What is a Short Sale ?

A short sale is when your bank agrees to accept a lower payoff than what they are owed in order to approve a sale of the property.

Short sales are becoming increasingly common as the housing crisis has accelerated and many home values have depreciated since an owner purchased.  In all these cases, the value of what a house can be sold for is less than what it is worth.

In our Philadelphia real estate market, we have noticed that the average realtor will list a property for way over what it is worth in hoping that it sells.  Of course, it rarely does and even if an agreement does come in, chances are it will not appraise.   The better solution is to look at the circumstances to determine if the house should be marketed as a short sale candidate.

Without going into too much detailed discussion, the process is extremely complicated and time-consuming.  But it can be very beneficial to a seller who is in desperation and does not want their credit ruined as a result of a foreclosure and very beneficial to a buyer who has an opportunity to procure a property below market value.  As real estate agents, we have successfully completed many short sales for our clients who were so appreciative of the outcome.  In several cases, their properties were even listed with prior realtors (in one case 3 prior realtors) who never even explored the option of doing a short sale.

Typically for a short sale to be approved a seller has to have a level of hardship and is behind on their mortgage.  Although we did have one short sale approved for a seller who never missed a payment on her Northern Liberties condo, but had a case of extreme hardship due to her husband passing away.

Are you in a predicament where a short sale may be your best option ?  If so, contact Chris and Stephanie Somers at 215-400-2612 or thesomersteam@yahoo.com to discuss further.

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