is a Happy Short Sale Saga.  One of my Destin Florida sellers regained employment, so did not have to sell the home he and his family desperately loved!  I gladly withdrew the property from the market.  Specializing in short sales is often more than closing the sale.
2.  HAP – The Homeowner Assistance Program (HAP) is a government program expanded to help our military members who have orders to relocate from bases such as Eglin Air Force Base and Hurlburt Field.  Many of these servicemen are upside-down in their mortgages, and HAP is supposed to cover 90% of their loss so they can avoid foreclosure.  HAP has not helped many yet and is flooded with applications. The good news is that they are improving their information and refining their system, so hopefully more of our military will be helped in 2010. 

3.  HAFA – The Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternative Program is supposed to get short sale lenders/servicers on board to speed up approvals for homeowners of primary residences.  It offers guidelines and incentives to pre-approve short sales and forgive deficiencies.  We’ll watch carefully in the spring to report on HAFA progress- or not.
4.  Short Sale Training – My first short sale webinar marked the beginning of my business partnership with Bryant Tutas.  I prepared for the webinar with nervous trepidation, but ended up loving doing these classes! Simply put, it was a blast!  Not only did Bryant and I educate others, it helped me grow personally. We have since incorporated as REGrow, LLC.  Expect more good things in 2010. 

5. www.ShortSaleSuperstars.com  is the community Bryant Tutas and I founded to help short sale agents across the country “Learn, Know and Grow”.  In little over five months, our group is now almost 750 members strong.  Here, short sale professionals jump in to share secrets and information about every and any lender or short sale situation you can imagine.  Here, they are unlocking the knowledge to save more homeowners from foreclosure and do it at the highest levels.  This is a tight community of giving short sale leaders that is open for membership. If you have not yet joined – we welcome you to come with us on this exciting adventure.

As a final note, for 2010, I hope we all find greater solutions to the foreclosure and home ownership crisis that is touching the lives of every one of us.

It’s Wendy!

Wendy Rulnick, Broker, CRP, CRS, GRI, ABR     Rulnick Realty, Inc.

Destin FL Real Estate

Destin Short Sales & Pre Foreclosure Help.

Read Wendy’s Destin Real Estate Blog

www.ShortSaleSuperstars.com for agents

Call toll-free 1-877-ITS-WNDY (1-877-487-9639) or local 850-650-7883 ext 204

Email Wendy: itswendy@rulnickrealty.com

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Since writing Eglin AFB and Hurlburt Field: Homeowner Assistance Program (HAP) for Short Sales, more information has come to light.  Or lack of thereof!  I have received numerous calls and emails looking for clarification on how the program will be implemented, and how it will affect sellers (military relocation term meaning “permanent change of station”).  Currently, the issue is there is no directive from the Department of Defense as to how to process HAP applications, nor many program specifics.  My area, from Navarre to Destin, Florida and up through Niceville and Crestview has approximately 3000 airmen relocating to other bases around the country and the world.  Many of those airmen purchased homes during 2004-2006, and do not have enough equity to sell their houses when they must relocate and pay off their mortgage balance.  HAP is supposed to help, but as of yet, there is no help.

 Here is the latest result of my HAP research:

Mr. Frazier, of the HAP Savannah District told me:

There is no true timeframe by which the DOD directive with program details will be published.
Rumor is at the end of May, but it is far from confirmed.
Applications can not be “processed” at this time, but you can mail one in.
HAP will not buy homes.
When the DOD directive is implemented, he said:

Qualified military members may sell their homes at market value or 90% thereof.
At time of contract, use a 90 day closing date, HAP will try for sooner.
Make the offer contingent on HAP approval.
When a contract is entered into, call your HAP district for instructions.
Additionally, I inquired by email and received this communication from HAP Realty Specialist, B.M. Reed, summarized and with emphasis added:

Ms. Rulnick,

               The Department of the Army, in coordination with the other military departments, is in the process of finalizing implementation guidance for the expanded HAP, including determining eligibility, restrictions, and disqualifications.  Based on the current HQ timeline for review and official approval of the guidance, it may not be until late May before the implementation guidance is at district level.  When the implementation guidance is issued, it will be published on the official HAP website, which can be found at http://hap.usace.army.mil

        Unfortunately, without the referenced implementation guidance any attempt to provide detailed information on the Stimulus Bill HAP eligibility, disqualifications, benefits, or how benefits will be calculated would be merely speculation.

        Under this program the Government might be able to reimburse applicants part of the loss from selling their home (private sale benefits) or assist applicants if they do not have enough proceeds from the sale of the home to pay off the mortgage at Closing (private sale augmentation).   Benefits may be based on the difference between the prior fair market value (PFMV) of the property and the current fair market value (CFMV).  The PFMV may be determined by an appraisal effective 1 July 2006, or possibly the purchase price of the property might be used; the CFMV may be determined by the appraised value at the time of sale or possibly the selling price itself.  The Government could pay an amount up to a stipulated percentage of the difference between the two figures used for the computation.  Again, guidance has not yet been published so a completely different scenario might be used to compute benefits.

