The center was dedicated to providing low-income immigrants and refugees who lacked English knowledge to adapt a life in the United States and achieve financial and social self-sufficiency. Now, the center has shifted focus and has started assisting not only refugees but any East Bay homeowners in desperate need of assistance in preventing foreclosures.

For families in fear of losing their homes to foreclosures, the center provides assistance and counseling in English, Chinese and a variety of Southeast Asian dialects. With over 30 to 40 calls a day, the center has been receiving more requests for foreclosures related inquiries, along with their regular service offerings.

The center is headquartered in the San Antonio district of Oakland but also has offices in San Pablo and Sacramento, regions that were also hard-hit by the foreclosures crisis. Cramped in a 5,000 square foot location in 23rd Avenue where the center has held office for several years, people flock to this location seeking help with foreclosures.

Several years before the current foreclosures crisis blew out of proportion, the center has been tapped by the Federal Department of Housing and Urban Development to provide counseling services to low-income families seeking assistance in housing. They have had several successes in this regard from getting up to $4000 down payment assistance to acquiring long-term mortgages for their homes.

But now, their staff has been getting frantic calls and visits from homeowners seeking help: from asking for emergency funds to pay mortgages, to assistance in negotiating with their lenders to modify their loans.

However, most of these homeowners are already in too deep with their mortgage problems that it would take another miracle to bail them out.

Foreclosure definitely hit even the dog houses. Pets of foreclosed homeowners surrender their pets to shelters hoping to free their financial difficulties from pet necessities like food, veterinarian visits, etc.

But you should know 3 reasons why you must not hand over your four-legged friends after foreclosure.

1. YOU MUST NOT LOSE A FRIEND (furry) JUST BECAUSE OF THE EXPENSES.

   CNN explains that you do not have to think about spending more for your pet than to your family’s needs. Shelters have vaccinations, spraying and other pet treatments in discounted prices. Just ask the Humane Society at 202-452-1100 or at www.hsus.org, or ASPCA at 212-876-7700 or www.aspca.org.

2. LOSING THEIR OWNER CAUSES THEM PAIN TOO.

   Pets adapt to your home environment. Drastically removing them from their home and their owner can be very traumatic, add the coldness of a pound. Pets do love their “family” and feel anxiety with separation.

3. PETS ARE THERAPEUTIC

   Researches have been conducted and found out that pet companionship benefit AIDS or cancer patients, the old and the mentally ill. A study conducted in New York found that patients with cardiac problems are more likely to survive a year after discharge, better than having a partner or friends.

   Animals give feelings of comfort and constant attention. They help us become more caring. They bring a mood of safety and acceptance.

If foreclosure left you with no choice but to leave your pets, please do not just abandon them on the streets or desert them chained in your foreclosed home. It is best that you contact the local Humane Society, or ASPCA. They do not only have safe shelters but also foster programs where your pets live temporarily in a home rather than a cage.
Click here to see more information about abondoned forclosure pets.

The bill has been put forward by House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers, Jr. together with Commercial and Administrative Law Subcommittee Chairwoman Linda Sanchez as a move to help homeowners in danger of foreclosures.

Both Democratic legislators have been dismayed with the poor turnaround and impact by the two government programs already put in place to combat foreclosures. The Housing and Urban Development’s Hope for Homeowners program did not attract the projected amount of lenders and homeowners to participate.

Hope Now, the collaborative program by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, failed in stopping the increase in foreclosures, which continued to multiply in numbers with millions still in the danger zone. According to them, mortgage modification programs being put forward would actually result in homeowners to owe more that would eventually led to further default and foreclosures.

The financial bailout package called Troubled Asset Relief Program was expected to support homeowners in preventing foreclosures, and yet was diverted to providing relief to banks and financial institutions. This caused further dismay to the legislative body which lost further trust in these entities who promised a resolution to the crisis that they created.

In response, they are putting forward this new bill that will work for a modification of the homeowner’s loan but will be under the supervision by the DOJ and a trustee. The loan should still be paid by the family, but the courts will be empowered to cut down exorbitant interest rates.

Rights to the collateral will still be under the lenders for their own protection and will be provided with extra interests as an incentive and protection in case the family falls into default once more. The future is looking grim for these families, and unless actions are done immediately, it would all be too late.

Searching for foreclosure homes? Find bank foreclosures and government foreclosures using our comprehensive foreclosure listings.

