“Real Housewife” Tamra Barney Selling OC Home as Short Sale

30 Comments so far

1. abe vigoda on November 12, 2009 9:52 am

   if anyone uses this hack as a realtor they deserve the consequences. she is a real estate agent and is losing BIG TIME on her own home. How many of her clients did she put in similar positions? It’s amazing these people the media push on us as icons and successful are in reality all phonies and terrible with their own finances.

   I put these women right in the same bucket as the sham wow guy and those crooks from flip this house.

2. Susan on November 12, 2009 9:56 am

   but the house looks good

3. Sirrous Esmailzadeh on November 12, 2009 12:51 pm

   hey abe vigoda, these buyers beter know what they are getting into, they signed up for a mortgage with a LENDER not a real estate agent, and if they dumb enough to sign up for it, they should bear responsibility of the payment

4. Pahlie on November 12, 2009 1:23 pm

   My house has about $150,000 in equity, so if I do nothing and the value goes down, do I lose the $150k? The answer is no, I ride out this economy and wait for my value to go back up. The people that bought into the real estate bubble (ARMS, interest only loans, betting that the market will go up up up), are getting their just desserts now. Oh and I work for HUD-thanks for the business suckers.

5. Tony on November 12, 2009 2:46 pm

   That what happens when your vain. they don’t make any real money I was a mortgage broker for 10 years I could have bought a 1.5 million dollar home instead
   I bought a 225k home. you go what you deserve. And now most realtors are starving. also if your on tlc and did get paid enough money to at least pay your home, your dumb. Am sure TLC is makeing tons money off you.

6. Your English Professor on November 12, 2009 5:02 pm

   Why is everyone so jealous?

   Zillow Editor, please require a literacy test for those who wish to comment here.

   @Abe V… Realtors are not mortgage lenders. They market and sell property. The loans are not their responsibility.
   @Pahlie … Your house cannot own anything. You have $150K in equity. Also, please learn proper punctuation. A comma is not a period. Do you really want to ask a rhetorical question here? The answer is “no.”
   @Tony … I can see why you failed as a mortgage broker. Go back to English 101 with Pahlie and learn punctuation. Also, “your” does not mean “you are”. Let me help you out. “You are dumb.”

7. John Sweeney on November 12, 2009 5:59 pm

   A short sale is much better for your credit than letting it go to foreclosure.

8. RES on November 12, 2009 10:18 pm

   Folks WAKE UP!!! Look at this house. This house is LOADED with EVERYTHING!! It will probably go for under a million which will be a steal. About $220 a square foot for inside AND out. Not bad for the WEST coast LA market. Her loss but another person’s gain.

9. David Santucci on November 13, 2009 12:37 am

   OK, Wait a minute guys. I have to defend Abe Vigoda here. Sure, the loan officer and mortgage lender are the ones who did the bad loans. But do you think most real estate agents were looking out for their clients and warning them against using exotic financing? They weren’t. Most people deal with and talk to their agent the most when buying, and they deal with the loan officer very little. The agents may claim they’re not responsible, but in reality many of them turned a blind eye when they should’ve been warning their clients and trying to protect them.

   I was warning my clients, and trying to steer them away from subprime loans and into conventional 30 year fixed mortgages. But I was in the minority. I remember going to a training seminar in 2004 where a loan officer was teaching a room full of 150 agents about all the new interest only, adjustable rate, stated income loans. You know, the ones that started out with a really low interest rate, fixed for the first 5 years (or 3, or 7), and then suddenly the buyer’s payment goes way way up and changes to an adjustable, much higher, interest rate.

   I raised my hand in this seminar and said “But can’t this put people in financial trouble? If prices go down, and somebody doesn’t refinance that loan before the payment changes, can’t they end up stuck? Can’t this put people into foreclosure if they can’t make the higher payments?” The room went silent and everyone looked at me in disbelief, like I just uttered a Satanic verse in the middle of church.

   The loan officer said “Well don’t ever tell your clients that! You’ll scare them right out of the deal! You’ll never make it in today’s market without these loans.” I didn’t listen to that advice of course, and I’ve always done just fine in real estate.

   Today, ironically, I list bank owned foreclosures. As part of my duties, I have the extremely unpleasant job of telling people they must move out, because the bank owns the house now. (I don’t handle the actual eviction; lawyers do that. But I am the one who makes “first contact.”) The recurring theme I hear over and over from the former owners is that neither their loan officer NOR THEIR REAL ESTATE AGENT ever warned them that they were buying too much house and using a loan product that could backfire. Many of these people had no idea what kind of loan they even had. And most of those who did know, never really had it explained to them very well. In my opinion, their agents failed them miserably. I ALWAYS make sure my clients understand what kind of loan they are getting, and I talk with them about it to make sure it is the right kind of loan for their goals. I actually lost a few clients during the boom years because I was pushing them to buy LESS house and use a conventional mortgage, and they ended up going elsewhere because they didn’t want to hear it. Most people appreciated my advice and followed it, however.

