When land is worth more than a home A couple of years ago, Carl and Susanne Wise’s house on Camino Real in South Sarasota was assessed at nearly $1 million. Then it disappeared. The Wises bought a new home, and in this market the rent they could charge did not cover the expenses of the …
Category Archives: Legal
Homebuyers get creative to close deal
When Efrain Hernandez couldn’t seal a deal before the first-time homebuyer tax credit expired earlier this year, he lost faith he would ever own a house in a market where investors and all-cash buyers are snapping up bargains and mortgages seem hard to come by. But waiting — even though it wasn’t by choice — …
Foreclosure battle depletes ex-Wachovia employee
For two years, Barry Lancett’s effort to get a loan modification from Wachovia, then Wells Fargo, has consumed him. The 55-year-old father of two physically shakes when he discusses his case and says the effort has distracted him when he should be focused on his job. In his crusade, he has accumulated mounds of paperwork …
Continue reading “Foreclosure battle depletes ex-Wachovia employee”
Latest Foreclosure Crisis Is the Modifications
The Obama administration’s program to help struggling borrowers keep their homes is being hurt by the same miscommunication, botched documents and other snafus that caused the original foreclosure crisis. After J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. agreed in January to her trial loan modification under the Home Affordable Modification Program, Stephanie Lulko made six $767-a-month mortgage …
Continue reading “Latest Foreclosure Crisis Is the Modifications”
Bankruptcy battle: Golf course hoping for Rick Scott’s help
The public Stoneybrook Golf Course is going belly up and homeowners in the surrounding neighborhood might have to foot the bill. The course – located off Corkscrew in Estero, just south of Miromar Outlets – has been in an ongoing bankruptcy battle with the governor. For John Byrne, buying a home in Stoneybrook was an …
Continue reading “Bankruptcy battle: Golf course hoping for Rick Scott’s help”
Faithful mortgage payments may hobble economy
For almost two years, home foreclosures have swept the nation, spreading misery among once-buoyant families, spattering lenders with red ink and undermining efforts to restart the economy. But a bigger problem may turn out to be the millions of Americans who are still faithfully paying their mortgages, but on houses worth far less than before …
Continue reading “Faithful mortgage payments may hobble economy”