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Top 10 secrets of buying Short Sales! Part 2

May 13, 2013 | Home Seller Tips, Uncategorized | 0 comments

Short Sale

Short Sale Expert Advice, Short Sale Agent, Short Sale Negotiation

This is the 2nd part of the series on buying a Short Sale home which is NOT for the faint of heart cause there are too many moving parts including a lender who could be trying to foreclosure on the property.  In a Short Sale you could also have a stressed seller who might not be fully cooperative depending on if they could get any relocation expenses.  

So, if you find your dream Short Sale Listing you should discuss these 10 questions with your agent before he/she writes you an offer:

6) Is there a trustee date set?  How close are we to that date?

 Most Short Sales take as much as 30-60 days to close.  The California State law mandating a decision from lenders on Short Sale approvals  in 30 days helps, but if the Trustee Sale Date is too close to your close of escrow date, then you might be well severed to keep looking for more properties since this one could end up being auctioned despite your pending offer on this Short Sale.

We advised our clients to avoid properties that have less than 60 days to a published Trustee Sale date since there is no grantee that the Sale date would be postponed.

7) Has a Trustee Sale Date been postponed on this property?  Most banks who have not received a payment in the last 12 months will not postpone the trustee sale date.  So, if a sale has been postponed on the property you are interested in, then you might be forced to close 2 weeks before the trustee sale date.   If that’s not an option, then keep looking.


8) What is the nature of the hardship?  Make sure the sellers have a legitimate hardship that the bank can use to approve their short sale.  Most lenders have published list of hardships that they require to approve a short Sale which includes Job loss, medical emergencies….etc.   Having a New baby does not qualify for a hardship!

9) Are there damages to the property?  Have the sellers filed an insurance claim for any damages!?  Some sellers file insurance claims and don’t use the money for these repairs.   If these repairs are require as part of your Short Sale transaction, the lender will NOT pay for them and could decline the Short Sale.  If the Home Sellers have collected funds for these damages from the insurance company, the Short Sale lender will require the sellers to disclose what has happened to these funds.  If the answers are a Hawaii trip; it could go to viability of their hardship and lead to a decline of Short Sale request.


10) How about Bankruptcy?  Are they considering it?
Filing for a Bankruptcy would stop the Short Sale process till a decision is made by the bankruptcy judge on the liquidation of Assets.   So, if seller of the property has filed for bankruptcy, keep looking for OTHER properties while keeping an eye on this one. Click below if you want to find out if you qualify for a Short Sale.

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