Doing a Sacramento-area short sale with Homeward Residential (formerly AHMSI / American Home Mortgage Servicing Inc)? Here is what you need...

Well...it's not a secret that I do A LOT of short sale transactions in the Sacramento area...and I have done several with American Home Mortgage Servicing Inc (aka, AHMSI, and recently re-branded "Homeward Residential"). Their negotiation process generally (and of course, relatively speaking) on the more "straight-forward" side, and their loss mitigation negotiators seem to be on top of their game and different short sale programs. So if you are looking to do a short sale on your Sacramento-area home and have a mortgage with Homeward Residential / AHMSI, here is a list of the documentation you need to gather as you get ready to list your home with a Realtor;

Homeward Residential / AHMSI
Loss Mitigation / Short Sale Tel: 877-304-3100

Seller's Documents Generally Required for a Short Sale:

-3rd Party Authorization Letter

-Hardship Letter

-Short Sale Financial Worksheet

-Last 2 months of bank statements

-Last 2 months of pay stubs

-Unemployment stubs and award letter (if applicable)

-Most recent 6-months Profit & Loss Statement (ONLY if self-employed)

-Last year's federal tax return

-Evidence of SSI, Pension, Disability Benefits (if applicable)

-Copy of most recent property tax bill (can be obtained online if you don't have it)

-Rental Lease (ONLY if investment property)

-IRS 4506-T

I welcome your call  or email if you have any questions regarding an Homeward Residential short sale in the Sacramento area.

Yep...I am running for re-election to the Sacramento Association of Realtors Board of Directors...

After being elected in 2010 to serve a 2-year position on the Sacramento Association of REALTORS® Board of Directors, it is time to run again for re-election. I can't believe that the time has passed so quickly! I have been serving my current term for the last year and a half, and thankfully the Nominating Committee felt I might be a good fit to continue my service on the Board. So I am running again...and so are others -- and there are more candidates running than positions to fill.

So in this contested race, I will be campaigning over the next couple months until all the votes are counted in early August.

While the intended audience for my campaign website is REALTOR® members of SAR (since they are the folks who actually vote), if you are curious to view it - visit http://www.vote4erin.com/. Feel free to 'Become a Fan' of the site if you want to see how my campaign progresses. I had a good time and a little fun with my campaign last time, and I am planning some pretty neat-o campaign stuff that will posted there in the coming weeks.

I really hope that the SAR membership sees I have made many valuable contributions to the association (in addition to many my contributions to the California Association of REALTORS®), and elects me to continue to serve. So wish me luck!

It's time for East Sacramento's 2012 "Pops in the Park"

The East Sacramento 2012 "Pops in the Park" concert series begins tonight! Tonight and the next three Saturday's in the month of June, you can check out great live music in different East Sac park locations.

Tonight (June 2nd), Pops in the Park is taking place at McKinley Park, and features "The Nibblers." June 9th's concert will be at Glenn Hall Park in the River Park neighborhood in East Sacramento, and feature "The Chris Gardner Band." June 16th's concert will be at East Portal Park and feature "The Q-Balls." The final concert of the series will be on June 23rd at Bertha Henschel Park and feature "Ivan Najera & Friends."

All concerts begin at 6pm and they are FREE to attend! I like to bring a blanket and a picnic when I attend, but there are usually several food vendors and a beer and wine garden. I highly recommend riding your bicycle there since parking is usually pretty limited as well, so there is free bike valet parking. All funds raised at these events benefit different East Sacramento neighborhood projects. This is one of my favorite summer community activities!

Are you selling a Natomas home that one of my buyers may like??

About once a month I email my entire client database (those folks who have opted-in to receive information from me -- I definitely do not SPAM anyone) a list of my current buyer client wants and needs. I am working with many Sacramento home buyers right now, and with a lack of available homes on the market in the Sacramento area, occasionally it is challenging to find listings in MLS that match their criteria. I try to creatively network with other Realtors and my past clients to find potential new listings before they go on the market...and it often works! So, to add to my other efforts, I am going to start posting what my buyer clients are looking for on my blog too. Today, I will post what my Natomas buyers are looking for...I am working with a few different Natomas buyers...

"Buyer A" is a very well-qualified pre-approved first-time home buyer.  He ideally would like a newer home in Natomas, built after 1999 -- or a significantly remodeled older home. He would like 2+ bedrooms, and 2+ bathrooms, an open floorplan, and a low maintenance/smaller yard with a patio. He is open to doing some re-painting or installing new flooring, but ideally is looking for something that otherwise is move-in ready. A single family freestanding home, or an attached cluster home or townhome would be perfect. He is open to purchasing a home within an HOA, provided that the dues do not exceed $100/month. His max purchase price is $160,000.

