It isn't a prosperous time for so many homeowners here in South Florida and the surrounding communities of Coral Springs, Coconut Creek, Tamarac, Parkland, Sunrise, Plantation and beyond. Many homeowners have first tried to see if they could get their loan modified and unfortunately it didn't work out for the struggling homeowners. Now what? You're considering a Short Sale. What do you need to look for in a Realtor?
- #1 and most important, is DESIRE....genuine desire to have you, the qualified Short Sale Seller, avoid foreclosure. Also known as PASSION.
- TRACK RECORD/EXPERIENCE - have they closed on Short Sales, not just having listed Short Sales. Ask the question: How many Short Sales have you listed and closed?
- Do they have a plan to sell your home as a Short Sale? Or do they just list your home for sale at an initial price and sit back for a Buyer to put in an offer without ever adjusting the price? If they just set a price and sit back and wait, that's a sure plan for failure. Do you have any idea of the vast number of properties listed as a Short Sale that have an iniitial list price set and then no adjustments downward thereafter after months on the market with no offers. Short Sale Sellers do not have the luxury of time and if an offer doesn't come by a set time period established by the Realtor then they must adjust the price to where a Buyer will see the property at a fair market value and will have Buyer interest. Otherwise, you just have a Listing going nowhere.
- Make sure that they communicate with you and the Buyer's Agent routinely, Yes, I said routinely. Much failure suffered in Short Sale transactions is due to lack of communication between the parties involved.
- PERSISTENCE. Persistence rates right up there with desire. Without it your Short Sale will not get approved and is the main reason for Short Sales not getting approved. Do you have any idea how many times the Seller's Lenders have told me "no" that they won't approve the Short Sale or they want said $'s in a promissory note, or the 2nd Lender wants this much money, or they want to charge a per diem late charge when the Buyer's funding is delayed or the property is worth more than the offer or they won't offer an extension to the closing date, or you have to go back to the beginning of the Short Sale process when you get a new Buyer or on and on. PERSISTENCE. Ask your Realtor how they have demonstrated Persistence in their Short Sales that they've closed.
- Ability to NEGOTIATE which goes hand in hand with Persistence (above)
We all know that the Short Sale is part of the South Florida Real Estate market and in fact, nationally yet by no means does that mean that all Real Estate Agents and/or Realtors know what their doing when it comes to a Short Sale. In fact, quite often, many should be referring them to Realtors who have the Desire, Track Record, Short Sale Plan, Effective communication, Persistence and negotiation abilities to close a Short Sales.
I've read so many times about Short Sales failing ... had the above criteria been met in a Real Estate Agent and/or Realtor those failing numbers wouldn't be all the rage. So be careful in your selection
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