Mary and I have a niche in working with homeowners that need to sell their home as a short sale, and there have been many times that we have been questioned on what to look for in a real estate agent that can successfully complete a short sale. Harford County has its share of homes that have to be sold in a short sale just like many places throughout the country and our team has performed this service many times over. I believe that it is important to know for the homeowner considering selling their home short that not every real estate professional has the training, experience, or abilities to be a short sale agent and it really is important for the agent to acknowledge this fact.

We started working on these types of transactions about 4 years ago when a previous client called us when they had problems in paying their mortgage due to a job loss.  We went to their defense and worked out a solution where the bank allowed us to sell the home for less than what the clients owed.  This had been done occasionally back then and I have heard from agents who have done them every so often for many years so that tells me that this has been around for quite some time.  At the time, we had no training or experience in these types of sales but were able to get the job done.  We then found others having the same difficulties and then we learned of a training program that dealt with how to do short sales called Certified Distressed Property Experts (CDPE).  Once we took this course, we created a process that allows us to get the transactions done with the least amount of problems and in the shortest amount of time.

So, the most important questions that I think a homeowner will need to ask at a minimum to a real estate professional they consider hiring to list their home for a short sale are the following:

1.    Are you trained to work with short sales as a listing agent?  There are many training programs out there and if an agent is going to work on short sales, they should get the proper training to make sure they have the skill to get it done correctly.  There are many good agents that have been trained in this process and there is no reason why a homeowner cannot find a good agent that is trained.  A website I recommend is www.CDPE.com which is in my opinion one of the better training agencies for short sale training.

2.   How many short sales have you been involved with?  I would want to know that the person I am hiring has some experience in performing short sales.  I would consider an agent who is teamed up with a short sale specialist who has experience, after all; agents have to get experience.  We help several agents in our office whenever they need help.

3.   What is your success rate in the short sales you were involved with as a listing agent?  At one time, 1 out of 4 short sales successfully completed was a good number and was the average success rate for many agents.  Today, I would want an agent who has a good record in successful transactions as the listing agent.  Obviously, an agent just starting in short sales may not have a record, if they are being assisted by another agent who is experienced, what is that agent’s success rate.

These most likely are obvious questions but I hope that this short article helps someone who may be considering a short sale.

 Gary Nelson, CDPE, GRI, e-Pro

Harford County, MD. 410-459-6920, Long and Foster Real Estate