By Cynthia Burton

Inquirer Staff Writer

New Jersey’s residential-mortgage foreclosure rate shot up 29 percent from 2008 to 2009, with a South Jersey county among the hardest hit, according to statistics released yesterday.The number of commercial foreclosures, meanwhile, was up 68 percent, from 875 to 1,471.

The counties with the biggest increases in residential foreclosures were Atlantic, Bergen, and Sussex.

Nationally, about 2.8 million properties are in some stage of foreclosure, an increase of 21 percent over 2008, according to a report by Realty/Trac Inc., which tracks foreclosures.

Pennsylvania had 44,732 foreclosure filings last year, a 20 percent increase over 2008, according to the report.

The foreclosure crisis will not get better any time soon, said James Hughes, dean of the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers University.

The crisis started when lenders sold exotic mortgages to people who neither understood nor could afford them. Now the crisis is rapidly moving through the middle class.

“There were a lot of sharks in the cities getting people to buy existing housing at inflated prices, and people were in over their heads. You had all those scandalous mortgage products,” Hughes said.

And he said there is a “shadow inventory” of foreclosures. At President Obama’s request, many banks have held back on publicly filing foreclosure actions, but that won’t last.

In New Jersey, most of the properties in foreclosure, about 63,000, were residential, according to figures compiled by the Office of the Clerk of the Superior Court. In 2006, there were about 25,000.

Many residents find their mortgages are higher than their home values, putting them under water.

“Joining into the aftereffects of predatory lending, you now have middle-class households who have lost their jobs and stretched themselves too thin,” Hughes said.

New Jersey’s unemployment rate hit a 33-year high, going to 10.1 percent in December, according to figures released yesterday by the state Department of Labor and Workforce Development.

Phyllis Salowe-Kaye, executive director of New Jersey Citizen Action, which counsels distressed homeowners, said a group of failing mortgages “won’t be kicking in until the end of 2010 and 2011. It’s really a serious issue.”

The courts have been feeling the bump since at least 2007, when filings went up from 24,857 to 36,360.

Kevin Wolfe, chief of civil practice in the Administrative Office of the Courts, said there was a five- to six-month backlog in reviewing cases.

Another factor delaying foreclosures is that since last January, the state has required lenders to try to mediate alternatives with delinquent property owners. They are not obligated to make deals.

Salowe-Kaye said she had mediations scheduled through April, a four-month backlog between the time a foreclosure is filed and her organization can get a mediation meeting with a lender.

Advocates and the state are still struggling with ways to slow the mounting number of foreclosures.

A $40 million fund aimed at reducing mortgages for troubled homeowners went largely unspent due to technical problems.

Former Gov. Jon Corzine took about $29 million of it to patch the budget hole, and the Legislature recently reallocated the money for other uses.

The problem was that the program came too late in the process, Salowe-Kaye said.

The “defunded” state program offered $25,000 loans to qualified homeowners who could persuade their lenders to cut their mortgage principles by $25,000, thus making the loans more affordable.

Money left in the program has been allocated to counseling people who have missed a monthly payment or two and to helping them get back on track with their lenders when they fall a month or two behind in their payments. And other money – about $8 million – would go into a revolving loan fund that community developers would use to buy and fix up foreclosed homes, said Assemblywoman Mila Jasey (D., Essex), who sponsored the bill reallocating the money.

“It’s really important to get that money out right now,” she said. “We have speculators who are buying up property with no intent to return those properties to the people in the neighborhoods.”

Here’s one. Many homebuyers are on a budget. Let’s say I’m looking for a home like yours in your neighborhood and most of the homes there that are comparable are in the 135k to 145k ranges. However, you have tile floors and stainless steel sinks along with a few other cosmetic improvements. You think your home is worth at least 147k. Tack on a few thousand more “so you can come off of the price during negotiations” and you start your home at 152k

As a homebuyer, the most I can spend is 145k. Although your home is what I’m looking for, you’re outside my price range so I won’t even bother to look at your house.

That’s just one example of how a too high price is going to hurt you. There are many, many more!

2. Letting Emotions Direct Your Actions: Many times this is the reason your home is priced too high. Remember, this is a business transaction. You have a product to sell, you need act accordingly.

3. Failing to Get Your Home Inspected Before Listing: I’ve seen FSBO’s go to great trouble and expense to get their home ready to sell only to find out from the potential Buyers Inspector that there are major structural, plumbing, electrical or mechanical issues with the home.

Depending on the severity of the problems, this probably cost you a Buyer and it means your home will be sitting on the market for a few more weeks or months.

