by Roberta Murphy

Years ago, when we put our first home on the market, I insisted that the Realtor put NO SIGN in our yard.

I did not want neighbors to know that we were selling or cause any disruption in our neighborhood. Our agent tried to explain the importance of a sign, but I was the incalcitrant client–and we ended up selling the home with NO SIGN. This of course, was before the internet and Realtor.com, Zillow, Trulia and all the other listing aggregators. And in those days, the wish for privacy was something that was understood by almost all.

At that time, I mostly wanted to protect our privacy–and didn’t want to have to answer questions or be the subject of neighborhood gossip.

Fast forward to 2012 and grocery shoppers have not only to contend with the revelations of rags in the checkout lines, they can also hop onto to the Trulia or Zillow sites and see which of their neighbors have fallen behind on house payments and could be facing foreclosure. Or, equally likely (and rarely assumed by the real estate novice), they may simply be trying to negotiate a loan modification with their lender WHO MAY HAVE ADVISED THEM THEY NEED TO BE DELINQUENT IN THEIR MORTGAGE PAYMENTS before they will be considered for a modification in the terms of their loan. Equally possible, the family may simply have fallen on hard times and are suffering enough embarrassment and pain without Zillow and Trulia posting up their delinquent mortgage status for all to see. Moreover, their home may already be listed as a short sale with their Realtor.

It seems these national aggregator sites who list homes for sale, provide market advice and offer slick mapping services feel this information might bring more eyeballs to their sites. Real estate agents already pay hefty sums to be the advertised “representative” of local zip codes. In further monetizing their sites, will these same agents be enticed to be the “local expert” for pending foreclosures in their purchased zip codes?

It’s not the business model that bothers me; rather, it is the brazen publication and monetization of personal pain. If parents discuss their neighbor’s published and pending foreclosure at the dinner table, is there not a chance that this juicy tidbit becomes an embarrassing morsel of school gossip the next day?

These commercial listing aggregators might try to convince real estate agents that they are offering a real opportunity to agents: They will now know who might be interesting in listing their home, and the more passive agents can $ign on to passively be the face to call when times get tough.

What’s next?

Let’s see, who else might be interested in listing their home when:

1. A loved one dies
2. Divorce proceedings are filed.
3. Someone is arrested (might need to sell to pay attorneys and bail?)
4. Birth announcement (need a home–or a bigger one?)

These are just a few examples of times when privacy might be appreciated and strongly desired. And of course, it is all public knowledge if one searches hard enough–and that is one of the arguments proffered by those who commercialize this information. And from this Realtor’s point of view, it’s pretty convenient information to have–if I’m inclined to pester people in their times of pain–or deep personal pride.

I guess one of the things I liked so long ago when I refused a lawn sign was the sense of control I had over my privacy. These days, a listed home wouldn’t stand a chance of being so obscured from looky loos and prying eyes. The listing would appear not only on hundreds or thousands of Realtor websites, but would also likely appear on Realtor.com, Zillow, Trulia, Movoto, Redfin and innumerable other listing aggregators and national sites.

At a minimum, these sites should allow the homeowner the opportunity to opt out of publication–especially when the information published could cause personal pain and harm.

In exchange for this, as a San Diego Realtor, I would be gladly willing to forego any gain I might achieve from this information–and optimistically believe other real estate professionals would feel the same.

There was a time in our society when privacy was an assumed and granted given. These days, it appears to be a luxury afforded a privileged few.

The post The Luxury of…Privacy appeared first on Luxury Home Digest.

It’s a sad fact of life, but unscrupulous vultures are always ready to pick at the flesh of the most financially distressed–which more frequently these days includes the owners of luxury real estate.

Over on our San Diego real estate blog we report that San Diego County District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis is asking San Diego Realtors to help her track down and prosecute real estate fraudsters operating in our county.

We have written before about the foreclosure and loan modification scams that prey upon distressed San Diego home owners who are struggling to stay in their homes. The DA’s office is aggressively trying to warn homeowners to stay away from these San Diego real estate crooks and their fraudulent offers of mortgage and loan modification assistance–and is asking us, as San Diego Realtors, to report any suspicious activity.

All too often, unwitting and desperate home owners will pay an upfront fee to a person or company who promises to prevent foreclosure–or to modify existing mortgage loan terms. And all too often, people are paying for services they never receive–and might be better off with a do-it-yourself loan modification.

Click to continue reading….

The post Even Luxury Home Owners can be Victims of Fraud appeared first on Luxury Home Digest.

Once upon a time, we whispered about the “F” word creeping into luxury real estate. These days, it is common real estate talk.

The Wall Street Journal quotes Realty Trac reporting that the number of $1-plus million homes in some stage of foreclosure has ballooned to 7,968 between January and August this year. This compares to 4,214 during the same months last year.

