Selling As A Short Sale
Selling your home as a short sale can be very difficult. Banks are so overwhelmed by short sale properties right now that they are usually really hard to work with. Selling Short Sales usually is very time consuming and requires lots of patience.
Every bank has slightly different requirements when it comes to approving short sales. In general, banks will require these thing:
Hardship Letter: Banks don’t want to forfeit their profits unless there has been a real hardship causing you to get behind on your payments. A letter explaining job loss, income loss, divorce, or fraud victim, or other circumstances that caused you to get behind on your payments will be required.
Financial Records: Banks don’t just take your word that you are insolvent, they want to see bank account statements, tax records, and pay check stubs. If you have money to take the loss for the sell of your house yourself, you probably won’t get a short sale approved.
Tips to Actually Get Your House Sold
Hire a TOP Realtor Who has experience selling short sales. Good short sell specialists usually have teams who are experts at negotiating with banks and making things happen. Ultimately the banks will likely pay the real estate commission anyways, so don’t be cheap. Hire the best real estate agent possible. Here is a great resource to help you find a top agent who specializes in short sales.
Price your home so it will get an offer. Most Banks won’t even start reviewing a short sale file until there is an offer. You wan’t to get the first offer as soon as possible. Chances are that by the time the bank finally approves the file, the initial buyer will have given up, and move on to a new property. By getting an immediate offer you can atleast have bank approval in time for when you really need to sell.
Options to Keep Your Home Rather than Sell Short
For Home Owners in distress there are several options required in addition to short sale. Some of these include, loan modification and bankruptcy. Chapter 13 Bankruptcy is one alternative that may allow you to keep your home. If you are considering bankruptcy, you will want to talk with a Lawyer.