Fullerton Ca: A Short Sale Nightmare Finally Over! Yesterday, January 25th, 2011 I closed on a short sale transaction that I began with my buyers in September 2010. As a general rule I do not show my buyers "short sale" listings for several reasons. In this case my buyers viewed the property at an open house. The listing agent told them that they "could get a great deal" if they purchased. I warned my buyers of the uncertainty of a short sale transaction. In their case they could wait as they would not be moving into the property themselves.
Before making our offer I contacted the listing agent to get "the scoop" on the listing. I found out that the
homeowner had already attempted a loan modification and was not happy with the results. This is usually an obstacle in the short sale process that was already overcome. Although there were many other uncertainties ahead. There were 2 lenders involved and an association with dues that needed to be paid. This would be a challenging transaction for both the listing agent and myself.
Several months went by. On "Black Friday" I received an email from the listing agent saying we had an approval...which was actually a counter offer from the first lender. Now the work began. There were several conditions we had to deal with #1 sales price increase, #2 a list of costs that the bank would not pay for the seller#3 a seller contribution amount#4 a second lien holder that we had to get approved, #5 Unpaid association dues. #6 An unreasonable time period to close the escrow.
The entire transaction was a gamble! My buyers could invest time and worst of all money into a propety that could foreclose on us! We battled each issue. My buyers and I celebrated each time with hopes we would get closer to closing the transaction. Towards the end we had some very difficult days. There were days that we thought all was lost. Even the buyer's mortgage broker gave us problems because it was a short sale! I can elaborate on this if you would like via questions.
When we closed yesterday we all were thrilled. I myself felt that a weight had been lifted off of my shoulders. I never like feeling that my clients are in trouble and at risk of loosing so much. In this case the nightmare was temporary. Thanks to a all parties involved including a hard working listing agent and a seller that wanted to save their credit, my buyers dream came true!
If you have questions about the short sale process from either the buyers or seller side please contact me and I will be happy to share my experience with you.
Written By Tina Maraj, Residential REALTOR for 21 Years www.TinaMaraj.com 714-403-7901
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