With many homeowners in the Twin Cities metro area upside down on their homes, and facing the threat of potentially getting behind on their mortgage payments, I receive a lot of questions about the short sale process. A short sale is a complex process, which can be greatly simplified by having a short sale listing agent who is experienced in working with mortgage companies in lowering a homeowner’s mortgage payoff. Here is a real life story of a short sale in Savage, MN (names have been changed):
I received a phone call from a homeowner who had come across my short sale help site. Through this phone call, I learned that “John” had purchased a home in 2005 for about $170,000, with two mortgages on a common 80/20 loan program. John and his new wife had since purchased a bigger home nearby for their growing family. Due to the decline in home values, they kept his original home, hoping to rent it out until it appreciated enough to cover the mortgage payoff, and closing costs.
John and Jane quickly learned that being a landlord wasn’t all that it was cracked up to be. There were repair costs due to the carelessness of renters and the difficulty of collecting the monthly rent check. Then the renter fell a month behind, and suddenly, the renter disappeared. Now John & Jane were faced with two mortgage payments, a young child, and a baby on the way.
A decision had to be made…
They could no longer afford to make two mortgage payments, and decided that the rental home needed to go. John contacted me after they were a couple payments behind, and made the decision that we would assist them in pursuing a short sale. Prior to listing the home, we gathered all their current financial information (tax returns, bank statements, pay stubs, etc), and had them write a detailed hardship letter to their mortgage companies describing their financial difficulties, which we submitted for consideration.
We listed their home at it’s current market value, and quickly received an offer. We had found a great buyer, who was willing to wait for the mortgage companies’ approval. Due to all the upfront due diligence in creating the detailed short sale package, we closed within 30 days of signing the purchase agreement! The buyer got a great deal on the home, and the seller’s mortgage debt of over $100,000 was satisfied and released from further obligation!
Here is what John had to say after it was all over:
“When I thought selling my home was impossible being extremely upside down on my mortgage. Jesse dedicated his time and efforts negotiating with my lender to accomplish a very challenging sale on my home. He eliminated a bad investment I was carrying around, satisfied the mortgage company, and prevented a foreclosure on my asset. Jesse successfully did what other agents were not able to accomplish!”
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