Some Sequim homes are in foreclosure or need to be sold for less than the current mortgage balance (short sale).  Fortunately, Sequim and Port Angeles have far fewer homes in distress than most of the country.  There is some confusion among homeowners in financial distress and even among real estate agents about what happens and how to work through the process.

If you’ve read my articles on this blog about the foreclosure process and short sales, you may be familiar with the way things work.  You’ll find a series of articles on this real estate blog on foreclosures, the foreclosure process, costs and fees in a foreclosure, the short sale process, and getting a short sale through.

I’m told by mortgage bankers and insiders working inside the loss mitigation departments of mortgage companies that a short sale will not even be considered by a bank until a loan is in default at least two months.  Of course, that’s not real sensible on the part of the banks, but that’s the way it is.

I have a listing that will be a short sale, and to sell it the bank will end up taking less than the current mortgage balance.  If they do not agree, it will simply go to foreclosure and they will end up taking even less.  They know this, and this is why short sales are being accepted.

Buying a house in foreclosure or trying to structure a short sale requires knowledge about the process.  Frankly, it is much harder than handling a regular listing and a regular transaction.  I recommend reading the series of articles in the above link before making decisions.

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Buying a home in Port Angeles or Sequim right now would undoubtedly take advantage of one of the best market opportunities buyers have had in decades, but one area that creates confusion is the foreclosure market.  Buyers ask me regularly if they can get an extraordinary deal buying a foreclosure.  There are foreclosure stories galore about people picking up a 3 bedroom, 2 bath home for $105,000 in Vegas, or a 4 bedroom home on 5 acres on the top of the mountain in California somewhere for $245,000.

Port Angeles and Sequim simply don’t have a big foreclosure market to take advantage of.  Sure there are some foreclosures here, but very few, and the foreclosure records (data bases) here are in total disarray.  You can’t access the volume of information here on a foreclosure that you can in most areas of the country.  Foreclosure.com is the largest foreclosure website, and I have a monthly subscription I pay for the benefit of my clients.  Unfortunately, they do not have a signed agreement with the Clallam County Auditor’s office to bring all the real estate information into the Foreclosure.com database.  They could, but we are too small and too far out of the way to prioritize.  The same of true of Realty Trac and all the other foreclosure services.

Even if you find a foreclosure, if it is a nice home you would want to live in, it is likely to never make it to the Trustee’s Sale, because the owner will either borrow money from a friend or family member to pull it out of the foreclosure process, or they will sell it to someone they know or to an aggressive investor who spends 40 hours a week looking for that home.  The foreclosure market here is very small and the real opportunities for buyers are very limited.

There are far more opportunities with homes listed in the MLS here, which includes homes that were foreclosed and are now on the market for what may be less than the original balance.  That could mean a short sale, and that could end up being a good transaction.  But notice that these listings are simply in the MLS, like all other listings.

My recommendation is that you search the MLS for your ideal home.  If you don’t find it, you may want to consider buying a lot at the current garage sale prices and have your dream home built by a good builder.

No matter what you are looking at, may I save you time and stress (and potentially a lot of money)?  I’ve been doing this for almost 30 years now, including 20 years as a real estate attorney.  I’ve seen a lot of people over the years spin their tires and waste money and time when they could just email me or pick up the phone and get simple answers without any charge at all.  There’s no downside to that and a lot of upside for you.  Anything I have learned or experience is yours for the asking. Why would I make such an offer?  Because I hope that by being generous you may consider retaining me as your buyer’s agent.

Where can you find the best MLS search?  Here.  Search the Entire Sequim MLS and the entire Port Angeles MSL.

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Foreclosures are not just hitting “average folk.”  Even the rich and famous are learning about foreclosures.

Evander Holyfield owes $10 Million on his 109-room mansion in Fairburn, Georgia.  What happened to all those earnings Evander?

Ed McMahon owes: $4.8 million on his 7,000 sq. ft., six bedroom, five bath mansion in Beverly Hills, California.  The foreclosure saga of Ed McMahon, 85, Johnny Carson’s former “Tonight Show” sidekick, peaked last summer when he appeared on Larry King Live wearing a neck brace to tell everybody his home is up for sale.  McMahon has been fighting foreclosure for about nine months after falling behind his mortgage payments. Real estate mogul Donald Trump has offered the television personality to bail him out twice, but McMahon, who recently went back to work, has been reluctant to take him up on it.  The McMahons remain in their home, although foreclosure proceedings are still underway.

