Destin Florida Real Estate – Short Sales – Foreclosures

If you are buying a home around Eglin Air Force Base or Hurlburt Field, you may want to know about HAP properties. HAP stands for Homeowner Assistance Program, and it is designed to help military service members sell homes with upside-down mortgages. 

For example, if you are looking at a Crestview Florida home where the military seller owes $250,000 on the mortgage, and the home is only worth $150,000 (very common), this might be a scenario where HAP could help.  If the seller qualifies, HAP will cover his mortgage loss at time of sale, and allow you to buy it without waiting for a “short sale”.

HAP, run by the Army Corps of Engineers, assists airmen who are PCSing (permanent change of station) with orders to a new base more than 50 miles away.  To qualify for the HAP program, the service members must generally meet these criteria:

1.    They entered into a contract to purchase their current home before July 2006.

2.    It was their primary residence when they got orders to move

3.    Their orders were between February 1 2006 through September 30, 2012.

4.    The property must have declined at least 10% in value.  (That should not be in problem in the Eglin AFB and Hurlburt Field market).

If you find a property in Crestview, Fort Walton Beach, Niceville or Navarre Florida that is specified as “HAP”, what does this mean to you?

1.     Your real estate contract should have language stating it is “contingent on HAP approval”.

2.    You should allow up to 90 days for approval.  The HAP processing time was about six months at the beginning of the year, but it is speeding up.  You may be approved quicker.

3.    HAP generally will pay competitive closing costs, perhaps 3% of the purchase price.  Be prepared that they may not agree with what you are asking.

4.    HAP wants fair market value for the property.  Do not expect to pay much less.  HAP will request the listing agent provide comparable sales data, and they will do an independent analysis, as well.

5.    Realize the Eglin AFB or Hurlburt Field service member will do the initial negotiations with you, and may not accept or may counter offer your proposal.

When it is time to close, HAP will do what is called an “Augmented sale” or “Government Acquisition”.  They will actually buy the property from the service member, then sell it directly to you. 

As you begin your home search in Crestview, Navarre, Niceville and Fort Walton Beach Florida, remember to check out HAP homes.  You may be HAPpy you did!

Eglin and Hurlburt Field HAP help

It’s Wendy!

Wendy Rulnick, Broker, Rulnick Realty, Inc.

Call toll-free 1-877-ITS-WNDY (1-877-487-9639) or local 850-650-7883 ext 204

Email Wendy: itswendy@rulnickrealty.com

Search Crestview, Navarre and Fort Walton Beach FL Real Estate

Crestview, Navarre and Fort Walton Beach Short Sales & Pre Foreclosure Help.

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Wendy is a short sale and pre-foreclosure specialist and has been featured in “Kiplinger Personal Finance Magazine” and “Florida Realtor Magazine”. Call Wendy Rulnick, Broker/Owner,to list and sell your home or condo on the Emerald Coast of Florida in Walton, Okaloosa and Santa Rosa County-  Destin, Santa Rosa Beach, Fort Walton Beach, Niceville, Bluewater Bay, Navarre, Seagrove Beach, Watercolor, Sandestin, Seaside, Crestview, Rosemary Beach, Mary Esther, Shalimar, Eglin AFB, Hurlburt Field. 

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I was stunned and delighted to receive this email from a Bank of America VA short sale negotiator:

Hey Wendy,

I was able to push through the approval much faster than normal.  You have been very good to work with so wanted to do what I could to get it approved.       Thanks!

WOW!  It was exactly 30 days after sending in the short sale package to Bank of America, that my Crestview Florida listing was approved.  It was a VA Compromise Short Sale, so those must be faxed in versus using Equator.  I did have luck on my side, as the property had an existing VA appraisal that was still in effect from earlier this year.  (In case you didn’t know, VA appraisals for compromise sales are good for six months.) And I knew exactly what net Bank of America needed to make the sale happen.  We did not load up closing costs for the short sale lender to pay.  Why waste time and submit something you know will be kicked out?

To be honest, I think this negotiator liked my responsiveness.  He preferred to communicate by email, and I whip out responses so fast it can be shocking.  I guess he liked that, too.

Anyway, next time you are negotiating your short sale- it’s something to think about.  Are you “Good to work with?” And is that the key to short sale approvals?

It’s Wendy!

Wendy Rulnick, Broker, Rulnick Realty, Inc.

Call toll-free 1-877-ITS-WNDY (1-877-487-9639) or local 850-650-7883 ext 204

Email Wendy: itswendy@rulnickrealty.com

Crestview Florida Real Estate

Crestview Florida Short Sales, VA Compromise Sales & Pre Foreclosure Help.

