A local realtor recently called me about a home she just visited. The bank is foreclosing on this property in about 45 days. The courthouse auction date had already been set. She wanted to know if she sold the property prior to the foreclosure date, would the bank still give her client 30 days to close the deal?
After I told her I was not giving her legal advice, the short answer was "it depends." In today's upside down real estate market, banks and lenders are doing things I thought they never would do. The first thing she needed to know was how much money the bank had in the deal, viz., attorney fees, late fees, payoff, etc.. She didn't know. And I assume she wants to get paid. :-)
With so little time to sell this property, it might qualify for a live auction, which could take place in 30 days or less. But the key would be the payoff to the bank/lender and the Loan to Value (LTV) and if the seller had funds for the marketing cost.
I didn't think there was enough time to work out a "short sale" in this situation, BUT, if she had a qualified buyer, the bank could, and I am saying could, not that they will, but they could postpone the auction at the courthouse steps but the buyer had better be pre-approved and not just pre-qualified for a loan.
That is where live auctions have an advantage because before someone can bid, they must put down a deposit and show proof of their ability to purchase the home and be able to close in 30 days or less.
The "short sales process", as most of you know, can take several months to complete and even then, the lender may not agree to your offer or commission structure. Will the buyer wait for the lenders answer? Probably not. Here in NC, you have to disclose the fact that a home is in foreclosure.
Short sales take a lot of patience as you end up talking to many people before you get to the right person. And have a radio ready or plan on doing something constructive while you are put on hold for long periods of time and then you are told to call back as "their volume of calls have increased."
For more information on real estate auctions, go to my website at http://www.cansellnow.com/ or give me a call and I'd be glad to share with you what I know about the short sale process.
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