Strong Summer

Back from vacation this past week and the current week is almost over. It has been a great week here at CB Leesburg.

Highlights include some great educational events. Early in the week Rusty Markland of Superior Termite conducted a very eye opening workshop on wood destroying insects. Thanks to Rusty, our team has a much better understanding of the risks and pitfalls than most agents in the business. Yesterday, our very own Stacy McKone with Mid Atlantic Title lead a great continuing education class focused on "The Settlement Process." In the current real estate market it's very important to stay on top of the speed bumps we encounter getting properties to closing. Also, free CE credits and pizza don't hurt either. Thanks Stacy and thanks Mid-Atlantic.

Our team at CB Leesburg continues to grow as well, as we welcome local realtor and Gleedsville Art Gallery owner, Larry Thomas to our team. It's always exciting bringing talented individuals into our organization.

Lastly, while the news papers and even some of our local competitors are finally expressing some positive thoughts about the RE market, I'm happy to say that our tune has stayed the same for almost a half a year now. Things are looking good! For the 5th straight month, we have either filled our run out out of room on the sales board in our office. Congratulations CB Leesburg on continuing to lead the market and outperform the competition.

Fannie Mae Short Sale Policy and Appeal Process

The following is some good information that was shared with me that I thought I'd pass along:

Fannie Mae Confirms Short Sales Commissions Policy and Establishes Appeals Process

In discussions between NAR and Fannie Mae, Fannie Mae has reconfirmed its short sale commission policy and established a process for REALTORS® to follow if issues arise. On February 24, 2009, Fannie Mae sent Announcement 09-03 to its servicers instructing them not to negotiate commissions on short sales below the amount negotiated by the listing agent, unless the commission exceeds 6 percent. The Announcement reminded servicers that third party approvals (i.e., private mortgage insurers) may be required and can affect commissions. In response to concerns raised by NAR that some servicers of Fannie Mae loans are unaware of this policy or believe it is not binding, Fannie Mae has established a process for NAR members when short sale commission issues arise.

Step 1: Determine whether the loan is owned or guaranteed by Fannie Mae. Only the holder of the loan is allowed to do this, so do so in the presence of your client or after obtaining their written permission. Visit www.fanniemae.com/loanlookup, or If you don't have convenient internet access, call: 1-800-7FANNIE (8am to 9pm Eastern Time)

Step 2: If the servicer is unaware of or disagrees with the policy, provide a copy of Announcement 09-03 to the servicer and negotiate an appropriate commission based on the listing agreement (up to 6 percent).

Step 3: Contact Fannie Mae if the dispute is not resolved directly with the servicer. Be prepared to provide the property address, name of owner, and Fannie Mae loan number (if available):

Call: 1-800-7FANNIE (8am to 9pm Eastern Time),
or Email: Resource_center@FannieMae.com.
Fannie Mae Announcement 09-03 (2/24/09)

Summer is Here

It's funny, while thoughts this time of year are clearly focused on sunshine, family, swimming, the beach, and probably 50 other things that trump real estate sales, CB Leesburg is quietly doing some good things.

I'm excited that our sales activity continues to outpace the market, as well as some of our key local competitors. Homes are selling quickly, with multiple contracts, and often above list price. We have seen some terrific activity in the past 4 months. Each month we have either filled or run out of room on our sales activity board. Talk about a fun problem to have.

In addition we have added some terrific new talent to our team. Our newest members have been a good mix of experienced local agents as well as some new comers that bring a wealth of experience in different arenas. We're also in the process of adding some Coldwell Banker agents from other areas of the country that have recently relocated to Loudoun County. Great to see the brand recognition throughout the US.

Time to go prepare for this morning's meeting. Happy Summer! -Brian

REO Buyer Warning

While I usually prefer to blog about good stuff, like how we ran out of room on our sales board again (which we did for the 3rd straight month). However, this time around I wanted to share a word of warning that I just heard this morning and can have significant impact to a buyer's bottom line.

The latest curve some banks are throwing us is that they are saying financing charges are not considered "closing costs" so they won't pay them even if they agreed to cover the total closing cost.

In one case they agreed to pay $9000 in closing costs but approved only $3500 of the cost as "real closing costs". It was up to the purchaser to come up with the difference of $5500 two days before settlement.

The BOTTOM LINE: Read the bank addendum very carefully to see if they limit what they call "closing costs".

We had one instance where the addendum said they would pay them and two pages later saying they won't.

As a buyer broker it is your responsibility to know what your purchaser is signing so don't assume they all say the same thing. -Brian