Read Wendy’s Crestview Real Estate Blog

Wendy is a short sale and pre-foreclosure specialist and has been featured in “Kiplinger Personal Finance Magazine” and “Florida Realtor Magazine”. Call Wendy Rulnick, Broker/Owner,to list and sell your home or condo on the Emerald Coast of Florida in Walton, Okaloosa and Santa Rosa County-  Destin, Santa Rosa Beach, Fort Walton Beach, Niceville, Bluewater Bay, Navarre, Seagrove Beach, Watercolor, Sandestin, Seaside, Crestview, Rosemary Beach, Mary Esther, Shalimar, Eglin AFB, Hurlburt Field.

By now most Eglin Air Force Base and Hurlburt Field airmen are aware of the Homeowner Assistance Program (HAP).  HAP has been expanded to help service members pay off much of their mortgage loss when PCSing to a new base and the value of their property has dropped below its mortgage balance.  By using HAP the service member may avoid a short sale.  There are many rumors floating around about HAP.  I had the good fortune of speaking at length to the regional representative who covers the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Savannah District.  Savannah District services the military in the Eastern United States and Europe. Hopefully, the following Q&A I gleaned from our conversation will help you better understand your HAP PCS options:

1. How long will it take to get HAP benefits? Four to six months from time of application.  Why so long? HAP is currently understaffed.  There are over 4200 applicants in the Savannah District, around 6400 nationally. Savannah District has 55 employees, separated into 5 teams, each lead by a “Realty Specialist”. They are processing 80-100 applications per person.  Three to four people are manning the toll-free lines. Most of the applications are missing data, so about 30 reps are assigned to asking applicants to complete all the needed information.

2. How can I get the quickest approval from HAP?  The Savannah regional representative made it very clear “Do your part–  send in as complete a package as possible”.  The Savannah District processes PCS applications in order of completeness! Remember, you don’t need your orders to apply. Eligibility for HAP is determined a few weeks after application. (Of course, priorities are always Wounded Warriors, Surviving Spouses)  Apply as soon as you know you will be getting orders.

3. Should I be concerned about the minimum marketing time on the HAP website of 120 days?  If your home sells sooner than 120 days, HAP will still consider the offer if it is close to fair market value.  It is important for you to get your real estate agent to do a market analysis supporting the contract price to provide to HAP.  HAP wants agent assistance.  If not, they use what is called an Automated Valuation Model (AVM) that is provided by a company called Core Logic.  These valuations may not be as accurate as what your agent provides, and HAP is aware of that. 

4. What else should I know about the calculations to determine my HAP benefit?   The HAP website leaves out some very important information about the amount of your benefit.  It is based not only your original purchase price, but on capital improvements you have done with receipts to show proof.  For example, if you put on a new roof, installed a water heater, built a retaining wall, etc, those are considered “capital improvements”.  What is not a capital improvement would be fixing a broken air conditioner, etc.  Reference the IRS “Selling Your Home”  publication for a guide on what a valid improvement is, HAP uses the same.

5. Will HAP pay more than the 90% reimbursement stated on their website? In reality, HAP will consider reimbursing up to 95%, per the regional rep I spoke with.

6. Will HAP pay more than 7% of the contract price towards closing costs, including your real estate agent commission?  In reality, HAP will reimburse 10% towards closing costs.  As the HAP regional rep stated, they want service members to be competitive in the market place, so if it helps to pay a bit toward buyer’s costs, they will do so.  Currently under review is a national policy on exactly what costs HAP will cover.  For example, they will not pay a buyer’s homeowner insurance, but might consider paying points. 

This is a recap of just part of my discussion with the HAP regional rep.  If you are a service member at Eglin AFB, Hurlburt Field, Whiting Field or Duke Field, and are considering HAP or a short sale for your next PCS move, give me a call or email me at itswendy@rulnickrealty.com.   I will be happy to fill you in on the rest of the scoop.  

It’s Wendy!

Wendy Rulnick, Broker, CRP, CRS, GRI, ABR     Rulnick Realty, Inc.

Call toll-free 1-877-ITS-WNDY (1-877-487-9639) or local 850-650-7883 ext 204

Search All Eglin AFB area Real Estate

Eglin AFB and Hurlburt Field Short Sales & Pre Foreclosure Help.

Read Eglin AFB Short Sale and Real Estate Blog

Email Wendy to sell your home or buy a home: itswendy@rulnickrealty.com

Call Wendy Rulnick, Broker, to list and sell your home or condo on the Emerald Coast of Florida in Walton, Okaloosa and Santa Rosa County-  Destin, Santa Rosa Beach, Fort Walton Beach, Niceville, Bluewater Bay, Navarre, Seagrove Beach, Watercolor, Sandestin, Seaside, Crestview, Rosemary Beach, Mary Esther, Shalimar, Eglin AFB, Hurlburt Field.   Wendy is a short sale and pre-foreclosure specialist and has been featured in Kiplinger Personal Finance Magazine and Florida Realtor Magazine.