My New Blog

Tis the season to be buying a home and I can certainly tell Spring is here by the activity in the market. I cannot tell, however, Spring is here by the weather.. feels like fall.

Many lookers are out there and now, more than ever, I have folks asking me to find a short sale or foreclosure property for them. Although Albany is low on the list for having these types of properties, I do see them and I do show them.

Why do they want a short sale? Thats what I am thinking and the underlying thought from buyers is that they are "great deals". They actually are not. The bank has already taken a hit from either late payments and or now, they need to accept less than  the balance of the loan - hence the word "short". Seeing that mortgages are sold off to investors, the bank has an obligation to get the most they can for the home so fair market value still prevails.

In addition, the time frame for closing on a short sale home is extended due to paperwork, many delays, out of the area banking institutions handling the loan and the fact that there are many short sales across the nation and banks are simply "backed up". What is normally a 6-8 week process can turn into many months of waiting.

This article from Trulia sums the process up nicely and provides strategies for survival. Definitely worth reading if a short sale purchase is in your future!

http://www.trulia.com/blog/taranelson/2011/05/the_5_most_common_complaints_of_short_sale_and_reo_buyers_and_how_to_avoid_them?ecampaign=cnews201105A&eurl=www.trulia.com%2Fblog%2Ftaranelson%2F2011%2F05%2Fthe_5_most_common_complaints_of_short_sale_and_reo_buyers_and_how_to_avoid_them