Ideally, owners of foreclosed homes are given a grace period of six months to repay their loans and keep their homes. These properties have a great chance of being redeemed just as long as the homeowners know the amount they need to pay.

Unfortunately, because of certain real estate legislation in March 2005, the calculations of liabilities to be answered have been taken from the hands of county registers and passed on to the purchasers of the repossessed homes.

Of course, these purchasers have their own interest to protect. They would not disclose the amount needed to redeem the foreclosed properties so that borrowers would not be able to claim back their mortgaged homes. Original homeowners would complain about the difficulties they encounter in the attempt to contact the purchasers. For families unfortunate enough, they would even be charged more than $200 just for that information.

To address this problem, concerned parties have taken initiatives to push for Senate Bill 1390 – a real estate law that would restore the calculation of foreclosure repayment amounts within the jurisdiction of the government.

With the calculations under the mandate of the county registers, homeowners would have easy access on information necessary to redeem their properties. Only an affordable $50 (or even less) has to be paid.

Based on the Bill, only willing county registers are expected to perform the calculations. Despite the fact that compliance to the Bill is voluntary rather than mandatory, it has not been politically acceptable at the moment.

Nevertheless, hope is not frail. Ample support from the Senators can be obtained with help from the public. With Senate Bill 1390 seeing its way through implementation, a significant number of homes in Michigan shall be saved from foreclosure.

Logically, people were thinking that the bailout package was intended to “bail out” homeowners in trouble of losing their homes to foreclosures. Treasury Secretary Paulson proved these people wrong.

The first announcement from the Treasury Department was that the fund will be used to purchase securities that are backed by mortgages which basically placed banks in the rut due to the increase in foreclosures. Only a few people supported this decision. The majority, however, was right and Secretary Paulson backed out from this initial decision.
The second announcement, barely a week after the first one, told people that the fund will be used to buy investments from banks and stabilize the financial market. Congress questioned this move, and was expecting that part of the fund will be used to help homeowners prevent foreclosures.

However, Secretary Paulson, with a White House go signal, announced that the fund will not be used as an “expense” and buy-out troubled loans to stop foreclosures. He said that the fund should be used to “invest” instead and defended the administration’s stand in using $290 billion from the TARP fund to purchase no-vote assets from banks. Another $40 billion was already used to salvage the insurance giant AIG. Zero dollars went to homeowners desperate for help on foreclosures.

Several communities, sectors and even legislators criticized the government for their lack of support in providing a direct assistance to homeowners in trouble. Various groups have already approached Capitol Hill and the White House in a bid to urge the government to make use of taxpayer’s money to help these troubled homeowners. All these homeowners can do right now is wait and hope for the best.

According to Florida Association of Realtors, home sales in the area have climbed to 46 percent that is from 428 the previous year, to 625 sales this year. Who would not want to grab such an opportunity when price has declined from $354,000, to $252,500?

The increasing sales are simultaneous with the decreasing median prices in the market. Such trend is observable with the increasing foreclosures in a neighborhood or area. Even Broward’s condominium has proven the trend with increased sales up to 30 percent as median price drops to 115,200 or 28 percent in their market. Also in Palm Beach County, with 37 and 24 percent sales and median price drop, respectively shows similar trend.

Although a surprising drop has already occurred in October, there is still more drop to expect with the continued foreclosure crisis.

A lot of these homes targeted by bargain hunters are those sold after having been seized for debts. However, these houses are in critical condition – needing new roofs and even some major repairs. Most, if not all of these homes are for short sales or foreclosures.

These conditions on the other hand, may also come in handy, allowing purchase for a price even lower than the original asking price.

With the recent sales trend in South Florida, properties available in the market are gradually reduced. However, despite the good turn out in home sales, with existing foreclosure homes, it may still take some time to sell a house, a little more than five months.

The challenge now is the pressure future foreclosures are posting as it waves through the market. Furthermore, how it can affect home sales, and even prices in the coming future.

Answer: The first thing you need to do is to contact the unit owner and ascertain if he is really selling his condo. The mortgage bank cannot sell the unit until it is declared a foreclosed property.

The next step is to check if the owner has other debts linked with the title or with the condo unit. Make sure the title is free of other liens against the condo, such as a second mortgage or a tax lien. Check also if he has been paying his condo fees. You also need to make sure that the condo association is not burdened with debts and foreclosures.

