When I saw this video, it made me laugh. While a little bit of an exaggeration, it does a great job of characterizing the short sale process. I share it with much gest, and at the same time it helps set a framework for my future clients so you know what I'm up against every time I negotiate a short sale on behalf of my client.

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What I am seeing more and more often in my short sale transactions is homeowners with two loans on the property. The 2nd loan is usually either a Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC) or a second loan for 10-20% of the original purchase. The trend with the second lienholder, in either scenario is a demand that the seller agree to sign a promissory note in order for the 2nd to agree to th...

Preparing to short sale your property requires a very specific list of documents that you will need to gather together. The following is a general list of items that you will be required to provide to me when I list the property. Please begin gathering the information so it's ready to submit to me.  

Hardship Letter: This is a letter that you will either type or hand write to the attention of your bank that explains your situation that has caused the delinquency.  The letter should be brief and pointed, maximum of 1 page. This letter can often make or break the bank agreeing to release you from your mortgage debt for less than what you owe. Begin by identifying how your income has change...

This just in regarding the trend toward short sales! This is great news for so many homeowners in trouble! The new government mandates are starting to work and the banks are working harder to make short sales happen.

Read the entire article about the trend toward more short sales here.

I’m still on my Short Sale Soap Box

Then there's the short sale BPO (Broker Price Opinion) process. The banks are of the belief that an out-of-area real estate agent who is willing to consume hours of their time to drive 60 miles to take photos, develop a market analysis that declares market value and turn their report around in 24 hours for 50 bucks is a better choice than hiring a certified appraiser BECAUSE IT'S CHEAPER THAN ORDERING AN APPRAISAL.

I’ve made it a point to show up for every BPO on my short sales to provide the BPO agent with good comparables, a summary narrative analysis, and a live commentary of the known matters that affect value of the subject property. In many case...

Ah...the World of Short Sales is fraught with problems. As I write this, I think to myself: THIS IS AN UNDERSTATEMENT! We aren't just running into problems with the banks, we're running into what could be described as OUR WORST NIGHTMARES!

Lenders are defying logic and denying short sales where the seller is demonstratedly distressed and in a severe financial hardship...can you say...Government incentives mean more to the banks than giving homeowners trying to get on with their lives a break?

Then there’s the fact that Junior (2nd) lienholders are blocking short sales by requiring a greater contribution than the 1st is willing to offer...silly 2nd...don't you know you'll end up with...

Being that the real estate climate is what it is these days, it would seem that lenders would be begging for short sales. If you ask: “why would a lender consider a short sale where they receive less than they are owed?”, I’m here to tell you there is a huge and obvious reason…they will lose more if they foreclose. A foreclosure can cost a lender an extra $40,000-$60,000 in attorney fees, trustee fees, holding costs and maintenance expense on every foreclosed property.

I won’t lie to you and tell you that short sales are easy. In fact, my experience is that they are anything but easy. It’s a very dynamic process with lost of moving parts and the lenders keep changing the rules as we go a...

Just on November 30th, 2009, the Treasury Dept. released the forms and guidelines for the new Home Affordable Foreclosure Althernatives Program (HAFA). This program is expected to be a huge leap forward to help homeowners who are unable to retain their home under the Home Affordable Program (HAMP).

HAFA was created to streamline and simplify the use of short sales and deeds-in-liu of foreclosure by tweaking the process that the banks currently employ.

Just to highlight HAFA...

- It is designed to complement HAMP by providing althernatives for homeowners who qualify for HAMP, but are still unable to keep their home. Why is this important? Well, almost 65% of the loan modifications compl...