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HAP may not be short for HAPPY

I recently started working with a couple who have been long time clients and great referrers of other clients. In fact, of my entire list of clients I have helped over the past 10 years these folks get the #1 spot for number of times they have used me personally combined with the number of people they have referred to me that actually bought a home and gotten to settlement.

These are the types of clients I live for!

They're in the military. At least, the wife is. Now they need to move, again, because she's being deployed to another duty station on her way to a post in Afghanistan. Unfortunately, the home they bought about 3 years ago has lost some value and they can't really sell it without bringing more money that they have to the closing table.

Fortunately, Uncle Sam is actually trying to do something right by our vets. They have a program called the Homeowner Assistance Program (HAP) that will subsidize the difference in what the house was bought for and what it can be sold for. A good deal. The not so HAPpy part is that the program has not been fully approved yet and the applications are piling up. So that when the program does get the final green light it'll take some time (6-8 months) for applications to work through the process.

So it is very much like a "short sale". Hurry up and wait...and wait...and wait.

However, for vets, this may be a good way to sell your home if you're being moved somewhere and it isn't exactly your choice! Check out.

Posted by Ken Montville -- the MD Suburbs of DC on 06/06/2009 06:57 AM

Comments (10)

Home Owner Assistance Program for Military in the Home Selling Channel

military, army, navy, marine corps, coast guard, air force, home selling

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10 Comments on HAP may not be short for HAPPY

JUN

This is the first I have heard of it but it sure can work for the right people...

your friend in Charlottesville Virginia!

I've done a number of Va compromise sales over the years and I can tell folks without hesitation, they are A LOT EASIER AND FASTER than a short sale transaction.

Lenn- I'm sure they're easier. I wonder if they're any shorter. It'd be nice to be able to sell the house before they retire from the Army in 10 years. :-)

The VA Compromise sale is a normal sale with about a week added for VA review and approval of the contract/agent commission/closing cost assistance, etc.

They approved everyone I've ever submitted.

It can't be worse than a short sale. At least it protects their credit, etc. Good luck getting it done.

Ken, good news to know. Great to see the government stepping up an assisting the military.

Ken after we talked I had another conversation with a counselor in Savannah and they are saying 60-90 days from ruling. The trick is to have the application in the pile, the home listed and maybe even an offer in hand. Let's keep our fingers crossed that this doesn't turn into a worst case scenario.