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Can I buy a Sequim foreclosure and get a good deal? This is a question I’ve been getting a lot lately, and as a prior real estate attorney who did many foreclosures and Real Estate Broker now, I want to share a little reality here, because there are a lot of people out there selling their goods to the public. You know, ads saying, “get rich buying foreclosures,” or “buy a foreclosure home at half price,” and lots of other little catchy phrases to hook you and get into your wallet. Watch this short video on the subject, and if you’re serious about buying a home at the best possible price (foreclosure or otherwise), email me or give me a call.

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What effect does a foreclosure or a short sale have on your credit score? Negatives on a credit report are scored by three factors: recency (how recently did the negative event occur), severity (how late is the payment) and frequency (how many times you’ve been reported delinquent on credit obligations). If you have payments in default on a mortgage, your credit score is taking some hits, but if you have a foreclosure, you will not be able to get a Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac backed loan for five years.

If you have a home for sale that is threatened by a possible foreclosure, you may have to try to sell it for less than the current mortgage balance. If your mortgage company accepts less than what is owed, that is a short sale. Trying to do a short sale is not for the inexperienced homeowner or the inexperienced real estate agent. It’s very technical, and you don’t want to screw it up.

Lenders prefer short sales over foreclosures because they net more from them. Foreclosures incur additional legal costs and fees, carrying costs, and marketing costs. Your credit score is downgraded with a short sale, but not as much as a foreclosure.  Borrowers can be considered for loans following a short sale after 24 months, if the sale was caused by extenuating circumstances outside of a borrowers’ control, or 48 months if it was the result of financial mismanagement on the borrower’s part of the homeowner.

There are potential tax implications with a short sale.  The IRS code penalizes you if you do a short sale by taxing you on the forgiven portion of the loan, the difference between what you owed and what the mortgage company accepted in the short sale. It’s hard to believe that our government would tax you on a short sale when you are already in severe financial hardship, but who said our tax code was fair?

Because of public outcry, congress made an exception to the IRS code. The Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act of 2007 and the recently passed Emergency Economic Stabilization Act allows you to exclude up to $2 million of income ($1 million if married filing separately) from debt that’s discharged through mortgage restructuring, or that’s forgiven in connection with foreclosure, for the years 2007 through 2012. The exclusion must be connected with a decline in the home’s value or the taxpayer’s financial condition, and only applies to a principal residence, not investment properties.

If you own a home you need to sell, this is absolutely not a time to experiment with selling prices and marketing.  It’s not a time to hire an inexperienced real estate agent.  You may only get one chance to do it right, and time is your enemy.  If you do everything right from the beginning, in four or five months, if your lucky you’ll have a closed sale.  Trip along the way on any of dozens of steps, and you will lose, and the consequences could be devestating.  The key to getting it right is finding an experienced professional who knows exactly what to do and when to do it.

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My 12 year old daughter says to me yesterday afternoon (Friday), “Daddy, did you know that WaMu went bankrupt, but my savings account is okay, because another bank bought them out?” You know we are in a banking crisis when middle school children talk about it.

I attended last Friday’s foreclosure sale at the courthouse in Port Angeles (Clallam County), in the wake of the bankruptcy filing of Washington Mutual. WaMu, which had assets of over $300 billion, is the second major financial entity after Lehman Brothers to file for bankruptcy protection. The fall of WaMu is the biggest banking failure in American history.

WaMu’s losses from their mortgage department will exceed $19 billion. Wow! Remember when one million dollars was more than we could imagine?  Remember when we thought a millionaire was sooooo rich?

How does all this filter down to the little people of Sequim and Port Angeles? That’s hard to say, but I can tell you there were no buyers for the dozen properties sold at the courthouse foreclosure sale. The banks took those properties back, and now they will assign them to REO’s and list them for sale. I guarantee they will have to be short sales, because no one is going to pay full price, meaning the entire balance of the mortgage. The FMV (fair market value) is less than the mortgage balances, at least for this Friday’s foreclosures.

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Question:  Chuck, you write about foreclosures, the process, issues for investors, and I appreciate your foreclosure checklist for the entire process showing all the fees and costs, but what are some of the traps for a buyer of foreclosure properties?

Answer:  Good question. There are many traps, and I’ll write a full article on this, but here are a few.