"Buyer B" is a very well-qualified pre-approved investor buyer seeking a home for her daughter to live in.  She ideally would like a newer home in Natomas, built after 1999. She would like 3+ bedrooms, and 2+ bathrooms, an open floorplan. She is open to doing some re-painting or installing new flooring, but ideally is looking for something that otherwise is move-in ready. She would prefer a single family freestanding home with no HOA. Her max purchase price is $185,000.

"Buyer C" are very well-qualified pre-approved buyers. They ideally would like a newer home in Natomas, built after 1999. They would like 4+ bedrooms, and 3+ bathrooms, and 2,500sf or more. They is open to doing some re-painting or installing new flooring, but ideally are looking for something that otherwise is move-in ready. They would prefer a single family freestanding home, and do not mind if it's in an HOA. Their max purchase price is $300,000.

If you own a home that seems to meet any of this criteria and are thinking about selling (or know someone who is), please contact me -- I may have a buyer for your home! If you need to do a short sale of your Natomas home, I can certainly facilitate that as well, and am happy to talk to you to see if we are a good fit to work together.

On another note, I am working with numerous other buyers who are looking for homes in several other Sacramento area neighborhoods...please contact me if you would like more details, and look for future posts.

A creative use of space in an East Sacramento home...?

I was touring an East Sacramento home earlier today, and found this in what is basically a closet under the stairs...I can just imagine an over-zealous parent telling a child, "Get in there, do your homework, and DO NOT come out until you are done!" Or this may just be Harry Potter's ideal place to surf the web. Either way, I am sure there is a Sacramento home buyer out there who will appreciate this space-saving home office.

2012 "A Taste of Land Park" is right around the corner!

The Land Park Community Association is excited to announce the details for the 11th Annual "A Taste of Land Park" on Sunday, June 10 from 4pm-7pm!  This year’s event will take place along a small section of 3rd Avenue, between Regina Way and 14th Street. Tickets are $25 in advance and $30 at-the-door. They can be purchased online or at local Land Park businesses -- Capital Nursery, Riverside Clubhouse, Track 7 Brewing, and Vic’s Ice Cream.

This Land Park tradition is a wonderful opportunity to mingle other Land Park residents (or visitors!), taste food from favorite neighborhood restaurants, and sample regional wines and brews, and enjoy live music.  A bike valet will be provided as well. This is one of my favorite neighborhood events -- I hope to see a great turn-out this year!

Bank of America is now offering up to $30k for doing a Sacramento Short Sale...

If you follow me on Facebook or Twitter you will already know that last week I received a notice from Bank of America that for a limited time, they are offering a relocation incentive of up to $30,000 to homeowners who complete a short sale. WOW. No you did not just hallucinate. Thirty. Thousand. Dollars. For completing a short sale of your Sacramento home.

If you are a homeowner with a Bank of America mortgage and are considering a short sale, you must list the house as a short sale and allow your agent to "initiate" the short sale in BofA's online short sale management portal (aka, the Equator system), so your file can be reviewed by Bank of America loss mitigation.

Per Bank of America, the relocation assistance payment is calculated based on the appraised value of the homeowner's short sale property. The total amount will be no less than $2,500, but no more than $30,000. The payment will be delivered at the time of closing if the homeowner complies with all terms and conditions of their short sale agreement, which includes but are not limited to the following: a full walk-through appraisal must be completed and the homeowner must satisfy all junior liens and provide clear title for the property (the relocation assistance payment can be used to clear those liens). The short sale must close by September 26, 2013.  If the homeowner does not comply with all terms and conditions of their short sale agreement, they will not receive the relocation assistance payment.

I can help you navigate this BofA short sale process if any of that sounded like a foreign language to you.

As I mentioned, per Bank of America, this is a limited time program...while the short sale must close by September 26, 2013, the program must be initiated prior to then -- however they have not specified an initiation expiration date. If you are a Sacramento-area homeowner, have a Bank of America mortgage and need to do a short sale, I welcome your call.

Sacramento Real Estate -- For Whom the Bell Tolls...

If you happened to see the Masters Club section in this weekend's Sacramento Bee, along with lots of photos of Sacramento's top producing Realtors and photos of Masters Club events, you may have noticed an article I wrote that appeared in the section. I really do believe that there are MANY signs that our local real estate market has changed. There are so many buyers in the market to purchase homes, and there is an under-supply right now in relationship to the demand. The dynamics have changed a lot even in just the last 6 weeks...I will be extremely interested to see what the statistics show in the coming months. I am predicting that the bottom of our Sacramento real estate market is here, if it has not already passed.