National Short Sale Center: Press Releases

�Foreclosure Alley� Easy Pickings for Mortgage Scammers (Chris Levister )

Black Voice News

“As new legislation aimed at helping troubled Americans avoid foreclosures slowly takes hold, con artists are taking advantage of unsuspecting homeowners,” says Travis Hamel Olsen, president of National Short Sale Center.

Foreclosure & Loan Mod Scams On the Rise (Jennifer Harmon)

Managing REO

Companies like National Short Sale Center in Scottsdale, Ariz. are warning homeowners of the rise in foreclosure and loan modifications scams.

Getting a loan modification to avoid Foreclosure (Hubble Smith)

Las Vegas Review-Journal

“The fraud usually comes through in the fine print,” Olsen said, “but foreclosure rescue teams and highly suspect scammers are basically taking homes through a variety of means, resulting in foreclosure and eviction.”

Foreclosure, loan scams on the rise (Tracey Taylor)

San Francisco Chronicle

The message is clear: Never pay an up-front fee to complete a short sale.

Mortgage-fraud cases nearly double in 2 years (Amy Hoak)

MarketWatch

"Considering that there could be more than 3 million foreclosures starts in 2009, it is safe to assume that frauds and scams will affect a large number of American homeowners," said Travis Hamel Olsen, president of the National Short Sale Center,

One Million Foreclosure Filings (Joseph Rosta)

U.S. Banker

These incentives “will take a little bit of time” to kick in, says Matt McCabe, chief operating officer of National Short Sale Center, which serves a neutral third party between borrowers and servicers. “It will help alleviate the problem, but the scope is enormous. A lot of homeowners with non-performing loans have moved out,” he notes. Increased short sales will “reduce the sheer volume of foreclosures, and reduce blight from a neighborhood perspective,” he believes.

Bargain hunters pouncing on local foreclosed homes (Hubble Smith)

Las Vegas Review-Journal

With the lifting of the Fed’s foreclosure moratorium, the nation is on track to experience record-setting numbers of foreclosures and bank-owned properties in the second quarter, said Travis Hamel Olsen, president of National Short Sale Center.

Bank foreclosing? Try one of these options (Michael Estrin)

Bankrate

Some homeowners can convince the bank to accept less than the value of the mortgage, provided they can sell the home quickly, says Travis Hamel Olsen, president of National Short Sale Center in Scottsdale, Ariz.

Facing Foreclosure: Now What? (Michael Estrin)

Yahoo! Finance

Company Projects Q2 Foreclosure Filings To Top One Million ()

Mortgage Orb

“From our data, we are forecasting more than one million foreclosure filings in the second quarter of 2009,” says Travis Hamel Olsen, president of National Short Sale Center.

Foreclosures soar in South Florida in April (Paul Owers )

South Florida Sun Sentinel

The National Short Sale Center in Scottsdale, Ariz., predicts a "tsunami" of more than a million foreclosures during the second quarter.

The Coming Foreclosure Tsunami (Chris Palmeri )

BusinessWeek

“A tsunami of foreclosures and bank-owned properties are hitting the market in the second quarter,” said Matt McCabe, chief operating officer of National Short Sale Center.

Mortgage Fix May Hurt Your Credit Score ()

AOL Real Estate

Bankruptcy is not the only alternative to foreclosure. A substitute is a short sale, which occurs when a lender agrees to allow a homeowner to sell a property for less than what the owner still owes on the mortgage.

Mortgage Fix May Hurt Your Credit Score (Michelle Lerner)

CNBC, Bankrate

Travis Hamel Olsen, president of the National Short Sale Center in Scottsdale, Ariz., says borrowers also can use bankruptcy to discharge other debts, freeing up money for the monthly mortgage payment.

Beware of snags when buying troubled homes (Paul Owers)

South Florida Sun-Sentinel

"Many times, banks are not willing to pay for improvements to a property," said Travis Olsen, head of the National Short Sale Center in Scottsdale, Ariz.

Short sales: Tips for buyers ()

South Florida Sun-Sentinel

Be patient. It takes time for the seller's lender to review the buyer's offer. While many lenders are moving faster, eight to 12 weeks is not unrealistic.

