Short Sale Sellers: The bank is going to want to see proof. You need to have copies of pay stubs, bank statements, tax returns, etc. to document your financial situation. It is also helpful to have copies of significant medical bills if they have played a part in the situation. You will need to hand write a permission slip for your agent to be able to speak on your behalf to the lien holder. Make sure that your Realtor asks for a short sale package right away from the lender so that you can get things moving faster.

Short Sale Buyers: Have your Realtor ask if the short sale is an approved short sale complete with an element of hardship. The seller’s agent won’t always know the answer to this question because the lien holders don’t fully approve a short sale without a contract for sale, but in some cases there may have been a previous offer that was approved but fell through. Every situation is different! My last Seattle suburbs short sale closed in a little under a month from the time we wrote up the offer, so a long wait is not necessarily always the case, but more of the norm. Most short sales will take at least a month to get approved and sometimes many more months. Patience pays in these cases except that while you are waiting other offers can come in and kick you out of first position. The newer MLS addendums do a lot to alleviate this problem because they do specify whether a seller can accept other offers while waiting to hear an answer about yours.

The bottom line is that a short sale is a good option if you truly do have a financial hardship and need to sell your home –they also are a great opportunity for a patient qualified investor. If you are interested in Seattle short sales or Seattle real estate, please email me at realestate@cooperjacobs.com I know of a lot of great opportunities with short sales right now and I would love to share with you!

These properties are in many cases distressed in more ways than one ranging from appliances that have been pulled out and sold to deferred maintenance issues, and even thousands of dollars in unpaid bills that run with the property. Short sales in addition have a very low percentage of success rate as far as making it to close before the bank sends them to auction. Unfortunately, from what I have seen recently, the banks are still unwilling to be reasonable in many cases. On top of that, there are usually more than one department at the mortgage company involved and the left hand doesn’t speak the same language as the right hand. It is great that the MLS has tried to put a system in to make short sales a bit easier, but I really think that until the mortgage companies put a clear system in place, there is going to continue to be a low percentage of them that actually reach the closing table. This is bad news for both buyers and sellers – and the banks, but so far, I am not seeing the banks concerned enough to change this.

I think the better deal out there right now is new construction. These properties are out there sitting costing somebody something to carry them. There are perks galore being offered on them and the cost of maintenance up front is very low. The cosmetics are perfect and the builders are able to play ball when it comes to negotiating. In fact, I am seeing that when it comes to negotiating price, new construction has a much better potential for getting the better deal! New construction isn’t for short term flippers – the price is right, but be prepared to sit on the investment until the development is sold out or mostly sold out. With all of the perks and special pricing going on, there is no appreciation until the builder is out of the neighborhood. For the owner occupied buyer, though, this purchase can be ideal for earning equity.