1.) I had a client who came to me after he thought he bought a house at a foreclosure sale, but he actually bought a second mortgage. The first mortgage balance was more than the house was worth. He lost his $50,000.  That was sad, because he worked seven years to save that $50,000.

2.) I know a gentlemen who bought a foreclosure only to find out later that a substantial number of the beams under the house had to be replaced because of rotten timbers. He said after all the money and time, he will be lucky to break even.

3.) Buying a pre-foreclosure property or negotiating a great price on a house prior to the trustee’s sale could be great, but a purchase can be subject to unknown subordinate mortgages, mechanic’s liens, labor liens, federal tax liens, assessments, and judgments, not to mention possible permit violations, boundary disputes with neighbors, easement or access problems, adverse possession claims or easement by prescription claims, and about 100 other possible legal issues.

It’s dangerous out there. Be careful.

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A Port Angeles home builder has many spec homes on the market, and it apparently has begun to catch up with him. Nine of his homes were foreclosed on September 26th, the result of two financial institutions foreclosing on their lines of credit.

Glenn Terra Corporation is one of the large home builders in the Port Angeles area, and has been aggressively building spec homes. Unfortunately, now is not a time to build spec homes that sit on the market with no buyers.

Normally a builder will have a large line of credit that he will draw on as he builds spec homes, which he hopes will sell in a healthy market. But in this past year with so many buyers just not showing up in Port Angeles, the carrying costs alone for a spec home with a line of credit can be far too much of a burden. It is estimated that Glenn Terra has over two dozen spec homes on the market. The foreclosure of nine homes may be the first crack in the dam for this builder. I hope the best for this builder, and for all builders in the area, but it is an especially tough time for new home builders.

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The Federal Government’s bailout of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are extraordinary measures, but were critical to avoid a systemic meltdown.  The depth and breadth of the mortgage and foreclosure crisis has implications far beyond the devastating consequences for individual families (as if that wasn’t bad enough).

Behind the curtains of the public stage of the mortgage business are layers of businesses, organizations, agencies, and security backed markets.  Had the government not stepped in with it’s money printing capability to save Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, we very likely would have seen a serious nationwide economic depression, not a recession.

While I am not a strong advocate of government intervention in private enterprise, I do applaud this move, because it averted a depression, but there is a huge downside for us in the long run, and it is so significant, it may have been wiser for the feds to stay out of this.  I’ll express the downside with these rhetorical questions, “When has the federal government ever managed an organization like a finely tuned violin without breaking the strings?”  “Do you think the feds will ever give Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac back to private industry?”  Think again.   This may be one of the most powerful long-term moves toward socialization of our economy I have seen in my lifetime.  Having the feds operate these two organizations that are responsible for over 70% of our entire mortgage industry is very dangerous.  The implications reach far beyond the horizon of our visibility right now.

By the way, trading stocks on either of these two companies, or worse yet, buying options (calls) hoping to catch a big ride back up in the next few months or year, would be bad positions.

We will get through this foreclosure crisis, but it will take time, and taxpayers will ultimately carry the burden.

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Right now buying a home in foreclosure in either Sequim or Port Angeles appeals to people who are in the market to buy a home anyway, and it appeals to cash rich investors.

Want to know where the best possible deal right now is in the foreclosure market?  I’ll tell you, but you might not be able to afford it. If you can, you can make some serious money here.

The largest percentage of buyers shop in the mid price range, $250,000 to $375,000.  This is where most families shop, because it is what they can afford.  There are some bargains in distress or bank foreclosure in this range right now, but they are not super bargains.  You might shave $15,000 to $30,000 off the fair market value in this price range.  That’s good, and if you’re in the market to buy anyway, it is a bargain and definitely you are buying in a buyer’s market.

But if you can afford to purchase in the upper price range, for example above $500,000, you can pick up an instant $100,000 in a few cases.  Why?  Because when you get in this upper price range, you reduce the number of folks with cash who can actually buy.  In this upper range the percentage of buyers narrows to perhaps less than 10% of all buyers.  When you get to $700,000 and above, you only compete with 2% of all buyers in this area.

As I like to say when it comes to a down real estate market, cash is king.

If you are in the upper price range as a serious buyer, email me or call me.  With 30 years in real estate, 20 in real estate law, and a lot of experience in foreclosures, short sales, and negotitating, I promise that you will be very pleased with my representation.  You’ll get the home of your dreams for a huge discount, and if you are an investor, you’ll be happy to shave a $100 grand off your initial investment.

