Short Sale, Terrmites, Call their bluff?

[SD Realtor]

Hi Yellow –

Okay let’s make sure we all agree on terminology. What you have submitted is an offer to purchase. It is not yet a contract unless it is accepted and confirmed by all parties. So until the seller and the lender agree to the terms of the offer, nobody has an obligation to pay for or do anything.

Now, if you have not reached the stage where there is universal acceptance by all parties then everything is still up for grabs. You can ask, they can counter, you guys can go back and forth. This is standard procedure for resale homes. HOWEVER…let’s look at the practical nature of short sales…. this is where having an agent who has more experience with some short sales under thier belt is crucial.

Getting through the short sale process is a b-tch. The last thing you want to do, and I have said that ad nauseum, is to go back and forth with the negotiator. Each time you do that you may be costing yourselves weeks. Call me pessimistic but your rate lock will more then likely expire prior to this escrow closing. Good that it was no cost to you but it did involve them running a credit check on you which kind of sucks.

Okay so yeah what I am saying is that the way to go about short sales is to make an estimate of what you will need to rehab up front and put it in the purchase agreement. Total it all up and say buyers request a credit at close of escrow for $x for non recurring and recurring closing costs, repairs, and/or remediation. That way there is no renegotiation necessary. So yes in your purchase OFFER (notice I did not use the words contract) section 1 repairs may be covered. However, when the short sale negotiator sits down to see if they will accept the sale, they will look at the estimated HUD to see what they will net. They don’t build in a few thousand bucks here or there for repairs or remediation. They look at the numbers and if they work then at that time they go, okay I will accept it. Let’s roll. Similarly they may also come back and say we accept but will not pay for repairs or any remediation. You never know.

Okay so right now you have an offer submitted. Did the sellers accept your offer yet? Obviously the lender did not. Now if both the seller AND the lender accept the contract, and neither of them counters the section 1 request you made, then yes at THAT time, one of them is contractually obligated to pay that fee.

***********

As for the property being in escrow, from a practical nature indeed, that does benefit you as long as you did not give them a deposit. Why? Because they will not submit additional offers to the lender. Of course this is only true if the sellers actually accepted your offer contingent on lenders acceptance and they are not marketing the property.

Did the listing agent actually move the property into pending status on the MLS?

While an escrow may have been opened you technically do not have a contract in place yet so there is no obligation by either party to either party. I would agree with ur in the sense that if I was the listing agent I definitely would not have gone through the execise of opening escrow and I surely would not have moved the property into pending status.

[temeculaguy]

Can one of you guys move up here and start handling short sales. There is an art to it, but every listing agent I have encountered knows almost nothing about it, it is terribly frustrating. I made an offer on a short sale last friday, realtor didn’t get the paperwork done until Tuesday, the trustee sale is set for this Monday. She calls me today with a counter from the seller (not the bank) regarding some issues with window coverings, ceiling fans, light fixtures, shelves, etc. (all of which the resident wants to take and I had included in my offer). It was 1:45 p.m. today (friday)when she called, if it is an east coast bank it will be closed, on the west coast it is likely they are done for the day, the trustee sale is Monday morning. I was furious that the offer hadn’t been submitted to hold off the sale and even doing it Wednesday would be dicey, but with 3 business hours left before the sale, it’s a goner. We could have worked out some sort of cash side deal for the items in question but it’s too late. I was going with shorts because they are often in turnkey condition but I am so done with the frustration, I’m going bank owned. It’s not entirely the bank’s fault, the realtors need to educate themselves on the process and not lower the price to market when there is only a week left before the sale after no offers in 6 months for pete’s sake.

I had been using waiting hawks advice on not being represented by a realtor and going with the listing agent or their buddy to get preferential treatment, but it’s not panning out. I think an intelligent and experienced buyer’s agent is the only way to navigate the current sea of idiots in this line of work.

Sorry for the rant, I’m a little dissapointed that I missed it, I really dug that pad.

[temeculaguy]

Can one of you guys move up here and start handling short sales. There is an art to it, but every listing agent I have encountered knows almost nothing about it, it is terribly frustrating. I made an offer on a short sale last friday, realtor didn’t get the paperwork done until Tuesday, the trustee sale is set for this Monday. She calls me today with a counter from the seller (not the bank) regarding some issues with window coverings, ceiling fans, light fixtures, shelves, etc. (all of which the resident wants to take and I had included in my offer). It was 1:45 p.m. today (friday)when she called, if it is an east coast bank it will be closed, on the west coast it is likely they are done for the day, the trustee sale is Monday morning. I was furious that the offer hadn’t been submitted to hold off the sale and even doing it Wednesday would be dicey, but with 3 business hours left before the sale, it’s a goner. We could have worked out some sort of cash side deal for the items in question but it’s too late. I was going with shorts because they are often in turnkey condition but I am so done with the frustration, I’m going bank owned. It’s not entirely the bank’s fault, the realtors need to educate themselves on the process and not lower the price to market when there is only a week left before the sale after no offers in 6 months for pete’s sake.

