Friday, August 21, 2009

Palm Beach Gardens Short Sales

Aug

21

Palm Beach Gardens Realtor Rodney Forbes

Palm Beach Gardens Realtor Rodney Forbes

Palm Beach Gardens Realtor Rodney Forbes was featured in a national real estate teleconference focused on technology, blogging and social media. Rodney is broker for Forbes Realty of South Florida, located in West Palm Beach. Real estate professionals seem to be the last to adopt new technologies, especially when internet sites like Facebook and Twitter are seen as sites for bored teenagers.

Cutting edge real estate agents are understanding the power of social media sites for networking. For real estate professionals, most considered their web prescence to be a website with IDX access for visitors. Few, if any, actually get business from their sites, many costing thousands of dollars to set up and maintain.

“Web 2.0″, as the new internet wave is referred to, focuses on interactive media such as blogs, video and networking sites such as Twitter. Old, static websites are being replaced by free, or mostly free, blog sites and networking platforms. Agents who want to stay ahead of the curve are using Youtube, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and many other “2.0″ technologies.

Click here to listen to a replayof the FREE 90 minute call from Harris Real Estate University. Harris is the largest online realtor coaching program in the country.

If you have any questions regarding the information in this teleconference, call Rodney directly at 561-283-6497 or email Rodney@ForbesRealtyOnline.com

Rodney created his real estate blog using the information in this call. Click here to check it out.

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Aug

15

shortThe topic of short sales and foreclosures seem to dominate the headlines everywhere. There has been a lot written about short sales and whether you should or shouldn’t short sale your home if you’re in this situation. This has led to many misconceptions about short selling your home.

This series is about the myths regarding short sales. Caveat: The rules regarding short sales are different for every lender and are changing all the time as the market changes. ALWAYS consult a real estate attorney and a CPA regarding the particulars of short selling.

Short Sale Myth #3:

Banks don’t accept short sales.

Even in today’s real estate market there is a widely held belief that banks won’t even accept a short sale. Maybe two years ago when the default rate was much lower banks would deny they accepted short sales if you had called with a hardship.

Today every bank and mortgage company I know of does short sales. It’s just a sign of the times. In Palm Beach County about 30% of all real estate listings are short sales. It may take awhile to get them approved but banks would rather do a short sale than to take a property back under foreclosure.

The most important thing to remember when contemplating whether a short sale is right for you is to get good advice from a real estate attorney and CPA.

If you are considering a short sale make sure you also consult with a licensed Realtor(r) who specializes in short sales. In the Palm Beach County area, especially in Palm Beach Gardens, West Palm Beach and Jupiter, Forbes Realty of South Florida is focused on short sales and helping homeowners through the process.

Rodney Forbes, broker for Forbes Realty, has also co-authored the book “Should I Short Sale My Home?”. Click her for your FREE copy.

Watch for the next article in the Short Sale Myths series. Or, just subscribe to the blog and they will be sent automatically.

If you are interested in buying or selling a home in the Palm Beach County area, specifically Palm Beach Gardens, Jupiter and West Palm Beach, please visit my Forbes Realty website. For frequently updated information on foreclosures, short sales, real estate news and market conditions visit my South Florida Real Estate Report blog. There are many free reports as well as free access to MLS listed properties. You can also call 561-337-4810.

Rodney Forbes is a licensed Realtor®, certified short sale/REO specialist and broker for Forbes Realty of South Florida Inc. Rodney has co-authored the book “Should I Short Sale My Home?”. Get your FREE copy at www.SouthFloridaRealEstateReport.com

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Jul

1

chains

The topic of short sales and foreclosures seem to dominate the headlines everywhere. There has been a lot written about short sales and whether you should or shouldn’t short sale your home if you’re in this situation. This has led to many misconceptions about short selling your home.

This series is about the myths regarding short sales. Caveat: The rules regarding short sales are different for every lender and are changing all the time as the market changes. ALWAYS consult a real estate attorney and a CPA regarding the particulars of short selling.

Short Sale Myth #2:

Short sales are impossible and never get approved.

Fact:

Because of the current real estate market, short sales will be around for a long time. The fact that they may take longer to complete than a traditional sale doesn’t mean they’re impossible.

