Having trouble paying your FHA Mortgage? Great news! You no longer have to be delinquent with your payments to get assistance.

The Federal Housing Administration announced that it will help borrowers before they get behind in their payments, allowing them to maintain a good credit standing.

“The FHA has always required lenders to establish early contact with delinquent borrowers to discuss the reason for missing a payment and to evaluate reinstatement options,” FHA Commissioner David Stevens said in a prepared statement. “Now servicers will have additional options for those borrowers who seek help before they go delinquent, which increases the likelihood that the borrower will be able to retain their home.”

If you can prove your problems resulted from a reduction of income caused by slashed wages, job loss, decline in self-employed business earnings, or even a change in circumstances resulting from a disability or death, the FHA will now provide you with assistance repaying your mortgage.

The first option available is forbearance, where the lender agrees to reduce or postpone payments for a specified period of time. The payments aren’t forgiven, they are simply added to the balance to be paid later in the mortgage term.

The second option is a permanent payment reduction. Reserved for more severe cases, this may involve adding extra time to the length of the loan, possible reduction in the interest rate, or even forgiving a portion of principal. A combination of any or all three are also a possibility.

Foreclosure rates across the country rose dramatically in 2009. Nevada, Florida, California & Arizona were particularly hard hit. Las Vegas topped the ranks in filings with 12%  of households affected, 5 times the national average.

On the bright side, all top 20 cities affected recorded a decline in foreclosure filings within the last three months of 2009. These trouble spots tend to be “bubble” related. In these areas, inflated home prices drove home buyers to take on high risk adjustable rate mortgages. When the market deflated, borrowers began to default on their loans.

The most recent wave of bank home foreclosures can be blamed on more traditional causes linked to an economic slowdown and high unemployment figures.

New York has been one of the states least affected by foreclosures with a mere .63% filing rate.  The bubble related affect was minimal compared to harder hit areas of the country. In addition, the Capital Region’s workforce remains stable with comparatively low unemployment figures supported by state jobs, higher education and technological opportunities.

Check the foreclosure rate in your state

Any informed consumer would immediately see the benefits of selling by owner as compared to paying an agent a 6-7% real estate commission. Why, then, doesn’t everybody sell by owner?

Agents and brokers are notorious for convincing sellers that they just don’t have the knowledge and expertise to sell on their own. The fact is that successfully selling your home involves two basic factors: #1. Pricing the home correctly and #2. Marketing it effectively.

Professional real estate appraisals are available for less than $300.  Albany Real Estate Appraisers will give you an accurate marketing price and also provide you with a selling tool to justify your asking price to your potential buyers. There are many free websites that can also help you determine the asking price for your home based on current market comparables.

For Sale By Owner Albany is a proven marketing strategy that offers unparalleled exposure for your home. Full color photo advertising in For Sale By Owner magazine plus unbeatable web exposure with 8 photo color internet advertising on 518forsalebyowner.com and web syndication on 9 other popular sites!

You’ve priced your house accurately, and have marketed it effectively to thousands of active buyers resulting in a solid offer, now what? We strongly recommend hiring an Albany Real Estate Attorney to handle the closing and any paperwork subsequent to the transaction. Clearly this exempts you from having to be an expert in real estate transactions. That’s what you pay the attorney for, and you would pay him whether you sell on your own, or hire a real estate agent.

Be prepared with the information and resources you’ll need and make a strong commitment  to the homeselling process by allocating time to make appointments, show the house and negotiate with buyers. Saving potentially tens of thousands of dollars will surely make your successful By Owner experience well worth the time and effort you’ve invested!