Be PROUD to short sale your home!

Tracy congrats on your recent short sale.  What a positive message for those facing the challenge of a short sale.

Sorry, but I have to disagree. You should not be embarrased by a short sale, but you should not be PROUD of it either. It is not always the lender's fault you are where you are at. The lender may have offered you easy financing, but YOU are the one that took it. The lender may have offered zero down, but YOU are the one that took it. Sure, the lender approved a refinance that allowed you to take cash out of your home and buy things and go on vacation, but YOU made that decision, not the lender.

Short sales are great tools. They allow the homeowner to get out of a bad situation and allow the bank to save money by going through the foreclosure process. But remember, nobody twisted your arm to take that "Mortgage Only" loan or refinancing. In the end, it was YOUR decision to buy the home.

Don't be PROUD to shortsale your home. Do it because you have to. Do it because it is the right thing to do. Do it because of a change in life circumstances. Do it because it is the only thing to do. Be glad that you CAN do it and don't be embarrassed to do it. But certainly don't be PROUD.

Great Post  a bit controversial in this time. I tend to feel that Homeowners need to be somewhat accountable and that makes it hard to use the word proud. I understand that the proud you mean is in that the owners  are stepping up and taking action and not just giving up.

A major part inside a successful short sale is when the sellers understand exactly their roles and the target

So true. So much more tho gain with a short sale...rather than a foreclosure!

Tracy, excellent point! A short sale is a way to get out from under what could be an impending foreclosure.

I can see your point, but to be quite honest, if I were to short sell my home, pride is not one of the emotions I think I would feel. It might be better than a foreclosure, but it's still a personal failure. That's hard to rationalize under any circumstances, at least for me. Others milaeage may vary.

I think what you are saying, Tracy, is people who do a short sale should have an inner sense of accomplishment, knowing that they were proactive and they took the best steps possible under the current conditions. That they were responsible enough to their neighbors and their financial obligations to put their home on the market as a short sale instead of letting weeds grow up around it as a foreclosure.

A short sale is a little like going to a funeral. You wouldn't necessarily brag about the activity to your friends, but you do feel a sense of closure and personal peace with yourself afterward.

You've offered a great perspective on this issue. So many people are too embarrased to say anything and when they do, it's really too late.

Kudos to the short sale seller that has the wherewithal to take that bold first step.  And thank you for that public acknowledgement.

I do think short sales are better than foreclosures.

The bank can make that process easier or more difficult.  

In this climate I don't think people should walk around and feel shameful about a short sale.

The banks should feel shameful about this crisis and their role.  But banks don't feel anything, much less shame.

In my opinion, it is not fair to lump both major types of short sales all together.  In a "regular" short sale where the home owners have suffered some sort of hardship... medical problems, job loss, death in family, etc... them doing a short sale is totally understandable, and a better thing than a foreclosure.

In a "strategic" short sale... when the owners are simply making what they are facetiously calling a "business decision"... I think walking away from their home... when they have the ability to continue making their payments... is simply wrong.  Also, in this case, I think that any "overage" in the loan... the "shortage amount" should follow them as a debt... a personal judgment... for at least ten years... and only be removed by a full bankruptcy.

I also think that in taking a strategic short sale... it should remain on their credit that they have done so, and this fact should preclude them from being able to purchase another home for at least seven to ten years.

Tracy, this looks like a hot button topic, but I totally agree that a homeowner who takes excellent care for their property throughhout the process has something they can take some solice in.

In the climate that we have set for ourselves it is what it is so hopefully we will get back to normal.

Hi Tracy, great post.  If you saw Jon Zolsky's post we disagree with him and agree with you.  A short sale is better for everyone than a foreclosure.

I am surprised that so many people feel like it is okay to attach a negative spin to this post.  Maybe proud is not the right word to use, but there is a sense of pride in doing the right thing, i.e. keeping your house in good condition, following all the instructions to follow through with the short sale, which is not easy by any means.  I don't see the writer advocating strategic default, she is not condoning a short sale for people that have the ability to pay.  But people are embarrassed about their situation and by the time that most get the guts to do something about it, it is often too late.  The writer was simply encouraging sellers in her area to seek out the possible benefits of a short sale over the looming damage of a foreclosure.  Great post!

Tracy, A short sale is better for everyone than a foreclosure and those that step up and try to short sell their home are better off