So you've come to the realization that your financial ship is taking on water. So who do you call?...the Coast Guard to rescue you or a tugboat to rescue the ship? Rescuing the ship would be getting a loan modification or winning the Lotto to allow you to continue to make your payments...Calling the Coast Guard would be consulting with your legal/tax counsel to discuss your tax situation and options available to you.
You ask why do I have to do this...Well...There are nunmerous questions to be answered to determine if you and your property qualify for a short sale and selling real estate short is a legal and financial matter, not a real estate matter.
Selling your home and getting the contract is the easier of the two parts. The most tedious and frustrating is processing the paperwork with the Short Sale Lender. The major goal here is to provide everything they need, upfront without exception, and be prepared to provide the addtional documentation and updates they will request from time to time, which will happen.
An experienced Short Sale Agent will have a list of documentation that the Lender's normally ask for and/or you will have a list from your specific Lender. If one is not available, then I offer this list as a starting point of items definitely needed and some things you may encounter over the term of the Short Sale approval process:
1. Signed and dated listing agreement with commissions listed.
2. Full Multiple Listing Service 'MLS' report from your real estate agent.
3. A Third Party Authorization form - seller signed authorization form for the agent and/or authorized to negotiate with the lender on seller’s behalf.
4. Handwritten hardship letter signed and dated telling your story.
5. A financial statement, basically an income and expense statement.
6. Two (2) months most recent bank statements.
7. Two (2) months of mosdt recent pay stubs or copy of pension/social security award letter.
8. Two (2) years of seller’s most recent tax returns.
9. Complete copy of the signed and dated Purchase Agreement — contract.
10.Pre-approval letter from the Buyer’s new Lender
11.Three recent, like-kind, comparable sales.
12.Estimated HUD1 or pro-forma closing statement provided by escrow.
This should get you onto the 'Yellow Brick Road' but it takes a ral specialist to monitor the Short Sale and keep it moving and I suggest you consult a Realtor to make this a more palatable process ... Short Sale Sully.com could be a great place to start
Friday, February 11, 2011
Friday, February 4, 2011
Anti-Deficiency Protection for Short Sales
Senate Bill 931, providing California Short Sale Deficiency Protection, will go into effect on January 1, 2011. This new law states that existing lenders of record who have approved and agreed upon a short sale will not be able to obtain a deficiency judgment against the seller after the short sale is completed. After providing written consent to a short sale on a first mortgage or first deed of trust, the lender must accept the proceeds of the sale as full payment and must fully dismiss the remaining balance due on the loan. This law applies only to first mortgage loans secured by one to four residential units. However, this law would not apply if the lender is seeking damages for fraud or waste by the borrower.
Section 580e of the bill reads:
(a) No judgment shall be rendered for any deficiency under a note secured by a first deed of trust or first mortgage for a dwelling of not more than four units, in any case in which the trustor or mortgagor sells the dwelling for less than the remaining amount of the indebtedness due at the time of sale with the written consent of the holder of the first deed of trust or first mortgage. Written consent of the holder of the first deed of trust or first mortgage to that sale shall obligate that holder to accept the sale proceeds as full payment and to fully discharge the remaining amount of the indebtedness on the first deed of trust or first mortgage.
(b) If the trustor or mortgagor commits either fraud with respect to the sale of, or waste with respect to, the real property that secures the first deed of trust or first mortgage, this section shall not limit the ability of the holder of the first deed of trust or first mortgage to seek damages and use existing rights and remedies against the trustor or mortgagor or any third party for fraud or waste.
(c) This section shall not apply if the trustor or mortgagor is a corporation or political subdivision of the state.
Section 580e of the bill reads:
(a) No judgment shall be rendered for any deficiency under a note secured by a first deed of trust or first mortgage for a dwelling of not more than four units, in any case in which the trustor or mortgagor sells the dwelling for less than the remaining amount of the indebtedness due at the time of sale with the written consent of the holder of the first deed of trust or first mortgage. Written consent of the holder of the first deed of trust or first mortgage to that sale shall obligate that holder to accept the sale proceeds as full payment and to fully discharge the remaining amount of the indebtedness on the first deed of trust or first mortgage.
(b) If the trustor or mortgagor commits either fraud with respect to the sale of, or waste with respect to, the real property that secures the first deed of trust or first mortgage, this section shall not limit the ability of the holder of the first deed of trust or first mortgage to seek damages and use existing rights and remedies against the trustor or mortgagor or any third party for fraud or waste.
