HVCC is a pay-off for the big banks to get properties less than the current values. Imagine what would happen if you appraised something, "say a watch, or gold ring" prior to purchasing the product. In the Securities business they call this BILKING. Looks like the Big Banks are getting away with robbery! Anyone with half a brain knows we are getting screwed! They call it the HVCC "Home Value CODE of CONDUCT?"

You guys need to find some footage of tractor pulls or MUD trucks. The competition built machines never do a lick of 'real' work. HUGE honkers.

Sad thing is the big banks are using BPO's, AVM & desktop appraisals to determine values in pre-foreclosure. If you have a short sale and their valuation says it's worth $100k more than the short sale is listed for, they won't allow the short sale, ie.. a short sale at $300k but the BPO/desktop says it's worth $400k, they won't sell it. They'll foreclose & when they find out it's real REO worth (say $250k) they absorb the $50k + loss. If they had paid for a full appraisal including an interior inspection they'd have known the market value of $300k and sold it when they could have. They're trying to make AVM's, BPO's & desktop appraisals work where they can't possibly work (you need to actually see the property) and we're on the hook for this foolishness. "Penny wise and dollar foolish". Audit the Fed, & banks too. There's too much secrecy with our money. They're going to bankrupt the US the way they're going imo. Interest payments on the debt we have with a stronger $ = serious burden.

Spence, You are so correct on this mess!! My opinion is that in many cases, the actual title is no where to be found! What we all need to remember is that the years of 2002 to 2006 was at a time when thanks to the internet, all financial transactions (including appraisals) could be electronically done. This had never happened before (not even in the Savings and Loan meltdown). Now, in the blink of an eye, hundreds of transactions could be done, with alterations, manipulations and all types of things happening. Scary to think about. Right now, the banks are doing whatever they can to make money, hide mistakes and shift blame.

G-Says - The theory that rates won't go up is this: Geitner and Obama now have an open checkbook to buy loans through Fannie and Freddie. If rates start going up tomorrow, they could cut a check for $100B in loans and Congress can't stop them. WSJ referred to this as the "Christmas Eve" surprise. The gov't has now politicized rates.

I love the New GFE and I've already finished my SAFE exam and got all the crrrrap out of the way. Looking at your poll only about 1/4 of the people "get it". That 1/4 is after the business of the other 75 percent's business plain and simple.

CV Broker: Number of reasons. The banks are relying on BPO's & desktop appraisals when they consider market value (idiots)-instead of an actual appraisal with an inspection. It's a case of trying to save a dollar and end up losing $1,000 - or $75k. Maybe they can't find the title to the home as it was broken up so many times to sell as CDO's. I've heard complaints along those lines. Also, the banks can go to the Fed and get funds at what amounts to less than zero - so they make money borrowing and with zero interest, it's all free. We have no idea of the scams they're running - no transparency in the Fed and the banks aren't talking. Maybe the banks are foreclosing so they can take the whole write-off when they go to the Fed for more funds. Whatever they're up to you can be sure it's to the benefit of their bottom line-$$$ & it's costing us, the taxpayers. This link describes legitimate reasons the banks deny short sales. http://homebuying.about.com/od/shortsale/a/100108_RejectSS.htm

interesting, cnn money says rates not going up?

Spence - Your opinion please. Is there a reason that banks will refuse four offers on a short sale, opting instead to foreclose and then place it on the market for $75K less than the lowest previous short sale offer? Do lenders get government compensation for a foreclosure that make up the spread?

No Spin : Good link. We now know there was absolutely no reason for gas prices to rise to $150/barrel. It was all speculation & hype by the big banks like Goldman Sachs. Why the government is allowing gambling on commodities that affect world economies is beyond me. Never let the unscrupulous dictate prices. If the Big Banks had a moral compass they'd never allow themselves to gamble on precious commodities. How many oil tankers are sitting out there in the ocean waiting for prices to go up? 100, 1000? Creating artifical depletion is their way of increasing profits. Bubble Ben lies when he said low interest rates didn't immensely help in fueling the bubble. It was the primary source!! Now he's backing more regulation to curtail it. Any one sense duplicity? Reg's were already in place. Now we have a new Consumer Protection Agency that ENSHRINES too big to fail. He's trying to lay the blame elsewhere since a lot of people are getting aware of the Fed's role in all bubbles since 1913.

Right on Spence. In 2007 & early 2008, CNBC and the New York Wall Street gang were calling for higher interest rates as the only method to lower oil prices. They claimed oil prices were rising due to a weakening US dollar and higher rates would strengthen the dollar and lower oil prices. CNBC and Wall Street were WRONG as usual. Oil prices were rising due to investor ignorance creating what turned out to be their next bubble. In 2008, interest rates dropped like a lead balloon and so did oil prices. Their cry for higher interest rates is another sign of their ignorance to facts. The US economy is not going to gain any steam to create inflation. Interest rates will need to rise once regulators allow the banks to begin lending the over One Trillion dollars they are currently sitting on in excess reserves. The quickness that this money is loaned out will determine the need for speed rates rise. Here is Fed Reserve Scandal: http://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/WRESBAL

For those blaming borrowers: Baltimore, Maryland. A few years ago, the city’s meddlers bawled and whined about how the banks had “red-lined” Baltimore’s urban center. Red-lining was the practice of not lending to people who were not likely to pay their mortgages. Finally, Congress passed a law requiring the banks to lend to poor credit risks – which is how the subprime industry got so big. The banks then discovered that lending in minority areas was a goldmine – as long as they could lay the paper off on someone else. Eventually, all the pieces were in place. The feds required it. The feds helped fund it with low rates. And Wall Street securitized it…taking much of the risk away from the lenders themselves. Pretty soon, the banks were “reverse red-lining,” actually targeting poor people so they could lend them money. “We’ve had people in our office who were qualified for a mortgage based on their Ebay earnings or their gambling income,” says a local housing do-gooder.

