Practical Thoughts About Short Sales, Birmimgham Realtor, MI
Dear Oakland County Seller,
I have completed my 14th short sale this year, and I still have to just feel my way through the trials and tribulations of the processes. One thing that truly confuses me is how all of these "Short Sale Experts" tell us what banks will or will not to do, like they were Moses on the mount, explaining the 10 commandments. How could anyone know what a mega large bank will or will not do.
Here are my thoughts;
- A large bank has 1000's patients (loans) on a operating table that are hemorrhaging in 100,000 of different places.
- Each bank has 100’s of doctors (mitigation officers), Nurses (retention dept), Emergency room staff (Customer Service Dept) and Hospital administrators, (mitigation supervisors).
- Now each one of these loans is a patient that is dying quickly. None of the above bank employees have time to evaluate or diagnose the why, where’s and how’s of each file. They just want to Triage the file and decide if they can (a) reinstate the loan, (b) short sale the loan or (c) send it to the morgue (REO Dept)
That being the case, everything is possible. The bank does not want another property in their inventory. Each mitigation officer handles things differently. Just like a police officer pulling you over for speeding. They may just give you a warning or they could throw the book at you or every other thing in between. So never pre-judge. Try, try and try again. Make sure your seller is willing to work as hard and that they are committed to seeing this through. Be bold, If other’s can so can you!! Short Sales are won and lost in the last 7 days of the transaction not the first 11 weeks. Meaning, finish, finish, finish, fight to the buzzer and you will always walk away with no regrets.
Below are my 7 rules that I live by in short sales:
- The bank does not want the home, between foreclosure and shortsale, they will choose shortsale 9 out of 10 times.
- Never lose your cool with the bank, be nice and kill them with kindness, we are all working for the same outcome.
- The person who represents the bank, Represents the Bank!! They are working for the banks best interest. You have to work with them but you do not work for them.
- The bank is negotiable but you could always get a Clint Eastwood (cowboy), which is someone who will go down with the ship to prove they were Right. Hence, sometimes the seller has to give in to get out.
- Log everything; track your calls, faxes and emails. With out a log, you are in a fog on a never ending jog.
- Remember that anything is possible, no mater how reasonable or unreasonable it may see.
- Last rule is "time is not your friend". Get an offer, get the documents to the bank, get a contact, keep the pressure on, call, call, call, email, email, email, fax, fax, fax, confirm that they got what you sent and get it closed before the buzzer!!!!... If the buzzer goes off, ask for an extension, the sun will rise the next day. Today's lemons are tomorrows lemon aid.
So, get calling!!
Mike Sher