(c) This section shall not apply if the trustor or mortgagor is a corporation or political subdivision of the state.
Saturday, December 11, 2010
What Happened to the Government’s Short Sales Program?.
by Nick Timiraos Reprinted from the WSJ November 29, 2010
In April, the Obama administration formally rolled out a new program, called Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives, that was designed to spur more short sales, where banks allow homeowners to sell their homes for less than the mortgage debt outstanding.
Like other foreclosure-prevention initiatives, this one appears to be off to a slow start — just 342 sales have been completed through September.
HAFA was designed as a cousin to the Obama administration’s Home Affordable Modification Program, HAMP, whose woes have been well documented. HAFA works like this: Servicers are supposed to consider short sales for borrowers who aren’t able to receive a HAMP modification. Because some 700,000 HAMP applicants have been ejected from that program, there’s a potentially large pool of borrowers who might be evaluated for HAFA.
Initially announced in May 2009, HAFA was also designed to help reduce wait times by streamlining the short sale process through standardized documents and approaches for short sales. Under the program, the government offers incentive payments to mortgage-servicing companies, investors and even the borrowers that accept a short sale under prescribed guidelines.
For example, second-lien mortgages receive 6% of the unpaid loan balance in a short sale, up to a maximum of $6,000, but they must agree to relinquish all claims against a borrower. (Our story on Saturday illustrated why seconds pose problems in short sales.) The program also provides $3,000 in “move-out assistance” to borrowers.
Many real-estate agents say banks have largely ignored the program and that they are applying it unevenly. “Banks are initiating the HAFA transaction and then after three weeks they say, ‘Naw, sorry, you didn’t qualify,’” says Greg Markov, a Phoenix real-estate agent. “That three weeks is a huge pain. You wasted all this time.”
Industry officials, meanwhile, say that HAFA has been hindered by extensive documentation requirements and restrictive qualification guidelines. A homeowner that’s already relocated isn’t HAFA eligible, for example, and neither are borrowers that apply within 60 days of a foreclosure date.
The program is also voluntary, which may limit participation from second-lien holders and mortgage insurance companies that see a financial reason to avoid a short sale that requires them to forgo the opportunity to seek deficiencies against borrowers.
“It looks good on paper, but you can’t make anyone participate,” says Kevin Kauffman, a Phoenix real-estate agent who says he’s closed 150 short sales but has yet to complete one through HAFA.
Still, the Treasury and other supporters say they’re optimistic that results will pick up. Because short sales take several months to close, it’s perhaps unrealistic to expect huge numbers of deals that would close within five months. Moreover, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac didn’t issue their own participation rules until August.
“It does take a little bit of time to see results on these,” says Dave Sunlin, Bank of America’s senior vice president for short sales and bank-owned property sales. “The concept on paper is there.”
In April, the Obama administration formally rolled out a new program, called Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives, that was designed to spur more short sales, where banks allow homeowners to sell their homes for less than the mortgage debt outstanding.
Like other foreclosure-prevention initiatives, this one appears to be off to a slow start — just 342 sales have been completed through September.
HAFA was designed as a cousin to the Obama administration’s Home Affordable Modification Program, HAMP, whose woes have been well documented. HAFA works like this: Servicers are supposed to consider short sales for borrowers who aren’t able to receive a HAMP modification. Because some 700,000 HAMP applicants have been ejected from that program, there’s a potentially large pool of borrowers who might be evaluated for HAFA.
Initially announced in May 2009, HAFA was also designed to help reduce wait times by streamlining the short sale process through standardized documents and approaches for short sales. Under the program, the government offers incentive payments to mortgage-servicing companies, investors and even the borrowers that accept a short sale under prescribed guidelines.
For example, second-lien mortgages receive 6% of the unpaid loan balance in a short sale, up to a maximum of $6,000, but they must agree to relinquish all claims against a borrower. (Our story on Saturday illustrated why seconds pose problems in short sales.) The program also provides $3,000 in “move-out assistance” to borrowers.
Many real-estate agents say banks have largely ignored the program and that they are applying it unevenly. “Banks are initiating the HAFA transaction and then after three weeks they say, ‘Naw, sorry, you didn’t qualify,’” says Greg Markov, a Phoenix real-estate agent. “That three weeks is a huge pain. You wasted all this time.”