If your plan is to pay in full what the condo owner owes the bank, you don’t need the bank’s approval. What you need to do is to talk with a real estate attorney about accomplishing a sales agreement with the owner. The contract needs to spell out in clear language that the completion of the sale depends on the condo owner’s delivery of the title to you free of liens other than the original mortgage.

If you’re unable to pay the loan balance in full, you need the bank’s approval. What you will accomplish is what is called short-sale. You and the condo owner will sign a real estate agreement that will be dependent on the bank’s approval. Because of the high number of foreclosures, short-sale filings and foreclosed home auctions, expect some delays in getting a response from the mortgage bank.

With the year-end closing, banks and financial institutions are short-selling these homes to get them off their books. These sales activities are making a big impact in the reduction of home prices as a whole.

In Contra Costa County, home prices dropped 24.2 percent during the third quarter of 2008 as compared to the same period last year. Average home prices are within $397,510. Decline rates are slightly lower in Alameda County running at 18.9 percent with homes rated at an average of $479,668. San Mateo County fell 13.5% percent with an average home price of $698,179.

One of the hardest hit areas in the country for increases in foreclosures and falling home prices is San Joaquin County. Homes dropped up to 35.5% from its previous price, with homes ranging only $210,179. These values are from the median market and include single family houses and condominiums within the same area.

These figures are starting to reflect the impact of the economic turmoil raging across the country. Add to this effect is the steady decline of the stock market plus an increase in unemployment rates compounding this current crisis on foreclosures.

With these figures, experts are predicting the situation to get worse, but are optimistic that it soon about to get better. With a strong home sales activity in these counties, experts are hoping that the market will soon stabilize. They are expecting the declining home values to flatten in the next quarter and the rates of increase in foreclosures to die down.

Pre-foreclosure filings last October were 10% down from August levels and 7% down from September. These include notice of default and foreclosure auctions. With only 84,286 repossessed properties during this month, the level dropped dramatically by 22% since September. This trend is the same throughout half of American states according to the U.S Foreclosure index.

Although the current financial crisis have rolled across most of the U.S., pre-foreclosure filings and repossessed houses where mostly concentrated in certain states, cities and counties. These areas include Detroit which was hard-hit by recession and unemployment. The case is different with other states like California, Florida and Nevada which where victims of property speculation in prices and affordability.

The new President-elect has placed the current economic crisis at the top of his agenda when he takes charge in January. Included in this program is this lingering real estate crisis where Obama promised a 90-day moratorium on foreclosures. However, experts say that it will still be up to individual states to impose their own regulations.

While direct intervention by the government regarding foreclosures is still debatable, major banks and financial institutions have starting working out mortgage restructuring and putting monthly payments down to affordable levels. This means cutting down interest rates, extending loan terms, and reducing balances.

Although the last two months have shown good figures and great signs of recovery for the housing industry, work in this area still has a long way to go. Experts say that these figures may not yet be considered conclusive, although it shows sign that the nation is heading in the right direction.

This year’s third quarter reflected only 255 homes facing foreclosure issues at Montana. Although comparatively low by nationwide standards, the value still reflected a 141% increase from the same period last year.

Wyoming’s economy remains strong despite the nationwide financial crisis trend. With the 3 percent growth rate for employment tallied by the U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics for September as compared to the same period last year, Wyoming showed the highest employment growth rate.

This greatly contributed to the state’s virtual immunity to foreclosures. The construction industry contributed to most of Wyoming’s employment growth, with several commercial and public projects generating a fair-sized amount of jobs./

One factor that help maintained Wyoming’s low cases of foreclosures is the absence of investors buying second-hand homes for business purposes. A rush of foreclosure homes buying in other states contributed to lowering of home prices, aggravating the foreclosure crisis even more.

Another factor contributing to the lesser impact of the financial crisis to this state is the uncommon occurrence of subprime mortgages, provided to consumers with low credit scores, which only added up to the burden of these beleaguered homeowners due to higher payment rates.

Despite this promising trend for Wyoming, banking experts still predict that the foreclosure rates- will continue to increase before the market stabilizes. The current nationwide slow down in the economy will cause a lower demand for energy.

Energy is one commodity where Wyoming derives its income, with major mining activities for coal, crude oil, natural gas and other minerals. Unless the economy recovers, this decrease in demand will eventually have its impact on this U.S. state.