12,766 REO's Offered For Sale on Countrywide Financial's Website

Total REO Asking Price: $2,330,528,842
(As of May 22, 2008)


Source: http://www.countrywide.com/purchase/f_reo.asp

Click on state below for detailed listings.

State	Count	Total Asking Price($)	Average Asking Price($)
AK	05	1,284,500	256,900
AL	125	12,853,100	102,825
AR	31	2,876,855	92,802
AZ	347	79,027,304	227,744
CA	3,500	911,468,914	260,420
CO	247	43,302,562	175,314
CT	135	23,216,000	171,970
DC	23	6,619,625	287,810
DE	14	2,052,600	146,614
FL	1,472	270,927,220	184,054
GA	709	81,058,505	114,328
HI	16	5,715,500	357,219
IA	31	3,236,475	104,402
ID	39	9,719,428	249,216
IL	527	74,691,129	141,729
IN	264	16,200,751	61,366
KS	41	3,507,590	85,551
KY	78	6,721,969	86,179
LA	39	3,769,100	96,644
MA	297	51,864,486	174,628
MD	231	64,973,945	281,272
ME	10	1,187,000	118,700
MI	980	76,078,460	77,631
MN	417	57,564,820	138,045
MO	183	15,507,470	84,740
MS	82	7,295,698	88,972
MT	07	1,879,300	268,471
NC	131	21,892,810	167,121
ND	02	159,800	79,900
NE	22	2,265,900	102,995
NH	64	11,469,005	179,203
NJ	123	28,646,330	232,897
NM	15	1,984,500	132,300
NV	265	63,955,500	241,342
NY	148	34,074,451	230,233
OH	403	23,091,281	57,298
OK	29	2,526,900	87,134
OR	63	14,781,403	234,625
PA	109	10,266,498	94,188
RI	77	12,432,100	161,456
SC	54	4,985,800	92,330
SD	07	663,400	94,771
TN	194	17,357,909	89,474
TX	420	63,298,913	150,712
UT	30	10,929,700	364,323
VA	567	137,606,914	242,693
WA	76	18,875,700	248,364
WI	74	8,044,050	108,703
WV	39	6,195,072	158,848
WY	04	424,600	106,150
Total	12,766	2,330,528,842	161,852

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It ‘Makes No Sense’ To Continue Paying The Mortgage When The Value Of Your Home Stops Going Up.

60 Minutes On The New Logic Behind Foreclosures.

Okay, I'm kidding but Stephanie Valdez is not. Matt and Stephanie Valdez are a couple who can afford to continue paying their mortgage payments but see no point in making them. Is it really worth it to continue making payments on an underwater mortgage and at 11% [usury] interest rate? “There is a certain cold logic to just walking away”, says Steve Kroft.

But Matt and Stephanie Valdez say they knew exactly what they were doing when they bought a small two-bedroom for $355,000. They could afford the initial payments and planned to refinance the mortgage before the interest rate jumped to 11 percent. But they couldn't do it because the value of the house had fallen below what they owed on the mortgage. They say they can afford the higher payments, but see no point in making them.

"The house keeps going down, payments keep going up. Where's the logic in that? And how can we fix it? I mean, that's what this whole thing's about for us is how can we fix this? And if we can't fix it, then what do we do?" Matt Valdez asks.

"Why pay a $3,200 payment on a 1200-square-foot home? It makes no sense," Stephanie Valdez adds.

"That's what you agreed to do when you bought the house," Kroft points out.

"Fine. If the value is going up. But we're not going anywhere. The price or the value is going down. It makes no sense because we will never be able to refinance and get a lower payment. There's no way," Stephanie Valdez replies.

"You're saying, essentially, that you're going to stop making payments on it? You're just gonna let it go into foreclosure?" Kroft asks.

"You know, that's the only advice we've gotten so far is walk away from the home. We don't want to do that to our credit. Why can't our mortgage company work with us?" she says.

The full video does a nice job at explaining the whole ponzi scheme. Also from Mish's Global Economic Trend Analysis: Does 60 Minutes Legitimize Walking Away?