Industry officials, meanwhile, say that HAFA has been hindered by extensive documentation requirements and restrictive qualification guidelines. A homeowner that’s already relocated isn’t HAFA eligible, for example, and neither are borrowers that apply within 60 days of a foreclosure date.
The program is also voluntary, which may limit participation from second-lien holders and mortgage insurance companies that see a financial reason to avoid a short sale that requires them to forgo the opportunity to seek deficiencies against borrowers.
“It looks good on paper, but you can’t make anyone participate,” says Kevin Kauffman, a Phoenix real-estate agent who says he’s closed 150 short sales but has yet to complete one through HAFA.
Still, the Treasury and other supporters say they’re optimistic that results will pick up. Because short sales take several months to close, it’s perhaps unrealistic to expect huge numbers of deals that would close within five months. Moreover, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac didn’t issue their own participation rules until August.
“It does take a little bit of time to see results on these,” says Dave Sunlin, Bank of America’s senior vice president for short sales and bank-owned property sales. “The concept on paper is there.”
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
Upfront fees for delinquent loan scenarios: Short Sales, modifications...
If you are contacted by parties offering to assist you in getting out of the hole, saving you from foreclosure, minimizing the effect on your credit, saving your home, modifying your loan (whatever!) and they merely need a small fee to get the ball rolling......... Go immediately to the Bank, take out the cash, rush home and flush it down the commode because that's what these scammers are asking you to do.
It is illegal in the State of California to charge an up-front fee for these types of services. In fact, no reputable, licensed Real Estate Agent or Realtor would ask you for a fee. Providing these services is done in the normal course of business and if it results in the sale of your property, the Bank will compensate the agent or Realtor for their services, if applicable.
So if you need help, call a Realtor (which is a real estate agent recognized by the National Association of Realtors and is held to a higher code of ethics). You might even log onto www.ShortSaleSully.com
It is illegal in the State of California to charge an up-front fee for these types of services. In fact, no reputable, licensed Real Estate Agent or Realtor would ask you for a fee. Providing these services is done in the normal course of business and if it results in the sale of your property, the Bank will compensate the agent or Realtor for their services, if applicable.
So if you need help, call a Realtor (which is a real estate agent recognized by the National Association of Realtors and is held to a higher code of ethics). You might even log onto www.ShortSaleSully.com
Monday, August 30, 2010
Here's a means of preventing a short sale.....maybe
FHA Refis for Underwater Borrowers
FHA has launched a refinancing program to assist homeowners who owe more on their mortgages than their home is worth. Beginning Sept. 7, the agency will offer qualified non-FHA borrowers the opportunity to refinance with an FHA-insured mortgage on their primary residence. Borrowers must be current on their existing mortgage, qualify under FHA underwriting requirements, and have a credit score of at least 500. The first lien holder must agree to write off at least 10 percent of the remaining amount owed under the mortgage, bringing the combined loan-to-value ratio of all mortgages to no more than 115 percent. The LTV for the new FHA mortgage may not exceed 97.75 percent. The Treasury Department will provide incentives to second lien holders who agree to forgive all or part of their liens. Read more from HUD.
http://www.hud.gov/offices/adm/hudclips/letters/mortgagee/files/10-23ml.pdf
Keep the faith!
FHA has launched a refinancing program to assist homeowners who owe more on their mortgages than their home is worth. Beginning Sept. 7, the agency will offer qualified non-FHA borrowers the opportunity to refinance with an FHA-insured mortgage on their primary residence. Borrowers must be current on their existing mortgage, qualify under FHA underwriting requirements, and have a credit score of at least 500. The first lien holder must agree to write off at least 10 percent of the remaining amount owed under the mortgage, bringing the combined loan-to-value ratio of all mortgages to no more than 115 percent. The LTV for the new FHA mortgage may not exceed 97.75 percent. The Treasury Department will provide incentives to second lien holders who agree to forgive all or part of their liens. Read more from HUD.
http://www.hud.gov/offices/adm/hudclips/letters/mortgagee/files/10-23ml.pdf
Keep the faith!
Thursday, August 26, 2010
I have questions..... where can I get answers ????
If you have questions, you can also log onto ShortSaleSully.com or if you 'd like some independent counseling, please read the following article from the New Your Times...
SINCE foreclosures started to rise sharply in 2007, struggling borrowers have been offered a lot of help online. Some is well-meaning, but some is simply a scam in the form of expensive “debt relief” services that may be offered free elsewhere.
