Short sales are back in vogue.

Once a term that was barely in the real estate industry’s vernacular, they took off three years ago. That was followed by a long period of complaints about how difficult they were to get done. Agents on the listing and buy sides steered clear of them, and potential buyers did too.

But consider this: Lender Processing Services Inc. said the number of short sales in January exceeded foreclosures for the first time. RealtyTrac reported that bank-owned sales of foreclosed properties in January outnumbered short sales, but the gap between the two had narrowed appreciably.

If the trends hold true, more than 105,000 short sales may have been completed nationally during the year’s first quarter, and that would be the highest quarterly total since 2009’s first quarter.

In January, the 907 short-sale transactions in the Chicago area represented a 35% increase from a year ago, but bank-owned homes accounted for twice as many sales, RealtyTrac found.

Problems, most involving delayed response times, still exist, and a short sale isn’t the answer for the impatient home buyer. But there certainly seems to be increased interest by federal agencies and the private sector in dealing with distressed properties by completing a short sale rather than letting the property fall into foreclosure.

“We probably underutilized it as a tool,” said Neal Wolin, deputy Treasury secretary, while in Chicago last week.

In a short sale, a home owner sells the property, with the lender’s approval, for less than the amount owed on the mortgage.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency announced this month that beginning in June it will put into place streamlined procedures to handle potential short sales of Fannie Mae- and Freddie Mac-backed properties.

The FHFA, which regulates the two enterprises, said mortgage servicers will have to respond to a short sale offer within 30 calendar days of an offer, and if it’s under review longer than that, weekly updates must be provided.

Servicers also will have to notify a borrower of a final decision regarding a short-sale offer within 60 calendar days.

Meanwhile, before a one-day outreach event for troubled home owners in Rosemont last week, several mortgage servicers met with area real estate agents to teach them how to help borrowers who decide a short sale would be their best option.

Bank of America, for instance, is trying to have home owners and their real estate agents work with the bank to determine an acceptable sale price for a property before it’s listed, rather than deal with the typical months of back-and-forth negotiation.

“We want to see that home back on the market and in as pristine condition as possible,” said Roger Braggs III, a Bank of America vice president.

Despite the good intentions, real estate agents are taking a wait-and-see attitude when it comes to the talked-up changes to speed the process. There’s still plenty of give-and-take between mortgage servicers and home owners, as investors determine how much of a loss they’re willing to take on a distressed home, they say.

“I can have two files with the same bank. One can take two weeks, the other two months,” said Lonny Miller, an agent at Charles Rutenberg Realty in Naperville.

But there seems to be a realization that it’s better for the investor, and the neighborhood, to take a loss through a short sale than a bigger loss if the property falls into a long and expensive foreclosure procedure.

Nationally in January, short sales sold at an average discount of 23% to a traditional sale, while foreclosures sold at an average 29% discount.

Trisha Wightman, an agent at Re/Max Elite in Hinsdale, listed a Bolingbrook home as a short sale for $269,900 in late August, and it went under contract three weeks later. The sale closed in late March for $260,000.

“The banks take forever, but I do find they’re going through. And the sellers are getting full relief from their mortgages with no recourse, and that is different than a year ago,” Wightman said. “I’m telling buyers to wait. I encourage them to fight and wait to the bitter end.”

Inspections should be done within the first couple of weeks after the offer is ratified, i.e., accepted by both buyer and seller. Usually, the day after ratification is day one of the contingency and closing time periods. This may vary from one location to the next.

When transactions fall apart soon after ratification, the cause is usually something discovered during the buyer’s inspections. It’s a good idea for sellers to get presale inspection reports so that the buyers have as much information about the property as possible before they make an offer.

Most home inspection reports make recommendations to consult other specialists such as a roofer, furnace contractor, drainage specialist or engineer. Few sellers have these additional inspections done. Even if they do, the buyers might want a second opinion.

Inspections are also somewhat subjective. One inspector might say a roof needs to be replaced; another might say it has a few years of life left as long as it is properly maintained. Transactions fall apart because the buyer and seller can’t come to an agreement on inspections, which means the sale doesn’t close, the house goes back on the market and the buyers renew their home search.

If the inspection issues are worked out satisfactorily, the next major hurdle that could delay your sale, or crater it, is the loan contingency. Cash buyers bypass this rigorous process; however, they do need to provide the sellers with evidence that they have sufficient liquid funds to close the sale.

All-cash deals can close whenever the buyers and sellers agree, after all inspection issues are resolved. Closing can occur in a week or two. Some all-cash buyers include an appraisal contingency in their contract to confirm that they’re not paying over market value.

In this case, it would take longer to close because an appraiser would need to visit the property and work up an appraisal report. If the property didn’t appraise for the purchase price, the buyer might be able to back out and have the deposit returned.

Both buyer and seller would start all over again. However, if they negotiated a resolution, the sale could close quickly and would take far less time than it does to close a sale involving a mortgage.

HOUSE HUNTING TIP: Purchase contracts include contingencies and time periods for them to be met. To avoid having to ask for extensions, make sure that the time periods you request are reasonable. An extension might not be granted if the seller has a backup offer for a higher price.

Buyers should get preapproved for the financing they need to close a home sale before their offer is accepted. This way, they are assured of what they can afford to pay. Preapproval can cut a few days off the loan approval process.

Loan approval can go relatively quickly if you present all required documentation promptly and your financial situation is not complicated. It can be more time consuming for buyers who are self-employed or are using other than W-2 income to qualify.

Part of loan approval involves an appraisal on the property by a licensed appraiser. This can slow the process down depending on the lender, how backlogged they are and the loan amount. A large loan amount can prompt the need for two appraisals, which adds more time to the approval process.

THE CLOSING: If you’re buying in an area where homes are selling quickly, it may take 35 to 45 days from contract acceptance for final loan approval and closing.

ANTIOCH — The paths of several strangers recently collided at the doorstep of a four-bedroom home on Thistlewood Court.

In a bizarre tale centered on the slumping housing market, a real estate broker discovered in February that strangers were living in the 1,826-square-foot southeast Antioch home she was trying to sell for the owner.

Meanwhile, the home’s inhabitants say they may have been duped into a fraudulent lease agreement for the home, and filed a temporary restraining order against the Realtor.

The latest episode of the Thistlewood saga played out in a Pittsburg courtroom this week, as Contra Costa Commissioner Lowell Richards dismissed the restraining order against Realtor Melissa Case by Anthony Loquiao and Gayalea Risley.

Richards said Thursday that Case “was on thin ice” as far as the actions she had taken as a broker, saying it’s the owner’s responsibility to deal with issues related to the occupancy of the property.

Loquiao and Risley say they paid a hefty deposit and signed a one-year lease agreement with another Realtor for the home in October, and now believe they say they may have been duped.

“We might have been scammed by the other Realtor. We really don’t know what’s happening,” Loquiao said.

Richards told the engaged couple: “You probably were the victim of a scam, but you’re in a position where it wouldn’t be much for the owner to get you out.”

Property owner Debra Stewart asked Case to help

sell the property through a short sale. But upon arriving at the property, Case found that Loquiao and Risley were already living there.

Stewart, of Berkeley, said she never had a lease agreement with them for the property.

