On August 31, 2007, ACC Capital Holdings announced that it was closing Ameriquest (Argent Mortgage was the wholesale division) by no longer taking loans and selling its loan servicing unit to Citigroup.

Does this mean on September 1st 2009 all of the 2/28 (2 year fixed) loans will have been weeded out of various loan servicing portfolios?

If it does, we will have to wait until September 1st 2010 for the 3/27 (3 year fixed) loans!

The middle of 2007 was when we saw just about every mortgage wholesaler shut down their operations. Some went out of business and some shut down their mortgage wholesale division. If you consider that the majority of the current foreclosures being sold right now are the end result of some of these loans then it would be simple to say that once we pass this period of fixed loans we should see some improvements to the real estate market.

What is the difference with this market compared to markets of the past? When this market turns the availability of financing will never likely reach the levels we have recently experienced. Let’s say that we start to see considerable improvements in the early part of 2010 that would mean that we still have another 1.5 years of a rather gloomy real estate market from today.

My feeling is that the market will slowly start to improve once we work through this cycle of mortgage loans. Even when this happens it will take time and there is no telling what other negative economic factors will come into play such as inflation, the war and the overall condition of the economy. There are so many factors that will play into this real estate recovery.

I hope that you aren’t expecting a quick recovery to this real estate market. The reality is that it’s going to continue for another couple years.

What should you know? How do you pick a short sale real estate agent to sell your home? Should you even consider purchasing a real estate short sale?

Everything about a short sale can seem difficult and it is!

How does a short sale affect my credit vs. a foreclosure?

Nothing about a short sale is easy! It can be the most frustrating real estate experience you will ever encounter. It might make you want to get out of the real estate business or avoid buying or selling another home.

For buyers thinking about purchasing real estate in this market, a short sale is a great way to do it. On the other side, for homeowners, a short sale may help you avoid foreclosure with minimal damage to their credit.

For Sellers - What factors will make a short sale possible???

The first one is “COMMUNICATION”. This will only be possible if you find an agent that will answer your phone calls, return your calls and keep you in the loop with daily updates.

The second one is “AGENTS PERSEVERANCE”. Your agent should be in contact with the bank on a daily basis to ensure your short sale package is moving forward with the right negotiator.

The third one “BE INVOLVED” Don’t let your agent forget about you, don’t drive him crazy! :) Insist that you are updated and informed regarding the process of the short sale. You don’t want to loose your home to foreclosure because of a break down in communication with your lender. .

For Buyers – What factors will allow you to purchase a Short Sale???

First, find an agent that has a proven track record of selling short sales. If he knows how to sell them it will be easier for you to purchase a short sale. Also, consider all of the other factors explained for sellers above.

In conclusion: You hear so much negativity about short sales. The reality is that loss mitigation departments are increasing their staff and making efforts to accommodate short sales. Short sales will be a large part of this real estate market for the next few years. They are an excellent option depending on your situation. Make sure you are dealing with an agent that will make every effort to look out for your best interest. Real Estate Short Sales are not for everyone and may not be the best option for you!

I know this isn’t directly related to real estate but I found it interesting and it will have some impact on retail commercial real estate in San Diego and many other parts of the country. Here is a list of Starbucks in San Diego County that are going to close. Is this a sign of a recession? Don’t you get tired of all the media talking about the possibility of a recession? Lets face it, were in a very bad economic time and the closing of 600 Starbucks is a good example of people thinking twice about spending $5 a day on coffee. I guess it’s back to the instant coffee for a while!

Even as much as I love going to Starbucks (occasionally) I found that the number of Starbucks you would find in some areas was a little bit of an over kill. I live in Downtown San Diego and 4 of the Starbucks closing on this list are in the downtown San Diego area. I can think of 11 locations in about a 16 block radius in the downtown San Diego area.

Below you will find the list of Starbucks closing in San Diego. Starbucks will manage to survive and do just fine as we get past this bad economic time but it is interesting to see how so many people are cutting out expenses like this.

6556 3RD & H ST 3037 H ST CHULA VISTA CA
11223 OTAY RANCH TOWN CENTER 2015 BIRCH RD CHULA VISTA CA
551 MIRA MESA 9450 MIRA MESA BLVD SAN DIEGO CA
5637 MISSION GORGE RD 6171 MISSION GORGE SAN DIEGO CA
6514 1ST & MARKET 101 MARKET ST SAN DIEGO CA
6592 COLLEGE & LINDO PESSO 5131 COLLEGE AVE SAN DIEGO CA
6726 EUCLID AVE & FEDERAL BLVD 1722 EUCLID AVE SAN DIEGO CA
6818 UNIVERSITY & ARAGON 6511 UNIVERSITY AVE SAN DIEGO CA
9471 30TH ST & EL CAJON 2990 EL CAJON BLVD SAN DIEGO CA
9583 NATIONAL & 36TH 3582 NATIONAL AVE SAN DIEGO CA
10631 PARK & UNIVERSITY 3830 PARK BLVD SAN DIEGO CA
11837 11TH & C 1122 BROADWAY AVE SAN DIEGO CA 

For a complete list of Starbucks closing and to find out if your favorite Starbucks will be closing in your area please view the complete list here.

Short sales have been a large source of business and many real estate agents seem to be focusing on short sales. We get a lot of short sale leads all over the place in many areas that we don’t even provide short sale services. We focus on San Diego County and would like to build a list of short sale real estate agents throughout the entire country!

If you would like to join the list please email me at info at teamaguilar.com or go to our forum post for the “List of Short Sale Real Estate Agents” and post your information for us to add.

If you focus on short sales in San Diego please feel free to join the list. This is meant to give people as many options as possible when they are looking for a short sale real estate agent.

Please privide

Name
Phone
Website & City so we can add you to the list.

Thank you,