The most important thing to remember when you’re involved in a short sale transaction, as a buyer or a seller, is to make sure yu’re dealing with realtors who are experienced in short sale transactions. Having an experienced team to walk you through the process is essential.

As far as numbers go, for those who think that short sales are impossible and never close, in Palm Beach County, 656 short sale transactions have closed in the last 90 days!

If you are considering a short sale make sure you also consult with a licensed Realtor(r) who specializes in short sales. In the Palm Beach County area, especially in Palm Beach Gardens, West Palm Beach and Jupiter, Forbes Realty of South Florida is focused on short sales and helping homeowners through the process.

Rodney Forbes, broker for Forbes Realty, has also co-authored the book “Should I Short Sale My Home?”. Click her for your FREE copy.

Watch for the next article in the Short Sale Myths series. Or, just subscribe to the blog and they will be sent automatically.

If you are interested in buying or selling a home in the Palm Beach County area, specifically Palm Beach Gardens, Jupiter and West Palm Beach, please visit my Forbes Realty website. For frequently updated information on foreclosures, short sales, real estate news and market conditions visit my South Florida Real Estate Report blog. There are many free reports as well as free access to MLS listed properties. You can also call 561-337-4810.

 

Rodney Forbes is a licensed Realtor®, certified short sale/REO specialist and broker for Forbes Realty of South Florida Inc. Rodney has co-authored the book “Should I Short Sale My Home?”. Get your FREE copy at www.SouthFloridaRealEstateReport.com

 

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Jul

1

money-spiralNew study about what economists are calling, “Strategic Default”. Where homeowners who CAN afford to stay in their homes despite negative equity are choosing not to……

How widespread is this practice? New research* based on a survey of 1,000 homeowners suggests that one in four mortgage defaults are “strategic”—by people who could meet their payments but who choose not to. The main drivers of strategic default are the scale of negative equity, and moral and social considerations. Few would opt to renege on their mortgage if the equity gap were below 10% of their home’s value, the authors find, partly because of the costs of moving. But one in six would bail out if loans were underwater by a half.

* 25% of all defaults are homeowners who CAN afford to pay..choosing not to. They are making the decision that the negative ramifications of foreclosure (or short sale) are less significant to them than the burden of the negative equity.

Four-fifths think strategic default is wrong. Those in the unethical minority are four times more likely to renege on loans (allowing for other influences) when their negative equity reaches $50,000. But morality has its price. When the equity gap reaches $100,000, “immoral” homeowners are only twice as keen to walk away from their debts as “moral” ones. People under 35 or over 65 are less likely to believe that default is wrong. So are the well-educated.

* Interesting….People under 35 or over 65 are less likely to believe that default is wrong. So are the well-educated.

* There IS a price…there is a number where even the most financially conservative homeowner will walk away. Understand, this is what keeps the banks (and the government) up at night. They know that once a homeowner is X% upside down…they will let the house go..(Short Sale or for the misinformed…foreclosure).

Anger about bail-outs of banks or carmakers does not weaken the moral barrier to default. But people who live in neighbourhoods where home repossessions are frequent are more likely to welsh on loans. Homeowners who know someone who has defaulted strategically are 82% more likely to say they would do so, too. The likelihood of strategic default rises more quickly once the rate of local home foreclosures reaches a critical level. That hints at a vicious cycle of foreclosures that both depress home prices and weaken the social and economic barriers to further defaults. To break the cycle, policymakers need to address the problem of negative equity, not just unaffordable interest payments.

Here are my questions for you…what is your number? Seriously….at what point would you decide that leaving is better than staying…

Are you considering or have you already done a ’strategic default’?

How much negative equity would your mortgage have to be before you choose to sell it short sale (etc)?

What are you seeing in your market..are homeowners choosing to let their homes go that are 10% upside down….30%…50%? In areas of the country where homes have depreciated 30%+ what will keep those homeowners from not following this same path?

Let us know what you think..share your comments….

