The lure of playing the lottery and winning millions for doing nothing might sound hard to do. The odds of winning are extremely low and even lower if no ticket is bought. Successfully getting a loan modification has a lot in common with winning a lottery jackpot. Getting your lender to agree to a drastic reduction in payments and principal reduction is similar to winning the lottery. The old adage, “the lottery is for those who don’t know how to do math” is very true. Less than 1% of all loan modifications become permanent.
A recent article in the Wall Street Journal points out a new trend in trying to help underwater borrowers- Loan Vultures. Scavenger funds are growing in numbers, however, they are receiving friction from lenders. According to the Wall Street Journal, “Most delinquent mortgages aren’t available for sale because they are locked up in so-called private-label securities (the ones packaged by Wall Street during the boom) or in the hands of Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac.”
Call it the temporary tax credit that just won’t end.
What do World Cup soccer players and house fraud have in common? Flopping. Both are illegal. In soccer, there are those who elevate flopping to an artform feigning injury. It happens in other high profile sports such as basketball ala Manu Ginobli. The ONLY difference between house “flippers” and “floppers” is simple. It is fraud and it’s growing more an more. Floppers re-sell for a profit without disclosing to a seller that there were higher and better offers than the ones the banks accepted. We are legally required to do so as licensed real estate agents. 
