Short Sale Not Short

[minimock]

Well, been working on a short sale, and read all about them here. I thought this one was different. They said the bank had approved the price and could close in a mere 3 weeks.

NOT lol.

Havent heard anything from the bank.

Question... Does the seller have anything to gain by saying the price has been approved when possibly it hasnt been?

[gagum129]

My short sale experience was a nightmare. Over 6 months time invested. I finally had to walk away. I went with a traditional home and the whole process is taking about 3 1/2 weeks. I am suppose to close on the 28th.

The seller in my opinion does have a little to gain by saying bank approved. It will get buyers in the door. They are trying to make it sound like it will be an easy quick deal. But I can almost guarantee you that is not the case. A bank can approve a sale at whatever price but you still have to have the house appraise for the value they approved. If this happens the transaction can probably go a little quicker but if the house appraises for less than the bank approved amount then you are in for the long haul unless you are willing to come out of pocket the difference.

This is just my opinion but I know there are many others like me that have had bad experiences with short sales. If you have time and a lot of patience you might be able to get a deal.

[Booner72]

Yep. I'd say the seller would have a lot to gain by saying the price is approved. How long until Auction? Nevermind the actual sellers, what does the LISTING AGENT say about the bank's 'approval'? The agent should definitely know what's going on in that respect. If they don't, do some research - google the address and you can see the dates it was on the market, who had it on the market (agent wise), etc. You might be able to call a previous agent to see if they know anything. So many people are not willing to even look at a short sale, let alone get into a contract w/ one. A couple of realtors I talked to said they won't touch them and tell their clients not to, either. On the flipside, IF you can hack the waiting and the unknown, having your life pretty much on hold (Cant do anything w/ your credit - no new inquiries/cant have dispute comments etc etc) is difficult to say the least. It's up to you whether or not you can handle this. If you can, Great! I'm jealous of anyone who can - short sales seem to be a pretty great deal once all is said and done. As w/ gagum, my short sale experience was one of the worst 2 months of my life (on one hand). On the other I got off my arse and got my financial life and credit it order for the first time in my life. Again, Good Luck!

[minimock]

Thanks for the input. After reading similar stories, I wouldn't have even attempted this except for the fact tha I am buying very early. I'll be deployed until late next year, so I figure if it goes the distance, no worries.