(The answer to THESE QUESTIONS are at the essence of what will allow this housing lead depression/ recession to end)

Thanks to: Tim Harris

If you are interested in buying or selling a home in the Palm Beach County area, specifically Palm Beach Gardens, Jupiter and West Palm Beach, please visit my Forbes Realty website. For frequently updated information on foreclosures, short sales, real estate news and market conditions visit my South Florida Real Estate Report blog. There are many free reports as well as free access to MLS listed properties. You can also call 561-337-4810.

 

Rodney Forbes is a licensed Realtor®, certified short sale/REO specialist and broker for Forbes Realty of South Florida Inc. Rodney has co-authored the book “Should I Short Sale My Home?”. Get your FREE copy at www.SouthFloridaRealEstateReport.com

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Jul

1

short-sale-buttonAs real estate values have dropped over the last couple of years, drastically in some places, thousands of home owners have found themselves either upside down on their mortgage, unable to afford their payments, or both.

The topic of short sales and foreclosures seem to dominate the headlines everywhere. There has been a lot written about short sales and whether you should or shouldn’t short sale your home if you’re in this situation. This has led to many misconceptions about short selling your home.

This series is about the myths regarding short sales. Caveat: The rules regarding short sales are different for every lender and are changing all the time as the market changes. ALWAYS consult a real estate attorney and a CPA regarding the particulars of short selling.

Short sale Myth #1:

You need to be behind in your payments before the lender with consider a short sale.

Fact:

This may have true in the past, but today the key phrase is hardship. Certainly being behind in payments is the most common type of hardship. But hardship could also be caused by job loss, death in the family, divorce, adjustable rate mortgage hike, loss of property value (especially in places like California, Arizona, Nevada and Florida).

If you are considering a short sale make sure you also consult with a licensed Realtor(r) who specializes in short sales. In the Palm Beach County area, especially in Palm Beach Gardens, West Palm Beach and Jupiter, Forbes Realty of South Florida is focused on short sales and helping homeowners through the process.

Rodney Forbes, broker for Forbes Realty, has also co-authored the book “Should I Short Sale My Home?”. Click her for your FREE copy.

Watch for the next article in the Short Sale Myths series. Or, just subscribe to the blog and they will be sent automatically.

If you are interested in buying or selling a home in the Palm Beach County area, specifically Palm Beach Gardens, Jupiter and West Palm Beach, please visit my Forbes Realty website. For frequently updated information on foreclosures, short sales, real estate news and market conditions visit my South Florida Real Estate Report blog. There are many free reports as well as free access to MLS listed properties. You can also call 561-337-4810.

 

Rodney Forbes is a licensed Realtor®, certified short sale/REO specialist and broker for Forbes Realty of South Florida Inc. Rodney has co-authored the book “Should I Short Sale My Home?”. Get your FREE copy at www.SouthFloridaRealEstateReport.com

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Jun

30

For many first time home buyers in Palm Beach County and the surrounding areas, low home prices from bank owned foreclosure and short sales coupled with low interest rates don’t help much if they don’t have enough up front money for down payment and closing costs.

The new twist on the $8000 Federal Tax Credit for first time home buyers is the ability to use the credit for up front costs, instead of having to wait until closing and filing tax returns.

This is welcome news to many potential home buyers who have the credit to qualify and some funds, just not enough saved. The program will go into effect in Florida on July 1st.

The following is an excerpt from the Orlando Sentinel

Starting Wednesday, Florida hopes to stoke its real-estate market by becoming one of the few states to offer $8,000 in down-payment assistance to qualified homebuyers so they can benefit upfront from a new federal tax credit.

The state Legislature set aside $30 million to create the Florida Homebuyer Opportunity Program, aimed at first-time buyers and others who have not owned a home for at least the past three years. To qualify, an individual cannot earn more than $75,000 a year, while couples can’t earn more than $150,000.

“Here in Florida, rather than qualified buyers waiting to get the tax credit on the tail end of the process, in the form of a credit after they have filed the tax returns, it will allow them to get it upfront and let them use it for down-payment assistance and fees,” said David Hart, vice president of legislative and government affairs for the Florida Home Builders Association. He estimated that about five states are taking a similar approach.

The state’s program takes effect Wednesday, though the money isn’t expected to be available until later in July or August. The funds are being distributed through local government and nonprofit agencies that already provide down-payment help through the State Housing Initiatives Partnership, known as SHIP. Qualified homebuyers are entitled to $8,000 or 10percent of the property’s purchase price, whichever is less.

