Ed McMahon, the longtime sidekick to television star Johnny Carson, faces the possible loss of his Beverly Hills home to a foreclosure action initiated by a unit of Countrywide Financial Corp.
Howard Bragman, a spokesman for Mr. McMahon, said late Tuesday that his client is having "very fruitful discussions" with the lender and hopes to find a resolution. It isn't clear whether that would allow the 85-year-old Mr. McMahon and his wife, Pamela, to remain in the six-bedroom home.a Countrywide spokeswoman said the lender couldn't comment in such cases "due to privacy issues."
Mr. McMahon, a jovial fixture of American television for decades, is one of the most prominent people caught up in a wave of mortgage defaults that has devastated low-income areas, suburbia and even a few posh gated communities, such as the one where the McMahons live. U.S. Rep. Laura Richardson, a California Democrat, recently lost a home in Sacramento to a foreclosure. Rep. Richardson didn't respond to requests for comment.
ReconTrust, a unit of mortgage lender Countrywide Financial, on Feb. 28 filed a notice of default on a $4.8 million Countrywide loan backed by Mr. McMahon's home. The notice was filed with the Los Angeles County Recorder's Office but hasn't previously come to light. According to the filing, Mr. McMahon was then about $644,000 in arrears on the loan. It isn't clear whether Countrywide still owns the loan or is acting on behalf of investors who acquired it. Public records also show that Mr. McMahon had a separate home-equity line of credit from Countrywide of up to $300,000 secured by the same house.
Mr. McMahon's home has been on the market for about two years, his real-estate agent Alex Davis said. Mr. Davis said the price had been reduced, but he couldn't immediately provide details. The Christie's Great Estates Web site, which includes homes listed by Mr. Davis, lists the asking price at $5.75 million and says it has a canyon view and a master-bedroom suite with his and her bathrooms.Mr. McMahon broke his neck in a fall about 18 months ago and hasn't been able to work, Mr. Bragman said. That health problem, along with the weak housing market and economy, has forced Mr. McMahon into foreclosure proceedings, Mr. Bragman said.
The McMahons "understand that they are in the same situation as hundreds of thousands of other hard-working Americans, and their hearts go out to them," Mr. Bragman said.
It isn't inevitable that the McMahons will lose their home to foreclosure. Lenders often ease terms on loans or provide more time for borrowers to catch up. Lenders also sometimes agree to accept less than the full amount due on the loan if the borrower can find a buyer for the home.
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
Bunbury home loan
BUNBURY has the 20th worst postcode for missed mortgage payments in Western Australia and sits just below the national average.
Meanwhile, there are about 2,500 homes up for sale with some being sold for about $100,000 less than the price owners paid for them in the past two years.
Of all mortgages that share the postcode of 6230, there are 1.7 per cent who are more than 30 days in arrears wiht lenders.
WA remains the best performing state for making repayments on time.
But it experienced the most rapid decline in the past six months.
The Fitch Report said mortgage stress has become too high in a State where property prices have fallen.Its authors said borrowers are trapped and unable to sell their property to repay loans.The Real Estate Institute of Western Australia has predicted failed mortgages would only increase in Bunbury, most likely in middle income households, but the worst impact was not being felt.
“What we’re seeing is less forced mortgage sales than what we’d expect because people are getting them on the market and selling them beforehand,” REIWA Bunbury chairwoman Roslyn Ierace said.
Ms Ierace said she saw a house sold for almost $90,000 less than the price the owners had bought it for and valued another for close to $100,000 below what it cost to build.She said the Bunbury property market had an almost record number of listings but it was beginning to strengthen after months of falling prices.
“The biggest thing is that we’ve hit rock bottom with our prices. Bunbury’s sales in the past few months have been the best in the past two years,” she said.
A survey of almost one million Australian mortgages by Fitch Ratings found 1.88 per cent were at least 30 days in arrears, up from 1.56 per cent six months earlier.
Only postcodes which have more that $100 million worth of mortgages were included in the report.
Meanwhile, there are about 2,500 homes up for sale with some being sold for about $100,000 less than the price owners paid for them in the past two years.
Of all mortgages that share the postcode of 6230, there are 1.7 per cent who are more than 30 days in arrears wiht lenders.
WA remains the best performing state for making repayments on time.
But it experienced the most rapid decline in the past six months.
The Fitch Report said mortgage stress has become too high in a State where property prices have fallen.Its authors said borrowers are trapped and unable to sell their property to repay loans.The Real Estate Institute of Western Australia has predicted failed mortgages would only increase in Bunbury, most likely in middle income households, but the worst impact was not being felt.
“What we’re seeing is less forced mortgage sales than what we’d expect because people are getting them on the market and selling them beforehand,” REIWA Bunbury chairwoman Roslyn Ierace said.
Ms Ierace said she saw a house sold for almost $90,000 less than the price the owners had bought it for and valued another for close to $100,000 below what it cost to build.She said the Bunbury property market had an almost record number of listings but it was beginning to strengthen after months of falling prices.
“The biggest thing is that we’ve hit rock bottom with our prices. Bunbury’s sales in the past few months have been the best in the past two years,” she said.
A survey of almost one million Australian mortgages by Fitch Ratings found 1.88 per cent were at least 30 days in arrears, up from 1.56 per cent six months earlier.
Only postcodes which have more that $100 million worth of mortgages were included in the report.
Ed McMahon's home faces foreclosure
The foreclosure problems sweeping the United States apparently have ensnared Ed McMahon, who is best known as Johnny Carson's sidekick on "The Tonight Show."
The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday that McMahon was $644,000 in arrears on a $4.8 million loan for a home in Beverly Hills, California.
McMahon's spokesman, Howard Bragman, confirmed to CNN late Tuesday that McMahon is in discussions with his lender and hopes to find a resolution.
The newspaper reported that ReconTrust, a division of Countrywide Financial, filed a notice of default related to a loan for McMahon's house in Los Angeles County Recorder's Court on Feb. 28. It said his house has been on the market for about two years.
Nationally, one of every 194 U.S. households received a foreclosure filing in the first three months of 2008, according to recent figures from RealtyTrac.
There were nearly 650,000 foreclosure filings -- which include notices of default, auction sales and bank repossessions -- issued during the first quarter of 2008. That's up 23 percent from the last quarter of 2007, and up a staggering 112 percent from the same period a year ago.
Foreclosures increased in 46 states and in 90 of the nation's 100 largest metro areas.
More than 156,000 families have lost their homes to bank repossessions this year.
The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday that McMahon was $644,000 in arrears on a $4.8 million loan for a home in Beverly Hills, California.
McMahon's spokesman, Howard Bragman, confirmed to CNN late Tuesday that McMahon is in discussions with his lender and hopes to find a resolution.
The newspaper reported that ReconTrust, a division of Countrywide Financial, filed a notice of default related to a loan for McMahon's house in Los Angeles County Recorder's Court on Feb. 28. It said his house has been on the market for about two years.
Nationally, one of every 194 U.S. households received a foreclosure filing in the first three months of 2008, according to recent figures from RealtyTrac.
There were nearly 650,000 foreclosure filings -- which include notices of default, auction sales and bank repossessions -- issued during the first quarter of 2008. That's up 23 percent from the last quarter of 2007, and up a staggering 112 percent from the same period a year ago.
Foreclosures increased in 46 states and in 90 of the nation's 100 largest metro areas.
More than 156,000 families have lost their homes to bank repossessions this year.
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