Foreclosures & Short Sales
Good Homes Really Do Sell - Even If It’s Not Bank Owned
March 7th, 2008 Categories: Foreclosures & Short Sales, Real Estate News, San Marcos
With all the listings that are either a short sale or bank owned, some property owners who either want or who have to sell have been frustrated.
Alot of it depends on the community…some areas have an over loaded listing inventory of homes owned by seller’s who can’t make their payments after their loans adjusted, and are now in default. Some areas now have dozens of bank owned or “REO” listings.
The issue for the average non-short sale listing is the asking price; non troubled sellers obviously want a little more than the typical distressed seller, and maybe a lot more than a bank owned property.
The good news is that homes for sale that are presented well, priced right, and marketed properly are still selling! A good example is a listing of ours in Vallecito Ridge, a new home community built by K Hovenian. This home, at 586 Dundee Lane, was lovingly cared for and meticulously maintained by our sellers.
The house had many thousand dollars worth of upgrades in wood floors, beautiful custom paint, upgraded countertops and the like, but mostly our sellers educated themselves and made it as clean and “generic” as they could to help us and potential buyers visualize themselves living in this house.
The result, the home is now in escrow with a great buyer and our seller is happy! By the way, our price was listed higher than any other comparable home in the development, and much higher than “new” homes (model matches) still being offered by the builder.
So seller’s, don’t lose hope…do the things you need to do to get your home sold in a market like this. First price it right; owners who go fishing for an unrealistic price will not get showings at this time. Find the right agent who knows how to market your home properly and extensively, and is willing to make the investment in your home. Finally, make it “show ready”. Your listing will stand out against most of the short sale or bank owned properties as many have deferred maintenance, damage, or are being offered in “as is” condition.
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Short Sales - A Step By Step Process
February 25th, 2008 Categories: Foreclosures & Short Sales
A short sale in real estate occurs when the outstanding obligations (loans) against a property are greater than what the property can be sold for. If you’re facing a short sale or foreclosure situation, read the following and call or e-mail us for more assistance.
Step 1:
Verify the value of your property. If you are selling the property through a real estate broker, your broker will provide you with an estimate of market value. If you are selling the property yourself, do your own market analysis of the area and your property.
Step 2:
Add up all the costs of selling the property. If you are using the services of a real estate broker, the broker will provide an estimate of closing costs. If you are selling the property on your own (for sale by owner), call a local title company or real estate attorney and ask, as a seller, what the closing costs will be.
Step 3:
Determine the amount owed against the property. This will be the total of all loans against the property.
Step 4:
Do the calculations. Subtract the total amount owing against the property from the estimated proceeds of the sale. On a short sale, this will be a negative number.
Step 5:
Contact the lender or lenders. Talk to someone in the customer service department and tell them the situation. They may direct you to a specific department. Talk to a supervisor or manager if possible; this person will have more authority.
Step 6:
Ask the lender what its procedures are for a short sale. Some lenders are willing to work with you by reducing the amount owed or making other arrangements. Others will look to the agents involved (if any) or anyone else who’s making money off the transaction to see if they are willing to make concessions to make the transaction happen. Still other lenders will tell you that your debt is your responsibility, one way or the other.
Step 7:
Sell the property.
Debt Relief
Here is a link t othe IRS website that has a pretty good explanation fo the tax consequences of a foreclosure. This would apply to a short sale too. http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=174034,00.html
We would like to emphasize that in California there is usually no “cancellation of debt income” from a foreclosure with respect to a mortgage held by a bank or financial institution because these loans are “non-recourse”.
The same might not be true if debt is from a private lender. Cancellation of debt income is the excess of the loan amount over what the lender sold the house for. This is ordinary income, not capital gain and is not reduced by the $250K or $500K exclusion for gain on sale of residence. Not good stuff here….
If the amount of the loan forgiven exceeds the cost of the house, the difference is treated as gain from the sale of a residence. If the 2 our of 5 year rule is met, you can use the $250K or $500K exclusion.
For additional information or if you are facing a possible short sale or foreclosure, please don’t hesitate to call or e-mail us. We’ll send you information free of charge and without obligation.
short sales - a step by step process provided courtesy of ehow.com
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