If you are interested in buying or selling a home in the Palm Beach County area, specifically Palm Beach Gardens, Jupiter and West Palm Beach, please visit my Forbes Realty website. For frequently updated information on foreclosures, short sales, real estate news and market conditions visit my South Florida Real Estate Report blog. There are many free reports as well as free access to MLS listed properties. You can also call 561-337-4810.

 

Rodney Forbes is a licensed Realtor®, certified short sale/REO specialist and broker for Forbes Realty of South Florida Inc. Rodney has co-authored the book “Should I Short Sale My Home?”. Get your FREE copy at www.SouthFloridaRealEstateReport.com

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Jun

30

1st-time-buyer-2As home prices remain at bargain levels, and interest rates continue to stay at historic lows, many people are asking for details on the First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit. Who qualifies, when and how do I get the money, are there restrictions?

The following article gives some answers to basic questions as well as the most important answer for most, the expiration date.

According to Keystone Custom Homes, first-time buyers need to be aware that the tax credit is only available now until Dec. 1, 2009 on a closed home purchase. There are other aspects of the tax credit that are important to first-time home buyers, including:

– The tax credit is not a deduction. “It’s much better than that,” says Wisdom. With a deduction, you can only write off the deduction against your total income. So if you make $60,000, you can only reduce your total income by the amount of the deduction, which really isn’t that much savings. For instance, if you have an $8,000 deduction and earn $60,000, you still have pay taxes on $52,000. That’s not much of a savings. But the $8,000 First-Time home buyer tax credit is dollar for dollar. “So you actually reduce your tax payment by the amount of the credit. For instance, if next year, you go to file your taxes and learn that you owe nothing to the IRS, you will receive a check back for $8,000!” says Wisdom.

– First-time home buyers can receive a short-term loan to use the tax credit toward a down payment. In late May 2009, the Federal Housing Administration announced that it will allow eligible first-time home buyers to apply the $8,000 first-time home buyer tax credit to a down payment on a home. This can be done through no-interest loans now available through FHA-approved lenders in the Commonwealth. The loans must be paid back using the tax credit, which is applied to a home buyer’s 2009 tax return. First time home buyers can learn more about this opportunity by talking to their FHA-approved lender or mortgage broker.

For Florida, governor Charlie Crist approved the program as of July 1st. The details of who will administer the program are not clear. The program may be run by the Florida SHIP program.

– The first-time home buyer tax credit is available even if you make good money. The tax credit is available to single first-time home buyers who make less than $75,000 a year or couples who make less than $150,000 a year. “That income covers a lot of Americans,” says Wisdom. “And it’s also based on adjusted gross income. So if you make more than those limits, but deductions reduce your income to those limits, you still might be eligible for the tax credit or a good portion of it.”

– There are ways to receive your tax credit now without applying for a loan. First-time home buyers in essence can gain the benefit of the up to $8,000 tax credit this year by reducing their income withholdings to the amount of the credit. This will allow you to see more cash in your take home pay. And that’s money can then be used toward a down payment or for moving and other costs related to owning a brand new home.

If you have recently closed on a home and plan to use the tax credit, you can also file an amended return for your 2008 taxes and get the tax credit now. Discuss this with your accountant or CPA.

“Obviously, a first-time home buyer should check with their accountant before making any assumptions,” says Wisdom. “But right now, we are seeing record traffic at many of our 24 communities, and much of their interest is due to exceptionally low prices coupled with the Federal Tax credit. Add that to the fact that interest rates, while beginning to rise, are still at near-historic lows, and the combination of these factors makes it the best time in generations to buy a first home.”

Source: Market Watch

If you are interested in buying or selling a home in the Palm Beach County area, specifically Palm Beach Gardens, Jupiter and West Palm Beach, please visit my Forbes Realty website. For frequently updated information on foreclosures, short sales, real estate news and market conditions visit my South Florida Real Estate Report blog. There are many free reports as well as free access to MLS listed properties. You can also call 561-337-4810.