Within these numbers, it is interesting to note the relative surge in the $2-plus million home market. This luxury group has grown the fastest: How about 499 in foreclosure process, compared to 201 for the same period last year.

These luxury foreclosures aren’t just the McMansions that proliferated in many upscale suburban communities. These homes are waterfront, behind exclusive gated communities, and in tony towns where these financial embarrassments rarely occur.

The bargains abound. The luxurious Bradenton, FL home pictured above (and listed by Patricia Tan with Prudential Palms Realty), for example, was originally listed at $3.78 million and is now under contract for $1.1 million. There again, and according to DataQuick, more than 64,300 homes priced at $1million or more were sold in 2007–which is more than triple the number for 2002.

In our local San Diego luxury real estate market, we are seeing our own casualties. According to our stats, there are 34 homes in some state of the foreclosure process in exclusive Rancho Santa Fe–with one on Via De Santa Fe valued at over $12 million. In La Jolla real estate, where prices are equally high, but with more condos and a greater population, there are 118 properties in the throes of foreclosure.

What will be the consequences to the highest end of the luxury market? There will be some fallout–and perhaps a more robust luxury home rental market, but most of these owners are well-entrenched and funded–and can afford to wait out this market crisis.

And for luxury home buyers, the market hasn’t looked this good–or offered so many choices– in several decades.

For more, read:

The Finest Foreclosures – WSJ.com

The Luxury of Frugality

Rise in Luxury Home Foreclosures, REO’s and Short Sales?

California Luxury Home Foreclosures

7 Bargaining Secrets for Luxury Home Buyers

Luxury Home Foreclosures More Common

The post Luxury Foreclosures Becoming More Common appeared first on Luxury Home Digest.

Luxury Home Defaults

Ed McMahon may have wondered what else in new in defaulted real estate with the pending default of his Beverly Hills home.  But yesterday, Standard & Poor’s Ratings Service reported that even prime jumbo loans are starting to buckle.

Over a period of just one month–from June to July, 2008–jumbo loans originated in 2006 saw mortgage delinquencies rise 13.2 percent, while 2007 delinquencies rose 7.3 percent. Overall, mortgage delinquencies in the luxury real estate market are relatively low, with prime jumbos originating in 2006 reporting a serious delinquency rate of just 2.48 percent. But luxury home defaults are on the rise.

(For a more detailed report, go to: Prime Jumbos Showing Strain: S&P : Housing Wire)

It also appears that originations in the luxury market may be tightening. Thursday evening, Billy Taylor with Villa Sotheby’s International Realty in Del Mar, whispered that Chase Mortgage is pulling out of jumbo loan originations (at least at the broker level).

My prediction? There will be much more discussion about creative and seller financing in the months ahead. If financing is required for the purchase of a luxury home, it may be the seller who provides it.

Finally, stay tuned for Bob Dyson’s radical mortgage rescue program that could stabilize the real estate market very quickly–and that is quickly gaining prominent political support….

The post Jumbo Loan Defaults in the Luxury Market appeared first on Luxury Home Digest.

It is difficult to avoid the subject of  short sales and foreclosures when discussing real estate these days.

We receive ongoing emails and calls from people wanting to buy short sales and foreclosures because they want the best deal possible. They believe that the best buys can only come from bloodied sellers and lenders and that somehow real estate agents are the best bloodhounds of all (which is often true).

Theres this misconception floating around that if a lender is willing to shave off some of the debt owed on the property and sell it for less than what is owed, it must be a good buy. The same logic is also applied to foreclosures.

But reality sometimes paints a different picture.

Many of our San Diego clients have been able to get outstanding buys on real estate not through short sales or foreclosures, but from the best kept secret of all:

Motivated sellers.

And it makes a lot of sense. If, as a savvy real estate agent, I decided to sell my own home in todays market at the best price and within the shortest time frame possible, I would:

1. Stage the home.

2. Price it 3 to 5 percent under the competition. (Hear that, Freakonomics?)

In short, I would compete with any short sale or foreclosure competitors in pricing because I can, and thats because I have enough equity in my home to do so. There are also more sellers in my position than those who are in over their heads.

Hence, it makes good sense to work with a Realtor who is in tune with seller motivations and local market conditions and who keeps an ear to the ground to hear market rumblings as well as occasional agent gossip that doesn’t appear in MLS descriptions.

In times like these, working with a knowledgeable and wise real estate professional may be one of the best investment decisions you could make. And when looking for the best buys in real estate, pay attention to short sales and foreclosures and look even more closely at seller motivation.

Read also:

Short Sales in the Luxury Home Market

Short Sale Trauma Drama

Home Pricing Dangers

Real Value in Real Estate Gossip

San Diego Home Home Losses Hit New High

Search San Diego Real Estate

The post What Could be Better than Short Sales and Foreclosures? appeared first on Luxury Home Digest.