All Forum Posts by: Jackie Patterson

Congratulations on getting your license.  If you run into any short sales and want some help, let me know.  I'm a licensed agent in Kalamazoo, and specialize in short sales throughout the country. 

David,

The time a short sale takes depends on numerous variables . Is there more than one mortgage, who is the lender, is it an FHA loan, etc.? Typically it takes 2-3 months minimum, although I have done them in 30 days on a rare occasion. I have also had them take a year. It really doesn't matter which state it is in unless you're dealing with a local bank or a local credit union. Those typically are faster. Generally if you need a few months before you can close, you should be OK. Most approval letters give 30 days to close, and when you add that to the months to negotiate, you're looking at 3 months minimum. If you'd like any help on it, feel free to let me know the details.

Barton, I'm still facilitating many short sales in Michigan, Indiana, Virginia, Tennessee, Montana, Florida and Wisconsin.  I work with several investors and find there are still "good deals" out there. 

Jeffrey,

You or your agent won't be able to contact the short sale lender directly because you are not authorized by the seller. 

As far as the lender "waiting so long to blow out his very low offer given it is probably 70% of market value and 50% of debt amounts" , unless a valuation had already been set, the lender has to go through their procedures to determine if they will even allow a short sale,  and then review all the paperwork, and order an appraisal before they will reply to the offer.   That can take considerable time.  You might contact the listing agent and ask to submit a back-up offer.  If you can't get the listing agent to return your calls, I'd contact their broker.

Tim,

Sending out letters fishing for prospects has been very successful for many investors that I negotiate short sales for in several different states.  The beauty of that approach is you're not fighting everyone else for the property like you would be with a foreclosure.  There are many variables that determine if a short sale is possible.  I've been facilitating short sales for investors for the last 4 years and the right partnership can be beneficial for all parties!

I've been doing short sales since 2010.   I work with investors all over the country, and negotiate with the lenders to get short sale approval.  The way it works is the investor finds the short sale, I gather the relevant information and we get it listed with a local agent.   Then I facilitate the process and negotiate the offer.  I also have Realtors in several states that have me negotiate their short sales for them.   The timeframe is definitely getting shorter, but you can still run into obstacles (bankruptcy, charged off seconds, federal tax liens, debt collection liens, etc) that are not insurmountable, but can delay the process.  Regardless of the time it takes, short sales can be lucrative for investors.  Of course they also really help the homeowner. 

Best of luck, Ron. You've come to the right place to learn. You might consider working as a birddog for short sales. That's a great way to make a little, while learning. There are still lots of short sales, and many investors who like to buy them!

Welcome! You'll find lots of great information on Bigger Pockets.

Hi Stewart,
We are in Melbourne now and are watching my daughter and son-in-law try to purchase their first home. We have suggested that they make their offer subject to legal review, approval of their financing and a home inspection. Same as in the US! They are afraid that this won't work, since the agent selling the home that they are interested in, says they have 14 days to meet their contingencies. Their lawyer is on Holiday until 1-14-13, so we suggested that they date that contingency for 1-28-13. They are afraid that that will not be accepted, but we don't see a problem! What do you think? They have seen a mortgage broker, have 20% down and have been told that they can easily be approved for this home. Their lawyer also gave them the name of a home inspection company that is good, so the other contingencies are not a problem, as long as the inspection company is not closed for the Christmas/Summer holiday.

By the way....The loan that the mortgage broker is suggesting, was said to be of help when they are interested in investment property. Probably another year or so down the line.

Any feedback you can provide would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks,
Jackie

These large incentives are only for specific loans. Not all qualify for them. Chase offers large amounts for some loans that were originally owned by Washington Mutual. They actually sent letters to those that qualified. Bank of America has been testing a program with large incentives in Florida, but you only qualify if the loan is owned by Bank of America, not if they are servicing for an investor.