Fannie Mae: "Deed for Lease" Program Announced

I thought this was an interesting piece of news. Thanks go to NARPM for the heads up:

Source: http://www.fanniemae.com/newsreleases/2009/4844.jhtml?p=Media&s=News+Releases

WASHINGTON, DC -- Fannie Mae (FNM/NYSE) is implementing the Deed for Lease™ Program under which qualifying homeowners facing foreclosure will be able to remain in their homes by signing a lease in connection with the voluntary transfer of the property deed back to the lender.

"The Deed for Lease Program provides an additional option for qualifying homeowners who are facing foreclosure and are not eligible for modifications," said Jay Ryan, Vice President of Fannie Mae. "This new program helps eliminate some of the uncertainty of foreclosure, keeps families and tenants in their homes during a transitional period, and helps to stabilize neighborhoods and communities."

The new program is designed for borrowers who do not qualify for or have not been able to sustain other loan-workout solutions, such as a modification. Under Deed for Lease, borrowers transfer their property to the lender by completing a deed in lieu of foreclosure, and then lease back the house at a market rate.

To participate in the program, borrowers must live in the home as their primary residence and must be released from any subordinate liens on the property. Tenants of borrowers in this circumstance may also be eligible for leases under the program. Borrowers or tenants interested in a lease must be able to document that the new market rental rate is no more than 31% of their gross income.

Leases under the new program may be up to 12 months, with the possibility of term renewal or month-to-month extensions after that period. A Deed for Lease property that is subsequently sold includes an assignment of the lease to the buyer.

For additional information about the Deed for Lease Program, including full details on program eligibility, please review the Guide Announcement on www.efanniemae.com.

NARPM National Convention in Orlando, FL

During the week of October 19^th-24^th Vickie, Dawn and I (Carrie) attended the National Association of Residential Property Managers annual conference in Orlando, FL.

On Tuesday the 20^th we took a special leadership class that was put on by the Disney Institute. You could not help but smile during their presentation. Most of the talk was regarding communication and how to effectively communicate. We did a really good exercise that involved a leader, manager, and co-workers. You could not look at each other or verbally communicate; you had to write everything down that you wanted to accomplish. Well needless to say I was the “leader” in our group and my team sat there the whole time because I didn’t flip my directions over to see what I was trying to accomplish! It was really funny how much I rely on verbal communication. If you don’t communicate what you are trying to accomplish, the whole process falls apart. It was a real wake-up call because we communicate so much by e-mail that I think we forget what we are saying in our e-mails is not necessarily the message that the receiver gets. I really liked it and highly suggest if you ever have the opportunity to go to one of Disney’s training courses you should.

During the conference on Wednesday night, Thursday and Friday we had 3 general session speakers and quite a few breakout sessions that were very helpful and invigorating. I really appreciate these conferences with NARPM because doing what we do can become a little monotonous once and a while. We also share a lot of information at these meeting and meet professional contacts in the industry. This group is amazing when it comes to sharing information and ideas. I always come away with new ways of handling situations and new ideas.

Another exciting event was held on October 23^rd, 2009 when my sister, Dawn, and I had the great pleasure of swearing in our Mom, Vickie Gaskill, to the position of President for 2010’s National Association of Property Managers. What an amazing opportunity it was and we are all very proud of her! Vickie is going to get to travel to a lot of NARPM chapters all over the United States next year and share with them her expertise in the area of Residential Property Management and Leadership.

We are all looking forward to the next year and what it has to bring!

City of Hope 5K Walk

To the right is our team that participated in the City of Hope 5K Walk, where the proceeds went to fund breast cancer research. We are a group of Bell-Anderson and Assoc. employees and family members who do not want to see breast cancer destroy any more lives. We had a great time walking and being encouraged by all the survivors that attended the event. It was a truly amazing experience.

Team Pink Ladies (and a few men) would like to thank everyone who donated and participated. Our team raised over $1,300.00 to help find a cure for breast cancer!!! As mentioned in a previous posting, the top donor will be awarded a basket of goodies. The top donor this year is Vickie Gaskill, owner of Bell-Anderson and Associates. Thank you Vickie for your generous donations!

Next year, we hope to plan earlier and get an even larger team and more funds donated to help fight against breast cancer. Once again, thank you for all of your contributions; without you we would not have been able to have such great success!

Kent will set up sandbag stations should flooding occur this winter

This is from the Kent Reporter Website (http://www.pnwlocalnews.com/south_king/ken/news/59753052.html)

By STEVE HUNTER

Kent city workers plan to set up as many as five sandbag stations at sites on the East Hill and West Hill, where residents will be able to fill sandbags for free to take to their property.