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Over 2,000 bank owned homes to be auctioned off in California starting this weekend (Jan 26 - Feb 24)

It appears that REDC (US Home Auctions) is going to be quite busy this month and earning some nice commissions (5% “Buyers Premium”). If you visit their site and click on an area, there is a detailed break down on all the homes being offered and an option to download them to an excel file. REDC also lists what the previous REO asking prices were. Adding up that column comes up to about $650 million worth of REO that "MUST BE SOLD" in one month (11 auctions). Lenders are now in liquidation mode as foreclosures continue to climb. (Dataquick: California Foreclosure Activity Still Rising)

While obvious that we still haven't hit the "bottom" yet as far as home prices are concerned, and according to a Merrill Lynch report, home prices will drop another 15 percent this year, and declines will continue in 2009. The unknown is just how serious will the upcoming recession be? The FED is in full battle now in fighting against a monstrous deflationary force caused from the collapse of the housing bubble.

Should I buy yet? It really depends on your area. Real estate is local to a greater extent, just make sure you get a good deal, and by that I mean a very good deal. If you can negotiate a good price and intend to live there, I'm guessing you should be okay (yes, i did say guessing). Mortgage rates are at a 2 year low and expected to come down even further. This will make a difference and will bring in a lot of people who were on the sidelines back into the market. Okay, I'm starting to sound like a Realtor(TM) now. Simply put, I don't believe you should put your life on hold waiting for the absolute bottom and in some areas it may not turn out as you expect.

Be sure to do your homework and figure out what a property would rent for and and compare that to what your monthly mortgage payments would be. Here's a calculator from the New York Times and another one from the Center for Economic and Policy Research (2005). If you are looking to buy and flip a house, then be sure to check out one of my favorite sites on flipping houses. Good Luck to all those attending the auctions and be very careful on how you bid.


Update: (And thanks Bubble Sitter for posting this)

“US Home Auctions allow SHILL BIDDING. The quote below is right out if their brochure (and this is the second time I have posted this quote on your web site):”

“On page 122 paragraph 3, I quote verbatim: ‘Except where prohibited by law, the Auctioneer may open bidding on any property by placing a bid on behalf of the Seller and may further bid on behalf of the Seller, up to the amount of the reserve price, by placing successive or consecutive bids for a Property, or by placing bids in response to other bidders.’”

“Your advice to be very careful is right on the mark. US Home Auctions wants to get the bidding going and get people invested in time and effort, then PUMP THEM UP!”

“BE CAREFUL INDEED.”

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Bank of America in talks to acquire Countrywide Financial

From the Wall Street Journal:

“Bank of America Corp. is in advanced talks to acquire struggling Countrywide Financial Corp., according to people familiar with the situation.”

“It isn't clear how quickly a deal might be struck, but two people familiar with the matter said it could occur very soon. It also is possible that an agreement could be delayed or fall apart altogether.”

“The market value of Countrywide has plunged to about $3 billion, which represents about two months' profit for Bank of America. The Charlotte, N.C., bank paid ...”

Read full article [WSJ subscription needed]


Countrywide has been struggling with the U.S. housing slump, and on Wednesday said foreclosures and late payments among home loans for which it collects payments rose to the highest levels on record in December.

"‘Somebody is going to have to absorb the massive losses in right-positioning Countrywide,’ said Sean Egan, managing director of credit-rating firm Egan-Jones Ratings Co. ‘It can be done, but the cost is going to be exorbitant. From Countrywide's perspective, it is their best chance for salvation.’"


Shares of Countrywide Financial (CFC) surged 51% to 7.77.

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Crisis may make 1929 look like a 'walk in the park'

From the UK Telegraph:

“As central banks continue to splash their cash over the system, so far to little effect, Ambrose Evans-Pritchard argues things are rapidly spiralling out of their control.”

“Twenty billion dollars here, $20bn there, and a lush half-trillion from the European Central Bank at give-away rates for Christmas. Buckets of liquidity are being splashed over the North Atlantic banking system, so far with meagre or fleeting effects.”

“As the credit paralysis stretches through its fifth month, a chorus of economists has begun to warn that the world's central banks are fighting the wrong war, and perhaps risk a policy error of epochal proportions.”