“I’ve been the sole owner since 2005. I have no idea who these people are; it’s just baffling to me. They have broken into my house,” Stewart said.

Stewart contacted PG&E and the city to turn off utilities and water.

Case said she tried to “make nice” with the squatters in an effort to see what she could find out.

“They kept telling me, ‘What gives you the right?’ but refused to show me the lease agreement,” Case said. “I even told them that if they were deceived, I could help them recoup their money.”

Loquiao and Risley said they had a “bona fide” lease agreement but refused an inquiry by this newspaper to see it, saying they were too busy trying to find out where their money is going and get their utilities turned back on.

According to Contra Costa court records, Loquiao and Risley were involved in a pair of unlawful detainer lawsuits, or evictions for not paying rent, in 2010.

“They are serial squatters. If you go on Wikipedia, it tells you to keep the front nice and never leave the property. They basically followed that,” Case said.

Loquiao and Risley vehemently deny the squatter claim, and accuse Case of bullying them with weekly emails and phone calls and a pair of police visits on consecutive days.

“She’s a scary person. I feel like she’s stalking me and going to break my door down, and I don’t like it,” Risley said.

According to state law, once tenancy is established after 30 days, occupants are afforded certain protections, and landlords must follow the state’s eviction process.

Squatters can even gain total legal possession of a property through a process called “adverse possession.”

Regardless of the circumstances, Case says the Thistlewood incident underscores the need for East Contra Costa cities to make it tougher for people to illegally move into vacant homes. Some squatters are coaxing banks into paying them thousands of dollars to leave homes ready for sale, Case said.

Pittsburg is the East Contra Costa city that makes it hardest for squatters, requiring renters to come in with property owners or present a notarized rental agreement to turn on water, along with a $250 deposit. Antioch, Brentwood and Oakley don’t have such rules, Case said.

“They’re ahead of the curve. (In other cities), I’ve resorted to telling my homeowners to let the yards go (by turning off water service) and making sure to have alarms on the property,” she said.

Sad to say but it occasionally – maybe even frequently – happens that when the scheduled time for closing comes, neither party is ready to perform. So what happens then? No doubt what happens most of the time is that both buyer and seller continue their efforts and eventually the transaction closes. But suppose that one of the parties has had a change of heart. Can they simply cancel on the grounds that the other has breached? A recent California ruling (Tornel v. Office of the Public Guardian of Los Angeles County) shows that it is not that simple.

In May of 2008, Mario Tornel and Martha Silva (buyers) purchased a home at an auction conducted by the Public Guardian of Los Angeles County acting in its capacity as conservator of the estate of Mary Buchenau. On August 1 the probate court confirmed the sale at a price of $254,000. Escrow instructions provided that the buyers would deposit 10% of the purchase price and that the remaining $228,600 was to be paid to the escrow holder no later than two working days prior to close of escrow. Also, before the close of escrow the conservator was to deliver all instruments necessary for the transfer of title. Escrow was scheduled to close on September 30.

The buyers put their deposit into escrow, but by September 30, neither party had tendered performance. The buyers had not deposited the balance of the purchase price and the conservator had not supplied the deed.

On October 15, a party acting on behalf of the buyers wrote the escrow company requesting that the escrow be cancelled and the deposit returned. Then, on October 19 – roughly twenty days late – the conservator delivered the deed to escrow. The buyers, however, refused to consummate the purchase, claiming the conservator was already in breach. They insisted that the escrow be cancelled and their deposit returned.

The conservator then filed a petition with the court to vacate the order confirming the sale so that the property could be marketed to new buyers. The conservator also requested authority to retain the deposit and to be awarded damages. The probate court granted the petition, and continued the matter until resale, at which time damages could be assessed.

When the buyers attempted to have this order set aside, the court gave them the opportunity to complete the sale at the original purchase price, but they declined. Subsequently, the property resold for a lower price. Not only did the buyer’s lose their deposit, they were assessed $34,662 in damages. Of course they appealed.

California’s Second Appellate District Court upheld the lower court’s ruling. The appellate court observed that “It is well established that if it is not clearly specified that time is of the essence in an escrow transaction, a ‘reasonable time’ is allowed for performance of the escrow conditions.” There was no “time is of the essence” provision in this sale, and there was nothing that implied that timing was essential. The buyers “presented no evidence at the trial level that a delay of 19 days following a two-month escrow was an unreasonable time for performance.”

Moreover, the court spelled out a crucial principle for its ruling: “even if time for performance has expired, a party cannot claim default by the other party as justification to terminate the escrow without either performing or having tendered performance to the other party.” [my emphasis] Because the buyers had not deposited their funds as required, they could not successfully claim that the other party had breached.

The moral to this story? Do not complain about the other side not having their ducks in a row, until you have made sure that yours are.

If you do just one thing to “live green” and care for the environment, chances are it’s recycling. About three-quarters of people in the U.S. recycle, and the EPA says that recycling “generates a host of financial, environmental, and social returns.”

What a lot of folks don’t know, however, is that it takes a little know-how to be a really good recycler. That’s because improper recycling can introduce impurities that gum up the recycling works.

The good news? It doesn’t take a whole lot of effort to be a smart recycler. Here are some great tips on how to be a top-notch recycler at your house:

1. If you drink from a plastic bottle, remove the twist-off cap and ring. They aren’t recyclable. In fact, bottles that arrive at recycling centers with the caps still on often are trashed. It’s too much work for the center’s employees to remove every cap, so do your part and remove them.

2. Don’t recycle anything that has food residue stuck to it. This goes for pizza boxes, paper towels, paper plates, and anything you’ve used to mop up a spill. Food waste adds impurities to products made from recycled materials, rendering them useless. Instead of tossing the whole pizza box into the trash, tear off the lid and any part of the box that’s clean, and recycle those.

3. Rinse everything out. It’s more efficient if the recycling center gets items that have been cleaned, and rinsing prevents your recycling bin from getting stinky and attracting pests. Don’t go crazy with scrubbing; a simple rinse is fine. While you’re at it, peel off any labels, along with as much of the sticky residue as you can.

4. Find out what types of plastic your local recycling center accepts. There are many different types of plastics, and not all of them are recyclable everywhere. Look for the number inside the recycling symbol — the three arrows that form a triangle — and make sure you only put the right types into your bin.

5. Pay attention to paper. Shredded paper doesn’t have the long fibers needed to make good recycled paper products, so find another use for it instead. Remove brightly colored paper, construction paper, and wax paper from regular white paper. Stick to paper from a notebook or printer. But don’t worry about tearing the little plastic window out of white envelopes — that small bit of plastic won’t hurt the recycling process.

6. Don’t put plastic grocery bags into your recycling bin. Instead, take a bunch with you next time you go to the store and recycle them there. If there’s not a bin to collect bags, ask the store manager to put one out. Better yet, get some reusable bags and forget about the plastic ones altogether.

7. When in doubt, call your local recycling center. Every community is different; find out how to maximize the recycling potential of yours.

And if you got out from under an oppressive mortgage through a short sale — when the bank agrees to accept less than what the homeowner owes — lenders can look upon you just as unfavorably.

It’s a reality that the former owners of the more than 4 million homes lost to foreclosure in the six years since the housing bubble burst will have to confront if they want to own again. But the passage of time makes all the difference.

