When Do We Start the Short Sale Process?

If you’ve exhausted all other options, or those options are something you don’t qualify for, such as loan modification, refinance, etc., and you’re on your last leg, then that is the time to start the short sale process.

After all other options are exhausted, you have only one remedy to prevent foreclosure other than paying your back-mortgage payments.  That process is the Short Sale.

We received a trustee sale notice, what now?

Well, you’ve waited far too long, but it’s not too late.  Once your lender hires a trustee to sell your house at auction, you have approximately 91 days to remedy the situation.  You’ve probably received your trustee sale notice about 15-30 days after it was actually filed, so in reality, you probably have about 60 days or so to get the house on the market, approved for short sale, and sold.  Here’s the big news:

MOST SHORT SALES TAKE LONGER THAN 60 DAYS

I can’t stress enough how important it is that you begin the short sale process at the right time.  The right time is when you determine that your resources are going to run out, and you’re going to be forced to sell your home.  If you’ve already come to that conclusion, it’s time to get the home on the market.  Don’t wait until it’s too late.

But I need to consult my attorney and CPA!

Yes, you probably do, but while you do that, let’s get your house on the market so we can bring an offer to the bank.  You won’t need your attorney’s advice until the lender has agreed to sell the house for less than you owe, at which point you’ll be able to back out if the implications are unfavorable to you.

It takes time to find buyers for your property.  It also takes time to submit offers to the lender and have a negotiator assigned.  It takes time to have the bank evaluate the value of your home.  It takes time to handle the ups and downs of the process.  The key here is that IT TAKES TIME. So you don’t want to waste any if you want to prevent foreclosure.

Foreclosure is a nasty beast, and you don’t want it on your record.  It doesn’t just lower your score, it destroys it.  You can either choose to rebuild your credit history from scratch (foreclosure, 5-7 years) or minimize the damage (short sale, 2-3 years.)

I have seen many home owners lose their home to foreclosure because they simply waited too long to make a decision about what to do.  Don’t be that person.

Other Articles on Short Sales

• Who Pays the Commission on a Short Sale
• Short Sale Cash Contributions at Closing
• Short Sale Basics Part Five: The Gap and Closing the Gap
• Short Sale Basics Part Four: The BPO
• Short Sale Basics Part Three: The Net Payoff

Similar Topics

• February 1, 2012 -- Who Pays the Commission on a Short Sale
• July 21, 2011 -- Special Listing Conditions
• January 15, 2011 -- The “Should I Short Sale” Chart
• August 18, 2010 -- When is an Offer on a Short Sale Too Low?
• August 9, 2010 -- Should We Stop Paying Our Mortgage?