Are you having a problem getting your short sale listing approved and closed?
Oftentimes agents accept short sale listings or submit short sale offers before doing their homework. As a Short Sale listing agent it is very important to completely understand the Short Sale process before listing a property. You must know the type loan that the client has, because the various types of loans, FHA, VA, and Conventional have different procedures which need to be followed in a certain order. You need to know what the lender requires the seller to submit in the "seller package". You should get all of those items together and submit them to the lender even before you get it on the MLS.
The following is the minimum for ANY type loan:
1. Notorized letter from the seller (borrower) authorizing the bank to communicate directly with you.
2. Hardship letter stating the reason the seller has to request the short sale.
3. Financial statement from the borrower showing income and liabilties (debts and monthly payments).
4. Most recent detailed bank statements showing all deposits and withdrawal transactions
For FHA loans, Form 90045 must be completed by the seller before being accepted into the program. Additionally, an appraisal should be requested from the bank before a short sale offer is submitted to the bank. Various lenders have additional requirements and submission procedures. Know what the lender requires and have those items before listing the property on the MLS.
Keep in mind that the first person you will speak to has thousands of short sale requests that they are going through. They have two stacks...the tall stack and the short stack. With three levels of negotiators, if your request is not in the short stack it could take 8 mo to a year to get approval. If it gets in the short stack, it may only take 60-90 days before approval.
I am sure most members of this group know the procedures, but I am directing this comment to the few who don't in hopes that this contribution may save them some frustration.
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