The Beeler Group

A Lake of the Ozarks lakefront home is everyone’s dream. (Ok, maybe not everyone) And with all good things, lakefront homes come with something extra – lakefront home insurance. That in itself is not a product – but your needs as it pertains to insurance are different than other homes.

Thus you should be aware of the changes and extras you’ll need to make.

“Attractive nuisances” is the biggest problem with lakefront homes. Trampolines, docks, skidoos, hottubs, and swimming platforms are all considered enticing and then of course, dangerous. Attractive nuisances are defined as something on the homeowner’s property that could possibly attract a liable loss. Other than putting up a chainlink fence around your beautiful property, the way to combat attractive nuisances is with insurance.

You want to bring this up with your insurance agent. Some companies don’t cover attractive nuisances and others hike up your premiums. It’s best to know on the front end when you’re buying a home.

Boat Coverage

If you have a boat, you’re going to need some extra coverage. If the boat is big, you’ll need “inland marine” insurance to move the boat from its current location to your dock at your home . Your homeowner’s insurance won’t cover it if it is big. Row boats and canoes on the other hand sometimes fall in the homeowner’s insurance policy.

Seasonal Issues

If your Lake of the Ozarks home is just a seasonal dwelling your insurance will be calculated differently no matter how you look at it. Insurance doesn’t consider seasonal dwelling to be primary residence dwelling – so that will be written differently.

While away, you may just need a fire policy (unless there are attractive nuisances). And your boat will likely not need liability but does damage coverage. These are all things you’ll need to fact into your Lake of the Ozarks Home.

Water Accidents

Accidents that happen on the water can’t typically be made a homeowner’s fault. Even if someone has an accident 20 feet of your property. The exception to that is the homeowner’s negligence. So make sure you don’t have fraying rope swings right off your back balcony.

Water accidents that happen to a homeowner will be covered by riders to the homeowner’s insurance policy and by their health insurance coverage. Nothing unique there.

Understand The Foreclosure Process – Difficult Times Demand Detailed Information

The foreclosure process is the action that a bank takes when a homeowner defaults on a mortgage.  The process allows the bank to gain back as much money as they can from the sale of the home in order to recover the money that was originally loaned to the homeowner.

Foreclosure occurs when the homeowner stops paying their mortgage for any reason:  death, illness, and loss of employment are common reasons.  Once a homeowner stops making payments, their property is at risk of being foreclosed.

This is a very distressing time for the homeowner.  By taking the time to understand what the foreclosure process entails, it will help alleviate some of the anxiety and frustration.  The first thing a homeowner facing foreclosure needs to do is contact the bank and learn about their foreclosure process.  Here are the three different types of foreclosure processes:

Power of Sale

This type of foreclosure is allowed by most states as long as there is a “Power of Sale” clause in the mortgage.  Once the homeowner has defaulted on mortgage payments, the lender sends them notices demanding payments until an established waiting period has been met, which is typically 90 days.  At that time the mortgage company carries out a public auction typically held in the county in which the property is located in.  A Power Sale is also known as a “Statutory Foreclosure.”

Strict Foreclosure

Only a small number of states allow a “Strict Foreclosure.” The lender files a lawsuit against the homeowner due to the default in the payments. The court may grant the homeowner a specific time-frame in which to bring the debt current.  If the homeowner is unable to perform, then the property goes directly to the mortgage holder.

Judicial Foreclosure
All states allow this type of foreclosure, and some even require it.  The lender files suit with the judicial system once the homeowner has defaulted.  The homeowner is notified by mail demanding payment and has 30 days to respond with a payment in order to stop the foreclosure process.  If payment is not made within the time-frame, the bank proceeds with foreclosure and holds a publicly held auction where the highest bidder receives the home.

Foreclosure laws vary from state to state, which is why it is important to contact the bank who holds the mortgage to learn not only what the bank’s procedures are, but what laws govern them.  Most states also have information available either on their website or by contacting them by telephone.