Short sales not for home sellers, buyers with short fuses ()

Contra Costa Times

"Over the past three to six months, the servicers have really become aware that short sales are the best way to reduce their losses ... when a modification is not an option," says Travis Hamel Olsen, president of National Short Sale Center.

A brief look at short sales ()

Boston Herald

“Over the past three to six months, (lenders) have really become aware that short sales are (often) the best way to reduce their losses,” said Travis Hamel Olsen of the National Short Sale Center, which helps sellers and real estate agents set up such deals.

Short sales, slow sales (Amy Hoak)

MarketWatch

"Over the past three to six months, the servicers have really become aware that short sales are the best way to reduce their losses... when a modification is not an option," said Travis Hamel Olsen, president of National Short Sale Center, a company that facilitates short sales nationwide on behalf of homeowners and real estate agents. The short-sale option also is less damaging to a seller's credit than a foreclosure, he said.

More turning to short sales to avoid bankruptcy's pitfalls (Craig Anderson)

Arizona Republic

Scottsdale entrepreneur Travis Olsen said he believes short sales are widely underappreciated as an alternative to the high cost and heartache of foreclosure.

Short sales seen offering home buying opportunities (Janet Morrissey)

Investment News

"We saw a 90% increase in short-sales transactions at our firm" in the past year, said Matt McCabe, vice president of the National Short Sale Center Inc. in Scottsdale, Ariz., which acts as a liaison between the lender and homeowner. The firm is handling about 2,000 loans, up from 1,270 a year ago.

Can Out-of-Work Homeowner Buy A Foreclosure? (June Fletcher)

Wall Street Journal

But you do have some options. Mr. McCabe suggests concentrating on short sales rather than foreclosures, since they usually take longer to sell—usually a month or two.

Tips for homeowners considering a short sale (Michele Lerner)

Examiner

Travis Hamel Olsen, president of the National Short Sale Center, provides the following tips for homeowners considering a short sale for their “underwater” home:

Home Values Plummet $2 Trillion in 2008 ()

PR Leap

"We’ll continue to see more foreclosures in 2009 if homeowners don’t educate themselves about their options to foreclosure, such as doing a short sale," said Travis Hamel Olsen, president of National Short Sale Center. "Short sales give homeowners a way to avoid foreclosure that can help save their credit from serious damage."

Recent Short Sale News and Activity ()

Mortgage Daily

National Short Sale Center ... reported last month that 2008 short sales reached a record in Arizona, California, Florida and Nevada.

Pilot Program Reduces Short-Sale Waits (Peter Busch)

KPHO - CBS 5

"In today's market, that's just way too long to wait for an approval," said Travis Olsen, president of the Scottsdale-based National Short Sale Center. "Anything to get these homes sold would be welcome."

Short Sale: One Way for Homeowners to Avoid Foreclosure ()

E-Foreclosure Magazine

According to Travis Hamel Olsen of the National Short Sale Center (NSSC), the number of homeowners opting for short sales is increasing.

Real Trends: In Other News ()

Real Trends

More homeowners are choosing short sales rather than let their homes fall into foreclosure, according to the National Short Sale Center (NSSC), an Ariz.-based company that assists in short-selling properties.

More Homeowners Turning to Short Sales to Avoid Foreclosure (Carrie Bay)

DS News

National Short Sale Center acts as a neutral third party between homeowners and mortgage servicers to arrange short sales.

The Real Estate Sales Market is Still Coming Up Short (Gregory J. Wilcox)

Los Angeles Daily News

This year, foreclosures or short sales accounted for about 40 percent of the nation's home sales.

Success with Short Sales (Phoebe Chongchua)

Realty Times

Travis Hamel Olsen and some partners opened the NSSC a few years ago. He says the short sale is a "win-win" situation. The bank ends up losing less money than if it ended up taking back the property and the homeowner's credit is not damaged as much as from a foreclosure.

Las Vegas Home Sales Soar in November (Hubble Smith)

Las Vegas Review-Journal

Loan servicers are finding solutions to those problems, bringing in companies to outsource short sales, said Travis Hamel Olsen, president of Scottsdale, Ariz.-based National Short Sales Center. He's currently processing 2,000 short sale loans, primarily in Nevada, Arizona, California and Florida.

