Offer made - then owner filed bankruptcy

[Tim M.]

I made an offer on a MF short sale in PA - was a solid offer, at least 85%+ of appraised value. 2 months later the bank finally reviewed it and verbally advised my agent that they would be accepting the offer. We have not received written acceptance. I just found out the current owner filed bankruptcy 3 weeks BEFORE my offer was submitted. Neither my agent nor the listing agent were aware of this - I found out by stopping by the property. There were notices on the doors for tenants to vacate immediately due to bankruptcy, etc... all tenants had moved out. We contacted the listing agent and she advised she would try to pull something together with this deal - to keep it out of bankruptcy proceedings. Given that the bank, the owner, and the buyer all wish to proceed with this deal, common sense says this deal should still happen. We all know banks don't do 'common sense'... How likely is it that this deal will still happen? Any thoughts or advice? If it does proceed to a bankruptcy trustee sale, anyone know a rough time frame? and isn't there also trustee fees (5% or so) to come up with out of pocket? One of my concerns is the time frame - tenants have vacated, water and electric will be shut off during upcoming winter months - could be repairs needed. My revised offer at that time would obviously be less - it would behoove the bank to allow this deal to happen now. Anyone gone through a situation like this?

[Mark H.]

The trustee has a choice about whether or not to seize an asset with a loan, if it's at or near 0% equity, the trustee wont want it. Then you would just need to get him to sign off, get the bk court to approve that, and deal with the bank and the seller normally. My only concern is that the banks "standard" short sale forms and approval letters might offer recourse to the bank against the seller - which the bk court and the sellers attorney won't allow, and the bank is likely to even be skittish, since there can be huge penalties for them if they attempt to "collect" on a debt that's subject to bk protection. Even a billing statement (accidentally) sent to a debtor can result in a fine to the lender.

I wouldn't run if the deal is right, just don't plan on closing in a week.

As for potential damage, I wouldn't raise that issue until and unless it happens. If something happens, send some proof & some estimates and ask for a reduction. The lender isn't going to want to negotiate "extra" off for future potential damage that hasn't happened.

If the seller is cooperative, perhaps front a few bucks to secure & winterize the property. It's risky, but it can get you dibs & cooperation from the seller, which is a great thing.