I had been using waiting hawks advice on not being represented by a realtor and going with the listing agent or their buddy to get preferential treatment, but it’s not panning out. I think an intelligent and experienced buyer’s agent is the only way to navigate the current sea of idiots in this line of work.

Sorry for the rant, I’m a little dissapointed that I missed it, I really dug that pad.

[temeculaguy]

Can one of you guys move up here and start handling short sales. There is an art to it, but every listing agent I have encountered knows almost nothing about it, it is terribly frustrating. I made an offer on a short sale last friday, realtor didn’t get the paperwork done until Tuesday, the trustee sale is set for this Monday. She calls me today with a counter from the seller (not the bank) regarding some issues with window coverings, ceiling fans, light fixtures, shelves, etc. (all of which the resident wants to take and I had included in my offer). It was 1:45 p.m. today (friday)when she called, if it is an east coast bank it will be closed, on the west coast it is likely they are done for the day, the trustee sale is Monday morning. I was furious that the offer hadn’t been submitted to hold off the sale and even doing it Wednesday would be dicey, but with 3 business hours left before the sale, it’s a goner. We could have worked out some sort of cash side deal for the items in question but it’s too late. I was going with shorts because they are often in turnkey condition but I am so done with the frustration, I’m going bank owned. It’s not entirely the bank’s fault, the realtors need to educate themselves on the process and not lower the price to market when there is only a week left before the sale after no offers in 6 months for pete’s sake.

I had been using waiting hawks advice on not being represented by a realtor and going with the listing agent or their buddy to get preferential treatment, but it’s not panning out. I think an intelligent and experienced buyer’s agent is the only way to navigate the current sea of idiots in this line of work.

Sorry for the rant, I’m a little dissapointed that I missed it, I really dug that pad.

[temeculaguy]

Can one of you guys move up here and start handling short sales. There is an art to it, but every listing agent I have encountered knows almost nothing about it, it is terribly frustrating. I made an offer on a short sale last friday, realtor didn’t get the paperwork done until Tuesday, the trustee sale is set for this Monday. She calls me today with a counter from the seller (not the bank) regarding some issues with window coverings, ceiling fans, light fixtures, shelves, etc. (all of which the resident wants to take and I had included in my offer). It was 1:45 p.m. today (friday)when she called, if it is an east coast bank it will be closed, on the west coast it is likely they are done for the day, the trustee sale is Monday morning. I was furious that the offer hadn’t been submitted to hold off the sale and even doing it Wednesday would be dicey, but with 3 business hours left before the sale, it’s a goner. We could have worked out some sort of cash side deal for the items in question but it’s too late. I was going with shorts because they are often in turnkey condition but I am so done with the frustration, I’m going bank owned. It’s not entirely the bank’s fault, the realtors need to educate themselves on the process and not lower the price to market when there is only a week left before the sale after no offers in 6 months for pete’s sake.

I had been using waiting hawks advice on not being represented by a realtor and going with the listing agent or their buddy to get preferential treatment, but it’s not panning out. I think an intelligent and experienced buyer’s agent is the only way to navigate the current sea of idiots in this line of work.

Sorry for the rant, I’m a little dissapointed that I missed it, I really dug that pad.

[temeculaguy]

Can one of you guys move up here and start handling short sales. There is an art to it, but every listing agent I have encountered knows almost nothing about it, it is terribly frustrating. I made an offer on a short sale last friday, realtor didn’t get the paperwork done until Tuesday, the trustee sale is set for this Monday. She calls me today with a counter from the seller (not the bank) regarding some issues with window coverings, ceiling fans, light fixtures, shelves, etc. (all of which the resident wants to take and I had included in my offer). It was 1:45 p.m. today (friday)when she called, if it is an east coast bank it will be closed, on the west coast it is likely they are done for the day, the trustee sale is Monday morning. I was furious that the offer hadn’t been submitted to hold off the sale and even doing it Wednesday would be dicey, but with 3 business hours left before the sale, it’s a goner. We could have worked out some sort of cash side deal for the items in question but it’s too late. I was going with shorts because they are often in turnkey condition but I am so done with the frustration, I’m going bank owned. It’s not entirely the bank’s fault, the realtors need to educate themselves on the process and not lower the price to market when there is only a week left before the sale after no offers in 6 months for pete’s sake.