Email:  chuckmarunde@gmail.com
Cell:    350-775-5424

Chuck Marunde, J.D.
Realtor/Broker/Owner
Sequim & Port Angeles Real Estate, LLC
618 South Peabody St., Suite I
Port Angeles, Washington  98382

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There are Sequim and Port Angeles homes in foreclosure.  Many are in pre-foreclosure, and for some the Trustee’s Sale Date is looming.  This is unfortunate for the owners, and that’s an understatement.  When it comes to getting the home sold in a timely way, and pocket some money, this is more difficult than most think.  Talk is cheap, so be cautious about any investor or real estate agent who talks big, because most of the talk is just that–talk.  At the end of the day, you are very likely in this market to end up simply losing the house at the sale.  All the equity you have will just go poof!

I have several clients who are cash buyers, and they have asked me to find them a good investment.  This is not easy to do.  I have more data on Sequim and Port Angeles foreclosures and more access to relevant information than probably any other agent out there, and having been a real estate attorney and now a broker, I don’t think it is unfair to say I probably have more knowledge and experience in handling foreclosures than most, but . . . it is still very difficult to find a foreclosure property that is a reasonable investment for a buyer.  Let me explain that.

There are many homes in pre-foreclosure and foreclosure, and to do the due diligence required of me to narrow down a 100+ properties, collect the ownership and financial data, look at the homes and evaluate them, do comparative market analyses, figure out what they could be sold for in this market, and work with a potential investor, all of this alone could take 60 hours a week.  In other words, working foreclosures could easily be a full time job, and as a Realtor, I have other clients, other listings, and other responsibilities.

Cash is king!  Always has been.  So, here’s the deal.  If you, or someone you know, has a home in foreclosure, or land in foreclosure, email me with the information or call me, and I will examine your property and see if I can sell it for you.  Of course, that could be to one of my current clients or it could be by listing it and promoting it to other potential buyers.  You won’t find anyone more diligent and caring in this process than me.  I mean that.

May I make a suggestion?  Do NOT procrastinate.  A Trustee’s Sale Date has a way of creeping up on you like a ghost in the night.  You do not have time to fool around, to experiment with various approaches that might sell your home, to try to become an expert in marketing and real estate by being your own FSBO, or by letting an inexperienced real estate agent burn up the next few months dinging around while you lose your home.

May I be bold here?  I am being blunt, because many who are in foreclosure are simply out of time.  Real estate agents are a bit like attorneys.  Ask an attorney if he or she can handle a particular legal matter, and their answer is always, “Yes,” even if they have never touched the subject.  Hey, everyone has to start somewhere.  There’s a first time for everything, right?  It’s just that if you are in foreclosure, you don’t have time to let others learn in the school of hard knocks at your expense.  There’s too much at stake for you.

You know how to reach me.

Sincerely, Chuck Marunde, J.D. (Realtor and Retired Real Estate Attorney
chuckmarunde@gmail.com
360-775-5424

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With all the talk about bank foreclosures, where do we rate in the Seattle and Tacoma areas?  Here are some of the hardest hit cities and their rankings:

No. 1:  Stockton, California
No. 2:  Riverside/San Bernardino, California
No. 3:  Las Vegas, Nevada
No. 4:  Bakersfield, California
No. 5:  Sacramento, California
No. 6:  Fort Lauderdale, Florida
No. 7:  Phoenix/Mesa, Arizona
No. 8:  Oakland, California
No. 9:  Fresno, California
No. 10: Miami, Florida

No. 43: Tacoma, Washington
No. 67: Portland, Orego and Vancouver, Washington
No. 83: Seattle/Bellevue/Everett, Washington

Tacoma ranks 43rd among cities experiencing foreclosures, and Seattle and Bellevue and Everett rank 83rd.  California, however, has six cities in the top ten.

[Source of Data:  RealtyTrac and The Seattle Times, Seattle Foreclosure Activity Up, July 25, 2008, page D1]

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“We want to buy a nice 3 bedroom, 2 bath home in a good area, and we heard we can get a really good deal right now buying a foreclosure.  Can you help us find one?”  I get this question a lot lately.

