Short Sales Answers: What is a Short Sale? (FAQ#1) - 05/30/12 08:14 PM
As an Atlanta short sale specialist, the most frequent question I hear is, “What is a short sale?” A short sale is a complicated transaction, both to explain and also to execute, but I find the following four-part answer usually clears things up:
First, a short sale is the sale of a home for less than the amount still owed on the existing mortgage. The short sale, therefore, can only be completed through negotiation with the existing lender or lenders to allow the sale to occur. Each lender must agree to settle for a lesser amount than what is owed them. 
Second, … (2 comments)

Time to Hit the Road! - SUMMER FUN Contest - 05/27/12 12:38 PM
Time to Hit the Road! - “SUMMER FUN Contest” 
This is an entry for the Positive Attitude for the Weary Soul Group Contest! | Fun in the Sun While the Business Still Runs!  Join in on the Challenge!
 
What will I do for my much-needed break for summer fun?  I have only one big trip planned this year: I’ll be going home to Pittsburgh for a HUGE Family Reunion.  I will have to board an airplane for that one, but do anticipate that the fellowship and fun of seeing family and friends from all over the country will be worth the hassle … (4 comments)

A Memorial Day Salute - 05/27/12 12:01 PM
Memorial Day
Well here we are at the end of the fifth month of 2012 already. Almost halfway through the year! The older I get, the faster the months seem to fly by.
As we approach the last Monday of May, I join you in remembering the men of women of your family and friends who gave their lives while serving in the United States Military. My Grandparents used to refer to the day as “Decoration Day,” a day when families in our working class Pittsburgh neighborhood would plant flags and fresh flowers on the gravesites of fallen heroes.
We … (3 comments)

What Would I Do Without Email? - 05/25/12 01:01 PM
Sometimes it is hard to believe that I used to get along perfectly well in my work life without all of the hi-tech tools that I rely so heavily upon in my business today. Now, I often wonder how I ever did it.
I remember when I first read about and then purchased the nifty little (by 1980’s standards) all-in-one Macintosh and dot matrix printer, one of the first off the assembly line I think. I actually bought it to make music with but quickly found that it had a treasure chest of other uses, and was immediately hooked!
But of … (3 comments)

Henry County GA Short Sale - Set the Right Expectation - 05/19/12 07:50 PM
Henry County GA Short Sale - Set the Right Expectation
Your Henry County short sale will be easier when you have accurate expectations established from the beginning.
Ever wonder why the short sale process seems to take so much longer than a traditional sale? One of the main reasons is the number of stakeholders who must all agree. You might be surprised at the number of players who have a stake in that short sale bargain you are waiting to be approved.
First, of course, the buyer and the seller must agree to their contract. But then the real fun begins … (0 comments)

A Renovator's Dream Is Showcased - Before & After - 05/18/12 06:24 PM
This post from home stager  Janice Ankrett really shows what a difference strategic staging can make when you are trying to sell a home. As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words, so I won't write a lot more here. Janice's photos say it all. Just suffice it for me to say, this is home staging in real life. See for yourself how well it can work.
Via Janice Ankrett Burlington Ontario Accredited Staging Professional (Janice Ankrett Home Staging):
I received a call recently from a Renovator. A project was nearing completion and they wanted to stage the home for sale.
… (0 comments)

The Bank Is KILLING My Neighborhood's Value! - 05/18/12 06:05 PM
I hear versions of this lament on a regular basis in the South Metro Atlanta neighborhoods that I serve as a short sale specialist. 
So, I'm happy to be able to share this pithy post from the Spear Team.
The best way to protect your community's home values is to  be proactive in helping your neighbors or yourself discover all the options available to avoid Georgia foreclosure..... but that another post altogether.
For now, please enjoy this re-blog and spread it around.
Via Liz and Bill Spear RE/MAX Elite Warren County Ohio: Cincinnati to Dayton (513.265.3004 www.LizTour.com):
The Bank Is KILLING My Neighborhood's … (1 comments)

Another Henry County GA Short Sale Closed - GMAC Mortgage - 05/17/12 05:18 PM
Henry County GA Short Sale Closed with a GMAC Mortgage.
The short sale specialists on the Best Atlanta Short Sales Team have done it again. We've closed another GMAC short sale in Henry County GA.