That’s because mortgage-lending guidelines that most banks follow prohibit them from making loans to people with foreclosure or a short sale in their credit history, often for years. Never mind the hit that one’s credit score takes.

Still, some of the homeowners who were foreclosed upon when the market first started to skid are now looking to buy and getting loans.

Higher interest rate

“They’re probably going to pay a little higher interest rate, but with rates so low, a higher interest rate of 4 percent is not a big deal,” said Rosa Herwick, a broker and owner of Century 21 JR Realty in Henderson, Nev.

So how likely are banks to approve your mortgage application if you have a real estate-related blemish on your record? And can you do anything to spring yourself from the mortgage penalty box?

It depends on several factors, but largely on whether you had a foreclosure or a short sale.

Generally, borrowers who have a foreclosure in their credit history can expect to wait between two to seven years before a lender will even accept their loan application.

The waiting periods stem from guidelines most banks must follow in order to be able to sell their home loans. That’s because potential purchasers, such as Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, each have a different set of guidelines for the loans they will buy and criteria for whom they deem a qualified borrower.

The fact is, a person’s credit score, employment history and other factors that make up one’s creditworthiness will take a back seat to these resale guidelines.

If a buyer with a past foreclosure is seeking a government-backed mortgage, the waiting period can vary before they can qualify.

Take the Federal Housing Administration, which insures roughly 30 percent of new loans. Under its guidelines, former homeowners must wait three years from the date of their foreclosure before they can qualify for backing by the agency.

Compare the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s housing program which requires three years, while the time penalty for a VA loan is two years. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which own or guarantee about half of all mortgages, require the longest stretch: seven years after a foreclosure.

In some cases, the waiting periods for a foreclosure can be reduced.

Fannie Mae, for example, allows a three-year waiting period in the event the foreclosure was due to an extenuating circumstance. The company defines this as an event that was beyond the homeowners’ control and resulted in a sudden reduction in income or catastrophic increase in financial obligations. Think job layoff, medical bills or divorce.

FHA may grant an exception to its waiting period in the event a wage-earner becomes seriously ill or dies. A divorce may qualify for an exception, but only in certain cases.

The roadblocks for having a short sale in your credit history can be less severe, and in some cases, waived altogether.

FHA requires borrowers who weren’t paying their mortgage when they sold their house to wait three years before they can qualify for a home loan. That time penalty may be waived in certain cases, including long-term job loss.

FHA rules

There is no FHA time penalty for homeowners who made their house payments in the 12 months before their short sale.

The size of a down payment can also shorten the waiting period.

A down payment of 20 percent or more will cut Fannie Mae’s time penalty on a borrower with a short sale down to two years from seven. Buyers who put down 10 percent can qualify after four years.

It’s no longer just a waiting game for homeowners caught up in the earliest stages of the foreclosure crisis in 2007 and 2008.

There’s still the impact a foreclosure or short sale has on one’s credit score — still very much a factor in qualifying for a loan.

Like most credit blemishes, foreclosures and short sales will remain in your credit history for seven years.

As a general rule, the higher your FICO score, the more it will drop as a result of a bad debt, said Barry Paperno, consumer affairs manager for MyFICO.com, the consumer website for FICO.

FICO credit scores range from 300 to 850

Despite a spike in residential burglaries all over the Bay Area, crime in Brentwood is down overall, while efforts to streamline and enhance police efficiency are increasing.

That’s the word from Police Chief Mark Evenson, who this week delivered his department’s annual Benchmark Report. Begun in 2008, the report tracks the department’s performance in key areas to identify trends and help determine the effective use of department resources.

• Response times. Responding to Priority 1 calls (emergencies involving immediate threat to life, or crimes in progress) in 2011 took 4:48, up four seconds from the 2011 average. Priority 2 calls (high priority but not emergencies) took 5:46, down eight seconds from last year. The times are “very good for a department our size,” according to Evenson, and the slight increase in Priority 1 responses is “not significant enough to warrant any concern at this time.”

• Incidence of crime and crime rates. Violent crimes (including murder, rape, robbery, arson and assault) dropped 9 percent in 2010 to 463. Most categories were down, although rape increased from six to 12 incidents. Evenson said all of the reported rapes involved a spouse, boyfriend or someone known to the victim.

Property crimes (residential and non-residential burglary, theft and auto theft) dropped 3 percent to 1,080 despite a 43-percent spike in home burglaries, from 146 to 203. Evenson said public awareness efforts, Neighborhood Watch groups and increased patrols had been implemented to combat the burglary problem, which is being felt all over the Bay Area.

Overall, Part 1 crimes last year dropped 5 percent, resulting in a rate of 29.7 crimes per 1,000 residents. The rate is down from 31.7 last year, and other than 2008’s 26.5, this year’s rate is the lowest in a decade.

• Workload. Last year, the BPD’s reactive workload (response to calls for service, crime incidents, cases taken and traffic collisions) dropped slightly to an average of 538 incidents for each of the department’s 60 officers. Meanwhile, proactive incidents (officer-initiated incidents such as arrests, citations and traffic or pedestrian stops) increased from 292 to 307 incident per officer.

• Clearance rates. Cases can be closed either by an arrest or by exceptional circumstances, in which offenders have been identified and enough evidence gathered to support an arrest, but circumstances outside the department’s control (such as when the suspect is deceased) prevent an arrest.

In 2011, Brentwood’s clearance rate exceeded the national average in the categories of robbery, arson, assault, burglary and auto theft. (The national average is based on FBI statistics for 2010, the most recent year for which information is available). The BPD was below the national average in two categories: rape (33.3 percent closed by BPD versus 37.1 percent nationally) and theft (23.3 percent at BPD, 23.4 percent nationally).

Evenson also reported on other aspects of his department’s activities, including an increase in residents’ use of the department’s online reporting system for low-level cases. The new police substation at The Streets of Brentwood has proven popular, he said, and helps keep officers in the field instead of returning to the main station to file reports. Also, some reports can now be written and filed from officers’ patrol cars.

Other technological improvements at the department include new radios that enhance communication, especially with other agencies. Prisoner processing, evidence tracking with bar codes and video cameras now worn by all officers in the field are also helping improve the department’s performance, Evenson said. The department is also testing a system called Tip411, which will allow the department to notify residents of emergencies through text messages and provide residents a way to forward immediate, anonymous tips to the PD.

In summary, Evenson told the council that the report shows that Brentwood remains a safe place to live and work.

“Our overall violent crime is down 9 percent and our overall property crime is down 3 percent,” he said. “Our response times and workload levels have not significantly changed, and most of our clearance rates still remain well above the national average.

“The 2012 Benchmarks indicate that the dedicated men and women of the Brentwood Police Department continue to provide exceptional police services to our citizens.”

“We have every sporting package that they offer,” said Amy Short, food and beverage coordinator for the club. “Every broadcast game, we can get.” Diners may request games to watch when they enter to enjoy a meal or a drink. Sports memorabilia adorns the walls to complete the athletic theme, and most of the pieces are available for sale. “I saw a need for us to let our guests enjoy themselves a little more,” said General Manager Tim Eldridge. “Bringing in the memorabilia and the TVs gives it more of a festive feel.”

