Short Sales, Steal of a Deal?

Have you ever had one of those phone calls that make you shake your head indisbelief? I had one this afternoon. A local home buyer called wanting a"short sale expert" to help her buy a short sale property.

I asked her why a short sale? Her reply was, "because they are greatdeals. I can get a home for really cheap."

I then asked her why she thought short sales were better deals thatnon-distressed listings and her reply was, "Because I have seen thelistings".

She hung up on me while I was explaining that a list price is notnecessarily the price a lender will accept for a Short Sale and that ShortSales are not a "steal of a deal" but that lenders will want fair marketvalue for these homes.

This conversation made me realize just how uneducated the public and manyRealtors are on the topic of Short Sales.Here is food for thought:

1. The short sale listing agent may not be listing the property at arealistic price for a short sale. Banks are not obligated to accept anyoffer, no matter what the listing price is.

2. Banks are taking a loss from past market values, so they want currentmarket value in the sale, even if it is at the bottom of market value, itwill still be market value. They will be ordering a third party BrokerPrice Opinion, so they will not be basing their decision on the word of thelisting agent.

3. If the bank is willing to discount the property to an extreme value, itmeans that the property probably needs a lot of work to make it livable.

4. There are usually better "steal of a deal" from a seller who has equityand willing to negotiate to move quickly.

Think twice before you think or believe that Short Sales are a Great Steal.Some can very fair but I don't think the majority of short sales are thesteal that this buyer was thinking of.

For more information on short sales or for assistance with buying or selling Tucson area Real Estate, call Julie Nellis, Long Realty, 520-918-2843 or visit www.tucsonhouses4you.com