This morning's Wall Street Journal had an interesting article on "Why Lenders Are Leery of Short Sales".

In articles posted to "thecincyblog" I have tried to educate consumers on: "Crucial Sort Sale Advice for the Greater Cincinnati Area", "Foreclosure Assistance", "How To Understand The Mortgage Mess" and "4 Truths About the Subprime Bailout". And while the article in the Wall Street Journal fairly represents the lender's point of view, I think it fails to address the failure of mortgage servicers and their investors to look at the "big picture" and act accordingly.

3 reasons Lenders should jump at short sales are:

1. A bird in the hand is worth- what? Lenders who stall on short sales and ultimately lose the buyer(s) are not only losing money they are losing equity. The National Association of Realtors as well as any realtor will provide you with statistics indicating the longer a property remains on the market the lower the selling price.
2. Empty properties cost the investors more than occupied properties. Homes that fail to complete the transaction during the "short sale" period may end up as vacant properties. As a former relocation company employee, I can tell you that empty homes are expensive to maintain and give birth to a host of problems which may be costly to repair.
3. The short sale you ignore may impact other nearby properties that your investors currently "own".

As an investor I am always reminded to cut my losses and move on- perhaps these investors should heed the same advice.

The servicing companies need to leverage the eyes, ears and noses on the ground. Many real estate brokerages have departments/ groups/individuals who are equipped to handle vacant and or damaged properties. Keeping the property in good shape will aid in a future sale and may provide the "neutral" resource to determine value. Finally, the second mortgage/home equity investors need an incentive to stop holding "short sale" contracts hostage to 100% recovery of their investment. Many mortgage holders are willing to negotiate a reasonable deal only to have the contract fall apart due to 2nd (and in some cases 3rd, 4th...) lien holders balk at any deals. What do you think about the current mortgage situation? For more information call 513-300-4090 or send an email.

The client had been trying to sell his home for the past 2 years here in Cincinnati. He had listed it twice and both times the house sat on the market for 176 days the first time and 192 days the second go around with no offers. Was it a fixer upper needing many repairs? Overpriced? Not at all.  This was a great family house in a wonderful neighborhood. It was well maintained...maybe just a little dated but nothing out of the ordinary for the neighborhood. When the market was really good a few years ago, this house SHOULD of sold...but didn't.

 So...what was the problem?   Clutter and Personal Items.    

The homeowner had so much "stuff", Buyers could not see past it to REALLY "see" the wonderful selling features of this house. They became too distracted by it and moved on to the next house.

 The solution?  Stage a Star met with the Homeowner and conducted a Staging Consultation where we were able to talk with the homeowner about the "Buyer's perspective" and what they see.  Being brought in by Mary Iliff and the "I" Team, (one of our Realtor Partners we love to work with!) as the "EXPERT" on preparing a house for a successful sale, the homeowner was very open to our recommendations. The homeowner was able to put alot of his "stuff" in storage, organize, and take down personal photos and decor that were distractions.

Stage a Star came back in after the recommendations were done and spent 1 hour staging and putting the final touches on everything. Due to this homesellers situation and budget. we worked with what he had. Most of the decor was dated and the curtains needed to be taken down and large heavy furniture moved out. Even though every room might not have had that "model home" look....the most important element was that you could SEE the space and selling features and Buyers weren't distracted!   Since it sold in 20 DAYS... I think our goal was achieved and even better...with a Staging Consultation and an hour of tweaking!

 Let's add this all up....  

• Staging Consultation & Follow up Staging:  Total Investment: $250 paid by Realtor 
• SOLD in 20 days: Less marketing dollars spent (compare that to the 175+ days this house spent on the market two different times)  
• Happy Clients=More Referrals

REALTORS:  This is an excellent example of WHY you should partner with a Stager. Offering a Staging Consultation as part of your marketing plan is smart!  Look at the return on our Realtor's investment of $250. Consider talking with a Stager today! We want to be part of your Team!

 

  

 

 

 

Teresa Meyer is the owner of www.stageastar.com , a full service professional home staging company in Cincinnati, Ohio serving Butler, Hamilton, and Warren counties. Cincinnati Home Staging....helping Sellers, Realtors, and Investors prepare their home and listings for the Cincinnati real estate market.