As a Realtor who was a real estate lawyer for 20 years and did many foreclosures and short sales, let’s clear the smoke and get to the truth about buying foreclosures.  There is far too much nonsense being published about buying foreclosures, mostly by get-rich-quick artists and seminar leaders who have found a niche to make a lot of money fairly easy.  There’s a lot of hype, and there are also a lot of foreclosures in some parts of the country, especially California, Nevada, Arizona, and Florida.  So what is the truth?  Can you buy a great foreclosure home in Sequim or Port Angeles, or anywhere for that matter?  If you are an investor, can you make tons of money buying foreclosures.  Let’s shine a light in the dark corners of the foreclosure world, expose the lies, and reveal the truth.

(more…)

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What is a short sale in a foreclosure? Here’s a short video on the subject.

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Sequim and Port Angeles mortgage default online help is now available, and homeowners who are struggling to make loan payments can work directly with their lending institution, and this new system has the capacity to get very quick responses through this well connected database network.

Homeowners who use the system are able to get responses from the banks in as little as one week. That’s practically unheard of. This is cutting edge technology, and it’s a business model desperately needed now. I believe this could be an answer for thousands of people across the country. I have been authorized by the owners to make this exclusive news announcement, and I am the first to announce this new system for homeowners in Washington state. I urge you to take advantage of this help, if you need help with your current mortgage.

We are in challenging times, and a loss of job or reduction in hours can be the cause of a default, but there are many other legitimate reasons a person might find themselves in trouble. Divorce, death of a spouse, injury, or other circumstances can cause a person to get behind on their mortgage payments.

As a retired real estate attorney and now as a Broker/Owner/Realtor, I’ve spent time interviewing the founders and owners of this company, and I am greatly impressed with what they’ve put together. I highly recommend this site if you need to communicate with your lender to seek a modification of your loan, a forbearance, or a refinance.

If you are in foreclosure on a local level in Sequim or Port Angeles, be proactive to find solutions. Don’t wait until the 11th hour of the Trustee’s sale when it may be too late. Having been a real estate attorney, I understand the process inside and out and what can be done. I also have a site where buyers can look at listed foreclosure properties: SequimForeclosures.com or PortAngelesForeclosures.com.

To modify your loan or to communicate with your lender for other requests, go to this site: Resolving Your Loan Default Now. You’ll be glad you did. Email me and let me know how they were able to help you.

Courtesy Sequim & Port Angeles Real Estate, LLC

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Foreclosure properties for sale in Sequim and Port Angeles are now available through a retired real estate attorney who himself did many foreclosures in Sequim and Port Angeles. Chuck Marunde now offers his clients a service at no cost, which gives them the ability to search the entire foreclosure database here, including pre-foreclosure properties, trustee sale properties, and REO properties (already foreclosed and listed for sale). This service is offered through Sequim & Port Angeles Real Estate, LLC.

The following is taken from the search page:

The following foreclosure database is a subscription service I pay for, but I offer it to you here at no cost with the permission of the largest foreclosure database in the country, Foreclosure.com. If I can answer a question for you about the foreclosure process or how to bid for a foreclosure, either before the Trustee’s Sale, at the the Sale, or when the property is an REO (bank owned listing), don’t hesitate to email me or call me at 360-775-5424. By the way, if you’re looking for foreclosures in any county in Washington or in any state, make your offer through me. I just might be able to save you a lot of money because of my experience. Why not use me to make money?

One thing I want to share with you up front, although this is self promoting, is that I’ve done more foreclosure work in Sequim and Port Angeles than most, since I was a real estate attorney here, and I did many foreclosures and forfeitures from beginning to end. I know the process intimately, the costs involved, what can be waived or negotiated away, and how to deal with second mortgages, third liens, judgments, tax liens, bankruptcies, and L&I liens. Real estate agents have been calling me for 15 years to understand how to handle these issues. My point? I know this subject. Can I earn your business?

Search the Entire Foreclosure Database for Sequim and Port Angeles here.

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Home foreclosures in Sequim and Port Angeles are in fact up, although not nearly so prevalent as in many other states. If your home is in default, none of the national statistics matter, and empty promises don’t matter. One thing does matter: saving your home from foreclosure.

How can your save a home from foreclosure? Solutions for resolving the default range from reinstatement (bringing the loan current by catching up on past due payments), a workout with the lender, refinancing, paying off the debt in full, or selling the property, which has to be done fairly quickly to avoid the trustee’s sale. If none of the above happens by the auction date, your property will be sold to the highest bidder, and typically the bank takes the property back for the amount of the debt.

