Happy Thanksgiving!

Bargain hunters helped home sales rise 1.9 percent across the Coachella Valley in October compared to the same month a year ago, even as sales declined through the rest of the inland region.

About 735 homes sold in the valley last month, San Diego-based real estate information provider DataQuick reported.

Sales were particularly brisk in Indio, Palm Desert and Rancho Mirage.
Riverside County, meanwhile, saw 3,026 homes sell, a 7.3 percent drop from a year ago. About 2,300 homes sold — a 1.8 percent decline — in San Bernardino County.
About 54 percent of single-family home purchases and 45 percent of condo transactions in the valley were bank-owned or other distressed properties — down 6 percent from October 2010 — the California Desert Association of Realtors reported.
Greg Berkemer, executive vice president of the group, said as distressed properties continue to comprise a smaller share of sales, it's a sign the market is slowly stabilizing.

Just over half — 52.5 percent — of sales in Southern California were distressed properties, DataQuick reported. Nearly one out of three homes in the Southland that resold in October was a foreclosure, while about one in five was a short sale.
As many buyers sought bargain prices, Coachella Valley's median price — half sold for more, half for less — fell 8.5 percent to $166,000, DataQuick reported.
CDAR, which compiles home sales figures somewhat differently, reported the valley's median price at $179,975 in October, with the average sales price at $281,360.
The median price in Riverside County was $187,000 last month, down 5.6 percent from October 2010. The median price in San Bernardino County was $150,000, the same as August and September, and the same as a year ago.

The inland region's median sales price hit its lowest level since January, which analysts said was due in part to Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the Federal Housing Administration lowering loan limits as of Oct. 1 for government-backed mortgages.

Mike Perrault
The Desert Sun

For some small business owners, trouble on the home front (as in home mortgage front) threatens already precarious business conditions. Home mortgages that once seemed a good source of money for the business now could result in the need to layoff workers or even close. Homeowners with trouble making mortgage payments often hear that their best bet is to contact their lender about a loan modification, but they should be well prepared when they do so.

Whether the problem making mortgage payments is short term or long term, the best option for homeowners often is to contact their lender to try to work out a new payment agreement. Lenders are not obligated to make mortgage modifications, however it is often in their interest to work out a feasible payment plan for the homeowner rather than foreclose and sell the property.
The Obama Administration’s Homeowner Affordability and Stability Plan included refinancing of qualifying mortgages owned or securitized by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac to a lower fixed interest rate. As reported by the Washington Post, the Obama Administration announced that the program will apply to previously excluded second mortgages.

In part to help those outside this program, the Obama plan also included $75 billion in matching cash to encourage lenders to agree to mortgage modifications.

Here are a few tips to keep in mind when seeking a mortgage loan modification:
1. Don’t fall for any mortgage modification scams (such as advanced fee scams).
2. To learn how to best make your case for a loan modification, contact one of the HUD Approved Foreclosure Avoidance Counselors in your area. They can also inform you about any federal, state or local programs that may assist you.
3. Get an accurate picture of your finances. Your best chance at getting a modification is to demonstrate the ability to repay and a thorough understanding of the costs and income you face going forward.
4. If the problem making payments is short-term, ask your lender about forbearance or postponement of payments for a limited period. Be prepared to demonstrate when you’ll be able to start making payments again.
5. If the problem is long term, and what you need is modification, be prepared to make an offer and demonstrate how you could repay the modified loan. Be sure your lender is up to speed on incentive programs that may be available to help.
6. When negotiating a modification, make sure to understand how it will deal with any fees or penalties that may have accrued. Know what fees are in play and whether the modification will eliminate, reduce or tack them on for repayment.
7. If the lender won’t modify and foreclosure looms, consider asking the creditor to “produce the note,” (particularly when a creditor other than the original lender seeks foreclosure). It’s a stalling tactic, but can sometimes encourage creditors to negotiate.
For more information, visit www.findlaw.com.

Written by Caleb Groos

"In the last few months you've seen a real pickup in activity although at much lower prices," Mr. Buffett said, citing data from Berkshire's real-estate brokerage business, HomeServices of America Inc., which is one of the largest in the U.S.

In California, medium and lower-price homes -- under $750,000 -- have been selling more, though there hasn't been a bounce back in sale prices, Mr. Buffett said. "We see something close to stability at these much-reduced prices in the medium to lower part of the market."

These remarks are from Berkshire Hathaway Inc. shareholder meeting this past weekend.
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