The bar and grill, which is open to the public, serves popular items from the previous restaurant menu, such as the Tri Tip Beef French Dip sandwich ($8.95), as well as newer items. The Diablo Burger ($9.95), topped with bacon, barbecue sauce, cheese and onion rings, is a popular choice, and the homemade soup is $4.95. For those looking for lighter fare, Short’s personal favorite is Amy’s Cobb Wrap ($8.95), featuring chicken, bacon, lettuce, avocado and tomatoes with a balsamic blue cheese vinaigrette.

Thursday nights highlight specialty burgers ($9.95), including the Teriyaki Salmon Burger and the Hearty Chili Cheeseburger. Diners can create their own burger for $7.95, choosing from toppings such as bacon, sautéed mushrooms, guacamole and a variety of cheeses. Those with a hankering for heat can pit their palate against “The 9th Circle” Burger ($9.95), made with the ghost chili, one of the hottest peppers in the world. The bar offers six beers on tap, 10 wines and a full selection of drinks, including specialty cocktails such as the Broken Down Golf Cart ($8). Orders can be called in ahead and picked up to go – a nice option for those on lunch break.

Events are held to celebrate big games, especially when local teams are playing, and the staff plans to show several channels of the Olympics this summer. Other future plans include hosting a live jazz band on Friday and Saturday nights, themed dinners such as seafood or barbecue ribs, plus nights for couples and nights for families with kids to enjoy a round of golf and a tasty meal.

Short encouraged locals to stop by for lunch, a drink and a game. “They don’t have to be a golfer,” she said.

19 Sports Bar and Grill, located at 401 West Country Club Drive in Brentwood, is open Mondays through Sundays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. The bar is open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Hours will extend seasonally. Call 925-516-2837, ext. 8 or visit www.golfinbrentwood.com. On-site catering options are available.

“Sales have been up on a year-over-year basis for eight consecutive months,” said Andrew LePage of DataQuick, the real-estate information service that issued the report. “That is significant. It’s been driven by lower prices and ultra low mortgage rates. So that’s a good sign. People are out buying. We’re working our way back to a more normal level in the Bay Area, which you would expect with a gradually improving economy.”

Home sales were at their highest February level since 2007 for the Bay Area as a whole, as well as in Alameda, San Mateo and Santa Clara counties, LePage said. February sales in Contra Costa County were the most since 2009, when a huge number of foreclosed homes were snapped up in that area, he said.

The median price of single-family home in February was $348,000 in Alameda County, $242,500 in Contra Costa County, $490,000 in Santa Clara County and $565,000 in San Mateo County. It was $350,000 for the Bay Area as a whole, a 1.4 percent drop from a year ago. The median price fell in every Bay Area county except San Mateo County, where it rose 1.8 percent.

Condo sales rose 14.4 percent in the Bay Area as a whole, 32 percent in Alameda County, 10.6 percent in Contra Costa County, 5.2 percent in Santa Clara County and 91.9 percent in San Mateo County.

LePage cautioned that “it won’t be until March and April when we have a much better understanding of where we are at,” because it’s hard to make predictions based upon February sales. It was a leap year, which added an extra day of sales that month, he noted. Moreover, traditional homebuyer tend to be scarce during the first part of the year and usually don’t start shopping in earnest until spring.

Of all Bay Area homes sold last month, 26 percent were to so-called absentee buyers, mostly investors who don’t plan to live in the homes. Absentee purchases were 23.4 percent a year ago and have averaged 14.2 percent for every month since January 2000, DataQuick reported.

“The market definitely has turned,” said Barbara Lymberis, president of the Santa Clara County Association of Realtors. She noted that the number of houses on the market continues to be low, because prices have been so low many homeowners have resisted listing their properties for sale. Consequently, she said, “if a home is priced right and the condition is decent, there will be a buyer.”

In fact, these days, “multiple offers are pretty much the norm” for any house with a for-sale sign out front, Lymberis said.

Barbara Safran, president of the Contra Costa County Association of Realtors, said she also has seen “a definite increase” in sales, fueled by multiple offers on many properties.

“The buyers have waited long enough and they are finally ready to purchase,” she said, adding that she expects more people to soon start putting their houses on the market, especially those who don’t owe more on their homes than they can get from a new buyer.

Distressed property sales made up about half of the Bay Area’s resale market in February.

Homes foreclosed on in the past 12 months accounted for 27.4 percent of resales, according to DataQuick. That was up from a revised 27.2 percent in January and down from 32.6 percent a year ago. Foreclosure resales had been as high as 52 percent in February 2009. Over the past 15 years, the monthly average for foreclosure resales has been about 9 percent.

About 23 percent of Bay Area resales in February were so-called short sales, where the transaction price was less than was owed on the property. That was up from about 20 percent a year ago.

While all home buyers need help with the short sale process, it’s especially challenging to address the needs and concerns of a first-time home buyer who has decided a short sale is the home for them. Here’s how to get answers to first-time home buyers’ top three questions about short sales.

1. How long does it take for a bank to approve a short sale?

This is the million-dollar question. While it takes an average of three to six months, the timeline – and the process – vary quite a bit from one bank to another.

Short sale approval timelines depend on the bank (some just take longer than others). While each bank has different short sale guidelines, the short sale has to make sense to the bank. The more sense the short sale offer makes to the bank, the faster the approval process.

Here are some things that slow down the process by several weeks or more – these usually involve more people or more factors:
•Multiple liens on the property
•A third party negotiating the short sale on behalf of a seller. Some states allow third parties to do this, for a fee; some states, like Virginia, limit this to real estate licensees, attorneys, and employees of attorneys.
•Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI) on the property
•Additional investors

Action: To make an accurate prediction about the short sale timeline for a particular property, research the bank’s general timelines, the property’s liens, and whether there is PMI before writing the offer.

2. Will the bank make repairs to the property?

The short answer is, probably not.

Here’s why:
•The bank does not have possession of the property and has no authority to make repairs on behalf of the seller.
•Many short-sale sellers do not have the financial means to make repairs.
•Many banks require the short sale to be sold strictly “as-is” and do not allow the seller to pay for any repairs.

Why wouldn’t a bank allow the seller to make repairs? your buyer may ask. A short sale is a sticky situation for a bank, and that the bank wants to avoid potential liability. For example, if the bank allowed the seller to make repairs and the repairs proved to be faulty, the buyer might potentially hold the bank liable, since the seller doesn’t have money (which is how the short-sale situation came about in the first place).

Action: Find out how the bank and the seller feel about making possible repairs. A short-sale buyer needs to understand that the home will most likely be sold strictly “as-is” and all repairs will be at their expense.

3. How do other types of debt affect the short sale outcome?

Many short-sale sellers are more than just “house-poor.” Many have additional debts that place a cloud on title. These include tax liens – income and property, medical liens, mechanic’s liens, and child support judgments.

Depending on your state, some creditors can try to collect debt by going to civil court and getting a judgment lien placed on the property against the homeowner. These liens must be cleared before the short sale transaction can be closed.
•Surprisingly, tax liens are probably the easiest to clear off the title. The IRS has several avenues to collect back taxes, and doesn’t want to become a real estate holding company. Removing a tax lien can take up to 120 days, so it is imperative that this process is started well in advance of the short sale.
•Medical liens can usually be negotiated and a payment plan worked out. However, this is a time-consuming process and needs to be started as soon as possible.
•Mechanic’s liens are a little harder to get removed. There is not much recourse for tradespeople and bad debts.
•Child support judgments are also difficult to remove because they usually involve government agencies.

