Bank of America‘s cash-back incentive, which tempted delinquent borrowers to do a short sale over a lengthy foreclosure, ended Dec. 12 with mixed reviews from real estate agents and tepid homeowner response.

The Florida-only program offered between $5,000 and $20,000 in relocation expenses to qualified homeowners who agreed to vacate their homes through a short sale in lieu of the average two-year foreclosure process.

But as of early December, only about 3,000 homeowners of 20,000 solicited by the bank had expressed interest in the plan, which one real estate consultant said was unthinkable before the robo-signing scandal heightened the foreclosure chaos.

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    Banking

    Bank of America Corp.

    West Palm Beach

    J.P. Morgan Chase & Co.

    Wells Fargo & Co.

    Deerfield Beach

    Palm Beach (Palm Beach, Florida)

“A year ago, banks weren’t making offers like this. Now, it’s a complete reversal in that they are proactively soliciting short sales,” said Jack McCabe, chief executive of McCabe Research & Consulting in Deerfield Beach. “They are offering unbelievable deals.”

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A short sale is when a lender agrees to accept less for a home than what is owed on the mortgage. Sometimes, the bank also will agree to waive the deficiency judgment — money still owed by the homeowner on the mortgage debt.

Real estate agents say banks, including Wells Fargo and JPMorgan Chase, began offering cash incentives about six months ago to homeowners who agree to do short sales. With foreclosures taking an average of 749 days in Florida, according to a November RealtyTrac report, it’s cheaper to pay off an owner than take them to court, agents say.

“It’s costing banks a fortune to do the foreclosure, and they want to cut their losses,” said Sherry Lee, broker/owner of Lee Property Sales in West Palm Beach.

Lee said one of her clients got $45,000 from Chase to do a short sale, but most deals are between $10,000 and $20,000.

But she had little luck with Bank of America’s test program, which she said used an unwieldy computer program and had unclear directions on who was eligible.

“People want straight answers from us brokers, and I couldn’t get them,” Lee said.

Bank of America spokeswoman Jumana Bauwens said she couldn’t comment on concerns unless they dealt with a specific case, but that the company was “pleased” with the homeowner response.

Bauwens said Florida was chosen to test the program because of its high number of foreclosures. If it is deemed successful, it could be expanded to other states.

To qualify, homeowners had to submit their short sales for approval by Dec. 12, an extended deadline from an original Nov. 30 date.

As everyone knows, property deeds and land parcels have been around for many, many years. As the years have gone by, some property deeds have been disputed by property lines. Sometimes, the story of a property gets blurry over time. Because of this, title insurance is a very important piece of insurance when buying new property.

Title insurance is purchased before the final contract is signed on property. This makes sure that what you are buying is what you have been told. County clerks will begin with the present time and work backwards through the records of a certain piece of property.

They are looking for anything that might have affected the property such as right-of-ways, easements, marriage records, tax sales, death records and names of all owners in the past. This will tell them if there are any discrepancies on the property.

Depending on where you live, there are different versions of title insurance that is available to you. Those are:

• Basic Coverage – This includes encumbrances, judgements, incorrect signatures, clear title, property recorded incorrectly, fraud or forgery.
• Extended Coverage – Everything from the basic coverage and including structure damage, living wills, subdivision maps, building permit and covenant violations.
• Basic Lenders Coverage – any liens on the property and any unrecorded documents.

Title insurance can be negotiated on who pays for title insurance. It sometimes will be the prospective buyer, the seller, a portion of the cost from both or be determined by the county you live in. The cost for title insurance varies and will be a one time fee. After that you have it for life.

If you are not planning on staying on the property for a long time, you can also purchase binder insurance. This insurance is typically good for two years. It can be extended if you wish.

When you get ready to purchase your next home, be sure to purchase title insurance. This can potentially avoid a lot of problems if there ever is a discrepancy in the future.

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3. Understanding Title Insurance, Appraisal and Homeowner’s Insurance
4. Home Buying Tip – How To Save Money On Title Insurance
5. Save Money on Title Insurance