Harlan B. Griswold III's Blog

Are they blameless in this real estate debacle?

I find it interesting that real estate agents seemed to have dodged any significant regulation as a result of the meltdown in Real Estate. While lenders and appraisers have had massive changes in how they are allowed to do business (see related blog postings), almost no new regulation is aimed at the real estate agent. Read the rest of this entry »

I may have helped this become a reality

Of my many complaints about adverse changes in the real estate industry, my number one complaint has been buyers being forced by banks to use No Name Escrow companies. These (bank (REO) chosen) escrow companies were often far away, usually in S. California and they provided terrible service and delayed escrows. So, I was shocked and angered when CAR, our Realtor organization, issued a “red alert” opposing bill AB 957, which gives the buyer the right to choose escrow. I couldn’t believe it. Read the rest of this entry »

In the last two years, agents have told their buyers “short sales are to be avoided like the plague”. Some of the reasons included:

• The servicing agents were overwhelmed; it took weeks or months for a response.
• The lender was not realistic about values, asking for more than it was worth.
• Second leinholders refused to cooperate.
• Agent commissions were reduced, often at the last minute.

While some of these issues have improved, lenders still are illogical in their response to a short sale offer. One recent short sale of ours failed because the lender could not believe that home values had declined so much, and they would only be getting about 30% of the loan balance in net proceeds. Read the rest of this entry »