National survey’s reveal that homes that have had pre-inspections sell faster with less hassle at closing. FSBO’s are no different.

4. Being a Jerk: I see this one more than you’d think. For some reason selling your home by yourself seems to give you a special excuse to be a jerk judging by the way some FSBO’s act.

Being unreasonable in your actions will drive away Buyers. No one likes a jerk!

I’ve seen FSBO’s make some of the most stupid request of Buyers like; one guy would only show his home on Sunday afternoons between 4 and 6 p.m. and you had to RSVP so he’d have you on his “list”. He wondered why no one was showing up at this home. I saw another FSBO that would not allow his home to be inspected without him, his attorney and his inspector being present. He also required each item to be brought up to him and his group before telling the Buyer. Needless to say, we didn’t inspect this home. Note: many state SOP’s require that you do not divulge information to anyone other than the Client.

It’s a fact of life, being a jerk cost you money. Not only in real life, but also when you go to sell your home!

5. Not Pre-qualifying Your Buyers: Letting any old Moe and Joe lock up your home while they try and get qualified can cost you Buyers if they fail to qualify for a loan. Require that all potential Buyers be pre-qualified!

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After all, the process of selling a home is always complex. For assistance is selling your home in Bergen County, River Edge NJ, Oradell NJ, Paramus NJ, Emerson NJ, Fairlawn NJ. Contact Carmelo Oliveri, Coldwell Banker Realtor at (201) 618-2854. Visit our web site at www.OurNJhouse.com or www.OurBergenCountyHouse.com or www.SellWithMelNJ.com

Whereas the real estate boom at the turn of the century made things easy on sellers, the current real estate climate is not so seller-friendly.

To make their homes more attractive to prospective buyers, these are small and easy projects, but if neglected, they’ll give buyers the impression that other, bigger things might have been neglected as well.

If your home has a front porch or stoop, be sure to inspect it for cracks. An older porch or stoop should be replaced, and any chips or cracks in the steps should be fixed.

• Ready the roof. A new roof is very expensive, and buyers understandably often run from homes that need a new roof.

Sellers should hire their own home inspector to determine the condition of the roof before putting the home up for sale, it will likely take more time to sell the home, and buyers will wonder why the home was listed for so long.

Know the home’s ups and downs before putting it up for sale to minimize any potential concerns from buyers.

• Perfect the paint job.  For homes without siding, be sure that the paint job is up to snuff. Any areas with peeling or chipping paint should receive a fresh coat of paint, and this is another job that should be handled will before listing the home.

• Lavish the lawn with attencion. Buyers love a lush green lawn, and that lawn goes a long way to creating a solid first impression. The first thing buyers will see once they pull up curbside is the lawn. If the grass is dry with brown spots or appears neglected, many buyers will find that hard to over look.

Homeowners preparing to sell their home in the fall should lavish attention on their lawn throughout the summer, keeping it watered and possibly hiring a landscaping service to make it more appealing. Consider planting flowers or other decorative foliage.

After all, the process of selling a home is always complex. For assistance is selling your home in Bergen County, River Edge NJ, Oradell NJ, Paramus NJ, Emerson NJ, Fairlawn NJ. Contact Carmelo Oliveri, Coldwell Banker Realtor at (201) 618-2854. Visit our web site at www.OurNJhouse.com or www.OurBergenCountyHouse.com or www.SellWithMelNJ.com

Posted by PAULA CLARK @ 8:34 pm, June 12th, 2009

It’s easy for Bergen County home buyers to get overwhelmed. A home is the biggest investment most of us make and the entire process can be a bit scary! Here are Bergen County home buying tips, sure to calm the most timid among us!

1. Research before you look.
Decide what features you most want to have in a home, what neighborhoods you prefer, and how much you’d be willing to spend each month for housing.

2. Be realistic.
It’s OK to be picky, but don’t be unrealistic with your expectations. There’s no such thing as a perfect home. Use your list of priorities as a guide to evaluate each property.

3. Get your finances in order.
Review your credit report and be sure you have enough money to cover your down payment and closing costs. Then, talk to a lender and get prequalified for a mortgage. This will save you the heartache later of falling in love with a house you can’t afford.

4. Don’t ask too many people for opinions.
It will drive you crazy. Select one or two people to turn to if you feel you need a second opinion, but be ready to make the final decision on your own.

5. Decide your moving timeline.
When is your lease up? Are you allowed to sublet? How tight is the rental market in your area? All of these factors will help you determine when you should move.