In short, additional debts can tie up the short sale process.

Action: Make sure to ask the listing agent if a preliminary title search has been performed on the property so you can advise your buyer about possible obstacles.

The more information you can offer your first-time home buyer, the more confident they can be about the transaction. The more confident they are about the transaction, the more likely they will see the transaction through to the closing table.

2012 is the year of the short sale. As an agent, one of your most valuable business tools is the understanding of how to help underwater homeowners avoid foreclosure. Don’t make the mistake of believing these myths:
Myth #1: The homeowner must fall behind on mortgage payments in order to qualify for a short sale.

Debunked: Years ago this may have been true, but not in 2012.
• A financial hardship must exist, such as the ARM (Adjustable Rate Mortgage) increasing in monthly payments.
• Loss of job or income.
• Health or medical issues.
• Extraordinary loss in home value (which may be considered a hardship).
Note: Agents should not advise a homeowner to miss a mortgage payment.
Myth #2: Banks would rather foreclose on a property than approve a short sale.

Debunked: Many still believe this myth to be true, but more accurately, banks would prefer not to foreclose on a property due to the $50-70k it may cost the bank per transaction. Banks lose less money on a short sale than on a foreclosure.
Note: In California, some lenders may pay owners as much as $25,000 to opt for a short sale.

Myth #3: Homeowners must be pre-approved by their lender to be eligible for a short sale.
Debunked: Absolutely not true. By and large, most lenders will consider short sale offers. However, each lender may have unique and specific processes to follow, from listing the home to the acceptance of a short sale. Bypassing any part of this process may result the sale not closing, so be sure to follow each lenders’ processes closely.

Myth #4: Short sales never close.
Debunked: Obviously not true. In some areas of the U.S., nearly 50% of all closings are considered to be “distressed” properties, meaning REOs and short sales.

Myth #5: Short sales take months (and months) to close.
Debunked: The short sale processes must be learned. Once mastered, it may not be uncommon to close a short sale in 30 days. However, certain idiosyncrasies may slow the process and each lender presents their own unique set of specific challenges. No two short sale transactions are identical.

Myth #6: Damage to the homeowner’s credit standing is comparable in a short sale and a foreclosure.
Debunked: In many cases, credit repercussions and deficiency protections are more damaging with a foreclosure. Short sale transactions can often lead to faster financial recovery for the homeowner and should be carefully considered.
Note: If the homeowner missed no mortgage payments, they may be eligible to finance the purchase of a home immediately following a short sale transaction.
Myth #7: Following a short sale, the homeowner will be ineligible to purchase another property for the next 5-7 years.
Debunked: Not true. Using conventional lending guidelines, some consumers may obtain a Fannie Mae backed mortgage a short 24 months after the close of their short sale.
Myth #8: After a short sale transaction, the homeowner will receive a 1099 and be forced to declare the loss as income.
Debunked: The owner may indeed receive a 1099, but due to the 2007 Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act, among other considerations, the homeowner may not owe any taxes on their transaction.*
Note: This Act is due to expire at the end of 2012.
Myth #9: The lender will sue the homeowner after the close of a short sale (or foreclosure, or deed in lieu of foreclosure) for the deficiency.
Debunked: California has certain anti-deficiency protections in place for short sales and foreclosures, depending on the circumstances.*
Myth #10: As an agent, I don’t need additional training to learn all of the ins and outs of the short sale process. And if I wait long enough, the market will recover so I may not need to deal with short sales at all.
Debunked: How long are you willing to wait? Based on the most recent housing reports, home values are still falling. Hopefully, 2012 will see the bottom of the housing market but price recovery may continue to take some time.

Pending home sales reached their highest level in January in nearly two years, according to NAR’s report this week, rounding out a handful of positive news for housing markets in the last week or two.

Pending sales trending upward is an interesting trend to watch considering the recent rise in cancelled contracts. I say this because pending sales at least gives us an indicator of buyer sentiment since many of the failed contracts seem to be due to things that are out of buyers’ control like not securing financing needed to purchase the home or the appraisal coming in below the contract price. With a rise in pending sales, we at least know that buyer intent is on the rise and more folks are trying to buy homes.

NAR’s pending home sales index was up 2% to 97 in January from 95 in December, and is 8% higher than January 2011. The January index is the highest since April 2010, when it reached 111.3 as buyers were in a mad dash to take advantage of the home buyer tax credit.

Other positive happenings for housing:

Improving job market: In January, unemployment hit its lowest level in three years, continuing a five-month streak of improvement. Without jobs, people don’t buy or move so this obviously is a good thing.

Home builders are gaining confidence: Home builder sentiment, tracked by the National Association of Home Builders and Wells Fargo, in February reached its highest level in nearly five years. This basically means that home builders are more confident that market conditions are improving to the point that new home sales will be positively impacted.

Housing stocks are up: The stock market is a far-from-perfect indicator, but it at least gives a reading of how investors are feeling. The nation’s home builder companies have seen share prices increase 60% since October, according to an analysis on Time’s website.

In the Bay Area, we have all the amazing economic trickledown activity from major tech company IPOs – recently game developer Zynga and Facebook’s pending IPO in May – to look forward to in housing. In fact, some of our local markets such as San Francisco have already seen the positive housing news that comes along with that.

Overall, 2012 is looking to be a great year for housing compared to the last five or six. The presidential election likely will also ward off any major controversial policies that could negatively impact the market. With all this in mind, I think we’re looking at our big comeback year. It will be particularly good for certain segments of our local markets and marginally improved at the national level. Not a boom by any means, but we’ll take it!

Wanting to downsize their lives as they headed toward retirement, they bought a new house in Mesa, Arizona, before they sold the old one, also in Mesa. Their previous home had been appraised at nearly $400,000 at the height of the market, but as the housing crisis ravaged Arizona, they were told they’d be lucky to get $200,000 for it.

They were carrying a loan of $260,000 on their original home alone, meaning they were well ‘underwater,’ owing much more than it was worth. Combined with the mortgage on the new house, their housing payments had become an “anchor around our necks,” she says, threatening to gobble up all their retirement savings and leave them with nothing.

The couple made a difficult call: They would do a ‘strategic default,’ and simply stop paying the old mortgage. “We really had to wrestle with it,” said Perkins, 60. “We had worked all of our lives to build good strong credit, and we’re proud people. But it came down to, ‘Can we keep doing this?’ We had to say ‘No.’”

As the housing bust drags on, many homeowners are thinking like Perkins. Almost 11 million homes are now underwater, says financial information provider CoreLogic. Around 3.5 million homeowners are behind in their payments and another 1.5 million homes are already in the foreclosure process, according to online marketplace RealtyTrac.

As banks start to work through their backlog of distressed properties, the New York Federal Reserve estimates that 3.6 million foreclosures will take place during the next couple of years.

So, the question is: Does it make sense to keep paying a massive mortgage, knowing that it might be decades before a home regains its prior value? Or is that akin to – as columnist James Surowiecki recently wrote in the New Yorker – “setting a pile of money on fire every month”?