   Personally I think most real estate agents should have done a much better job protecting their clients, by explaining to them the possible ramifications of these loans. We have a fiduciary duty to protect our clients’ best interests. Most agents during the “boom years” were, in my opinion, more interested in protecting their paychecks.

   Having said that, I have no idea what kind of an agent this Tamra Barney is, and I do not want anyone to misinterpret this and think I am calling her a bad agent. I’m not. I have no clue. She seems like a jealous bitch on TV (jealous of Gretchen) but she might be a very good agent. I have no knowlege of how she goes about her job. Her own financial troubles may have little to do with her skill or knowlege as an agent, and much more to do with her and her husband’s career choices and financial management skills. But I did want to inject a little reality here for those who are attacking Abe Vigoda’s comment above. His comment may not apply to this particular agent, but it wasn’t completely off base.

   @ RES, this house is nowhere near LA. It’s about two hours away, in good traffic conditions. Just FYI. Orange County has nothing to do with Los Angeles County; most of it is much much nicer. (I live here in O.C. — also by the way, most of O.C. isn’t super rich like these shallow self-centered people you see on TV. That’s just a small pocket of South Orange County, a very small percentage of the overall O.C. population. And half of the people down there are pretty nice, too. Most of us in the O.C. are not like these materialistic floozies on TV. Just FYI.)

10. househunter on November 13, 2009 9:56 am

    I never comment on these boards, but “Your English Professor” was too perfect to ignore. You were spot on! But the lesson should have been, “You’re dumb.” Contractions are a bitch.
    And bravo to “David”. I live in the OC, too. It is a wonderful place with nice, normal people.

11. Lou on November 13, 2009 12:22 pm

    This is a nice house, however its worth no more than $960,000.00 Most homes in this area were so over inflated by all the “cool” people! Now its crying time!!!! Get the Kleenex.

12. Mark on November 13, 2009 12:24 pm

    Come to Austin Texas, just as beautiful an area! This house would sell for no more than $360,000.00
    These Ca. prices make me laugh….all the way to my bank!

13. bev on November 13, 2009 2:19 pm

    hells no I aint’ movin to texas! the wetbacks are moving up the east coast at a ridiculous rate, I can only imagine what’s going on in texas!

14. R in Texas on November 13, 2009 4:01 pm

    While I feel awful for anyone going through financial difficulties, the Barneys brought it on themselves. They could have a bought a different home, not done all the upgrades, stayed within their budget, SAVED for a rainy day instead of living on paper money, etc. Plus, I want to like Tamra because she loves her family and has a good sense of humor, but she often comes off as rude and judgemental. The house could be BEAUTIFUL but is almost “overdone.”

    I live in Austin, and prices vary depending on area. However, unless you live deep on the east side by the airport, in no part of town could you buy that house for 360,000. West Lake Hills, at least 1.5 - 2 million. Southwest Austin, 600,000 - 700,000. Lakeway 1 million. We are still very affordable compared to most places, but it’s not as cheap as it used to be.

15. GJ on November 14, 2009 4:52 pm

    Simply another reason to NOT watch unreality TV

16. jose banks on November 15, 2009 2:33 pm

    Do your research! this latest drop in the market is NOTHING compared to all the ARMS getting ready to reset making it impossible for MILLIONS to pay their mortgage. In Florida over 20% of ALL mortgages are behind in payments! It is rising in every state.

    foreclosures! the banks have not even put back on the market. That alone would completly devastate the housing market.

    Banks are broke and hoarding any cash they have.. no more use your house as an atm = no more spending for americans who never save = crash in retail consumer spending = greatest depression you sheeple fools are screwed.

    Enjoy picking out dumpsters for scraps and prostitution for a nugget of gold.. its comming, but dont belive me stupid sheeple.

    housing market WILL NOT EVER come back to anything near what it was, but that will be the least of your worries.

    Tamara is a tool who did not save like her tool husband too busy controlling her and his tequila joke of a venture… while all the OC bimbos got real estate licenses and sold homes to anyone with a heartbeat the bank approved… Now comes reality.. her crying that she has to give up the maid…haha.. Wait until you cant even put food on the table…its coming.

17. Sam on November 15, 2009 2:38 pm

    Abe - sham wow guy is honest, funny, and a good salesmen. The investors on flip this house make something ugly beautiful and provide jobs for their communities.

