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Foreclosures in North Texas
Dallas area Daily Foreclosure List
Foreclosures Offer Great Value to Dallas - Fort Worth
Homebuyers
If
you’re looking for a home to purchase, why not get it for a
discount. There are thousands of foreclosed properties in the
Dallas -Fort Worth (DFW) area that sell for much less then
their current market value.
Foreclosures are not new to the real estate market, nor is
this predicament exclusive to Texas. In the past, the number
of properties that were reclaimed as REO’s flowed at a
somewhat steady rate into the market and posed no real threat
to the financial stability of lenders, that however has
changed. A decade ago almost all homeowner defaults stemmed
from individual financial difficulty. A job loss, medical
reasons, or some other financial drain created an
unrecoverable circumstance that unfortunately led to the
inability of the homeowner to keep up with their payments and
the eventual foreclosure took place. In today’s environment
the same undesirable scenario is taking place but there are
also other forces at work that contribute to the continual
production of foreclosures and subsequent destabilization of
the entire mortgage lending sector.
There are no shortages of foreclosures in the market today and
depending on the area of interest most can be obtained below
market value and in fairly good condition. If you’re looking
for a deal and prefer a house that does not require major
rehab, focus your search in areas where new subdivisions have
been built within the last five years. If you want a better
deal and don’t mind taking on a rehab, or maybe you think this
is a good time to start your real estate investment company,
look in some of the older areas, but keep in mind, if the
house is in questionable condition you may not be able to
finance the property through conventional means.
What’s going on?
I’m
sure everyone has long since blocked out the word "Subprime"
from their consciousness and all subsequent news relating to
the mortgage crises, but this segment of real estate lending
was in reality the straw that broke the camel’s back putting
the US economy and eventually the world in such disastrous
disarray. Starting in the late 1900s, financial institutions
began an upward spiral of “alternative” or unreasonable
lending to accommodate investors that were looking for a
better return on their money.
This segment of real estate lending, along with the rapid
decline of home values in select areas of the country
initiated a domino effect that sent ripples throughout the
rest of the nation causing an explosive margin of foreclosures
and the inevitable decline in real estate values over a
substantial segment of the country.
Currently the bulk of all unmanageable subprime loans have
entered the foreclosure arena and have been all but exhausted
but because of recessionary effects, in large part
unprecedented job losses and sustained home devaluation, now
millions of other homeowners that did not fall prey to the
subprime trap are slipping into the same fateful pit
perpetuating the problem.
Because of the negative impact these risky loans caused and
heavy losses in the financial world, new standards have been
implemented for all who wish to finance a home.
Ten
years ago, to qualify for a home loan, a borrower was required
to have two years of non interrupted employment, at least a
three percent down payment for FHA, 20 percent for a
conventional loan, good credit and a maximum debt to income
ratio. This was a formula that banks followed for many years,
a conforming loan, one that Fannie Mae and the secondary
markets required in order for the note to be marketable.
Currently financial institutions have readopted the old
reliable standards and as a knee jerk effect have tightened
credit requirements well beyond that point making the
acquisition of a mortgage loan all but impossible for the
wanting homebuyer that has had any deviation from the lenders
prescribed demands.
For those who can qualify for a home loan, the recent
unwelcome events in our economy and housing market has opened
the door for some great savings. The opportunities not only
provide financial gain but with a larger selection of
available properties, the ability to find the house you have
always wanted becomes increasingly possible.
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