“I constantly get the saddest e-mails from people saying, ‘I’ve exhausted all my life savings, my retirement is gone, and now I have to default,’” said Jon Maddux, CEO of YouWalkAway.com,

a foreclosure agency that helps clients with strategic default (and charges a fee for it). “But if they had seen the writing on the wall a couple of years earlier, stopped paying the mortgage and stayed in the home throughout the whole process, they would be in a much better financial position.”

Moral Quandary

There’s a moral component to that decision, of course. People naturally feel embarrassed about breaking a contract and not paying their bills; no one wants to be branded a deadbeat. But remember that companies default on their obligations when it makes financial sense for them to do so, via the bankruptcy process. Even the Mortgage Bankers Association itself, in a flourish of irony, arranged for a short sale of its Washington headquarters.

It’s not personal; it’s business. So think of strategic default as a business decision, and do a cold-eyed cost-benefit analysis of whether it makes sense for you, advises Carl Archer, an attorney with Maselli Warren in Princeton, New Jersey.

[Also see: Small Money Missteps That Can Cost You Big]

“People think it reflects on their integrity, and say ‘I wasn’t raised this way,’” said Archer. “But the more businesslike attitude is to say that there’s a contract, there are penalties for violating that contract, and sometimes it just makes financial sense to break it.”

The penalties largely revolve around your credit record, which admittedly gets blown up in the near-term. For a few years you can likely forget about qualifying for a mortgage or a car loan. When lenders are ready to take a chance on you again, you’ll have to pay for the privilege, with stiff interest rates due to your default history.

What Happens to Scores

Charlotte Perkins watched her credit score go from a pristine 800 to 685, dropping every time she missed a payment. Credit-scoring firm FICO estimates that someone with a 680 score would see that number sink between 85-100 points after a strategic default, and someone with 780 could crater 140-160 points.

Not desirable, of course, but not the end of the world either. For Perkins, for instance, she already had a loan on her Ford Escape, and the mortgage on her new house, before she even started the default process. She hasn’t seen any changes on her credit cards since, in terms of limits or interest rates.

Now that the previous home was auctioned off in December, she can start slowly rebuilding her credit, a process that should take about seven years.

Strategic default isn’t a decision to be taken lightly, of course. If everyone did it, the housing market — and the banks — would be in much worse shape than they already are.

The following are some of the issues to keep in mind:

1. Look to it as a last resort, not a first option. Your financial troubles could be alleviated with a simple refinancing, especially since 30-year mortgage rates are near record lows of below 4 percent. If the banks are hesitant to rework your loan, look into the number of government programs designed to keep you in your home, which can be researched at MakingHomeAffordable.gov.

2. Location, location, location. Each state has its own rules and regulations regarding foreclosures, which affect both the length of the process and what you could be liable for in the end. In so-called ‘non-recourse’ states like Arizona, California and Texas, a lender cannot come after you for any deficiency (for instance, if your mortgage was $300,000 and they’re only able to sell the property for $200,000). In other states they can pursue the difference, in theory – which is why some homeowners opt to file for bankruptcy, to free themselves from those potential obligations as well.

3. Use the interim to save like a demon. If you’re in a state like New York or Florida, which require a judicial review of every foreclosure, it might be a couple of years before you actually have to pack up. In the meantime, be extremely disciplined about stockpiling cash. That will help you with a down payment for a rental, to pay for a car in cash if you need to, or to clear up other debts you might have. “Save money as if you were still paying the mortgage,” says Archer. “If you don’t, then you’ll run out of both time and money, and then you’ll be in a real tough spot.”

4. Know the tax implications. Historically, if you have a debt that’s forgiven, the canceled amount is considered taxable by the IRS. In the wake of the housing bust, though, the Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act was drafted to spare you those taxes. That legislation expires at the end of 2012, though – so if it’s not extended, you could potentially face a tax bill for the difference.

5. Talk to a professional. A bankruptcy or real-estate attorney can help you through a very tricky process. The National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys, for instance, has a searchable database of lawyers at www.nacba.org.

“Strategic default is not an easy decision, and there’s a cost either way,” said Gerri Detweiler, director of consumer education for Credit.com. “Would you rather be $200,000 underwater, or would you rather have seven years of damage to your credit report? It depends whether you’re finally at the point where enough is enough.

You must be told if information in your file has been used against you. Anyone who uses a credit report or another type of consumer report to deny your application for credit, insurance, or employment or to take any adverse action against you must tell you, and must give you the name, address, and phone number of the agency that provided the information.

You have the right to know what is in your file. You may request and obtain all the information about you in the files of a consumer reporting agency (your “file disclosure”). You will be required to provide proper identification, which may include your Social Security number. In many cases, the disclosure will be free. You are entitled to a free file disclosure if: a person has taken adverse action against you because of information in your credit report; you are the victim of identify theft and place a fraud alert in your file; your file contains inaccurate information as a result of fraud; you are on public assistance; you are unemployed but expect to apply for employment within 60 days.

All consumers are entitled to one free disclosure every 12 months upon request from each nationwide credit bureau and from nationwide specialty consumer reporting agencies. See www.ftc.gov/credit for additional information. You have the right to ask for a credit score. Credit scores are numerical summaries of your credit-worthiness based on information from credit bureaus. You may request a credit score from consumer reporting agencies that create scores or distribute scores used in residential real property loans, but you will have to pay for it. In some mortgage transactions, you will receive credit score information for free from the mortgage lender.

You have the right to dispute incomplete or inaccurate information. If you identify information in your file that is incomplete or inaccurate, and report it to the consumer reporting agency, the agency must investigate unless your dispute is frivolous. See www.ftc.gov/credit for an explanation of dispute procedures. Consumer reporting agencies must correct or delete inaccurate, incomplete, or unverifiable information. Inaccurate, incomplete or unverifiable information must be removed or corrected, usually within 30 days. However, a consumer reporting agency may continue to report information it has verified as accurate. Consumer reporting agencies may not report outdated negative information. In most cases, a consumer reporting agency may not report negative information that is more than seven years old, or bankruptcies that are more than 10 years old. Access to your file is limited. A consumer reporting agency may provide information about you only to people with a valid need usually to consider an application with a creditor, insurer, employer, landlord, or other business. The FCRA specifies those with a valid need for access.

You must give your consent for reports to be provided to employers. A consumer reporting agency may not give out information about you to your employer, or a potential employer, without your written consent given to the employer. Written consent generally is not required in the trucking industry. For more information, go to www.ftc.gov/credit.

You may limit “prescreened” offers of credit and insurance you get based on information in your credit report. Unsolicited “prescreened” offers for credit and insurance must include a toll-free phone number you can call if you choose to remove your name and address from the lists these offers are based on. You may opt-out with the nationwide credit bureaus at 1 888 5OPTOUT (1 888 567 8688).

You may seek damages from violators. If a consumer reporting agency, or, in some cases, a user of consumer reports or a furnisher of information to a consumer reporting agency violates the FCRA, you may be able to sue in state or federal court. Identity theft victims and active duty military personnel have additional rights. For more information, visit www.ftc.gov/credit. States may enforce the FCRA, and many states have their own consumer reporting laws. In some cases, you may have more rights under state law. For more information, contact your state or local consumer protection agency or your state Attorney General.

Each jurisdiction has its own rules, procedures and deadlines to appeal property taxes. The bottom line is that a little research, communication and patience can pay off when you fight a property tax bill.

