We all have seen homes that are untidy, but your eyes are not going to believe what you are about to see. I know I could not believe my eyes......

My showing was scheduled and confirmed the day prior to showing, so seller had plenty of notice.

This home is in an upscale neighborhood, and it is now listed for $500,000 as a short sale. In my market, homes listed at $500,000 are usually spotless, often staged never cluttered.

I cannot help but wonder if seller has the home listed to buy time, while living for free and taking advantage of what would have been a beautiful home (cleaned), great community and A++ Schools.

This seller, in my opinion, is not really trying to sell the home. This home would have been under contract, a long time ago, if there were no moldy clothes on the bathroom floor and needles on the kitchen counter..

It also begs the question.. where is the listing agent????

Buyers and buyer's agents sometimes ask to see the demand/release/approval letters but I am not convinced they should be allowed to.

Approval letters belong to the sellers, they are addressed to the sellers, mailed to the sellers, and contain the very private consequences of the short sale to the seller.

On the occasion when a lender is buyer specific, like Wells or BoA, the buyer's name will appear on the letter just so they deal CANNOT close with a different buyer.. A short sale has no bearing on the buyer whatsoever.

The title/settlement company must have a copy of the demand letter, of course, that is how they know they are allowed to release the lien.. and I can see why the buyer's lender would want to see the letter as a closing condition, but the buyers and buyer's agents? I don't think so....

What are your thoughts?

I have had 3 short sales where AHMS is the only lender and in all three transactions AHMS has been pretty awful.
The loss mitigators are rude, unresponsive, do not communicate in any way, just down right uncooperative.

I am just wondering if my experiences are isolated or if this is the way they deal in their short sales.

I would would be very thankful if you could share your experiences dealing with AHMS, good or bad, as I am trying to decide if I will continue to take listings where AHMS is the lender.

Thank you so much!

oday of my favorite buyer’s agent asked me the above question… “But why so many obstacles?”

For the most part, I have been very lucky with the buyer agents who I have worked with in my short sales listings. We though it out and make things happen; we work together, towards the goal: CLOSING!

But that is only a part of the success. Working with the lenders is a huge challenge - in every way… from lost documents, to banks who do not allow for emails, to loss mitigators who have not cleared out their voicemail boxes in two months, MI companies who are ruthless, 2nd mortgages who are insured,

                                      A closed short sale is a phenomenon to be celebrated!

Living and breathing short sales 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for as long as I can remember now, I could write for hours to answer her question. 

But I wanted to keep it short (for her sake) so here are 4 main points

1.    Banks DO NOT CARE. The incentive of $1000 or $1500 to approve a workout is too small to make them do anything but make them laugh. It doesn’t actually speed up the process and they get bailed out regardless of what they do.

2.   The Government that bails out the banks has ABSOLUTELY NO POWER OR INFLUENCE on the way the banks process short sales or mods and can’t actually make the banks do anything.

3.  Bank staff is overwhelmed, undertrained and underpaid – they also DO NOT CARE. They get paid, the same, regardless of what they do. There is no “end” client and no one knows who to complaint to. The bad employees are shield from “bad reviews” unlike other businesses. The ones that do get paid a bonus, the bonus isn’t big enough to make a real difference.

4.  The investors who own these loans are “penny smart and dollar stupid” and make ridiculously retarded decisions.
 
So, this mess is left for people like you (Yes, you, who are reading this!) to deal with and figure out the best that we can, without having any chance to change the VERY broken system.
Even though we are the ones working on the issues everyday and actually have solutions….

I would love to hear your opinion and experiences.

I have worked 7 days a week for the past 10 months and I cannot wait to be on VACATION!

I don't think I have ever needed a vacation as much as I do now.

Working short sales have been one of the most gratifying jobs I have had in the real estate field but it has left me exhausted.

Dealing with the banks/lender/investors can make anyone lose their minds. Hold times of more than one hour (GMAC!!!!) and loss mitigators who have not checked voice mail messages or email boxed for weeks will not be on my mind for the next ten days.

My incredible hubby and I are flying to Las Vegas, spending a few nights and then renting a car. We will be driving all Utah and then to Reno and then back to Las Vegas...

I would love to hear about places we "must see" while driving through Nevada and Utah.

 I have worked 7 days a week for the past 10 months and I cannot wait to be on VACATION!

I don't think I have ever needed a vacation as much as I do now.

Working short sales have been one of the most gratifying jobs I have had in the real estate field but it has left me exhausted.

Dealing with the banks/lender/investors can make anyone lose their minds. hold times of more than one hour (GMAC!!!!) and loss mitigators who have not checked voice mail messages or email boxed for weeks will not be on my mind for the next ten days.

My incredible hubby and I are flying to Las Vegas, spending a few nights and then renting a car. We will be driving all Utah and then to Reno and then back to Las Vegas...

