Tracy CA Short Sale Question - When Will I Have to Move?

Agreed.

Had a seller who, even though she knew for 6 weeks that we had a closing date, she was still totally unprepared to move. Two days before closing she was doing a DIY move of the contents of her home from Houston to Louisiana. The day of closing she came directly from Louisinana to the closing table. The buyer gave her 3 hours post-funding to get the last of her "stuff" out the house. It took her 2 weeks after that to get her car (non-working) out the driveway. The stress she put herself through was totally unavoidable.

I always let me sellers know that, per the sales contract, they are required to vacate the premises when the buyer takes possession after the transaction funds. I will help them find another place to live to ensure that they are out on time.

The stats you give tell the story. It's based upon the timeline created by investor approval and there is little a seller can do to affect that timeline in any way.

I think the inconsistency of the banks is the most frustrating thing for the buyers, sellers and the Realtors. It is an absolute must that the buyer and the seller understand going in, that their short sale may be and likely will be different than any other short sale.

I agree, once you have your home on the market, you know you are going to have to move eventually anyway, you might as well start packing. But, once you have an offer, even if no approval yet, time to start getting serious because once approval does come, you will only have 30 days.