 

Rodney Forbes is a licensed Realtor®, certified short sale/REO specialist and broker for Forbes Realty of South Florida Inc. Rodney has co-authored the book “Should I Short Sale My Home?”. Get your FREE copy at www.SouthFloridaRealEstateReport.com

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Jun

3

short-sale-signThe following is an article from The South Florida Real Estate Report.

As real estate values have dropped over the last couple of years, drastically in some places, thousands of home owners have found themselves either upside down on their mortgage, unable to afford their payments, or both.

The topic of short sales and foreclosures seem to dominate the headlines everywhere. There has been a lot written about short sales and whether you should or shouldn’t short sale your home if you’re in this situation. This has led to many misconceptions about short selling your home.

This series is about the myths regarding short sales. Caveat: The rules regarding short sales are different for every lender and are changing all the time as the market changes. ALWAYS consult a real estate attorney and a CPA regarding the particulars of short selling.

Short sale Myth #1:

You need to be behind in your payments before the lender with consider a short sale.

Fact:

This may have true in the past, but today the key phrase is hardship. Certainly being behind in payments is the most common type of hardship. But hardship could also be caused by job loss, death in the family, divorce, adjustable rate mortgage hike, loss of property value (especially in places like California, Arizona, Nevada and Florida).

If you are considering a short sale make sure you also consult with a licensed Realtor(r) who specializes in short sales. In the Palm Beach County area, especially in Palm Beach Gardens, West Palm Beach and Jupiter, Forbes Realty of South Florida is focused on short sales and helping homeowners through the process.

Rodney Forbes, broker for Forbes Realty, has also co-authored the book “Should I Short Sale My Home?”. Click her for your FREE copy.

Watch for the next article in the Short Sale Myths series. Or, just subscribe to the blog and they will be sent automatically.

If you are interested in buying or selling a home in the Palm Beach County area, specifically Palm Beach Gardens, Jupiter and West Palm Beach, please visit my Forbes Realty website. For frequently updated information on foreclosures, short sales, real estate news and market conditions visit my South Florida Real Estate Report blog. There are many free reports as well as free access to MLS listed properties. You can also call 561-337-4810.

 

Rodney Forbes is a licensed Realtor®, certified short sale/REO specialist and broker for Forbes Realty of South Florida Inc. Rodney has co-authored the book “Should I Short Sale My Home?”. Get your FREE copy at www.SouthFloridaRealEstateReport.com

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Jun

2

Good article from Housing Wire

The housing market may not stabilize until Q111, the Mortgage Bankers Association said today, upon release of its National Delinquency Survey, which shows foreclosure activity hit an all-time high in Q109.

The MBA is now in its 40th year of releasing the survey. Earlier predictions pointed towards a housing market recovery happening sooner, but the MBA says this is unlikely until at least the end of 2010.

The survey shows the delinquency rate — which excludes those homes in the foreclosure process — on one- to four-unit residential properties hit 9.12% in Q109. In Q408, the delinquency rate sat at a much lesser 7.88%.

Twelve percent of all mortgages are now at least one payment delinquent, the MBA said in a conference call.

The ongoing severity of the housing slump is demonstrated in the “seriously delinquent” rate — the percentage of loans that are 90 days or more delinquent — which sat at 7.24%, according to the MBA. That’s 94 basis points higher than Q408 and an astounding 321 points higher than last year at the same time.

Total foreclosure inventory was also up, with 3.85% of all mortgages somewhere in the foreclosure process at the end of Q109, compared with 3.3% in Q408.

Not only has foreclosure activity surged, it’s become more widespread, as prime, fixed-rate mortgages now constitute 56% of mortgages in the foreclosure process.

The transient nature of the market, where people are relocating to new towns for new jobs and turning over home keys time and time again, must settle, before the housing market can begin a solid recovery, the MBA explained.

Which means, the job market must take a turn in the right direction, before housing can do the same, which the MBA predicts will come in the first half of 2010.

Write to Kelly Curran.

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Jun

2

Until now most people had assumed the mortgage crisis only had to do with people who bought over valued homes with sub-prime loans. Due to the slow down in the economy and large companies going bankrupt, the mortgage crisis is spreading to people who were once considered “safe” borrowers.

