Missing!
Short Sale, Foreclosure, and Distressed Property Information for
Buyers
Which is better for a Buyer: Short Sale, Foreclosure, or Motivated
Conventional Sellers?
This is a great time to be a buyer in South Florida! No doubt, you've been reading about foreclosures and short sales in Florida in the newspaper and hearing about them in the news. There are many motivated sellers and distressed sellers in South Florida right now. We have the knowledge and experience, resources, the network, and the research skills to find you the best deal available on whatever property you're seeking, whether it's for your own personal use or as an investment property. Contact us and we'll get right to work for you!
There is no way around it, short sales are less certain and more
likely to take longer than other sales. Long delays in responses from the
Lender are common, for initial offers and subsequent negotiation.
Many Buyers
and Realtors prefer to stay away from short sales for this reason. Any Buyer
considering a short sale should expect delays in the negotiation and often the
closing, along with extra paperwork.
This is not to say that a Buyer
should rule out these listings, as long as they have plenty of
patience. Many short sales are sold to investors who don't mind waiting a long
time for a closing to happen.
Foreclosures are typically more straightforward than short sales,
because the Buyer is dealing directly with the Seller, who is usually the
Lender or the loan servicer. There is inevitably more paperwork than in a conventional sale, but
usually not as much as in a short sale. There are often delays in response
time, but again, rarely as long as in a short sale. Lenders are not in the business of owning property, and do not
want to carry the expenses any longer than necessary. They will
often price their inventory, known as REOs (Real Estate Owned), at prices that
are lower than comparable properties on the market.
The lower
prices and the common belief that foreclosures are great deals often leads to
multiple offers, with desirable foreclosure properties often selling
at the full asking price or higher.
Motivated Conventional Sellers are owners who feel they have to
sell, and have enough equity or personal capital to sell their property at an
aggressive price. Of course, many Sellers who are hoping for a short sale are
motivated, and so are Lenders, but we’re talking about conventional sales here,
where Lenders are not involved on the Seller side. Life events usually drive
the motivation, including job relocation, health issues, estate sales, and
divorce.
These Sellers usually respond quickly, the sales normally require
standard contracts, and closings can occur in a normal timeline.
Question: “We offered full price for a short sale, and the offer
was refused! How can this happen?”
Answer: All short sales are subject to the approval of the Lender, who may
not approve the amount they will receive even if a Buyer offers the full asking
price in the listing.
Because Sellers are motivated to sell before the Lender
forecloses, they reduce their asking price until the property gets shown and
hopefully, offers come in. Experienced Realtors who are knowledgeable in the short sale process offer
very valuable assistance in the pricing strategy that will be acceptable to the
Lender and that will bring potential Buyers in the least time.
Often, Buyers will seek short sale properties that have already
had an offer refused, so they can find out what amount was acceptable to the
Lender if a counteroffer was made.
If you're seeking assistance with finding and negotiating a great
deal on a short sale, foreclosure, or other distressed property, I welcome you
to contact me for
a free consultation.