This month Fannie Mae, the government-sponsored entity that helps set lending standards for most mortgages, started a Web site, KnowYourOptions.com, that has elements setting it apart from most of those aiming to prevent foreclosure. Everything on the site is available in Spanish or English, for example, which helps to reach the large number of Hispanic borrowers who mortgage executives and analysts said were the targets of subprime lenders in 2005 and 2006.
In some areas of the site, a guide offers videotaped explanations of what users might accomplish in that section. For instance, in a section titled “Take Action,” the spokeswoman advises among other things that “you can’t get help until you contact your mortgage company,” while explaining how to get started.
To encourage borrowers to take that step, the site includes video testimonials from people who have experienced similar issues. A section on forbearance, for instance, features a video from an owner who qualified for such help, and one from a housing counselor about the process.
Some analysts said the new site went further than previous efforts to help those at risk of foreclosure. “Frankly, I like it,” said Brad Strothkamp, an analyst for Forrester Research. “There’s a clear need for this type of information, especially from a source that is not looking to sell a service or a product.”
In each section of the site, borrowers are offered numbers of mortgage companies and loan counselors, along with calculators to determine if they qualify for help. Borrowers can send those calculations via e-mail to themselves and others, an important feature, said Jeffery Hayward, senior vice president of the National Servicing Organization of Fannie Mae. “That way, if you call the counselor,” he said, “you can both have that information, so you can have a much more meaningful conversation.”
Not everything on the site is geared toward avoiding foreclosure. Some sections on “graceful exits,” like short sales or deeds-in-lieu of foreclosure, guide those whose financial situations are so dire that they cannot reasonably hope to stay in their homes.
Many borrowers have complained about their mortgage companies’ failure to respond to inquiries until foreclosure is the only option. Mr. Hayward said the Web site’s features could help borrowers avoid that situation.
“If you have as much information as you can get off this site,” he said, “you have more confidence to keep calling because you know what you’re talking about.”
Another new online option for borrowers is Hope LoanPort, which allows struggling owners and housing counselors to submit financial documents to mortgage companies and track the status of their efforts to avoid foreclosure.
Brad Dwin, a spokesman for Hope Now, the consortium of mortgage companies that created Hope LoanPort, said each of the nation’s major mortgage companies had agreed to join. At inception late last year, six mortgage firms and six housing counseling agencies had joined.
Now, 12 mortgage companies and 250 counseling agencies are accessible to borrowers in 48 states. Wells Fargo, the latest of the major lenders to join, is likely to start participating in next two months, Mr. Dwin said.
After Bank of America began using the system in June, Mr. Dwin said, Hope LoanPort experienced a sharp increase in borrowers being served.
Mr. Dwin said the new Fannie Mae initiative, KnowYourOptions, could speed the process of helping borrowers. “It’s all part of the larger effort to find ways to reach out to homeowners and give them more tools to get their applications submitted, without missing paperwork,” he said.
The New York Times By BOB TEDESCHI-August, 2010 A version of this article appeared in print on August 22, 2010, on page RE10 of the New York edition.
SINCE foreclosures started to rise sharply in 2007, struggling borrowers have been offered a lot of help online. Some is well-meaning, but some is simply a scam in the form of expensive “debt relief” services that may be offered free elsewhere.
This month Fannie Mae, the government-sponsored entity that helps set lending standards for most mortgages, started a Web site, KnowYourOptions.com, that has elements setting it apart from most of those aiming to prevent foreclosure. Everything on the site is available in Spanish or English, for example, which helps to reach the large number of Hispanic borrowers who mortgage executives and analysts said were the targets of subprime lenders in 2005 and 2006.
In some areas of the site, a guide offers videotaped explanations of what users might accomplish in that section. For instance, in a section titled “Take Action,” the spokeswoman advises among other things that “you can’t get help until you contact your mortgage company,” while explaining how to get started.
To encourage borrowers to take that step, the site includes video testimonials from people who have experienced similar issues. A section on forbearance, for instance, features a video from an owner who qualified for such help, and one from a housing counselor about the process.
Some analysts said the new site went further than previous efforts to help those at risk of foreclosure. “Frankly, I like it,” said Brad Strothkamp, an analyst for Forrester Research. “There’s a clear need for this type of information, especially from a source that is not looking to sell a service or a product.”