Here are the stories of three homeowners who’ve fought their property tax assessments:

– Michael Garard, a real estate broker at Garard and Associates in Highlands Ranch, Colo., has contested the tax assessment on his house three times in the last 10 years with mixed results. He recently scored a big win: a drop in the valuation from $535,000 to $480,000 that will cut his tax bill by about $300 a year for at least two years.

The exercise took about four or five hours, during which Garard researched comparable properties in the brokers’ multiple-listing service, drove out to see those properties and attended a hearing at the local Board of Equalization.

“The county gives you a 15-minute conference. You sit down across from the assessor’s representative. He presents his facts, you present your facts, and there is a mediator. We came to a meeting of the minds, and 20 days later, we got the notice that said the commissioners have agreed that the new assessed value will be what we agreed on,” he says.

He attributed his success to “accurate data,” showing the disparity in sale

prices between older and newer houses in his neighborhood. The assessor had based the tax valuation on newer houses. Garard argued those weren’t comparable.

Some homeowners might find the process tedious, but Gerard says he enjoys the challenge.

“It’s fun when you save money,” he says.

– Geoff Hauer, broker/owner of Cherry Point Properties in Denver, Colo., says presenting data was key to his successful property tax challenge. He used the purchase of his own house during the valuation period as a data point to support his case.

“They had valued the home at $530,000. We had purchased the home during that window for $470,000 and made some improvements. I thought the value should be $480,000, and that’s where it ended up,” he says.

The process started when Hauer received a four-page document from the assessor, outlining the valuation and comparable sales on which it was based. In a flurry of email messages, Hauer put forward his data, an assessor’s property inspection and, a few weeks later, a second notice with the lower valuation.

Hauer expects to save $500 to $800 a year; his locality hasn’t set the mill levy, or rate, used to calculate the tax. Even if the levy increases, he’ll still save compared with what his bill would have been, he says.

“What often happens is that when valuations go down, the mill levy will go up, so their receipts are consistent. If my home was overvalued, I’d get the double whammy of the higher mill levy on that overvaluation,” he says.

– Harvey Kaufman, a homeowner in Woodmere, N.Y., has been fighting his property tax assessment in court since 2008 and has won some battles, though not yet achieved a final victory.

“There is a back-and-forth, back-and-forth, and we won, they won,” he says.

At issue is the tax assessor’s decision to increase the value of Kaufman’s home during a major remodeling project. At the time of the reassessment, Kaufman says, the house had no garage door, windows or bathrooms. He and his family were living with his mother-in-law.

The difference in the valuation amounts to “several hundred thousand dollars,” Kaufman says.

A judge’s order will allow his case to be heard in court, but Kaufman remains bitter about his tax bill.

“We’ve paid it. They have my money.” he says. “When I heard that we won, I thought, when can I pick up my shopping bag? … They were very good to take my money, but will I ever see it again?”

Mortgage rates bounced up from last week’s record lows, as investors became more confident about the U.S. economy.

The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage rose 7 basis points to 4.25 percent. A basis point is one-hundredth of 1 percentage point.

The 15-year fixed-rate mortgage rose 6 basis points to 3.45 percent. The average rate for 30-year jumbo mortgages, or generally for those of more than $417,000, rose 4 basis points to 4.62 percent.

The 5/1 ARM rose 3 basis points to 3.09 percent. With a 5/1 ARM, the rate is fixed for five years and adjusted annually thereafter.

Housing experts’ predictions for the new year tend to center around a market stabilizing before entering a gradual, albeit very slow, recovery. However, the tone is more upbeat than it has been in years for the housing market.

Here are a few of the signs that are showing the market moving in a more positive direction:

Home sales: Existing home sales are expected to increase 12 percent this year, following a 2 percent jump last year, Moody’s Analytics predicts. The signs are already showing: In November, pending home sales — a gauge for future home buying — reached its highest level in 19 months, the National Association of REALTORS® reported.

New-home market: Coming off of what could be considered the worst year for new-home building ever recorded, the sector is expected to bounce back this year. New-home sales and starts were already showing a rebound in the last few months of 2011. Moody’s is predicting that single-family housing starts will increase 37 percent this year, and new-home sales will soar 74 percent.

Housing stocks: Investors are starting to get optimistic about the possibility of a rebound too, and are turning to home builder stocks. These equities have recently outperformed the broader stock market and the S&P 1500 homebuilding index has increased 38 percent since mid-October, USA Today reports.

Consumer confidence: With mortgage rates at record lows and housing affordability high, about 71 percent of Americans say now is a good time to purchase a home. Also, more Americans are optimistic that home prices will rise over the next year — about 26 percent say prices will rise in 2012, an increase of 4 percent over the last survey, according to Fannie Mae’s December National Housing Survey

Scammers have targeted delinquent borrowers during the past few years, hoping to take advantage of their desperation and financial inexperience. Their approach typically involves posing as a representative of a nonprofit or government agency who can help with a loan modification or some other form of assistance.

Sheri Stuart, education manager at Springboard Nonprofit Consumer Counseling, says she frequently encounters consumers at courses offered by her organization who have been victimized by these scams. Stuart says she recently met a couple from Southern California at one of these events who’d paid $3,000 to a fraudulent company in an attempt to keep their home out of foreclosure.

“It’s disconcerting,” she says. “It has a ripple effect. It not only affects the home owners, it affects the communities as well.”

To keep more consumers from being taken in by these scams, Stuart offers the following four red flags to help determine whether borrowers’ knight in shining armor is actually a swindler on the make:

1. They ask for money up front. “That’s usually an indication that someone has an ulterior motive,” Stuart says.

2. “Phantom help” appears out of nowhere. If a consumer hasn’t proactively contacted anyone about missed mortgage payments, but suddenly gets calls and mail about getting help for missed mortgage payments, it’s probably a scammer.

3. They present phony credentials. Many companies that claim to offer assistance will have official-looking seals from credentialing institutions on paperwork, promotional materials, and Web sites. Research those organizations to make sure they actually exist.

4. They make promises they can’t deliver. If they make ambitious guarantees about being able to modify loans or halt foreclosures, that should set off alarm bells. “Nobody can promise you a loan mod,” Stuart says.

If your clients suspect they have been or are being targeted, point them to Loanscamalert.org to get more information and report the scammers.

Last year Experian, one of the three leading credit-reporting companies, added a section to millions of credit reports showing on-time rent payments, and raised the credit scores of many people. The company said that this year it would add in negative marks, including mentions of bounced checks or of tenants’ leaving before a lease was up.

Now two other companies, CoreLogic and FICO, are planning a new credit report and score that incorporates payment histories from landlords, as well as payday and other nontraditional loans, child support and, later on perhaps, utility and mobile phone bills.

“Evidence of positive rental payments could be a plus for consumers,” said Joanne Gaskin, FICO’s director of product management global scoring. Rental history data could show up on one in five of the new CoreScore credit reports, she estimated.

Around 35 percent of households nationwide were renters in 2010, according to the most recent census data, while in parts of New York City, three-quarters or more rent.

Incorporating rental payments into credit scores could affect millions of people who have not established credit histories through credit cards, student loan repayments and other credit sources. That includes recent college graduates, students and some divorced people. “The biggest impact is on individuals who were not previously scoreable,” said Brannan Johnston, the managing director of Experian’s rent bureau.

