The Short Sale Process – What Can I Expect?
Wednesday, September 23rd, 2009
The short sale process is long and difficult. The homeowner is in a situation where their mortgage value is higher than that of their home – the short sale definition. Most of the time homeowners comes very close to foreclosing before admitting that the time has come to begin the short sale process.
There is no short sale without an agreement with the lender. It is an agreement between both the lender and the borrower and is a transaction that contains many complex factors and considerations. Most important for the borrower is that there will be no foreclosure awaiting them on the other side of the short sale process.
The two parties agree to the short sale, and then to all of its minute detail. They must agree to many things such as unpaid property taxes, the selling price of the home, the purchase agreement, the payment of the various legal fees, and the amount of the debt to be forgiven. It is extremely important to have professional assistance. Do NOT attempt the short sale process with professional help.
The homeowner will be required by the lender to complete a “hardship letter” which will document every aspect of the owner’s financial trouble. The facts given will be documented by bank statements, pay stubs, and investment documents. This is how the bank will verify the events leading up to the borrower’s inability to pay.
It is at the next stage that the lender appraises the value of the home through real estate professionals. The whole short sale process is used primarily by the lenders to undertake minimal losses. For this reason, it is vital that the lender appraise the home properly – so that the bank can get back as much of its money as possible.
If the home is sold in accordance with the agreement – then the money will be used to settle the debt. The bank is not obligated to wait any longer than they agreed to wait in the contract. They can legally proceed with foreclosure if it is not sold by the date agreed to in the contract. These issues will be clearly stated in the agreement.
If handled correctly – with professional assistance, your credit does not necessarily have to be damaged. There are many complex issues involved in the short sale process, and many people have missed deadlines dealing directly with issues relating to credit. For these reasons their credit rating was damaged. Some people have other areas of financial responsibility tangled up in their current problems and for this reason end up with damaged credit. The point is that damaged credit is not a foregone conclusion. If we follow the instruction of the experts advising us, our credit rating may well be saved..
Our goal is to pass through the short sale process and come out with the least amount of damage possible. If we do it correctly, we could come out with no property taxes, credit rating in tact, all of our fees paid, and neither bankruptcy nor foreclosure! This will be our reward – we may lose our home, but we’ll be in a great position to buy another.

