So You Have a Short Sale Lined Up - When Does a Short Seller Receive Money from the Sale - Step #8
by John Occhi, Hemet - San Jacinto Valley REALTOR
Hemet - San Jacinto CA Real Estate
I was recently working with a short sale seller recently who was really hurting. Yes he and his wife had made a mistake or two in managing their resources. This does not make them bad or evil people, does it? Certainly their woes are no less than my own.
I was able to find an investor who wrote a successful offer on their property - but the poor kids literally had no money left. You see, he lost his job, his wife had trouble earlier in the year with a pregnancy that kept her from working for over six months and they had two other pre-school children to care for and love.
He had found a job closer to LA but he couldn't afford the rent there. They weren't trying to move up in the world - they just needed a place to live so he could start his new job. They actually were scared out of their mind that they would be homeless living out of their car until he could get a paycheck or two under his belt...and what would he do with all of his stuff.
The investor, being a good hearted man knew he was gong to make aver $20,000 on the deal that he had under contract - already have found a qualified buyer to step right in and bring the money to close the escrow without it ever going into his name. He was a happy camper.
He was a happy camper with a big heart. Yes, he knew that the seller could not receive a dime from the transaction and certainly he did not want to get involved in any sort of mortgage fraud and jeopardize his own future.
Remember, I shared that the seller had made a few mismanagement mistakes with there money when they refinanced - well, they did have a few toys that might not have been the best use of their hard earned equity. When the investor was walking though one day for an inspection of some sort, he stirred up a conversation with the seller who was looking rather glum, sitting on his couch with the remote control in his hand watching that 50" flat screen plasma TV.
Well, the investor knew the kids story before hand. When he started the conversation, he knew exactly what he was doing. He started talking about how nice a picture the TV had and that he had considered buying for himself. He asked all about this one and why the kid had picked it out - of course it had the coolest bells and whistles on it and the specs were the most impressive for anything else in its price range.
After about 10 minutes of bonding and sizing the kid up, the investor just plain asked him what he paid for the television and the kid said $5700. The investor then asked what the final bill was after taxes and the special gold cables the kid had mentioned earlier...and the total with the wall mount was just under $6500.
It was so awesome, the investor stood up and bulled out a bankroll of one hundred dollar gills from his Levi pocket and counted off $7,000 and asked the kid if he would sell it with the DVE player. Needless to say, it was boxed up and in the back of the investors Suburban in less than a half hour.
Yes, the investor paid full retail for a used TV, but the kid was able to get on with his life and take care of his wife and three little kids. When the family moved out three days before the scheduled close of escrow, the place was left spotless.
I'm sure if you read this far, you know the moral to this story. So please, it is not all about the profit - there is a family behind every short sale -even if it is another investor who is getting caught short - there is still a person and a family being effected by what is gong on. Remember, "There go I, but for the grace of God".
Now Have a Blessed Day,
John Occhi, Hemet CA REALTOR
Loss Mitigation Consultant
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