In each section of the site, borrowers are offered numbers of mortgage companies and loan counselors, along with calculators to determine if they qualify for help. Borrowers can send those calculations via e-mail to themselves and others, an important feature, said Jeffery Hayward, senior vice president of the National Servicing Organization of Fannie Mae. “That way, if you call the counselor,” he said, “you can both have that information, so you can have a much more meaningful conversation.”
Not everything on the site is geared toward avoiding foreclosure. Some sections on “graceful exits,” like short sales or deeds-in-lieu of foreclosure, guide those whose financial situations are so dire that they cannot reasonably hope to stay in their homes.
Many borrowers have complained about their mortgage companies’ failure to respond to inquiries until foreclosure is the only option. Mr. Hayward said the Web site’s features could help borrowers avoid that situation.
“If you have as much information as you can get off this site,” he said, “you have more confidence to keep calling because you know what you’re talking about.”
Another new online option for borrowers is Hope LoanPort, which allows struggling owners and housing counselors to submit financial documents to mortgage companies and track the status of their efforts to avoid foreclosure.
Brad Dwin, a spokesman for Hope Now, the consortium of mortgage companies that created Hope LoanPort, said each of the nation’s major mortgage companies had agreed to join. At inception late last year, six mortgage firms and six housing counseling agencies had joined.
Now, 12 mortgage companies and 250 counseling agencies are accessible to borrowers in 48 states. Wells Fargo, the latest of the major lenders to join, is likely to start participating in next two months, Mr. Dwin said.
After Bank of America began using the system in June, Mr. Dwin said, Hope LoanPort experienced a sharp increase in borrowers being served.
Mr. Dwin said the new Fannie Mae initiative, KnowYourOptions, could speed the process of helping borrowers. “It’s all part of the larger effort to find ways to reach out to homeowners and give them more tools to get their applications submitted, without missing paperwork,” he said.
The New York Times By BOB TEDESCHI-August, 2010 A version of this article appeared in print on August 22, 2010, on page RE10 of the New York edition.
Friday, August 20, 2010
Distress Homes Multiply on Market, but Buyers Find No Easy Sales
The following is a reproduction of an article posted today that confirms that Short Sale Lenders are doing their best to extract the highest value from the property they are being asked to forgive debt against. While there are discounts built into the price, BPO's (Broker Pricing Opinion Letters) and/or Appraisals are ordered by said Lenders to ensure this. This verification of price or 'Valuation' is done early on in the Short Sale process after a contract is received and submitted to Lender for approval of terms.....
Distress Homes Multiply on Market, but Buyers Find No Easy Sales
By David Bracken
RISMEDIA, August 20, 2010--(MCT)--When Josh and Amanda Brandt began looking for their first house this year, they wanted what every buyer wants.
"What we really wanted was a good deal," Josh Brandt said.
The first house they found was in Fuquay-Varina, N.C. It was a short-sale, meaning the owner was trying to sell it for less than the amount owed to the bank. After the Brandts submitted a low-ball offer of $120,000, the owner of the house asked them to increase their offer to $129,000.
They did. Then they kept house-hunting because their real estate agent, Millicent Williams of Century 21 Vicki Berry Realty, warned them that they needed a back-up plan in case the bank rejected their offer or simply took too long to get back to them.
Three weeks later, just as the Brandts were about to close on a brand-new house in Angier, N.C., the bank accepted their offer.
"We got pretty lucky," said Josh Brandt, 24.
Among the byproducts of the housing bust has been a dramatic rise in the number of distressed homes on the market. Many buyers assume these properties are can't-miss deals, but the reality is that purchasing a distressed property is often fraught with uncertainty and risk.
The numbers of foreclosures and short-sales have increased as the act of losing one's home has lost the stigma it once carried.
"Foreclosures are actually getting artificially inflated to a point because people are willing to walk away," said Mike Golden, broker in charge with Century 21 Vicki Berry Realty. "Especially by people who don't have any equity because they bought in and got 100 percent financing."
Buying a house out of foreclosure or in a short-sale is not for everyone. Most of the homes will require some work, but unlike with a normal sale, negotiating repairs is often not an option, said Jeanna Reeves, a Re/Max United agent in Raleigh who has offered foreclosure tours for buyers in the past.
"They are sold as is," Reeves said.