The buyer of this McDonough GA real estate bargain got a great, well-maintained property at a substantial discount, and the seller got relief from an unmanageable mortgage, with FULL SETTLEMENT OF ALL LIENS!
Everybody wins with a Henry County short sale.

What a bargain for the savvy investor-buyer. This cute and cozy McDonough GA home sold for less than the REOs or traditional resales … (0 comments)

Ellenwood GA & Henry County GA Short Sales Help from Bank of America - 05/16/12 08:54 AM
 
Ellenwood GA short sales, McDonough GA short sales and all Henry County GA short sales may get a boost from an unexpected source......Bank of America!
The new Enhanced Relocation Assistance Program from Bank of America may help many Ellenwood GA homeowners and other Henry County GA homeowners get relief from an unmanageable mortgage, and cash at closing, too!

 
Announcing a HUGE OPPORTUNITY for Bank of American Loan Holders
 
People who short sell are getting cash at the closing table. Don’t let an unaffordable mortgage ruin your life. For a limited time, homeowners are receiving anywhere from $2500 … (3 comments)

The Best Atlanta Short Sales Team - How it All Started - 05/15/12 06:12 PM
The Best Atlanta Short Sales Team began forming in my mind almost as soon as I got started in real estate.

I came to this career late in my professional life. Real estate is in fact my third entrepreneurial endeavor. When I moved to the Atlanta metro in 2006, I found that my previous business in independent television production in southern California did not easily translate to an opportunity in Georgia. I've always been a self-confessed house-a-holic and real estate aficionado, and always thought it was a field I'd like to try on for size someday.
"Someday" came in 2007, … (0 comments)

Homesafe Georgia Now Taking Applications - 05/15/12 07:07 AM
 
Are you a Georgia homeowner who has suffered a hardship due to unemployment or underemployment through no fault of your own?  Were you current on your mortgage before the event of the unemployment or underemployment? And are you no more than six months behind on the mortgage now?
If you answered yes to all of the above, you may be eligible for mortgage assistance under the Homesafe Georgia program.

The Georgia Department of Community Affairs has partnered with GHFA Affordable Housing, Inc. to deliver a statewide unemployment mortgage payment assistance program to prevent foreclosures, under the name HomeSafe Georgia. … (1 comments)

Mortgage Process Tips For Home Buyers - 05/07/12 06:36 AM
NAR recently reported that  a third of its surveyed agents are experiencing derailed closings, with buyer fall-out being one of the three main reasons. That makes this post by my friend Kathy Sheehan via Roy Kelley particularly timely to share with my clients and neighbors.
Be careful! Don't let any of these stumblers de-rail your housing pourchase.
Via Roy Kelley, Montgomery County, MD Homes For Sale (Roy Kelley and RE/MAX Realty Group):
Mortgage Process Tips For Home Buyers
Guest blog by Kathy Sheehan, Georgia Mortgage Loan Professional, MiLend, Inc.,
Cell 770-634-4021
Mortgage loan applicants should keep in mind that during your application and documentation review … (6 comments)

How to Write A Short Sale Offer In A Competitive Market - 05/05/12 05:53 PM
Tni's post is a timely reminder to Atlanta short sale agents and their buyer clients of what it takes to win in the current "multiple offer" short sale environment. Give a little to get a lot. A short sale bargain can be a coup worth the effort and time involved. 
 
