Foreclosure sales on the courthouse steps may be a thing of the past.  Effective September 1, 2007, special rules were added to the steps required for Texas foreclosures. 

The new law gives the commissioner's court greater latitude in selecting a place for the foreclosure sale.  Previously, the trustee or trustees were required to conduct the sale at or near the courthouse.  Now, commissioners may designate another location as long as it is public, reasonably near the courthouse, and easily accessible. 

New sales may not occur at the designated location until 90 days after the notice of sale is recorded.  The complete six page revised special repot, "A Homeowner's Rights Under Foreclosure" is available here.

Source:  Texas Real Estate Center

Christina Whipple
The Alamo Home Team
Christina@ChristinaWhipple.com
www.ChristinaWhipple.com

In a reaction to the mortgage credit cruch, as of January, 2008, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are changing their pricing models for high LTV (loan to value) loans.  Any loan with a loan to value over 70% will be impacted by these changes.  The amount of the price increase is dependent upon the borrower's credit score:

• No credit score - add 2.00 discount points
• Less than 620 - add 2.00 discount points
• 620-639 - add 1.75 discount points
• 640-659 - add 1.25 discount points
• 660-679 - add 0.75 discount point

Recently I was asked to explain some large differences in the reported property taxes on the MLS form of some homes.  As you may know, Texas has no personal income tax and so the majority of funding for schools and government comes from property taxes.  Thus, property taxes can be a major issue when shopping for a home. 

The rates vary between taxing districts (the Bexar County Tax Office collects taxes for 43 taxing entities) but a good rule of thumb for Bexar County is about three percent (3%) of the new purchase price.  This can be confusing because a home listed for sale in the MLS for $200,000 may only show $3,000 in property taxes.  Remember, the MLS is reporting the CURRENT property tax situation on the home.  The home may not have been re-appraised in some time and may have tax exemptions (see below) that you may not qualify for when you purchase the property.  If the home is purchased, a new valuation will be assigned by the Bexar Appraisal District based on the sales price less any exemptions.