02 May 2007 06:41 am

The big debate: A boom in foreclosures

Make Money in Short-Sale Foreclosures: How to Bypass Owners and Buy Directly from Lenders Foreclosures of homes are up 51 percent this year over 2005. our take: Who’s to blame? There was one vote for “HANG ALL LAWYERS.” Ralph A. says banks and mortgage companies “are so hungry for the dollar that they will give anyone a mortgage.” Lynn O. feels home “flippers” from California “have done more to inflate home valuations than anyone else.” People, just because someone tells you that you are qualified for a $250,000 home loan does not mean you can afford it!” And O., quoting the 19th-century French political philosopher Alexis de Tocqueville, chalks it all up to good ol’ covetousness: “It is odd to watch with what feverish ardor Americans pursue prosperity.”

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01 May 2007 06:45 am

Appraisers urged to set ethics aside

As the housing industry slumps, these supposedly impartial judges of property values complain they’re being pressured by brokers and agents to manipulate their findings to ensure loans go through. The ways to inflate values are simple enough. Appraisers might overlook the extent of a property’s datedness or disrepair, use comparable sales of similar-size homes in nicer nearby neighborhoods or not call a seller’s agent to discover a comparable property’s sales price included tens of thousands in closing-cost assistance and escrowed repair funds, as has recently been the case, regulators and appraisers say. Construction Funding: The Process of Real Estate Development, Appraisal, and Finance

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