There are at least three legislative and federal administration efforts affecting foreclosure lists in Mesa, Arizona over the past weeks.
These include legislation on homestead rights currently being debated in the state legislature, the federal loan modification program and the Maricopa County ordinance on hillside development.
The homestead rights expansion bill was given preliminary approval by the Arizona House, but a provision increasing the amount of home equity protected from lenders in case of bankruptcy was removed.
Under the original bill, bankrupt homeowners would have been able to protect up to $300,000 in home equity from lenders, an increase from the current amount of $150,000. But legislators believed that $300,000 was too much for small lenders to bear.
Meanwhile, the federal mortgage modification program, which was announced by President Obama in Mesa in February last year, achieved some level of progress in Arizona. Based on data from the Treasury Department, the number of Arizona foreclosed homes prevented from entering private and government foreclosure auctions has climbed up by 39.5 percent between January and February.
At the end of February this year, a total of 9,763 homes in Arizona were protected from entering foreclosure lists, including 8,118 homes located in the Phoenix and Mesa area. Owners of these distressed homes obtained permanent loan modifications under the national program. The February numbers marked an increase from 7,000 permanent modifications in January, which also included 5,834 modifications in the Phoenix and Mesa area.
In Maricopa County, a massive hilltop house at risk of entering lists of foreclosed homes for sale in Mesa has been a hot topic among Mesa residents because the house was built on the Ravens Roost hilltop, an area covered by a 1983 county ordinance crafted to restrict construction on hillsides to limit manmade disturbances on desert land. Desert preservation advocates said that desert land must be respected because of its fragility.
County officials, however, argued that the ordinance was passed after the ground was cleared for the hilltop house. Now, the massive house on Ravens Roost is in foreclosure. It was the owner’s dream house, with five acres of elegant architectural features and 360-degree views that reach parts of Tucson.
The house was once assessed at $4 million. Now, it is offered for sale at $3 million. If the owner could not save it from entering foreclosure lists, it would be sold off at a public foreclosure auction.
John Cutts has been educated in the finer points of the foreclosure market over 5 years.
Notice: In accordance with FTC guidelines, we state that RealEstateProArticles.com has financial relationships with some companies and may be compensated if consumers choose to buy, subscribe or take any action to a product or service via the links on our website. Occasionally, we receive free access to review a product or service. We do not accept compensation in exchange for a positive review. These reviews are strictly the opinions of the author.
![[Valid RSS feed]](http://www.realestateproarticles.com/images/icon_Rss.png "XML Feed For RSS"){kind=icon}
Category Rss Feed
Print This Article
Add To Favorites