Q:Dear Real Estate Adviser,

I’m thinking of buying a short-sale home. If the delinquent owner had any mechanic’s liens, am I now responsible for them? If I make a short-sale purchase, isn’t the title usually “free and clear”?
– Clark

A:Dear Clark,
Unless you’ve already bought the house, you aren’t yet responsible for a mechanic’s lien, which is a legal claim placed on a home to settle unpaid or partially paid contractor work. The owner is still responsible for the debt and any other such obligations that can become real deal breakers in a short sale if the financially strapped seller can’t satisfy them or the lender is unwilling to intervene.

Full story is available on Bank Rate

After Coletta Makiling lost her job last year, it was clear that she and her husband needed to also shed their monthly mortgage payment. Their lender agreed to allow a short sale of their Ventura condominium.

On New Year’s Eve, the condo sold for $219,000, and the Makilings were freed from a mortgage on which they still owed $352,000.

But when the Makilings, who now live in Oak View, sat down to prepare their income taxes earlier this month, they were confronted with a new financial crisis.

Full story is available on VCStar

If you’ve got cash and haven’t bought your retirement home in Florida yet, homes are on sale — half off.

And if you’re picky, you’ve got lots from which to choose. The inventory hovers around 2,500.

In January 2006, the median sales price for homes in Hernando was $183,500. Four years later, it’s down 47.3 percent to $96,750, according to the Multiple Listing Service.

Full story is available on Tampabay

President Obama went to Henderson, Nev., the other day to show Americans that he was responding to the cries for help from struggling homeowners (and maybe give a boost to Senator Harry Reid’s re-election). He announced a $1.5 billion effort to prevent foreclosures in five states hard-hit by the housing bust — Nevada, Arizona, California, Florida and Michigan — by feeding money into programs that would be developed and carried out by the housing agencies in the targeted states.

The audience in Henderson applauded the announcement, and understandably so. In Nevada, unemployment is 13 percent and 70 percent of homeowners with mortgages owe more on their homes than they are worth; in industry parlance, they are “underwater.” Since a combination of joblessness and underwater loans is the main driver of foreclosure, Nevadans are clearly at high risk of losing their homes, as are homeowners in the other four states.

Full story is available on New York Times

The National Association of Realtors® announced Friday that existing home sales dropped a hefty 7% in January, adding further evidence that the resurgence of the housing sector is stalling. Wednesday, we saw a very soft new home sales number. Now, we see more softness in existing home sales as well.

Their press release stated:

Existing-home sales fell in January but are above year-ago levels, according to the National Association of Realtors®.

Existing-home sales – including single-family, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops – dropped 7.2 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate1 of 5.05 million units in January from a revised 5.44 million in December, but remain 11.5 percent above the 4.53 million-unit level in January 2009.

Full story is available on Seeking Alpha

As competitive as the market is, if you’re thinking of listing your home you better make sure it has great appeal.

In a buyer’s market, inventory levels are higher and competition is stiffer because fewer buyers are competing for an abundance of inventory. So, if you’re thinking of listing your home, what can you do to create the buyer fervor and interest in your property over others in your area?

First, you have to get them in the door. If the outside doesn’t pop you’ll never get them inside. Drive by some of your competition and compare the outside of their homes to the outside of your home. How do you stack up?

Full story is available on Globe Democrat

Ralph Gartner knew the tax assessment on his Bloomfield Township home was too high last year, so he appealed it.

With a real estate agent’s help, Gartner documented comparable homes that had sold for far less than what his was valued at in his assessment notice. After he presented his findings, the local board of review agreed and reduced the taxable value of his house by $59,650.

“It was a reduction of $300 a month in what I pay,” Gartner said. “It was worth fighting for. We’re going to go again this year, and we’re going to follow the exact same process.”

Communities across metro Detroit will begin their boards of review this week, at which homeowners and business owners can protest their property taxes. With market values plunging, property owners are eager for reductions. Assessment notices mailed in recent weeks show market declines across the state, but many people still feel the taxman has their home overvalued.

Full story is available on Freep

As winter drags on with its snow and gray skies, it’s a season for comfort food and comfort TV.

One of the most comforting shows around is HGTV’s “House Hunters,” the viewing equivalent of macaroni and cheese — pleasing, hearty, dependable.

Given the housing market slump, you might think that a program themed to buying and selling houses would be a bummer or, at least, feel out of touch. A concept like “House Stayers,” where renters and homeowners sit tight with what they’ve got and hope for better days, sounds more appropriate.

Full story is available on Freep

Want to buy cheaper homes in a prime area of the United States? The foreclosure homes in Columbus, the capital city of Ohio can fit your bill perfectly. You can find foreclosure homes in Columbus through the free Columbus foreclosure listings. Given the effect of recession resulting in the economic meltdown in almost all the countries, buying real estate properties has become a highly unaffordable venture. Foreclosure homes coming at cheaper prices prove a profitable investment for the prospective home buyers.

Here are some guidelines for buying foreclosures. Subscribe to a foreclosure tracking service. They provide you updated list of foreclosures in the area you are looking for. Most of the agencies provide online services. Thus your search tool gets restricted to a computer and an internet connection. These online sources provide you the most comprehensive list of foreclosures along with its features, price, comparison of its price with the other properties etc. so you can simply sit at home and trace the suitable foreclosure for you.

Full story is available on FreeForeclosureForSale

Over the past year, I’ve covered Florida’s deep foreclosure problem on multiple occasions. To attempt to cope with the growing foreclosure inventory, the state government has turned to an eBay-like online foreclosure auction system. While utilizing the Internet may be a smart means for making the auction process easier, it also opens up these auctions to a much wider, less experienced pool of potential buyers — anyone with an Internet connection. But some of those new users who think they’re getting an incredible deal on a foreclosed property are actually getting ripped off instead.

Some Background

Florida’s housing market was one of the most brutalized by the housing bubble’s pop. The state’s economy was very dependent on its real estate industry. In 2009 alone it recorded over a half-million foreclosures, according to RealtyTrac. In Florida 26% of all mortgages are at least one payment past due, reports the Mortgage Bankers Association. So you can see why the state needs to do something to whittle down its growing inventory of foreclosed properties.

Full story is available on The Atlantic