Happy New Year guys. If you think about it the Fed can't raise rates. If they do it will kill the export market and job recovery and housing prices. Much more too. The banks are hoarding tons of money and there is deflation going on. Rising rates could produce inflation and worse. Banks also will have a harder time lending with higher rates - less money to move the economy. A stronger dollar means more costly imports. A raise in the dollar would make our international debt insurmountable. The Fed just authorized $4 trillion for the GSE's for when they screw up again. It just ain't happening. Foreign countries are now avoiding our debt and the MBS's will not be bought by anyone in the world except the Fed/Treasury. Pressure might get them to raise it a .25 point but it will injure the economy. The talking heads on CNBC are pushing/hyping higher rates and a stronger dollar but in truth it would be bad for an economy on crutches like ours. It could kill the patient.

To Brian - Unfortunately - No. I will be out of the country but it should be a great event. Others from our company will be there.

Good Info Atlanta LO. Are you going to be at mortgage rev this weekend.

Great new into Guys! I love it and I hope that it continues for the long term. I makes me start my day with a BIG SMILE!

The new GFE does not preclude using a “worksheet” to show costs and who is paying them. Also, HUD will allow additional requirements (not just the 6) to be met prior to triggering the GFE.

that is assuming you have the 6 required items to to issue a gfe. truthfully, there's quite a few loopholes. the new gfe is going to be used like reg-z and til. Nobody will look at it and you and your clients will be working off a supplement that looks like the old gfe.

JULES as I understand it your broker is right unless you are trying to do a 30 day lock or less. Since we have to commit to certain costs with the new GFE that means we can't float loans as we did in the past. Longer term locks have upfront costs.

Hi Broke Broker. We've got a couple more up our sleeves. Super Good Ones!

Hi RI, Thanks a bunch. I think we have about 6 for each category on average but I hope that will increase. Its pretty fun. Remember to get your nominees into [email protected] asap. The winners will get linked to the daily for a month and all contestants will have their info in front of their peers, nationally, for two weeks.

The Laverne and Shirley shtick is absolutely hilarious. Is Happy Days going to be next? Frank, you can be Fonzie and Steven can play Richie! Pass the Bushmills, I need it.

How Many contestants do you have for the sexiest Realtor, Lender, Appraiser, Title. Thats pretty funny stuff. Thanks for 2009 you guys kept me going. Better than a shot of espresso in the morning.

Jules....that is not true. This may be a company specific requirement with that particular broker but it's not a law. Brokers can get penalized by their wholesale lenders for loans they lock but do not close so the new respa law could cause this to happen more often than in the past, which is why some brokers may implement this into their own business model. 2k seems a bit extreme.

I love your new intro! I look forward to your videos daily and have introduced many people to you all.I am appraiser in Colorado and all I can say is fasten your seat belt for 2010.

Question. I have recently made a loan application to refinance an investment home I own. The loan officer told me that it is a new law that if I want to lock in the rate now, I would have to pay a lock fee (over $2K). This would apply towards the costs, of course. Is this true that it is a law? (I'm a real estate broker and appreciate you.)

Great start to the New Year! Really informative news today! By the way, Rate Alert rules!

"twenty ten" (2010) only three syllables!! Let's use it.

Love your entro! If we all came to work with that attitude biz can only go up, up, up!

Builders need a commitment letters before they can get their interim financing and yet due to the new GFE we can't afford to give a commitment letters as quickly as in the past. What's the sure fire trick for commitment letter timings?

You guys inevitably nailed the rate increases (but seriously, could we sustain such low rates for an entire year). You're definitely correct on the drop in values that are right around the corner (although the drop will be more significant in the mid and upper bracket range properties). When this year is all said and done, we're going to be sitting on housing prices that were typical to property purchases relevant to the early years of the previous decade. Just completed an appraisal where the owner paid $4.2 million in January of 2008 (they placed $2.9 million down - so they weren't slouches by any means). Today, they are sitting in a $2.5 million house (and with the supply of newer upper bracket foreclosure properties still flooding the market place where they live because the builders are constantly going bankrupt, they'll probably lose another $500,000 over the following 12 months). The volatility is quite insane in metro-Phoenix (still better than Detroit per se).

Video was awesome!! I wonder if that were the guys from Cuomo's office??

Ok any clarification on whether the new GFE affects mortgage bankers? I have heard that it does but also that it doesn't from a local competitor. Wonder if anyone knows for a fact one way or the other??

Sorry about the missing banners earlier today guys! They're all up now! Happy New Year!

has anyone put together a list of "faux pas" with the new GFE? For instance, if you estimate incorrectly the home value on refi and need a higher LTV, the rate and/or costs may increase. Is this considered a "substantial" change allowing a redisclosure . . . the loan amount hasn't changed! Thanks

Were those moose antlers?

Happy New Year! Thanks for your daily videos!

Hey guys, Happy New Year! You don't have the links up for Mortgage Revolution or even Rate Alert. Just an FYI.

Thanks for all of the help promoting Mortgage Revolution. Looking forward to seeing everyone there. It's going to be an awesome event.