Once the homeowner has contacted the bank and has become educated on the process, the next step is to continue discussions with the bank to learn if there are any options available to avoid foreclosure.  The bank may be interested in re-structuring the loan, refinancing, permitting a short sale, or accept the deed in lieu of the foreclosure.  The foreclosure process is an expensive option for the bank to carry out, so if there is an alternative solution, they may be interested in moving forward in a different direction other than foreclosing.

In short, by understanding the foreclosure process and keeping open communication with the bank that holds the mortgage, a homeowner may be able to initiate other ways to get out from under the burden of the current mortgage.  Foreclosure does not have to be imminent if you educate yourself and stay informed.

Bank vs Homeowner – When Does A Short Sale Benefit Both

A question that is being asked frequently in the lake of the ozarks real estate market is, “What is a short sale?”  Short sales used to be an infrequent type of real estate transaction, but with current economic conditions, more and more homeowners are opting for this type of sale. A short sale occurs when a homeowner sells their home for less than what is owed to the mortgage holder. There are pro’s and con’s for both the homeowner and the bank in a short sale.

Bank

There are several reasons why a mortgage holder, or bank, would agree to accept less than what is owed.  A bank may benefit from a short sale for one or more of the following reasons:

• more cost effective for the bank to accept less because it would cost more to foreclose
• banks do not want to own property
• banks are in the business of making money

In a short sale transaction, the bank or banks involved must approve any offer that is received by the homeowner.  The primary bank, the one that holds the first mortgage, will review the offer received to determine whether enough money will be made in order to make it worth agreeing to the short sale versus moving forward with foreclosure procedures.  This may take some time as each bank has a lot of “red tape” the offer must go through.

Homeowner

There are reasons a homeowner may opt for a short sale on their home.  A homeowner may benefit from a short sale for one or more of the following reasons:

• credit score suffers less from a short sale than a foreclosure
• remain in the home until an offer comes in that the bank accepts
• payments may be suspended depending on the bank’s policy

To initiate a short sale, the homeowner must first contact the bank to discuss the option and learn the process the bank requires.  General requirements are to provide a hardship letter outlining why they homeowner can no longer keep up with monthly mortgage payments, as well as providing earnings documentation.  This should be done immediately, before the bank begins foreclosure proceedings if there have already been late payments.  The bank will inform the homeowner whether or not they “may” accept a short sale, which will be dependent on any offers that are received.

The Downside

There are a few downsides to short sales.  For the bank, they forgive a portion of the mortgage in exchange for receiving some of the payment in full.  For the homeowner, it means possible credit history hits, as well as being a very lengthy, stressful process.

In the end, a short sale can be a beneficial alternative for distressed homeowners and banks alike.  It provides the homeowner with a way to get out from under a mortgage that they can no longer support, and it provides the bank with an option to costly foreclosure.  It is a good idea for homeowners to consult a real estate professional as well as seek advice from a tax specialist to learn if there are tax consequences to a short sale.

Lately here in the Lake of the Ozarks, it’s been hard to keep foreclosures and short sales on the market. Seasonally, spring is a time out-of-towners begin looking for their summer home so the market for foreclosures and short sales is about to get more competitive. Know the differences before you start.

There are several differences between a short sale and a foreclosure.  Homeowners who find they are having difficulty meeting their monthly mortgage payments should be careful to understand these differences before taking action.  Discussing the options with their mortgage company, scheduling a meeting with a real estate consultant, and learning what potential taxable and credit report consequences may be, are all important facets to understand before making a decision.  Let’s first look at the definition of these terms:

Short Sale – when a lender agrees to accept less than what a homeowner owes on a mortgage. In a short sale the home is listed by the owner and sold.

Foreclosure – when the homeowner stops making monthly mortgage payments and the bank takes legal action against the homeowner and the deed of the home returns to the lender. In a foreclosure, the deed is transferred to the bank in a legal action.

