How to Sell Your Home Quickly with a Short Sale

How to sell a home quickly using a short sale is very easy to do with the proper guidelines and help. A short sale can be processed in 30 days or less.

Keep in mind when looking for a home to sell quickly and in record time, both the Broker and seller need to become partners in this transaction. The seller must stage the home and the garage prior to it being listed on the market. A pre-foreclosure sale is simply another word for a sale to avoid foreclosure.

90% of all short sales are in foreclosure or facing foreclosure very shortly. A seller has several choices when facing foreclosure:

• Short Sale - a process where the home is sold for less than what is owed with bank approval.
• Loan Modification - a process where the bank agrees to modify the terms of the loan. They will never modify the amount owed.
• Deed in Lieu - Where the seller and the bank agree to simply hand over the keys. This does not protect the seller's credit.
• Walk-a-way - Simply running away.

A short sale is a process where the bank is happy and agrees not to pursue the seller for the difference owed on the property. This must be stated in writing. A loan modification is possible if the seller is employed, but only a very small amount of modifications are approved. Deed in Lieu still leaves the borrower with credit problems and capital gains and walking away can cause the borrower to be sued by the bank for the entire amount of the loan.

How to Sell a Home Quickly Using a Short Sale

 

The name of the game is preparation. This means prior to sale the seller "stages" the home and garage. Staging is a real estate term that means clearing the house of all clutter and preparing the home for showcase quality. There are many things that can be done very cheaply to prepare the home. Here is a list of a few of them:

• Remove all clutter and debris from the property.
• Take all personal mementos and place them in storage.
• Paint the main areas where needed.
• Place new rugs and seat cover in the bathroom
• Place some pots of herbs and knick-knacks in the kitchen
• Manicure the lawn with some new flowers around the trees and sidewalks, including some ornamental hanging baskets around the doors.
• Clean all curtains and furniture.

This is a list of the things the seller should do prior to listing the property with a qualified agent or Broker. Never ever list with a friend of the family, look for someone who is a qualified short sale specialist. Ask for references and for a list of closed short sales in the last 60 days and call those references.

Many agents will want the listing and promise the world, but in order to sell quickly, it is imperative to have a qualified agent. Not all Brokers know about short sales.

How to Do a Short Sale

 

All co-signers on the loan must quick-claim the property to the owner wishing to do the short sale prior to submitting the package to the bank or both owners must submit applications. In order to close a short sale quickly the first concern must be about any 2nd or 3rd liens on the property. They must be negotiated prior to the listing of the property.

If the seller is not qualified to negotiate these liens, then list the property and inform the Broker that there are additional liens on the property. These must be negotiated prior to presenting the short sale package to the lender.If there are multiple liens on the property, the chance of approval is minimal. After the liens are negotiated, then proceed to looking for a buyer for the property who is qualified.

A fully prepared short sale package with everything prepared ahead of time can be ready to submit and close in 30 days or less. The trick is getting the package ready ahead of time with all the documentation required by the lender.

 

Listing the Home for a Quick Sale

 

Price the home slightly under market price. Do not ever price it higher than comparables in the neighborhood. By now the home is ready for a quick sale. Do not accept any offer on the property that does not have full documentation on the buyer.

Never take the house off the market for a buyer that is less than perfect. Place a sign rider on the property stating that back up offers being accepted. This places pressure on the selling agent to process their loan quickly and efficiently.

A qualified buyer should have credit reports presented along with proof of down payment and proof of income. Insist the buyer use the lender the listing agent knows, to make sure the lender is qualified to close the transaction in 30 days. It is important this deal close quickly to avoid foreclosure proceedings going forward.

Once the buyers are approved for the loan and the bank has accepted the short sale, it is just a matter of starting over. A contingency on the contract may be that the seller has the right to remain in the home for 7 additional days after the sale of the home, to move to a new residence. This is a negotiable item and one that is completely normal in these types of sales.