I would love to hear about places we "must see" while driving through Nevada and Utah.

The Feds shut down Florida Based Bank United yesterday (05/21/2009).

Bank United is the 34th bank so far to to under THIS YEAR alone.. this closure is going to cost the FDIC 4.9 Billion dollars. This figure is second only to IndiMac's take over that cost FDIC over 10 Billion.

You can read more datails here: BankUnited Seized By Regulators

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As professionals who value our time, we should always make sure our new prospective buyers are not only willing but ABLE to purchase a home before we take the out.

When it is a financed purchase, we require their pre-approval letter or we refer them to a lender in order to get pre-approved.

Why don't we required the same "ability to buy proof" from for cash buyers before showing them first home?

Representing a buyer in a short sale can be down right scary! But being angry at short sales and/or not showing short sale listings is probably not the solution to surviving and being successful in this market.

As a short sale listing Broker I have compiled a lot of experience listing and negotiating short sale transactions that have made not only my sellers, but the buyer's and buyer's agent very happy.

So I thought to put all that good information for the benefit of the Realtors who sell my listings - Buyer's Agents.

Simple guide/rule to follow.

Interview the listing agent!!!!!!!

You can start the interview right on the MLS. If the listing looks like no thought was put into it, no description, no photos, no disclosures, wrong information, etc, you do not have a good sign. Short sales are detail oriented transactions and the listing is the "first impression" of the agent you would be working it.

When you contact the listing agent, via email/phone, ask a few simple questions:

• Does your seller have a hardship and is he/she a candidate for a short sale? You are not, in ANY way, asking what is the hardship of the seller (no violation of agency law), but merely verifying that the agent has done his/her due diligence.
  

• How many liens are on the property and who are they? You may want to move on if you do not get a reply to your email or a confused answer on the phone.

• How long until a final judgment of foreclosure or sale date? If the agent does not know what you mean or does not know the answer, maybe you should move on. If the agent answers you (as he/she should) you will have any idea on how much time you all have to get the transaction closed.
  

• How do you handle an offer? The answer should be a variation of this: "The seller signs one offer. That offer will then become an executed contract, and that one contract, along with a complete short sale package will be sent to the seller's lender(s)."

• What happens to the listing once the seller has executed the offer? Only two good answers here. "Property status will be changed to Pending Sale or Pending Sale accepting BACK-UP offers only."*
  

• Who prepares the package and negotiates the short sale? There are various acceptable answers to this question. Just make sure you interview the person/company who will be negotiating the transaction. It is my opinion that no one is in a better position to do the negotiation that the listing agent. The listing agent knows the borrower, the home and the neighborhood the best.

• How often is the lender contacted and how often should I expect to receive an update? I contact each lender twice per week and I update the buyer's agent once per week. That has worked out very well for me, buyers know that their transaction has not been forgotten and do not feel anxious, even if the transaction takes a little longer.

Lastly,

•  As a listing agent, how many short sales have you successfully closed ? There is not set, correct number, but experience is the key to a smooth short sale transaction.

Of course there are no guarantees to an approval from the seller's lender but following the above guideline will assure you that you have the best chance to a quick(er) closing.

As a Buyer's agent, you also have responsibilities in, and contributes to, the success of a short sale transaction.  By mastering the basic knowledge about short sales you can educate your buyers in what to expect.

Try to stay away for properties that are listed lower than their comparables. The lenders will order an appraisal or a BPO  (Broker's price opinion) and if the value is off, the file will be closed or the offer will be countered. Listing a property for it true, current market value is a very important piece to the short sale puzzle.

*Depending on your particular board, the terms might be slightly different, but you get the idea. The property status should not longer be Available.

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An agent contacted about a week ago telling me he was going to submit an offer on one of my listings. I explained to him the listing price had been approved by the investor who owns the loan and that amount was what they would approve for, not one dollar less.

Two days go by and I received another offer on this property, for a little bit more than listing price. Seller executed and off it all went to the servicer to be sent for final approval.
As it always happens, the following day I received an offer from that agent, 10% LESS than listing price (I guess he did not hear a word I said, NOR did he read the broker remarks on the listing, anyway), to which I kindly replied that the property was now in Pending Sale since the seller had executed a contract and it had been sent to the bank.

The Realtor writes to me that he could get his buyer to up the offer if needed to compete with other offer. I explained that whatever his buyer wished to do with his offer would have to include a BACK - UP addendum since seller can only be under contract with one buyer at a time.
He was shocked, said he never heard of such a thing that I am wrong and he has submitted 7 contracts to Chase and 4 contracts to Countrywide on two of his listings.  What else can I say but "W- O- W!"

Sellers need Realtors who care more than ever.. This Realtor is advising his seller to get into 7 CONTRACTS FOR SALE. In my opinion, Realtors that do not know how to practice REAL ESTATE should not risk the future life of distressed sellers.