Integra Group Real Estate, a brokerage firm specializing in the management and marketing of REO, HUD and distressed properties in Southern Arizona, has created a short sale department to help homeowners avoid possible foreclosure.
The new short sale module will allow Integra to address the high foreclosure rates in Arizona. According to Integra, more than half of Arizona homeowners are in negative equity because of the downfall of the housing market.
Pima County, where Integra is based, has the second highest foreclosure rate in the state and a vacancy rate of 11.9%. The normal vacancy rate is between 1% and 2%, the firm said.
This department will also focus on helping the Hispanic market, which was hit hard from this housing crisis, process short sale transactions. Nationally, Hispanic homeowners were impacted by subprime loans more than two times than non-Hispanics.
“The short sale department enables homeowners to sell the property with the appropriate valuation in the shortest time and avoid the ramifications of having a foreclosure on their credit history,” said Eric Lichtenheld, president of Integra Group.
Ofelia Lichtenheld, a designated broker for Integra, will lead the Tucson, Ariz.-based company’s new department in seeking alternative strategies to foreclosure for a distressed borrower.
“Due to the extreme number of foreclosures, the current vacant housing stock will accommodate 10 years of population growth in the area,” Lichtenheld added. “With the launch of our short sale department, we are dedicated to providing homeowners selling alternatives, decreasing the number of foreclosed homes and helping stabilize the neighborhoods in Southern Arizona by maintaining asset values.”