The mortgage crisis is spreading and hitting new heights: Borrowers with good credit now make up the largest share of foreclosures as job losses and pay cuts exact their toll.

A record 12 percent of homeowners with a mortgage were behind on their payments in the first quarter, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported Thursday. And the trend is predicted to continue until the end of next year, about six months after unemployment is expected to peak.

The genesis of the recession — risky adjustable-rate loans made to borrowers with bad credit — remains a significant factor in foreclosures. Today, almost half of all subprime ARMs are past due or in foreclosure. In Florida, New Jersey and New York the number is above 55 percent.

When those borrowers started defaulting in droves in late 2006, it forced dozens of lenders out of business and sparked a credit crisis in the summer of 2007. Businesses nationwide couldn’t get short-term loans to finance new orders or even cover their payrolls. Economic production began shrinking at the end of 2007 in what has become the longest recession in the United States since World War II.

The impact has now filtered out, consuming homeowners who until recently had a good track record of paying their bills on time. Nearly 6 percent of these prime borrowers with fixed-rate mortgages were past due or in foreclosure, nearly doubling in the past year.

“These (borrowers) are the best of the best out there,” said real estate analyst Mike Larson with Weiss Research in Jupiter, Fla. “Clearly, borrowers far and wide are getting hit by this.”

The worst of the trouble continues to be focused in California, Nevada, Arizona and Florida, which accounted for 46 percent of new foreclosures in the country and reported the worst delinquency and foreclosure rates on prime fixed-rate loans. The four have suffered massive job cuts in the housing industry. There were no signs of improvement.

But experts expect the pain to spread throughout the country as job losses mount. MBA’s chief economist Jay Brinkmann estimates the unemployment rate will top out in mid-2010 and foreclosures will abate about six months afterward.

The number of newly laid off people requesting jobless benefits fell last week, the government reported Thursday, but the number of people receiving unemployment benefits reached 6.78 million in mid-May, the highest on record.

The continuing rise in unemployment, which economists say could reach double digits, means more trouble for the ailing financial system and the economy. Lower incomes and lost jobs are the No. 1 reason people lose their homes through foreclosure. Higher unemployment also means people have less money to spend on basic necessities, let alone luxuries.

And borrowers without jobs are harder for lenders to help with loan modifications.

Nadine Harris in Bakersfield is hoping to modify her 30-year fixed-rate mortgage under President Barack Obama’s loan modification and refinancing program introduced earlier this year.

The 55-year-old was laid off two years ago by Sears after working there 34 years. Harris found another job, but she makes $20,000 less a year. The $925 she takes home every two weeks doesn’t cover her $1,522 mortgage and other living expenses. She’s used all her savings to stay current on her payments, but next month the reserves will run dry.

“I’ll have to scrimp to make up the payment in June,” she said.

Jodi Woodsmith, a housing counselor at Self-Help Enterprises in Visalia said that in the last eight weeks she’s seen more and more homeowners with similar stories walk through her door.

“Those who had savings, they’ve exhausted their savings hoping they could ride it out,” she said.

Woodsmith said a recent change to the president’s program allows borrowers to use unemployment benefits as a source of income for a loan modification. Income from spouses who are not on the mortgage also is taken into account.

Though the plan might stem some foreclosures, it might not be enough to significantly alter the crisis.

“It may be too much to say that the numbers will fall because of the plan,” Brinkmann said. “It’s more correct to say that the numbers won’t be as high.”

Source: Tim and Julie Harris

If the trend continues, the opportunity for bottom basement priced housing will continue for qualified buyers. The government will work to keep interest rates low and the tax credits for home buying will probablybe expanded.

If you are interested in buying or selling a home in the Palm Beach County area, specifically Palm Beach Gardens, Jupiter and West Palm Beach, please visit my Forbes Realty website. For frequently updated information on foreclosures, short sales, real estate news and market conditions visit my South Florida Real Estate Report blog. There are many free reports as well as free access to MLS listed properties. You can also call 561-337-4810.

 

Rodney Forbes is a licensed Realtor®, certified short sale/REO specialist and broker for Forbes Realty of South Florida Inc. Rodney has co-authored the book “Should I Short Sale My Home?”. Get your FREE copy at www.SouthFloridaRealEstateReport.com

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