Now that we know the difference, let’s take a look at the specifics of the short sale and a foreclosure:

A short sale provides the home owner the opportunity to put the home on the market at or near market value even if more than the market value is owed on the property.  When the home is offered for sale, it must be advertised and marketed with verbiage such as “short sale” and “all contracts must be approved by bank.”  This informs potential buyers that the seller cannot accept any offer without approval from the mortgage holder.  In some cases, the bank will wait until several offers have been received before making a decision as to which one, if any, to accept.  The reason for this is so the bank can be sure to accept the highest offer, thereby receiving the most money back on their initial investment.

The reason a bank will even consider a short sale is because oftentimes they will retain more of the money owed them as opposed to going through a costly foreclosure.  The foreclosure procedure is expensive for banks as they include attorney fees, court fees, realtor fees, and tax expenses.  Often it is simply more cost effective for them to accept the short sale.

Homeowners who are considering either of these options should also consult a real estate professional, a tax specialist, and perhaps a tax attorney.  There are real estate professionals who specialize in short sales.  They can provide additional information, such as the current market value of the home, the potential for it to sell at a specific price, and how long it will take to receive an offer.  They will also be able to manage the short sale transaction, assisting the homeowner with forms, communication and anything else required of the bank.  In addition, a tax specialist or tax attorney will be able to provide advice on any potential taxable consequences the homeowner may be responsible for in either a short sale or a foreclosure.

When determining what is best for a particular situation, short sale vs foreclosure, consult the professionals, discuss options with the mortgage holder, and understand what it will take to be successful in either case.

Have you ever checked Craigslist Lake of the Ozarks for homes? Other than Realtor.com or Homes.com, it really has been a great place to get up to date listings. One of the great things about using Craigslist for Lake of the Ozarks home searches is its timeliness.

Because there isn’t a way to automate using Craigslist, everything you see on there has been manually uploaded in the last few days. And since it is so easy, homes that go on the market are often there first. We list our clients’ homes on Craigslist every day to make sure they’re always there for buyers to find.

And once the house is sold we stop uploading it so you can be assured that you’re actually viewing homes that are not already sold.

Another way we keep our clients’ homes in the public eye is through our YouTube sites. We actually build websites that host YouTube videos of a certain variety. For instance, if you visit our Lake of the Ozarks Foreclosures website, you’ll see videos of only Foreclosure properties. And we also have a 3 bedroom 2 bath homessite dedicated to keeping you up to date with new homes that fit that category.

To help buyers find those sites, we also post houses on Craigslist Lake of the Ozarks that specifically link to those two web pages. There’s nothing better than finding what you’re looking for. For both buyers and sellers, finding the house of your dreams brings smiles to faces.

If you’re curious how Lake of the Ozarks Real Estate has held up over the last few years, so were we. Knowing how much to price your home or how well your property will appreciate over the years is important information.

So we put together a spreadsheet showing you home, condo, lakefront homes, villas, townhouses and land prices each year since 2004. See how lake of the ozarks real estate has held its property value. . . See how long it takes to sell a property now and then, what have been the average listing prices. . . it’s all there.

If you’ve already pressed “I want to know”, then check your e-mail, otherwise, do that now:

How have Lake of the Ozarks home prices fared since 2004?

Name:

Email:

Related Posts:

• Home Price Graph
• Real Estate Property Videos

Missouri Real Estate 101

Buying a home in the Lake of the Ozarks is not like buying a home in typical suburbia. In fact, if you don’t live here you’d be doing yourself a favor to have a realtor help you out. (Especially the first time).

Many of our Remax Lake of the Ozarks clients come from out-of-state and need to spend a little time getting to know the lake before the process of home hunting can really start.

• Tip #1 – How you live matters a great deal here. If you plan to lounge at the dock during the summer, grill out and enjoy life sitting by the lake, you’ll likely be much happier in a protected cove property. If you find yourself with a home on Lake of the Ozark’s main channel, the waves and wakes created by the massive summer, weekend boat traffic will keep you off the dock.

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