That dream home in California has become a nightmare. Interest-only loans provided a way for anyone to own a perfect little palace with all the trimmings, but after a few years the rates soared and the payments became too much to bear. Four of the top ten metropolitan foreclosure areas are located in California. But there is hope. While you're in the pre-foreclosure stage, a real estate short sale may be the financial savior that you need.

Does this scenario seem familiar? You've lost that high-paying job you thought you had tucked in your pocket; your finances are upside down, you miss a couple mortgage payments and now your home is in pre-foreclosure. You owe more money than the home is worth. You're not sure which direction to turn or what strategy to adopt to escape this difficult situation.

Are you currently mired in a mortgage of doom? If you are afraid that you've bitten off more home loan than you can chew, you are not alone.

Statistics show that nine out of every thousand homes in the United States had pre-foreclosure status in the first seven months of 2007. California is the national leader in the annual amount of pre-foreclosures, with 132,101 actual filings in the first seven months of the year.

Has your home recently gone into pre-foreclosure? Do you need options? The scar that a foreclosure makes on your financial record is huge. Fortunately, there are plans that lessen the impact and help you recover your dignity at the same time. They are called real estate short sales.

Perhaps your adjustable-rate mortgage has ballooned into a Hindenburg hovering over you waiting to explode.

According to most real estate experts and economic analysts, the housing market in the United States is falling flat on its face. What can a homeowner or investor do with their properties to maximize their current investments? Even if the economy continues to falter, you can still make recession proof home improvements to boost the value of your home.

Every time you open a newspaper or turn on the television, you hear about the horrible state of the housing market. It is enough to scare any inexperienced home buyer away from potentially great deals. The media fails to emphasize that it's a buyers' market out there. Now is the perfect time for buying real estate, especially in California.

In real estate, timing is everything.

Today's shifting home market gives many prospective home buyers the heebie-jeebies. Keep in mind you are not alone. Many other people are in the same situation right now, and lots of them are getting great prices on the homes of their dreams. Falling prices in the current market gives buyers the opportunity to find a real deal on a home they will love for years to come.

Are you behind on your mortgage payments? Can't catch up with the bills no matter what you do? Is the bank sending you letters that say your home loan is in pre-foreclosure? Don't panic. Many people across the country are going through the same situation right now. What is going to save you from being one of the people that will ultimately face foreclosure and a ruined credit score? Knowledge of short sales and a good realtor will save you from the frightening world of pre-foreclosure.

The baby boomer generation is notorious for having a huge impact on the economy. At every milestone in their lives, their buying power has had a huge effect on market trends. As they collectively approach retirement age, their impact on the real estate market will be tremendous.

Baby boomers are defined as people born between the years of 1946 and 1964, and they represent nearly 78 million people in the United States today.

If you are thinking about listing a property for sale in today's shifting real estate market, be prepared. It won't be as easy as it was three or four years ago. However, the property will never sell if you don't list it. Here are a few tips to simplify the process of selling your property.

The most important thing to remember is to be patient.

Millions of people have home equity lines of credit (HELOC) in the United States today. In 2001, an estimated 7.7 million people had a HELOC, and that number has continued to skyrocket. HELOC's are used for myriad purposes, from paying college tuition to just keeping people afloat. So what would happen if a lender decided to freeze an owner's HELOC?

A HELOC can provide a homeowner with a substantial amount of money to finance their expenses.