Via Tni LeBlanc REALTOR® Santa Maria CA Homes Central Coast:
How to Write A Short Sale Offer In A Competitive Market
 
The local real estate market in Santa Maria and Orcutt California is currently dominated by bidding wars and multiple offer situations.  So, no matter what type of listing it is … (0 comments)

Atlanta Short Sale Agent - Bank of America Equator.com Requires More to Start - 05/05/12 05:35 PM
Bank of America short sales may be getting a speed boost, but the process just got more intense for every Atlanta short sale agent on the listing side.
As part of its revamped process to speed short sale decisions, Bank of America is now requiring a lot more up-front document and information collection.
Before a new file can even be initiated in Equator.com, the Atlanta short sale agent must have an accepted short sale offer in hand as well as a preliminary HUD1 ready to upload. The lender also now requires their own proprietary third-party authorization form, as well as a … (4 comments)

Ellenwood GA Real Estate - Hardest Hit Funds Available to Georgia Home Owners - 05/04/12 07:10 AM
Important tip for Ellenwood GA real estate owners: On August 11 2010 the U. S. Treasury announced the State of Georgia’s inclusion in an expansion of the “Hardest Hit Fund”. The purpose of the program is to help Georgia home owners who have experienced job loss or a substantial decrease in their income with a mortgage payment “bridge” while they find new or higher paying employment. 

The Georgia Department of Community Affairs (DCA) under contract with Georgia Housing and Finance Authority’s GHFA Affordable Housing Inc. will administer Georgia’s HHF program.
Georgia's Hardest Hit Fund is now "Homesafe Georgia".
DCA’s … (1 comments)

Atlanta Short Sale Agent Reports on Bank of America Equator.com Changes - 05/02/12 05:08 AM
As an Atlanta short sale agent, I know what buyers agents' are getting at when they call on my short sale listings and almost immediately ask, "Who is the lender?" I already know that a big groan is coming from that agent when the answer is, "BOA." It never fails.
But now I can allay their fears somewhat, with some very hopeful news about the “dreaded” Bank of America short sale process: the lender has implemented some major changes to speed the decision-making process. The good news is that the new process expedites everything on the front end and promises a speedy … (6 comments)

Changes to Speed the Short Sale Decision - Pt 1 - 05/01/12 08:59 PM
Changes Will (Hopefully) Speed the Short Sale Decision
Things are always changing in the short sale arena. Guidelines change. Processes change. Paperwork changes. It is a Best Atlanta Short Sales goal to keep our community home sellers and buyers updated on these topics as they happen.
This week brings post 1 of a new series to keep us all abreast of changes which promise to significantly the speed up the short sale approval process  -- good news for Atlanta short sale agents, buyers and sellers.
I posted recently about the coming changes to the Bank of America short sale process, and … (2 comments)

Knock, Knock. Who’s There? Sellers Beware! - 05/01/12 05:31 AM
We talk a lot about real estate agent safety, but home buyers and sellers may need to be schooled also. 
It's always best to be safe rather than sorry. That's why the customary (and preferred) method of home showings for the Best Atlanta Short Sales Team is by appointment and accompanied by a licensed agent. Always.
This message from The Branch Team is short and to the point, and definitely worth heeding.
Via Tom Branch | Broker, CDPE, SFR, ACRE | Plano TX Ambassador | 214-227-6626 (RE/MAX Dallas Suburbs):
I received a call this evening from one of my sellers. A potential … (10 comments)

 
Elva_branson_lee Rainmaker_large

Elva Branson-Lee, CDPE - South and East Metro ATL - Short Sales

Best Atlanta Short Sales

Ellenwood, GA

More about me…

Solid Source Realty GA

Address: 772 Pointe South Pkwy, Jonesboro, GA, 30238

Office Phone: (770) 475-1130 x 8988

Cell Phone: (678) 855-5238

Email Me

Author Bio: Elva Branson-Lee, CDPE, CIAS, IMSD, is the Executive Team Leader of the Best Atlanta Short Sales Team, Atlanta's premier short sales specialists. She is also the author of "Avoid Georgia Foreclosure."



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