In today's market, the number of homeowners who have found themselves upside-down on their mortgages has grown exponentially. And, as lenders began raising interest rates on Adjustable Rate Mortgage (ARM) loans, many families have had no choice but to try and sell their home to avoid foreclosure.

The problem is, most of the families bought their homes with zero down loan programs, and have watched as market values plummeted in the last two years. They are now in a situation where they owe more on their home than it is worth. And now they are not only forced to realize they must leave the place they have called home, but they are left to calculate how they can sell their property to cover their mortgage, closing costs, and real estate commissions.

What is a homeowner to do in this situation? First, realize that there are solutions to this problem. One of them being in the form of a "short sale". A short sale is when a lender agrees to accept less for the home than what is owed, and in most cases, they agree to forgive the difference. For instance, if a homeowner owes $125,000 on a home, but the home is only worth $100,000, the lender will agree to accept that as payment in full. This saves them a lot of time, money and work on their end if the property should go into foreclosure. There are a few steps to take in pursuing a successful short sale.

CALL A LICENSED REALTOR OR BROKER.

The first step is to call in expert opinions. Yes, you may know all the answers, but your lender is more apt to listen to you if you have documentation from a licensed realtor or broker. A realtor can do a custom market analysis done on the home, or in Realtor speak, a "CMA" A realtor can calculate what they feel the home is worth, and would sell for, in the current real estate market. It may be a good idea to get a few different opinions on this.


CALL YOUR LENDER.

Now, armed with this information, Meet with boise real estate. Explain to them that you can no longer afford to make the monthly payments on the home, and in lieu of letting the home go into foreclosure, you would like to sell them home. Offer to them the market analysis that the realtors have done for you as documentation that the home is worth less than what is owed. They will decide whether to allow you to sell for less. Be sure to get this info in writing, and make sure they have agreed to forgive the balance of any debt owed. If they don't agree to forgive this balance, but they do agree to a short sale, you can be sued later to pay the balance owed, plus interest.

LIST YOUR HOME FOR SALE.

The best option is to list with a licensed realtor or broker. They are trained to market your home, and your home is likely to sell much faster. Statistics show that a home listed with a Realtor sells for 15% more (more than enough to cover the average commission of 7%), and they sell an average of 90 days quicker. A big difference! It is important to find someone who is experienced in working with lenders and short sales. They will negotiate their commission with the lender, so you don't need to worry about that. Time is of the essence here, and your credit is possibly at stake, so prepare your home properly for sale. It should be clean, tidy and present well.

NEGOTIATE THE DEAL.

With a licensed agent or broker in your corner, this will take a lot of the load off of yourself. By selling and getting out of the home, you will be able to save your credit from being tarnished by a foreclosure. If you have missed some payments, your credit may be dinged, but you are still better off selling the home before it goes much further into the foreclosure process. Your agent will negotiate the terms of the offer directly with the lender, and hopefully you'll soon find reprieve.

With the number of consumers out there in this situation, don't be afraid to call your lender or a Realtor in to help. They have been through this before, and they know it is in everyone best interest to work out a short sale arrangement.

If you are a buyer that is looking to purchase a home through short sale, be prepared to be negotiating with the bank or lender as opposed to the homeowner. The homeowner has no say in this matter, and no real power to negotiate. It is up to the bank to determine how much less they will take for the home. They will be doing their own homework too, in the way of appraisals, to determine a proper price. You may be able to get a deal, but don't expect to get the home for nothing!

In short, no pun intended, a short sale is a common occurrence these days. Until the economy rebounds, it is likely we are going to see short sales for some time to come. The best one can do, is to do their homework, and be prepared to take the necessary steps in the process. It can be done, and your credit can be salvaged.

Posted by: get traffic to website free at July 04, 2017 11:40 PM (/RXOy)

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