Almost half of those higher-risk consumers experienced an increase of 100 points or more after their positive rental history was added, Mr. Johnston said. (Those with average or higher scores did not experience major movement.)

CoreLogic said it was too early to show the effects of its new credit report, which began in December. The changes are “intended to allow lenders and consumers to have greater transparency,” said Tim Grace, a senior vice president of CoreLogic, and that could lead to increased lending.

People who have lost their homes to foreclosure and are now leasing may be able to rebuild their credit histories by being “very responsible renters,” Mr. Grace added.

But consumer groups and advocates are skeptical, noting that reports are sometimes riddled with mistakes and some landlord-tenant disputes may be difficult to capture in a credit report. Rent may not have been paid, for example, because the furnace was left unrepaired for months.

Consumers can dispute any information they believe is inaccurate. “We check and recheck all the information,” Mr. Grace said, adding that consumers could order a copy of their new CoreLogic credit reports online.

CoreLogic’s Core Score will cover about 100 million people. The three other major credit reporting companies, which also include Equifax and TransUnion, have reports on 200 million; their reports are available free once every 12 months at annualcreditreport.com. TransUnion collects rental payment information and shares it with landlords, but Experian is the only one of the three so far to add rental history to credit reports.

Experian has mostly major property managers and apartment companies reporting rent histories, via their accounting software. Most small landlords are not, though Experian is considering a system that could allow more independents to report on-time and problem renters.

If your landlord is participating, your rental contract may show up as debts owed on your credit report for up to 12 months, said Maxine Sweet, Experian’s vice president for public education. If your landlord is not yet reporting to Experian or CoreLogic, she added, you can build your own rental history by documenting on-time payments

The California State Park and Recreation Commission is expected to approve the general plan and environmental impact report (EIR) for the property currently known as Cowell Ranch/John Marsh at its Jan. 27 meeting. The general plan provides for acreage in the area north of Round Valley Regional Preserve and Los Vaqueros Watershed.

Once the general plan and EIR are approved, the commission is expected – during the same meeting – to rename the property Los Meganos State Park.

“It is our staff’s recommendation that this is the best name because we believe it offers a flow of the state’s history, not just a snapshot,” said Steve Musillami, planning division chief for California State Parks. The Los Meganos name (which means sandy hills) was actually part of John Marsh’s original acquisition – he actually used the name “Ranchos de Los Meganos.”

“This particular site is unique because when we got into the general plan we learned a lot more about the archeological resources in the area,” added Musillami. “It’s one of the most unique sites in California.”

But Gene Metz, president of the John Marsh Historic Trust, believes the property – which will include the revitalized John Marsh House as its focal point – should be named John Marsh Historic State Park.

“We believe that if appropriately used, the name John Marsh Historic State Park can convey the positive interaction between the whites and the Indians,” said Metz. “We think with the Marsh name, people will be eager and interested in learning and celebrating that time in the state’s history.”

This latest effort to stave off the Los Meganos moniker is the third go-around for the Marsh Trust board, which has lobbied heavily for the name it feels is a better representation of the area and the state’s history.

“The commission attempted to rename the property last year and we asked that it not be done at that time,” said Metz. “Now it has come up again and we will again make our feelings known. But how much weight we can carry, I don’t know.”

Plans for the state park include the revitalized Marsh house, walking and hiking trails, picnic areas, equestrian facilities and camping in Round Valley and the eastern part of the park. Money for the project has been difficult to find, but approval of the general plan and EIR paves the way for additional grant opportunities and funding resources.

“This will be a very big step in the process,” said Roy Stearns, communications director for California State Parks. “Because once the name is officially put onto the maps, we can move ahead with the project.”

Metz agrees that the most important thing is to get the park up and running – regardless of the site’s name. “Of course we are absolutely delighted that the project is moving ahead,” said Metz. “What’s important is getting the park open and available to the public to enjoy, discover and learn about the history of early California.”

The commission will take part in a briefing on the general plan and naming proposal for the Cowell/Marsh property on Thursday, Jan. 26 at 1:30 p.m. at the John Marsh house, 21999 Marsh Creek Road. The entrance to the property is approximately 700 feet south of the intersection of Vineyard Parkway and Marsh Creek Road.

The commission will meet again on Friday, Jan. 27 at 9 a.m. in the Community Room of the City of Brentwood Community Center, 35 Oak St., to vote on the general plan and EIR and consider the renaming of the site. Both meetings are open to the public

Today’s buyers are looking for turnkey homes. That is, they want to move right in without having to do a lot of work. Buyers with busy lifestyles pay a premium for listings that are in prime condition. Staging can make the difference between a listing selling or not, the time it takes to sell, and the ultimate sale price.

Sellers who are financially strapped often have a hard time accepting that they’ll need to invest in preparing a house for sale even though they may sell for less than they paid. Fix-up costs can mount up; your agent can help you prioritize so that you don’t waste money. It’s important to keep your goal in mind, which is to sell your house in a difficult market.

Recently, a home in Piedmont, Calif., an affluent city neighboring Oakland, came on the market in “as is” condition. It had been lived in for decades without much upgrading. Although located in a desirable area, the listing was vacant, dark and showed poorly. The sellers refused to do any work to improve its appeal.

After months on the market with no significant interest, the sellers pulled the house off the market and made improvements. The wall-to-wall carpet was pulled up to reveal hardwood floors that were then refinished. Painters lightened the interior and a professional stager was hired to bring in furniture, artwork, house plants and accessories. The listing was put back on the market with a fresh look and sold right away.
HOUSE HUNTING TIP: Although listings staged by a good decorator show well and often sell quickly, you don’t need to spend a lot to put your home into shape for marketing. Most homeowners have too many personal possessions in their home from a sale standpoint. Decluttering is something most sellers need to do.

This can generate uncomfortable emotional responses. One seller, who was cleaning out the family home of 50 years, found a packet of love letters his father sent to his mother. Of course, he had to read all of them, which delayed his fix-up schedule.

Consider hiring someone to help you sort, pack, donate and recycle items that you no longer want. You may be able to take a tax deduction for things you donate. Make sure to get a receipt. Your real estate agent should be able to recommend someone who can help you clear your house of clutter if you are overwhelmed by the project.

Your agent, or stager, may ask you to put away collections of art, personal photos, etc. This can be difficult for most sellers because, for them, it’s part of the emotional appeal of their home. Your house won’t look like your home after you’ve removed personal possessions and moved what’s left around to display the house to its best advantage.

That’s the point of the preparation process. You don’t want prospective buyers focusing in on your personal property; you want them to focus on the house. Keep in mind that how you live in your home and how it should look when it goes on the market are not the same.

Some sellers complain that their house looks too stark without all their possessions. Even so, it helps you to detach yourself emotionally from the property. Also, less personal property usually gives homes a more spacious feel. When buyers are looking for the most for their money, bigger is usually better.

To close the deal, a listing should be spotless and inviting. Bring in new house plants to put in strategic locations, like orchids in the bathrooms. In dark spots that need a dash of warmth and color, use bromeliads.

THE CLOSING: If you can’t pull this together yourself, or with the help or your agent, hire a good stager for a consultation or a proposal for full or partial staging.