“‘Liquidity doesn't do anything in this situation," says Anna Schwartz, the doyenne of US monetarism and life-time student (with Milton Friedman) of the Great Depression.’”

“‘It cannot deal with the underlying fear that lots of firms are going bankrupt. The banks and the hedge funds have not fully acknowledged who is in trouble. That is the critical issue," she adds.’”

“Lenders are hoarding the cash, shunning peers as if all were sub-prime lepers. Spreads on three-month Euribor and Libor - the interbank rates used to price contracts and Club Med mortgages - are stuck at 80 basis points even after the latest blitz. The monetary screw has tightened by default.”

read full article >>

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The Mortgage Lender Implode-O-Meter reaches 200!

200 Major U.S. Lenders Have ‘Imploded’

From Implode-O-Meter (A popular web site that tracks failing or "imploded" lenders):

"Imploded" lenders: The "imploded" status is somewhat subjective and does not necessarily mean operations are ceased permanently: it can mean bankruptcy filing, temporary but open-ended halting of major operations, or a "firesale" acquisition. The Companies include all types (prime, subprime, or a mix of both; retail or wholesale; subsidiaries and entire companies). Note: Companies listed here may still be operating in some capacity; check with them before making assumptions.

Ailing lenders haven't shut down, but they're significantly scaling back or are (or recently have been) in manifest financial, legal, or operational distress. Unfortunately, most of the industry now falls under this description, so we are forced to reserve this list for the more glaring cases or those which we happen to have more specific info about.

Click here for the whole list of imploded lenders and for the latest news and commentary on the mortgage industry.

Over 1000 bank owned homes to be auctioned off in Southern California (Nov 3 - 11)

November 3, 2007 - November 4, 2007.

The party starts this Saturday at the Fairplex in Pomona. Here's the link to the 400 REO's that "MUST BE SOLD" from REDC (USHomeAuction.com)



November 07, 2007 - November 11, 2007

Hudson & Marshall: Nearly 600 Southern California Foreclosed Homes Totaling $198 Million Up For Auction

"A souring housing market brimming over with foreclosures and falling home prices translates into sweet news for buyers in search of deals. As property values continue their spiral downward, more owner occupant buyers are turning to foreclosed property auctions to find even greater price reductions. America's largest foreclosed real estate auction firm, Hudson & Marshall will auction nearly 600 foreclosed homes located throughout Los Angeles and the San Bernardino Valley area on November 6-11."

Lenders are now aggressively cutting down on prices but that still doesn't mean you're going to find a bargain. All indicators showing plenty of "growth potential" in California's "As Is" home sales industry, and increased competition in REO's is always a good sign for the consumer - just take a look at California's recent record foreclosure activity.



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Countrywide Financial: It Was A Technical Glitch

The other day Countrywide Financial posted over 195,000 properties for sale on their REO/Foreclosure website. It was a complete shocker to many of us - as we didn't know what to make of this.

Thanks to Peter Villes from the L.A. Times who contacted Countrywide's PR and received the following email response:

"There was a technical glitch. I'm trying to get you the accurate number but it probably won't happen until tomorrow."

A reader from the L.A. Times Blog asked:

‘MattJ wrote, " I'm sure it is a technical glitch, too, but the real question is what is that list of 190,000 houses a list of? Some speculation at Calculated Risk include that it is a list of homes in the foreclosure process but not yet REOs, or that it is a list of all REO houses that Countrywide services. Whatever it is, it sure would be nice to learn what that larger list contains and how it ended up in their list of Countrywide REOs."’

The question from MattJ's post was forwarded by email to Countrywide by Peter and the response from Countrywide was as follows:

"There was an omission in the logic that didn't filter out any properties so it was including all historical REO properties in the database. This has been rectified and new logic has been added."

From Peter Villes:

"To answer gman's question ("Is it possible that Countrywide has 196,000 of these and they've just been holding back?"), we think that is highly unlikely, and we take Countrywide at its word on this one: a technical glitch."

I believe this explains a lot, and we should take Countrywide at its word on this one as well.


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