OK, I'd like to answer that question by saying never. But that wouldn't be true. Sometimes we take a lowball offer on a Sacramento short sale. But not often. The reason is the market is so hot some buyer somewhere is likely to pay market value . . . or close enough to it for government work.
Agents are all over the board right now. The other day I had a buyer's agent give me peculiar advice about a Bank of America short sale. He swore that he closed a Bank of America short sale in which the bank didn't care what fees were paid because the only thing the bank examined was its bottom line. He swore up and down, "as a Christian man" -- right after he raised his voice an octave, exclaiming that I was forcing him "to go against his God" by signing a promise to not write other offers -- that Bank of America sees everything between the sales price and its net as a slush fund.
What the? That's nonsense; it's absurd. Bank of America examines the worksheet with a fine tooth comb. It routinely knocks out a $40 courier fee and a $125 notary fee. We're lucky if the investor's guidelines allow doc prep or recording fees.
What do you say to somebody who is upset and believes the wrong thing? I'll tell you what you say. You try to have compassion. You try to respect another's beliefs, and you don't mock his God. You say thank you; I appreciate your support, but I do things differently.
Because you can't change people.
Somedays, it doesn't seem to matter what we list a property at, a buyer will come in at 80% of list price or less. They think the banks are desperate without stopping to realize the bank doesn't own the property. They think all negotiations in a short sale are between them and the bank and the seller is merely an accessory after the fact. People think all kinds of strange things. Who are the brain police?
We might entertain a lowball offer, but that's just before an auction. In fact, I pulled one such home out of an auction yesterday with a lowball. It's not easy to postpone a trustee's auction. But a few days or weeks on the market? Nope, no lowballs, so don't send 'em.
Remember, I don't deviate from the norm. Learned my lesson that way years ago. When I find a tactic that works, I stick to it. That's my secret. I realize this sounds overly simplistic but it's true. If you're catching fish, you don't move the boat. Oh, they're biting here, so let's go somewhere else -- I had an ex tell me that once, and that's why he is an ex. I also focus on closing my Sacramento short sales. That's what a successful Sacramento short sale agent does -- she closes short sales. Those lowballs ain't closing, folks.
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