Short Sale Process, from Start to Closing

Our goal is to make a short sale easier for you than a regular listing. 

Of course, it'll never be "faster" than a normal listing but because of our systems, it will definitely be faster than a normal short sale.

Please note: all actions that we take on your client's transaction (as described below) 

are directed and supervised by a licensed attorney and/or by you, a licensed real estate agent.

Please keep in mind that the time frame for each Step will vary greatly depending 

on the type of short sale and the bank/investor that we're working with.

 

Step 1: Homeowner Consultation & Follow-up

We reach out to your client to discuss their hardship, gather initial information and pre-qualify them for a short sale, based on their specific bank's guidelines. If they do not qualify then we tell them, saving you and them a lot of wasted time.

The majority of the time, we find that they do qualify. And so we answer all of their questions and help them to understand all of the benefits of a successful short sale. If they are not ready to move forward, we continue to follow up via telephone, co-branded email and co-branded direct mail. After all, the combination of your brokerage services plus all that they'll receive from Help You Short Sell will absolutely give them the BEST chance of success. We owe it to them to make sure that they understand this FACT and that they don't forget about you or us.

Once they decide to move forward, we priority-mail a document booklet, directly to their home. And to make the return process as easy as possible, we even include an addressed & stamped return envelope. As a result, the homeowner doesn't need a printer, a fax or a scanner. The process is not nearly as daunting and documents are returned much more quickly.

 

Step 2: Transaction Setup (all parts occur simultaneously)

Part A: Document Acquisition

You send us the signed Listing Agreement and the agent service agreement and Short Sale Addendum (if required). We gather all short sale documents directly from the homeowner by means of direct mail.

Part B: Authorization & Verification

We submit the authorization form to the bank(s) and gather initial loan information from them. This is important to determining the type of short sale that we'll be pursuing on your clients' behalf. We also confirm all information provided by the homeowner, check for foreclosure dates, confirm HOA dues and perform a title search to check for unknown liens or judgments.

 

Step 3: HAFA/FHA/Co-op Evaluation & Request

If qualified, we submit a full short sale package (even without an offer) and make a formal request for pre-approval in the government's HAFA short sale or Bank of America's Cooperative short sale program and other similar programs. If the homeowner has an FHA loan, we begin the process of prequalification with them, instead. These programs not only speed up the process for you, they may allow your client to receive $750 to $10k at closing. ...yes, we have helped several individuals with short sales who qualified for more than $5k in relocation assistance after closing – it does happen but is not guaranteed

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Step 3: Offer/Contract Analysis

The executed agreement between the buyer and the seller is the most important document in a short sale. Once received, we review every detail and manage all communications with offering agents. We DO NOT negotiate price or make the final decision as to which offer is submitted to the bank; that is your job. We simply address the details which cause processing delays and then communicate rules set by the Attorney or the Bank. If you have an existing contract, we will almost always recommend some changes and occasionally, it will need to be re-written entirely.

 

Step 5: Contract Submission/Negotiation

For traditional short sales, this is the point when we submit a comprehensive short sale package to the homeowner's bank, formatted specifically for that bank. We don't use a cookie-cutter approach; each package is different, depending on what works best for the bank, the investor, and the homeowner's financial situation. Every package is completed by a seasoned short sale expert and then reviewed prior to submission by an administrator.

 

Step 6: Follow up

This is where we really excel above and beyond anything that an individual agent would have the time to do. And our level of follow up is far superior than any other short sale firm you may have worked with. And then you receive an update with each and every call to the bank, about once to twice per week. Everyone is always in the loop.

 

Step 7: Closing Coordination

After written approval is obtained for your offer, we continue to work with the homeowner, the buyer agent and the closing attorney to ensure that all of the closing details are addressed and that the transaction is finalized without issue. You can be involved as little or as much as you like but if you'd prefer to focus on other aspects of your business, we'll handle everything so you can go get more listings!

 

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