The stations would be set up as soon as four or five days before a predicted heavy rain.

The sites include the old Panther Lake Elementary School, 20831 108th Ave. S.E.; the Fred Meyer store, 10201 S.E. 240th St.; Meadow Ridge Elementary School, 27710 108th Ave S.E.; Mill Creek Earthworks Park, 742 E. Titus St.; and Grandview Park, 3600 S. 228th St., in SeaTac.

City workers plan to give residents tips on how to fill sandbags at public meetings on flood preparation on Oct. 3 (9-11 a.m.) and Oct. 8 (6-8 p.m.) at the ShoWare Center.

Doing Our Part for the Environment

Beginning January 1st, 2010 Bell-Anderson will work toward becoming a “paperless” management company. We are confident that this will provide many benefits to our owners, tenants, homeowners, the environment, and also to Bell-Anderson. One of the biggest changes you will experience is a complete switch to digital methods of viewing statements. Not only will you be e-mailed statements for easy electronic filing at home, but we are hoping that very soon, owners in our Residential department will be able to access copies of their statements online as well (a capability which the board of directors in our Associations department has had for some time)! We are excited about this switch, as it not only means a decrease in the office supplies we consume, but faster access to information as we are no longer digging through paper files.

We appreciate your patience during this transition. It is fairly time-consuming to get all of our records onto the computer, but we are already seeing some major improvements, so bear with us!

We are also pleased to announce that we are fairly close to launching a new website. The idea for our new site is to enhance the online capabilities we already possess, and provide more online resources for our associations, owners and tenants. Thank you in advance for your patience, and we hope you are as excited as we are for the year to come!

Kent's CodeRED Emergency Notification System Operational

KENT, Wash. - September 23, 2009 - The City of Kent announces its new "reverse 9-1-1" emergency notification system is now operational. Residents and business owners within Kent's city limits are urged to enter their contact information online at www.kentCodeRED.com.

Called "CodeRED", the system gives City officials the ability to deliver urgent pre-recorded telephone, cell phone, email or text messages to targeted areas, or the entire community, at a rate of up to 60,000 per hour.

Kent's Emergency Manager, Dominic Marzano said the system is a great way to notify residents during emergencies. "It will be especially useful should we have flooding this winter." Messages could be sent for emergencies including hazardous material spills, illness outbreaks or other urgent situations such as a missing person.

All messages will begin with "This is an emergency CodeRED message from the City of Kent." If a phone is not answered, the system will try again, up to three times, leaving a message on the final attempt.

Marzano said the system is capable of sending messages in a text format to hearing- impaired individuals using TTY/TDD equipment. "It also allows the ability to record more than one message to accommodate multiple languages."

Marzano cautioned that the system is only as good as the database supporting it. "While CodeRED begins with an existing database of telephone numbers, no one should automatically assume his or her phone number is included. "If your information is not in the database, you will not be contacted."

The following individuals are urged to add their information to the database.

• All businesses
• Residents with unlisted phone numbers
• Residents who have changed their phone number or address within the last year
• Residents who use a cellular phone as their primary phone
• Residents who have recently moved, but kept the same listed or unlisted phone number
• Residents who wish to receive text and/or email messages in addition to telephone calls·
• Residents who receive their phone service over the Internet

CodeRED is a geographically-based notification system, which means street addresses are needed to select which phone numbers will receive emergency notification calls in a specific emergency. An associated street address is needed for cell phone numbers. Requested information includes first and last name, street address (physical address-no PO boxes), city, state, zip code, primary phone numbers and additional phone numbers and email address (optional). Residents and businesses may also choose to receive text or email messages about emergencies, in addition to telephone calls.

CodeRED gives those who want to be included an easy and secure method for doing so, and the information will only be used for emergency notification purposes. Residents and businesses may also opt out of the system entirely if they so choose.

Those without Internet access may contact Kent Emergency Management at 253-856-4440, Monday through Friday, 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. to request a registration form by mail.

Support the Fight Against Breast Cancer - Seattle's Walk for Hope

On Sunday, October 4th, some of the staff of Bell-Anderson along with their families will be participating in City of Hope's Seattle Walk for Hope to make a difference in the fight against breast cancer. This year, the national presenting sponsor, Staples, will match the total funds raised nationally up to a maximum contribution of $250,000.

If you would like to learn more about our team, the Pink Ladies (and a few men), or donate to City of Hope, please visit our team's website at http://nationalevents.cityofhope.org/goto/bellanderson.

The top donor will win a baked goodies basket filled with your favorites courtesy of the Pink Ladies!

Thank you for your support!