"Do your research and make sure you walk into a property with equity already in it," he said. "REOs and short sales are the best deals in the marketplace."

More Homes 'Underwater' in Struggling Economy (By Vicki Mabrey and Shani Meewella)

ABCNews

"Short sales were very rare back a couple, three years ago," said Zandi, "and now they're increasingly common."

The National Short Sale Center was able to get the lender's ear and work out a deal so the company would accept a short sale buyer, and let Bruce off the hook.

Housing Pain Gauge (James R. Hagerty and Ruth Simon)

Wall Street Journal

The most severe drops in home values are in parts of California, Florida, Nevada, Arizona and other areas where speculation pushed prices up and builders far overestimated demand.

Little is short about short sales (Francine Huff)

Cyberhomes

Short sales also get short-circuited because many banks are unfamiliar with the process, says Travis Hamel Olsen, president of the National Short Sale Center in Scottsdale, Ariz. “Unfortunately, many of them were slow to react at the beginning of the short sale trend.”

Short sales on the rise for homeowners in a pinch (Chelsea Schneider )

The Arizona Republic

There are two basic criteria homeowners should meet to know if a short sale is right for them.

Entrepreneurs Under 35 (Andrew Johnson)

Arizona Republic

McCabe and Olsen's company helps financially strapped homeowners negotiate these sales by working with real-estate agents to market their properties and with mortgage lenders on negotiating a deal.

Lenders foot the bill for abandoned homes (Les Christie)

CNNMoney.com

Foreclosed homes that lie vacant and rundown need their lawns mowed and their yards cleaned up. Cities say taxpayers shouldn't have to bear that burden.

Break for sellers: Banks settle for less (Mary Ellen Podmolik)

Chicago Tribune

As values tumble and more foreclosures loom, homeowners get chance to sell out for less than the amount of their mortgages.

More Banks Consider Short Sales (Bernard Condon )

Forbes Magazine

The National Short Sale Center, which helps short buyers negotiate with banks, says three-quarters of its short offers are approved now, up from maybe half six months ago.

Rescues for Homeowners in Debt Weighed (Edmund L. Andrews and Louis Uchitelle)

New York Times

With the collapse of the housing boom, the government is considering proposals to rescue the nearly 8.8 million homeowners, or 10.3 percent of the total, who are underwater.

Short sale may be best way out for distressed homeowners (David van den Berg)

Arizona Republic

Thanks to recently passed federal legislation, getting out from under mortgages with a short sale is a bit less painful in the troubled real-estate market.

Short Sales: an alternative for troubled mortgages (Jerry Gleeson)

The Journal News

Your adjustable rate mortgage has reset and you can't afford the higher monthly payments. In a sluggish real estate market, the property isn't worth the same as the day you bought it. What's next?

Short sale spike is barometer on real estate market (Christine Laue )

Omaha World Herald

Omaha real estate professionals are seeing an increase in the number of short sales -- transactions in which homeowners sell their houses for less than they owe on their mortgages as a way to prevent foreclosures.

In down housing market, short sales make comeback (Ellen Yan )

Newsday

Just in the past six months, business at the National Short Sale Center has shot up 350 percent, said its president, Travis Olsen.

State of the housing market stirs up more short sales (Jan Buchholz)

Phoenix Business Journal

With the inventory of resale homes in the Phoenix market hovering near record-high levels, some desperate sellers are turning to the "short sale" to stave off foreclosure.

"It's not something that's taught in real estate school," Cline said. "Once Travis (Olsen) explained the steps to me, I thought it was a great idea. I've completed four short sales with the National Short Sale Center. They have a much better chance of getting a deal done."

Mortgage Trouble Clouds Homeownership Dream (Max Whittaker)

The New York Times

Adam and Sunny Gardner bought a house in Nevada two years ago. They would like
to move, but with prices falling, they probably can’t.

Home Prices Decline (James R. Hagerty)

Wall Street Journal Online

Home prices declined from a year earlier in about half of all metropolitan areas in the fourth quarter, the National Association of Realtors reported.

Five Tips on How Short Sales Could Save Homes ()

REO Magazine

When property owners owe lenders more than the property is worth, short sales can be a reasonable solution to taking the property back through foreclosure.