I went on vacation this week to Southern California. My wife’s extended family has somewhat of a timeshare on a beach house. It is great to see people and get some sun, but I always try to get a feel for the Real Estate market whereever I go on vacation.

California basically can be divided into two catagories. The super desirable homes, and everything else. There is always a market for oceanfront, beachfront, waterfront, lakefront or whatever you want to call it. Those properties rarely go down in value by much and no mater what, someone with money will always want to live there. The same thing goes for the elite neighborhoods such as the ones in Bel Aire and other upscale markets.

Due to intense market appreciation in most of the country (especially California and Florida) most people that were paying attention could see a real estate bubble developing. The homes most affected are the normal middle class homes in the cities that had the highest appreciation before the bubble burst. The normal people, not the super rich, are feeling most of the real estate crunch.

I spent a little time doing research on much of the California housing market. I saw reports showing some areas with 20%+ decrease in home values over the last year or so.

In Washington, many areas are down. However, I have not seen any areas in Washington State down nearly as much as much of California. I guess we have that to be thankful for. Hopefully most of us will be able to ride this out.

I see it all the time, especially now that the economy is slowing down. People, for one reason or another, are falling behind on their mortgage payments. It happens for several reasons. Some common ones are: loss of job, injured/ill and cannot work, divorce/separation, death/illness in the family, or maybe the mortgage rate reset and the new payment is too high.

For whatever the reason, the end result is almost always one of two alternatives.

1. Sell your home.

2. Lose your home to the bank.

I believe in #1 and it is not just because I earn an income from people selling their homes to me. I believe in it because when I help someone sell the house they can no longer afford to keep, I honestly feel I am helping them. It is a true Win-Win situation. Sure, I buy a property for what I believe is a good price, but I am also relieving my client of a very heavy burden. I offer quick closing, valuable experience, and flexable terms. I can make the pressure of creditors and debt seem to dissapear.

Many people will be able to go through life without having to know the pressures of facing insurmountable debt. They will never know the fear of being kicked out of their house. The will never know the embarrassment as the sheriff orders you out of the house while movers place your belongings in the street with neighbors watching. No matter what, though, there will be many people who do have first hand knowledge of what it is like having creditors calling at all hours of the day. They know what it is like when the power bill is three months behind, the mortgage is two months behind, and the water bill is 4 months behind.

The pressure can make people want to give up, stop caring, and become dilusional by hoping simply praying will make the problems go away.

I help people in that position. I prefer to help people before it gets to the late stages of the foreclosure process, but I do not always get to choose. Often people call or email me when it is already too late. I have even had people call me when their former home had already sold at auction, asking me if there was anything i could do. By the time it gets to that, it is too late.

If you are already worried about how you are going to make your next mortgage payment, and the one after that, now is the time to call me. The more time we have, the better price I can get you for your home, the more flexible we can be with move out date, and the less stress you need to feel.

Forclosures = Bad

Piece of Mind = Good

There is no oblication in calling me. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain. If you think you could be in a situation like one I talk about in this post. Do not risk losing everything. At the very least, you could save a foreclosure on your credit.

If I do end up helping you, I may be able to help you cover your moving costs. I have done it before, and I will do anything i can to help make this transition easier for you.