Earlier this year, Reeves took one of her clients, Meg Lavoie, to look at a townhouse in North Raleigh that Fannie Mae had foreclosed on in February.
Lavoie is hoping to buy a foreclosed property that she can turn into a rental.
The North Raleigh townhouse had ratty carpeting, and it was clear the previous owner had owned a dog. Lavoie wasn't impressed.
"I don't want a big hole that I'm throwing money in," she said. "I don't know. It just doesn't speak to me."
Lavoie is in no hurry to buy, which makes a foreclosure or a short-sale a good fit.
Any buyer putting an offer on a house being sold as a short-sale should be willing to wait at least two months without knowing whether the bank will accept the offer, said Dave Jezierski, a real estate agent with Homes in the Triangle.
Jezierski said it's crucial that the agent listing the property is familiar with short-sales and knows what he or she is doing, otherwise the process can drag out even longer.
As for the perception that a buyer will be able to get a property for a huge discount in a short sale, Jezierski said that's largely not true.
When a bank agrees to sell a house in a short sale, it usually does its own appraisal.
Jezierski said the bank isn't likely to accept an offer that is significantly below what the appraisal says the house is worth.
"Unless the house is just pretty well trashed, it's going to be within 5 percent of market value," Jezierski said.
(c) 2010, The News & Observer (Raleigh, N.C.).
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.
Distress Homes Multiply on Market, but Buyers Find No Easy Sales
By David Bracken
RISMEDIA, August 20, 2010--(MCT)--When Josh and Amanda Brandt began looking for their first house this year, they wanted what every buyer wants.
"What we really wanted was a good deal," Josh Brandt said.
The first house they found was in Fuquay-Varina, N.C. It was a short-sale, meaning the owner was trying to sell it for less than the amount owed to the bank. After the Brandts submitted a low-ball offer of $120,000, the owner of the house asked them to increase their offer to $129,000.
They did. Then they kept house-hunting because their real estate agent, Millicent Williams of Century 21 Vicki Berry Realty, warned them that they needed a back-up plan in case the bank rejected their offer or simply took too long to get back to them.
Three weeks later, just as the Brandts were about to close on a brand-new house in Angier, N.C., the bank accepted their offer.
"We got pretty lucky," said Josh Brandt, 24.
Among the byproducts of the housing bust has been a dramatic rise in the number of distressed homes on the market. Many buyers assume these properties are can't-miss deals, but the reality is that purchasing a distressed property is often fraught with uncertainty and risk.
The numbers of foreclosures and short-sales have increased as the act of losing one's home has lost the stigma it once carried.
"Foreclosures are actually getting artificially inflated to a point because people are willing to walk away," said Mike Golden, broker in charge with Century 21 Vicki Berry Realty. "Especially by people who don't have any equity because they bought in and got 100 percent financing."
Buying a house out of foreclosure or in a short-sale is not for everyone. Most of the homes will require some work, but unlike with a normal sale, negotiating repairs is often not an option, said Jeanna Reeves, a Re/Max United agent in Raleigh who has offered foreclosure tours for buyers in the past.
"They are sold as is," Reeves said.
Earlier this year, Reeves took one of her clients, Meg Lavoie, to look at a townhouse in North Raleigh that Fannie Mae had foreclosed on in February.
Lavoie is hoping to buy a foreclosed property that she can turn into a rental.
The North Raleigh townhouse had ratty carpeting, and it was clear the previous owner had owned a dog. Lavoie wasn't impressed.
"I don't want a big hole that I'm throwing money in," she said. "I don't know. It just doesn't speak to me."
Lavoie is in no hurry to buy, which makes a foreclosure or a short-sale a good fit.
Any buyer putting an offer on a house being sold as a short-sale should be willing to wait at least two months without knowing whether the bank will accept the offer, said Dave Jezierski, a real estate agent with Homes in the Triangle.
Jezierski said it's crucial that the agent listing the property is familiar with short-sales and knows what he or she is doing, otherwise the process can drag out even longer.
As for the perception that a buyer will be able to get a property for a huge discount in a short sale, Jezierski said that's largely not true.
When a bank agrees to sell a house in a short sale, it usually does its own appraisal.
Jezierski said the bank isn't likely to accept an offer that is significantly below what the appraisal says the house is worth.
"Unless the house is just pretty well trashed, it's going to be within 5 percent of market value," Jezierski said.
(c) 2010, The News & Observer (Raleigh, N.C.).
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)