Just received another offer for one of my shortsale listings on Saturday, and my client signed it Saturday night. Now it’s time to start the negotiation process with the bank.
If you are facing foreclosure, you have options. Visit my foreclosure prevention page to get started now.
So happy because I just heard that one of my shortsale listings appraised for the purchase price. Yay for the buyers and sellers, since this is one of the final steps needed to close this deal. So excited!
I had to get an attorney involved with this deal because it’s getting sticky. The seller has a mortgage and a HELOC on the property, both with the same lender. However, the lender is requiring that the shortsale for each loan be handled in different departments. That’s right, same lender, two loans, two departments. Just to be sure, I’ve called negotiators at both departments multiple times to confirm they are working together, but they are not. They each confirmed that neither knows what the other is doing.
But that’s not the worst part: they’re email communications are even worse. Instead of just sending an email with a message in the body, they send an email with an attachment. The attachment has a special link I have to click to access the message on the lender’s website. Then I have to enter a username and password to read and respond to messages. And yes, each department is using this method to send messages, and neither knows what messages the other is sending.
Thankfully, my client is understanding of how inefficient this lender is, and has been very patient so far. Now if only our lawmakers would read this blog (and many others like it), they’d understand why there’s such a foreclosure crisis. Banks are not interested in being efficient at disposing of bad mortgages. Based on their behavior and systems, it seems their only interest is to waste time.
The Mayor and Sheriff’s Office of Philadelphia have finally signed a deal that will allow the Sheriff’s office to resume the monthly auction sale of foreclosure properties. The monthly sheriff sales had been postponed since the resignation of Sheriff John Green in January, and scandal of missing funds that he left behind. View the full article here: http://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/2011/03/15/mayor-sheriffs-office-sign-deal-to-resume-foreclosed-home-sales/
So if your home is facing foreclosure, you need to act quickly to get it sold before the bank takes it from you. I am a shortsale expert and my team includes an experienced attorney who will provide free legal advice to you.
Call me today at 215-335-6936, or send me an email by clicking here. All contact is strictly confidential.
I just got off the phone with a listing agent representing a property one of my clients made an offer on. The property is overpriced by about $25K, and has been on the market for over 200 days. My clients made an offer that is in line with comps that are less than two months old. The buyers are requesting seller assist of 6% in their offer. Here’s how the conversation went:
CA: Your client is asking for 6% seller assist? I heard that didn’t exist anymore!
Me: What do you mean?
CA: Last I heard, banks don’t allow 6% seller assist.
Me: Really? Every bank that I’ve been dealing with allows 6% seller assist with FHA loans.
CA: Well, I heard it was going to be changed.
Me: Well, yeah, FHA makes lots of annoucements for future plans, but nothing has been changed yet.
CA: Well, the seller can’t accept your client’s offer because they owe money on the house, and don’t have the cash to bring to settlement.
Me: Can’t they just do a shortsale?
CA: What would be the point? The seller can just sell it for more than what is owed and not have to bring cash to the table.
Me: Since the comps for houses right next door are for XXX, that’s why my client made that offer.
CA: Well, the seller’s counter is ($2K less than the asking price).
So, you have an agent with a property that has been on the market for over 200 days and is overpriced. She has no idea what kind of financing is available for potential buyers, and doesn’t think the seller should do a shortsale because all they have to do is find a buyer who’s willing to pay more.
When choosing a real estate agent to sell your home, make sure they’re knowledgeable about the market, and know how to help buyers buy your home.
A shortsale is an event when a bank will accept less than what it is owed on a property in order for it to sell. The seller cannot receive any proceeds from the sale, and they must prove why they have to sell the property for less than what is owed. The process involves providing extensive documentation about the seller’s income and assets, and explanations about why they cannot pay the mortgage off.
In addition to the personal financial documents, banks also require other documents to consider a shortsale. One those is always a preliminary HUD-1 settlement statement. The HUD-1 is what details exactly who will be getting paid what in the transaction. And for this transaction, just getting a HUD-1 is proving to be problematic.
The title company for the buyer of this property is preparing the preliminary HUD-1, and they can’t even get the property address correct. They sent the first draft last Thursday night. When I called on Friday with the corrections, I was told they were busy and couldn’t get me a revised HUD-1 until yesterday (Tuesday) because of the holiday. I had to call three times yesterday and it still has the wrong address. I decided to call the buyer’s agent to get her involved (since her brokerage owns the title company, I figured she had some clout with them and could light a fire under their butts). The title clerk sent me another email last night and forgot the attachment. I have to followup again this morning.
One of the reasons shortsales take so long is because the information that needs to be provided to the bank has to come from different people, and it can get hard to corral everyone to sumbit their information on time. I’m about to make a fourth call to a title company tomorrow just to get a HUD-1. Can you image what it would be like if I had to call everyone in the transaction three or four times?
So today should be an interesting day. My hope is to have the HUD-1 so I can submit the last piece the bank needs to start considering the shortsale for this property.
Did I mention how much I love this business, and how much I love my clients? Every day gives me the opportunity to help someone with their real estate needs. Whether it’s a seller who needs to sell their home to avoid foreclosure, the first-time homebuyer who just got approved for a mortgage and is ready to shop for a home, or the landlord who needs to find a good tenant for their unit, I love them all.
The greatest love though is for those clients who continue to refer me to their friends and family. Without you, I would not have a business. I always do my best to make my clients happy, and am very appreciative of everyone who recommends me as a real estate agent.
I love my clients, thank you!
I am soooo hooked on this show! It’s refreshing to see that no matter what price market an agent works in, they will always need to address the most common problems and concerns for their clients:
Whether the house is in a $50,000 neighborhood, or a $5,000,000 neighborhood, the principles of selling, buying and renting remain the same. A property is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it.
If you need to sell, just call Raquel! (And call if you’re looking to buy or rent too!)
Checkout this six year old home with the best amenities in the area, all for only $599,900. A shortsale property at an awesome price. Call 215-335-6936 to schedule your private showing today!
If you are a real estate agent with shortsale listings, I may be able to help your sellers get their properties sold. I specialize in buying properties facing foreclosure by taking over the mortgage payments.
If this is something you believe would help your client, call me at 267-918-3691. You can get your client’s home sold quickly, and still get paid a commission to boot!