        The term ‘private sale augmentation’ merely means when an applicant’s benefit payment is brought by the Government to a Closing in order to assist the applicant with the payoff of a mortgage and typical seller closing costs so that the sale can be finalized.  In order to be eligible for a private sale augmentation, an applicant must maintain current payment status on his/her mortgage from the time an application is submitted through Closing.

      
        While the implementation guidance is being finalized, potential applicants are free to apply now by visiting the HAP website to fill out, print and mail in an application to the appropriate district for the area in which the property in question is located.  Instructions on how to apply can be found at http://hap.usace.army.mil/HowToApply.html

      
        I’ve attempted to provide you some information as best I can without having yet received implementation guidance on the program from the DOD.  What information there is available on the Stimulus Bill HAP (ARRA) can be located on the Army’s official HAP website at http://hap.usace.army.mil.  There is wealth of information under the section of FQAs at http://hap.usace.army.mil/FAQs.html

B. M. Reed, Realty Specialist
HAP Section, Acquisition Branch,
    Real Estate Division (RE-HA)
US Army Corps of Engineers
PO Box 889
Savannah, GA 31402-0889

What a predicament for relocating servicemen.  How can you put a home on the market contingent on HAP approval, unless you get a buyer willing to wait with no closing date?  What if you have already changed bases and cannot continue to make mortgage and/or rent payments in both locations?  According to HAP, you must stay current on your mortgage payments to qualify for the program.

I encourage servicemen to contact their state and federal representatives to hasten a resolution of the HAP quandary.  Meanwhile, stay tuned for the latest updates.

It’s Wendy!

Wendy Rulnick, Broker, CRP, CRS, GRI, ABR     Rulnick Realty, Inc.

Call toll-free 1-877-ITS-WNDY (1-877-487-9639) or local 850-650-7883 ext 204

Email Wendy to sell your home or buy a home: itswendy@rulnickrealty.com

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The post HAP Update first appeared on Rulnick Realty.

Here is the release from Major Generald David Eisdaune:

From: Eidsaune, David W MajGen USAF AAC AAC/CC

Sent: Friday, February 06, 2009 2:03 PM

I am proud to announce that the Air Force has signed the Initial Record of Decision (ROD) to bring the   F-35 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) to Eglin AFB.  The announcement allows the delivery of 59 aircraft between March 2010 and 2015.  This decision allows for construction of facilities for the JSF Initial Joint Training Site, which includes instructor pilots, operations and maintenance support personnel and provides an initial capability for one squadron each of F-35s for the Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps. A future Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) will study more fully developed noise mitigation options and study operational alternatives to determine the potential beddown for an additional 48 F-35 aircraft at Eglin. The community will still see an increase of approximately 10,000 military and dependent personnel with the 7th Special Forces Group and the F-35 Training Center.  Military construction is expected to bring $700 million to the local area.  A copy of the ROD is available on the Eglin web site: http://www.eglin.af.mil/

“Gen E”

The post Eglin AFB Adds Joint Strike Fighter – Emerald Coast Economy Will Benefit first appeared on Rulnick Realty.

The Emerald Coast of Florida has a high military population with both active duty and retired air force personnel.  Eglin Air Force Base is located in Fort Walton Beach, and Hurlburt Field is in Navarre, Florida.  Duke Field and NAS Whiting Field are nearby.  We will be seeing an increase in short sales for GI borrowers when they must relocate during their PCS moves (permanent change of station).  VA Short Sales are called “Offers in Compromise“, “Compromise Claims” or “Compromise Sales”.  The VA may accept a Compromise Sale if the cost to the VA is determined to be less than that of foreclosure.

The VA website says: “If the borrower is unable to sell the property for an amount that is greater than or equal to what he/she owes on the loan, including closing costs, VA may pay a “compromise claim” for the difference in order to allow the private sale to go through. The borrower can sell the property to a buyer who gets his/her own financing or to a buyer who wants to assume the loan. However, with a compromise assumption, the lender does have to agree to have the amount of its guaranty reduced by the amount of the claim payment. In order to be considered for a compromise sale, several factors must be considered.”

VA Compromise Sale Factors:

1. You may only sell the home for fair market value.

2. The closing costs must be “reasonable and customary”.

3. You must have a valid financial hardship such as loss of income, relocation, death of breadwinner, etc.

4. There should not be a second mortgage on your property, unless it is “insignificant”.  If so, you might ask the junior lienholder to release the lien and convert it to a personal note.

5. You should ensure your sales contract is “contingent and/or subject to the approval of a VA compromise sale.”

If you have a VA loan, and need to do a “Short Sale” or “Compromise Sale”, here is what you must do to begin the process:

1. Contact you lender to see if they are an approved VA Servicer Loss Mitigation lender and/or contact the VA regional office servicing your loan directly.

2. Fill out a financial status report form provided by your lender or the VA.

3. Complete a letter of request.

4. Complete a Compromise Agreement Sale Application. You can get this form from the VA or the approved lender.

Final Important Points:

1.  Your lender does not have to agree to a Compromise Sale.

2.  For VA loans originated on or before December 31, 1989, you might have to sign a promissory note at closing agreeing to repay VA for the deficiency remaining after the property is sold.

3.  An experienced Short Sale Realtor should guide you through the sales process, help you determine fair market value and prepare your package for submission to your lender or the VA.

For more information, contact your VA Regional Loan Center.

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