6. Think long term.
Are you looking for a starter house with plans to move up in a few years, or do you hope to stay in this home for a longer period? This decision may dictate what type of home you’ll buy as well as the type of mortgage terms that will best suit you.

7. Insist on a home inspection.
If possible, get a warranty from the seller to cover defects for one year.

8. Get help from a REALTOR®.
Hire a real estate professional who specializes in buyer representation. Unlike a listing agent, whose first duty is to the seller, a buyer’s representative is working only for you. Buyer’s reps are usually paid out of the seller’s commission payment. Give me a call…it won’t cost you a penny!!

After all, the process of selling a home is always complex. For assistance is selling your home in Bergen County, River Edge NJ, Oradell NJ, Paramus NJ, Emerson NJ, Fairlawn NJ. Contact Carmelo Oliveri, Coldwell Banker Realtor at (201) 618-2854. Visit our web site at www.OurNJhouse.com or www.OurBergenCountyHouse.com or www.SellWithMelNJ.com

- Appraisal chaos due to new ordering rules and short sales

- High, and still increasing unemployment. Mortgage aid for unemployed

- Collapsing commercial market. Commercial paper falls most ever

- Slow implementation by lenders of loan modification iniatives. Articles

- Lack of ability or willingness to lend. What to do with the Fed

- The Case-Shiller index continues to point towards further declining markets.

What this means in practical terms

- Appraised values as much as 30-40%(!) low, especially for refi’s

- Restrictive lending environment, and tightening up more

- Construction loans virtually unavailable (unless hard money)

- Hard money lenders are raising lending criteria and pricing

- Conventional financing maximum is 90%ltv

- PMI requires 680 Fico

- Higher lending standards and erratic pricing for commercial loans

Good news, opportunities

- Investments with good cash on cash returns available

- Affordable price levels – especially for first time home buyers

- First Time Homebuyer tax credit (must close by Nov 30th!)

- Rehab homes (foreclosures) can be bought with 203(k) loans

- FHA loans, including FHA rehab loans (203k), readily available

- Fannie Mae REO opps with Prospect Mortgage Homepath (rehab) loans

- Higher Fico’s get lower rates

- Rates are not likely to increase (I think)

Available

- Direct lender for FHA, Fannie, Freddy, VA, USDA, Jumbo, and other loans

- Same day loan decision (pre-approvals)
- 30-day closes (45-days for FHA)
- Condo (conversion) financing services. Information

It’s no secret that the real estate market has been hammered. Nationwide, median home values dropped 18% in 2008, according to the most recent data from Fiserv Lending Solutions, a home-price research company. And in markets such as California’s Central Valley, where speculative building has yielded more homes than jobs, prices are down 30% to 38%.

A strong community of retirees. While this doesn’t hold true for all cities that attract retirees (see Naples, Florida, in our list of the ten most depressed housing markets), it does in College Station, Texas and Kingsport, Tennessee, where retirees buy homes and give local economies a boost.

For assistance is selling your home in Bergen County, River Edge NJ, Oradell NJ, Paramus NJ, Emerson NJ, Fairlawn NJ. Contact Carmelo Oliveri, Coldwell Banker Realtor at (201) 618-2854. Visit our web site at www.OurNJhouse.com or www.OurBergenCountyHouse.com

For assistance is selling your home in Bergen County, River Edge NJ, Oradell NJ, Paramus NJ, Emerson NJ, Fairlawn NJ. Contact Carmelo Oliveri, Coldwell Banker Realtor at (201) 618-2854. Visit our web site at http://www.ournjhouse.com & www.OurBergenCountyHouse.com

Bergen County NJ, NJ Home Sellers, River Edge

For assistance is selling your home in Bergen County, River Edge NJ, Oradell NJ, Paramus NJ, Emerson NJ, Fairlawn NJ. Contact Carmelo Oliveri, Coldwell Banker Realtor at (201) 618-2854. Visit our web site at http://www.ournjhouse.com & www.OurBergenCountyHouse.com

For assistance is selling your home in Bergen County, River Edge NJ, Oradell NJ, Paramus NJ, Emerson NJ, Fairlawn NJ. Contact Carmelo Oliveri, Coldwell Banker Realtor at (201) 618-2854. Visit our web site at http://www.ournjhouse.com & www.OurBergenCountyHouse.com

For assistance is selling your home in Bergen County, River Edge NJ, Oradell NJ, Paramus NJ, Emerson NJ, Fairlawn NJ. Contact Carmelo Oliveri, Coldwell Banker Realtor at (201) 618-2854. Visit our web site at http://www.ournjhouse.com