Ok-  just a few thoughts about short sales.  When I started selling real estate in 1995 there were a lot of short sales and foreclosures mostly foreclosures with some short sales.  It seems like the current market has many more short sales and a few foreclosures.  Some days agents will tell you that short sales will go away pretty soon, but, I am here to tell you they are wrong!  Short sales will be in our market for the next few years at least.  Until the market turns around, short sales are here to stay!

Yesterday, I went to a 3.5 hour class that on short sales, the fourth class I have attended on short sales.  I think I keep attending these classes to see if there is a shorter process to these to get to the banks and get responses quicker than it is taking to close these deals.

The most important part of doing short sales is that you have patient buyers and agents that are willing to work the short sales.  I have personally closed three of my short sale listings this year,  have five more in escrow, three listings and two with buyers at the current time.  Just yesterday, I got a response on a file with Countrywide that I have been working on since Sept 8th.  Note: today is November 19, 2008.  So you can do the math-  it is taking nearly 3 months or 90 days at the current time for a response from Countrywide.  If you have a buyer who is willing to and can wait that long for a response, you are a lucky person.  Many buyers get frustrated and walk from these short sales and go buy another property because it is taking so long for a response.  There is nothing that will change this unless the short sales slow down.  Countrywide told me that they are about 90 days plus out right now for responses. 

When the market changes for the better, possibly in a few years, then these short sales will diminish and will take less time for approval.  In 1996 I sold a short sale that had a 1st, 2nd & 3rd on it and we closed it in 10 days!  This will happen again, but not for awhile.  Countrywide currently has approx. 200,000 short sales in their pipeline so this is why it is taking so long for an approval.  Good luck out there with these short sales.  I am one agent who will work and continue to work short sales.  If you have questions or need a copy of my short sale package- call or email me 916-435-0987 or 4natalie@starstream.net.

I am willing to help others including other agents make this process easier- if we all work together we can close these short sales!