Tim White - Blog

New RESPA Regulation Could Mean Longer Closing Times

Tim White — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 12:56:57 GMT

New RESPA regulations now require additional “cooling off” periods when the HUD Settlement Statement is changed. While the intent of the changes is to protect the consumer, the changes are causing delays in the time it takes to move a home sale from the time the offer is accepted until the time the closing of escrow occurs.

The majority of the burden of these new changes falls into the laps of Mortgage Companies and banks. Starting at the time of loan application, the mortgagee (bank) provides the buyer with a Good Faith Estimate. From the time the buyer receives the GFE, the buyer has ten days to review the GFE and decide whether or not to move forward. OK, great idea, no problem.

If the costs in the settlement statement change, for any reason, the borrower must be informed in writing, and there will then be an additional “cooling off” period. If the written changes are presented face-to-face between the borrower and the buyer, then the waiting period is THREE days. If the presentation of changes is done by fax, email, mail, etc, then the wait is SEVEN days. This is for every time something changes on the HUD.

So how is this different? Lenders have always advised the borrower of when there were changes. The borrower would look at the changes, decide whether to accept them or not, and move forward. Now, because of these new RESPA changes, the borrower must wait the 3-7 day cooling off period.

To me, it’s as if the government is telling the buyer, “You’re not capable of making a mature decision about your finances, so we’re making you take a few days to think about it.” Imagine if you changed the HUD three times through the course of a transaction. The inspection costs came in higher, the seller agreed to pay more money in seller concessions, and a second appraisal is required. You are now looking at postponing the closing by 9-21 days, plus the time it takes to do the appraisal, and/or inspection repairs.

Closings are already taking 45-60 days on average. It used to be 30 or less.

You can learn more about RESPA at the US Department of Housing and Urban Development website http://www.hud.gov

From the HUD website:

“RESPA is a HUD consumer protection statute designed to help homebuyers be better shoppers in the home buying process, and is enforced by HUD.”

“…designed to help homebuyers be better shoppers…”

Laws to help homebuyers be better shoppers. This is the part that just rubs me raw. Essentially the government is saying that the average consumer isn’t smart enough to make an educated decision, so they’re going to pass laws to do it for you. Protecting the consumer is a noble idea, but I question if perhaps this time it’s gone a bit overboard.

Decide for yourself. Like it or not, it’s in effect, for better or for worse. Just be advised that it may take a bit longer to close your home purchase.

Tim White's 2009 Oceana County Market Study Released!

Tim White — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 11:14:33 GMT

OK, it took some doing, but it's done.

I've spent the last couple of weeks digging up and crunching numbers for my 2009 Oceana County real estate market study, and let me tell you, it's been an "interesting" experience. One economy-sized bottle of Advil later, I am pleased to present my finished product.

I've posted it on my website. Just go to www.timwhitehomes.com and click on the "2009 Oceana Market Study" Button in the top navigation bar.

The report includes 2009 number of homes sold, average days on market, sale price versus list price stats, and more. I've compiled data for Oceana County as a whole, and also broken the numbers down into three sub-categories, or "Regions". The regions are the Lakeshore, The US 31 Corridor, and Eastern Oceana County.

But hey, why am I explaining all this here? Get over to my home page and see it from there!

Tim White

The Wind Farm Debate Heats Up West Michigan

Tim White — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 10:25:25 GMT

Over the last couple of months, the wind turbine tower project proposed for the waters of Lake Michigan off of Oceana and Mason Counties has generated a lot of debate and discourse. As Realtors, we have a vested interested to stay informed of this project, and the ramifications, good or bad, that it could have to our communities.

I recommend that all local community members familiarize themselves with the proposed projects, and do some research to understand the economic and environmental repercussions, good or bad, that such a project could potentially have on West Michigan.

The wind turbine project is being proposed by Scandia Winds, LLC of Chanhassen, MN and its Norwegian partner, Havgul Clean Energy. Scandia Wind has dubbed the project

Suggested view of what a Wind Farm could look like.

Similiar projects are proposed in various parts of the country. To read about these projects, and see photos of other proposed projects, visit the ecopolitology blog at http://ecopolitology.org. The photo above is courtesy of ecopolitology.org.

The Industrial Wind Action Group has a site that demonstrates some of the local community members' concern about the Aegir Project. You can view the page at http://www.windaction.org/news/25129

An article on MLive.com has generated many comments, both for and against the project. To read the article and comments go tohttp://www.mlive.com/news/muskegon/index.ssf/2009/12/wind-farm_developers_face_hurd.html.

Legislation has been introduced to the Michigan State House of Representatives to issue a moratorium on permitting or leasing for offshore wind energy development. Rep. Geoff Hansen (R-Hart) introduced House Bill 5671 to legally prohibit development of a project until the state has had a chance to institute oversight measures. You can review this bill athttp://www.legislature.mi.gov/(S(mptgzfaeef3jy1uojajhws55))/mileg.aspx?page=GetObject&objectname=2010-HB-5761

It is my intent to provide you with the tools to form your own educated opinion on this matter. If you would like to voice your opinion to your local representatives in Government, here are some links to some local Government Officials:

Rep. Geoff Hansen (R-Hart) http://www.gophouse.com/welcome.asp?District=100

State Rep. Dan Scripps (D-Leland) http://101.housedems.com/

State Senator Gerald Van Woerkom (R-Muskegon) http://www.senate.michigan.gov/gop/senators/vanwoerkom.asp?District=34

Governor Jennifer Granholm (D-Mich) http://www.michigan.gov/gov

U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich) http://stabenow.senate.gov/

U.S Senator Carl Levin (D-Mich) http://levin.senate.gov/

U.S. Rep. Pete Hoekstra (R-Mich) http://hoekstra.house.gov/

For tips on how to effectively communicate with your government representatives, visit http://www.congress.org/communicate

"The Aegir Project". They have developed an informative website for the project. To read more, visit http://www.scandiawind.com/Aegirproject.html

Hart Rotary Club Aids Haiti Victims

Tim White — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 08:11:56 GMT

At Wednesday's weekly meeting of the Hart Rotary Club, a motion was presented to donate $500 in relief aid to those struggling to survive in Haiti following the earthquake that ravaged the country. The vote was unanimously passed by all present.

The money donated will be matched by Rotary International. For $1,000, the Rotary will purchase a ShelterBox that will be shipped to Haiti and given to a family. Each box supplies an extended family of up to 10 people with a tent and essential equipment to use while they are displaced or homeless.

Also at Wednesday's meeting, the group unanimously voted to contribute $200 to the Thanks a Million food pantry which will be held at First Baptist Church in Hart on February 6th. Members of the Rotary will also assist in the distribution of the food at the church in February.

I recently signed up to be a member of the Hart Rotary, and it's great to see local professionals working together to help people locally, and internationally. For more information about Rotary Clubs, visit http://www.rotary.org