I had been using waiting hawks advice on not being represented by a realtor and going with the listing agent or their buddy to get preferential treatment, but it’s not panning out. I think an intelligent and experienced buyer’s agent is the only way to navigate the current sea of idiots in this line of work.

Sorry for the rant, I’m a little dissapointed that I missed it, I really dug that pad.

[SD Realtor]

sorry tg to far away. at least you can lament while watching football this weekend. Here is a little nugget… Even if you would have gotten the offer into the lender LAST Friday, it is unlikley that the trustee sale would still be postponed. I have seen it take a week just to get the damn fax into the lender. Some of them mysteriously don’t receive things, lose things… etc… some are a bit more organized then others. It is a crap shoot.

Also even with experience in short sales I am at the mercy of the behavior of the listing agent. Some of these guys are so pathetic it is miserable. Some of the listing agents are okay but then they are dependent on the lender and that is just a black hole. In general EVERY buyer dealing with the short sale process gets bent over pretty bad. Months go by with no change of status and that really toys with peoples emotions. I still wouldn’t give up on them, you just gotta take em for what they are.

[SD Realtor]

sorry tg to far away. at least you can lament while watching football this weekend. Here is a little nugget… Even if you would have gotten the offer into the lender LAST Friday, it is unlikley that the trustee sale would still be postponed. I have seen it take a week just to get the damn fax into the lender. Some of them mysteriously don’t receive things, lose things… etc… some are a bit more organized then others. It is a crap shoot.

Also even with experience in short sales I am at the mercy of the behavior of the listing agent. Some of these guys are so pathetic it is miserable. Some of the listing agents are okay but then they are dependent on the lender and that is just a black hole. In general EVERY buyer dealing with the short sale process gets bent over pretty bad. Months go by with no change of status and that really toys with peoples emotions. I still wouldn’t give up on them, you just gotta take em for what they are.

[SD Realtor]

sorry tg to far away. at least you can lament while watching football this weekend. Here is a little nugget… Even if you would have gotten the offer into the lender LAST Friday, it is unlikley that the trustee sale would still be postponed. I have seen it take a week just to get the damn fax into the lender. Some of them mysteriously don’t receive things, lose things… etc… some are a bit more organized then others. It is a crap shoot.

Also even with experience in short sales I am at the mercy of the behavior of the listing agent. Some of these guys are so pathetic it is miserable. Some of the listing agents are okay but then they are dependent on the lender and that is just a black hole. In general EVERY buyer dealing with the short sale process gets bent over pretty bad. Months go by with no change of status and that really toys with peoples emotions. I still wouldn’t give up on them, you just gotta take em for what they are.

[SD Realtor]

sorry tg to far away. at least you can lament while watching football this weekend. Here is a little nugget… Even if you would have gotten the offer into the lender LAST Friday, it is unlikley that the trustee sale would still be postponed. I have seen it take a week just to get the damn fax into the lender. Some of them mysteriously don’t receive things, lose things… etc… some are a bit more organized then others. It is a crap shoot.

Also even with experience in short sales I am at the mercy of the behavior of the listing agent. Some of these guys are so pathetic it is miserable. Some of the listing agents are okay but then they are dependent on the lender and that is just a black hole. In general EVERY buyer dealing with the short sale process gets bent over pretty bad. Months go by with no change of status and that really toys with peoples emotions. I still wouldn’t give up on them, you just gotta take em for what they are.

[SD Realtor]

sorry tg to far away. at least you can lament while watching football this weekend. Here is a little nugget… Even if you would have gotten the offer into the lender LAST Friday, it is unlikley that the trustee sale would still be postponed. I have seen it take a week just to get the damn fax into the lender. Some of them mysteriously don’t receive things, lose things… etc… some are a bit more organized then others. It is a crap shoot.

Also even with experience in short sales I am at the mercy of the behavior of the listing agent. Some of these guys are so pathetic it is miserable. Some of the listing agents are okay but then they are dependent on the lender and that is just a black hole. In general EVERY buyer dealing with the short sale process gets bent over pretty bad. Months go by with no change of status and that really toys with peoples emotions. I still wouldn’t give up on them, you just gotta take em for what they are.