    David - So are the realtors that told people to buy using exotic loans in 2003 and sell in 2004 better than you? Your job isn’t investment advice and your so called foresight to the coming housing bubble doesn’t make you better than the other people in your industry. Tell me you stopped selling homes in declining markets from 2005-2008 and I’ll give you props.

18. Martin on November 16, 2009 2:07 pm

    This house with a quick eye on it is worth no more then like $850k to maybe $900k you are way upside down. Enjoy this saturated market…………

19. Martin on November 16, 2009 2:10 pm

    By the way folks Texas is a toilet and is not southern California you have Mexicans not ocean views…………..

20. geewizz on November 17, 2009 8:44 am

    DECOR; Sooooooooooooooooo Masculine…………Does
    Tamar really LIVE there.

    Guess it just confirms what ALL the OC REAL HOUSEWIVES SAY;

    “Tamara’s husbund is VERY controlling. He makes the decisions.”

21. walter on November 17, 2009 10:22 am

    This is a $900,000 home.

22. phyllis on November 17, 2009 9:28 pm

    GOOD LUCK…….

23. David on November 18, 2009 12:12 am

    I still can’t understand how a car salesman and his part-time real estate agent wife purchased a home for $1.3M. Even if they could get an interest-only mortgage without proving income, how could they come up with the cash flow to even pay the mortgage for a few months, not to mention the property tax bill? Either something doesn’t jive here…or I’m just in the wrong profession.

24. stever on November 18, 2009 3:19 pm

    John Sweeney,

    Wrong. You are generally still liable to bank for the difference. And/or reported to the IRS as a capital gain. People, it’s been a while, please tell me if this is still correct.

25. Donna Baba on November 18, 2009 9:18 pm

    ENGLISH people!!!! I know there is no one editing your comments but, PLEASE, if you cannot deal with English let someone else Edit. THIS IS THE MOST IRRITAING THING ABOUT THE INTERNET FOR ME. Terrible English and Grammar throughout both the printed and internet media. What has happened to our educational system???? PLEASE ASK FOR HELP!!!!!

26. George W. Bush on November 18, 2009 9:46 pm

    I dun got sic of livin in Cali so I am movin bac to TX. I think all of use peple should be nicer to those that didnt do so good in there investmants.

    Mabe a little compession would be in order so thats all I got to says about it. Unles you haved walkd in mine shoes, you dont evan no me. I was a good realtor and maid many peopo happy in there new homs. I don’t sale as many houses as before the recassion, but now is a very good time to buy. If you are looking to buy a hom, contact me at El Paso Realty, 75 Malago cove Plaza, Palos Verdes CA 90274. Ask for George W. And I agree. TX sucks.

27. lily on November 19, 2009 8:59 am

    This is real price.500,000 dollars.30 years real estate expert.

28. Kate on November 19, 2009 1:34 pm

    Shame she can’t afford a new roll of kitchen towel for the kitchen towel holder.

29. Real Estate Today Shows » Hot links this week on November 20, 2009 10:42 am

    [...] retreat Metallica guitarist’s house in San Francisco Extreme Makeover Home up for sale Real Housewife’s home as short sale Tags: Hot links, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS, Real Estate Today Radio HUD and FHA [...]

30. David Santucci on November 22, 2009 11:46 pm

    Sam, when you say “Your job is not to give investment advice,” I agree with you 100%. I wasn’t giving people investment advice; I was giving them advice on the potential dangers in using various types of loans. (In my opinion this is part of the job, and that was the whole point of my post.) My advice had nothing to do with “investing,” as I was helping people buy homes to live in, and I have never had the pleasure of helping anyone who was trying to flip properties for investment purposes.

    Secondly, I never claimed to be better than others in the real estate industry; only my clients can be the judge of that. If you ask me whether I have a good track record though, and/or whether my clients are happy with the service I provided, then the answers are yes and yes.

    Regarding your last point, why would I stop selling homes in a declining market? That’s ridiculous. There are always people who need to sell homes, and there are always people who want to buy homes, in every kind of market. It’s my job to help them. If they ask me where I see the market headed, I’m honest with them. And then I ask them, “How long do you plan on living in this house, once you buy it?” If they only plan on living there a few years, and prices are currently headed downward (or unknown), then I tell them it’s not the right time to buy and I tell them why.

    For someone buying a home they’re going to live in, real estate is not about investing or making money! It’s about long term financial security. All of the people I helped to buy in the last few years (while prices were declining) understand this, and all of them plan to stay in their homes for a good long time, long enough that this current cycle will not matter. Otherwise, I would not have helped them buy. I hope that sufficiently answers your concerns.

    I apologize if I came across as a know-it-all or holier-than-thou. I’m not perfect and I never claimed to be. Sorry if anything I said rubbed you the wrong way.