2009 Scholarship Program $5,000 winner, Andrew Dewar

The results are in.

More than 1,000 current and/or college-bound students nationwide answered the call during the 2009 Foreclosure.com Scholarship Program, submitting essays of 1,000 words or more on ‘How to Solve the Foreclosure Crisis.’

Andrew Dewar, a senior at Kennesaw State University located in Kennesaw, Ga., however, was voted to the head of the class by our panel of judges, winning the $5,000 top prize.

“It’s been thrilling to hear the news — I’m so thankful that Foreclosure.com put this together,” said Andrew, a former business owner and new father of a one-year-old baby girl, Avery. “I have some personal experience with [foreclosure. So this was just a natural extension of trying to solve my own mini housing crisis.

“This is tremendous — it’s so generous,” he continued. “Being an adult student and father, there are a lot of costs that come with going back to school … there is a lot at stake. So the $5,000 will pay for at least an entire semester at Kennesaw State. It’s huge.”

The program, which ran from Sept. 1 to Dec. 31, 2009, also awarded four $1,000 scholarships to the contest semifinalists:

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To read Andrew’s essay, as well as the others from our four semifinalists (who each received $1,000 scholarships) please visit the Foreclosure.com scholarship page right here.

The U.S. Treasury Department released guidelines and forms for its new Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives (HAFA) program on Nov. 30, 2009.

It was designed with good intentions — to simplify and streamline use of short sales and deeds-in-lieu of foreclosure. However, HAFA is a complex 43-page program that may be difficult for most real estate agents to fully understand.

To be perfectly honest, most agents may not even have the time or desire to familiarize themselves with the entire program.

But you simply don’t have a choice — HAFA guidelines go into effect April 2010! And they will likely have a large impact on your business, protocols and, most important, commissions.

Here’s the good news: You do not have to be left in the dark on this industry changing program.

That because Foreclosure.com Agent University is conducting two limited attendance FREE Webinars (Register here or here) to teach real estate agents all about the key HAFA changes.

This 1.5 to 2-hour Webinar will take an in-depth look at the guidelines and forms focusing on the key issues to real estate agents:

• Commission impact
• Forms and paperwork
• Participation guidelines
• Timelines
• Servicer participation
• Incentives for homeowners
• Second- and third-party liens
• And much more!

DO NOT MISS THIS IMPORTANT FREE WEBINAR!

Click on one of the events below to register:

• Thursday, Feb. 11, 2010, at  3 p.m. to 5 p.m. ET https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/690622256
• Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2010, at 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. ET https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/929001865

HAFA is part of the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP), providing incentives in connection with a short sale or a deed-in-lieu of foreclosure (DIL) used to avoid foreclosure on a loan eligible for modification under the HAMP program.

Understanding HAFA inside-out is critical for serious real estate professionals. And this is your opportunity to learn everything you need to know at absolutely no cost to you.

“Former NFL player turned multi-millionaire “flipper” to reveal successful marketing and business systems during free online seminar”

Boca Raton, Fla. — Foreclosure.com is proud to announce that real estate investing expert, Than Merrill, is back by popular demand to conduct an online training seminar, during which he will reveal his proven “turnkey” real estate system that unlocks the secrets to flipping riches.

‘Make $20,000 While You Sleep’ will be held live online on Feb. 10, 2010, from 9 p.m. to about 10:30 p.m. ET. To register for free and/or find out more information visit:

http://www.foreclosure.com/education/webinars/make-20k-while-you-sleep.html

Than — one of the most successful real estate investors in the nation, as well as the star of A&E’s hit television show, “Flip This House” — is going to show first-time homebuyers and experienced investors alike how to find amazing house deals for 65 cents on the dollar or less during a free real estate training Webinar.

“Than is the best when it comes to recognizing great deals and using automation to facilitate getting them done fast,” said Linda Yates, Director of Education, Foreclosure.com. “Now is the time to get off the fence and invest in a buyers market no matter where you live — it’s now or never!”

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Foreclosure.com today announced that it has enhanced its industry-leading real estate agent training curriculum, which is administered through Agent University, adding the Certified Short Sale Agent (CSSA) program to its growing list of education offerings.

Short sale transactions will comprise a significant amount of business for real estate agents for the next three to five years. The sheer volume of defaults today is just too much for loss mitigation departments everywhere to handle efficiently without outside assistance.

Additionally, with new guidelines like HAFA emerging, banks, servicers and investors are looking to short sales as a viable foreclosure alternative.

Success in short sale transactions requires a high degree of expertise to complete successfully — CSSA training provides professionals with the tools and resources to capitalize on this market trend and make short sales a profitable part of their business.

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