If your home is in default, you cannot afford to experiment or fool around for months learning how these things work by trial and error. As a sword swallower might say, “Don’t try this at home. You could get hurt.” If your home is in default, find a professional who knows this stuff inside and out. Attack the problem right away. Procrastination will cost you valuable time, which you don’t have right now.

To learn more about the foreclosure process in Sequim and Port Angeles, review these articles:

Short Sales and Foreclosures
Buying Foreclosures
The Legal Foreclosure Process

When you’re ready for professional help from someone who is a real estate broker and Realtor, and who practiced real estate law for 20 years, email me or call me. I’d be glad to answer your questions, and maybe I can help.

Chuck Marunde, J.D.
Broker/Owner/Realtor
Sequim & Port Angeles Real Estate, LLC
618 South Peabody St., Suite I
Port Angeles, WA 98362
(360) 775-5424
chuckmarunde@gmail.com
SequimPortAngeles.com

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Sequim Foreclosures, Port Angeles Foreclosures, and Short Sale Opportunities for Buyers

1. Find and identify homes that are in default (even before the formal non-judicial foreclosure starts);
2. Of course, also search for homes that are in foreclosure with plenty of lead time before the Trustee’s Sale (you need many weeks and probably a couple of months to coordinate, so if the Trustee’s Sale is around the corner, it is too late to do a short sale);
3. Narrow this short list down to the one you would want to buy as your own;
4. Do an accurate CMA (comparative market analysis) using “sold” homes of the same or very similar features (you’ll need access to a good database, like the local MLS);
5. Find out the exact mortgage balance and the status of the default or foreclosure;
6. Find out if there is a second or third mortgage (trap for the unwary);
7. Find out if there are other liens (tax liens, mechanic’s lien, labor lien, state liens, etc.)
8. Know how to talk to the loss mitigation department of the mortgage holder (not always a bank);
9. Beware that purchasing a home in a short sale, which is before a formal foreclosure takes place, does not wipe out any subordinate loans or liens;
10. You need to know which costs and fees, in addition to the mortgage balance, can be compromised and by how much (this is learned from experience);
11. Put together a comprehensive package to the mortgage holder, which is the key to making all this happen. This includes the Purchase & Sale Agreement, and it includes a thorough analysis of the home, prices, the local market, and justification of the offering price (this must be very professional or your offer will be dismissed without serious consideration, and you must convince the bank they should sell at your price to you);
12. Follow through with all parties and details is critical to reaching the closing table on a short sale.

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Everyone knows foreclosures are up nationwide, but there are several states with very high rates that push the national average way up and push this news to the frontpage.

“The highest rate, for the ninth month in a row, was in Nevada, which had 1 filing for every 185 households. Florida was No. 2, with 1 filing for every 253 households, followed by California with 1 for every 253 households. Other states with foreclosure rates in the Top 10 last month were Michigan, Arizona, Georgia, Ohio, Colorado, Texas and Indiana.” Providence Business News, Chart Couresy RealtyTrac, Inc.

We have not seen such high foreclosures in Washington State. Certainly, we will see more. While a foreclosure is sad news for the homeowner being foreclosed upon (because of a loss of a job, divorce, or some other major financial crisis), it does present opportunities for buyers with cash. During any kind of downturn in real estate, the old rule still applies: Cash is King!

If you do have funds to purchase foreclosures, please be aware of the traps for the unwary. If you haven’t been buying foreclosures for years (and even if you have), you would be well advised to get help from a professional who understands foreclosures and how to purchase them at the lowest possible price SAFELY. See help elsewhere on this site on buying foreclosures.

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If you’re facing the possibility of a foreclosure on your real estate in Sequim or Port Angeles, you have a lot on your plate. Most people have heard sound bites of how a foreclosure works, how much time you have, and what your options are, but can you afford to find out if the rumors are true? Wise counsel is always good in a difficult time.

Having done many foreclosures as a real estate attorney, I had to work through the process, the statutory time lines, the costs and fees, and resolving real life dilemmas. There’s not enough time in a short blog to review the entire foreclosure process in Washington state and to discuss various options that can save you, but if there is an interest, I will gladly share more about the process than what is already on my website at:

For someone who is considering selling their real estate before it goes too far down the foreclosure pathway, I strongly urge you to consult with someone who has a lot of experience with this subject, including the legal process, short sales, and the real estate sales end of it. Frankly, that sounds like me since I have both the legal end and the sales end (Realtor) on my resume. If I can help, email or call (360-457-4587), but don’t procrastinate, or you may lose it all.

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