[yellow8yellowm]

Here are the facts of the deal to set everything straight (hopefully). By the way I really appreciate your help…

1. Offer was submitted to seller and seller signed and accepted offer.
2. Seller changed listing to pending and has not seen another offer since. I don’t know why but they seem to like us…
3. Listing agents has been working with the lender since mid July to get them to accept the short sale.
4. On Sept 2 the listing agent submitted our original July dated seller-accepted contract to escrow agent (still no formal acceptance from lender).
5. On Sept 4 bank tells listing agent that they will not pay for termite repairs. We told our agent that this is not acceptable. Listing agent is now trying to get the bank to pay.

So SDRealtor you believe that we should have either offered 5-10K less knowing that there might be repairs needed or at least write in a credit into the contract in case of repairs? I never thought that this would matter over termite repairs because I thought it was completely required and non-negotiable. I thought other repairs were negotiable such as fixing some plumbing or broken fixtures, but not this. Wish us luck.

Even if all does not go well there are some nice places that have now dropped 25-50K in listing price in Escondido since July when we kind of stopped looking. I’m not so worried if we lose the deal but it would be nice if they ponied up the 5K and we could close it.

[yellow8yellowm]

Here are the facts of the deal to set everything straight (hopefully). By the way I really appreciate your help…

1. Offer was submitted to seller and seller signed and accepted offer.
2. Seller changed listing to pending and has not seen another offer since. I don’t know why but they seem to like us…
3. Listing agents has been working with the lender since mid July to get them to accept the short sale.
4. On Sept 2 the listing agent submitted our original July dated seller-accepted contract to escrow agent (still no formal acceptance from lender).
5. On Sept 4 bank tells listing agent that they will not pay for termite repairs. We told our agent that this is not acceptable. Listing agent is now trying to get the bank to pay.

So SDRealtor you believe that we should have either offered 5-10K less knowing that there might be repairs needed or at least write in a credit into the contract in case of repairs? I never thought that this would matter over termite repairs because I thought it was completely required and non-negotiable. I thought other repairs were negotiable such as fixing some plumbing or broken fixtures, but not this. Wish us luck.

Even if all does not go well there are some nice places that have now dropped 25-50K in listing price in Escondido since July when we kind of stopped looking. I’m not so worried if we lose the deal but it would be nice if they ponied up the 5K and we could close it.

[yellow8yellowm]

Here are the facts of the deal to set everything straight (hopefully). By the way I really appreciate your help…

1. Offer was submitted to seller and seller signed and accepted offer.
2. Seller changed listing to pending and has not seen another offer since. I don’t know why but they seem to like us…
3. Listing agents has been working with the lender since mid July to get them to accept the short sale.
4. On Sept 2 the listing agent submitted our original July dated seller-accepted contract to escrow agent (still no formal acceptance from lender).
5. On Sept 4 bank tells listing agent that they will not pay for termite repairs. We told our agent that this is not acceptable. Listing agent is now trying to get the bank to pay.

So SDRealtor you believe that we should have either offered 5-10K less knowing that there might be repairs needed or at least write in a credit into the contract in case of repairs? I never thought that this would matter over termite repairs because I thought it was completely required and non-negotiable. I thought other repairs were negotiable such as fixing some plumbing or broken fixtures, but not this. Wish us luck.

Even if all does not go well there are some nice places that have now dropped 25-50K in listing price in Escondido since July when we kind of stopped looking. I’m not so worried if we lose the deal but it would be nice if they ponied up the 5K and we could close it.

[yellow8yellowm]

Here are the facts of the deal to set everything straight (hopefully). By the way I really appreciate your help…

1. Offer was submitted to seller and seller signed and accepted offer.
2. Seller changed listing to pending and has not seen another offer since. I don’t know why but they seem to like us…
3. Listing agents has been working with the lender since mid July to get them to accept the short sale.
4. On Sept 2 the listing agent submitted our original July dated seller-accepted contract to escrow agent (still no formal acceptance from lender).
5. On Sept 4 bank tells listing agent that they will not pay for termite repairs. We told our agent that this is not acceptable. Listing agent is now trying to get the bank to pay.

So SDRealtor you believe that we should have either offered 5-10K less knowing that there might be repairs needed or at least write in a credit into the contract in case of repairs? I never thought that this would matter over termite repairs because I thought it was completely required and non-negotiable. I thought other repairs were negotiable such as fixing some plumbing or broken fixtures, but not this. Wish us luck.

Even if all does not go well there are some nice places that have now dropped 25-50K in listing price in Escondido since July when we kind of stopped looking. I’m not so worried if we lose the deal but it would be nice if they ponied up the 5K and we could close it.

[Author]

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