subject: Ask about the Trustee Sale Status During Every Call - Short Sale Education [print this page] Ask about the Trustee Sale Status During Every Call - Short Sale Education
One of the major differences in a short sale is that we are faced with a deadline to sell the property. If the property does not sell by the deadline, the property will be foreclosed, and title will transfer back to the lender. It is critical that we understand the timeline of each and every short sale listing that we take.
Here are three major scenarios that you as a listing agent may face, and the associated timelines you have for listing and marketing the property
1) Seller is late on payments, and banks have not filed anything:
In this case, you are not under a deadline to sell the property. The foreclosure timeline has not started, and there is no immediate danger of the seller losing their home to the lender. Each bank has a different policy on when to commence the foreclosure process. Some lenders start the process after three missed payments, while other lenders have loans that have more than one year's worth of late payments and have still not taken any action towards foreclosure proceedings. Questions to ask during every call:
"Have foreclosure proceedings started?"
If yes, "When was the notice sent to the sellers?" and "When is the estimated trustee sale?"
2) Seller is late on payments and received a notice of default
The deadline has started so it is important to understand what is the foreclosure timeline for your state. For example, in California the notice of default lasts for 90 days, followed by a notice of trustee period of 21 days. This is the timeline you have to get an offer and submit a short sale application to the lender for consideration. Questions to ask during every call:
When is the trustee sale?
How can I help you get an approval for a postponement while the short sale is being processed?
3) Seller is late on payments and received a notice of sale
If the seller approaches you during this stage, there is very little chance that you will be able to find a buyer before the home is foreclosed. The only reason to take the listing is if a qualified buyer has been identified, and the seller has all the documents ready to submit to the lender. Some banks will permit a postponement when a complete short sale application is immediately submitted, while others prefer to let the property proceed to foreclosure because of policy or because of their heavy workload. Questions to ask:
"When is the Trustee Sale?"
If I submit a complete short sale application today, will you be able to postpone the trustee sale so that the application can be processed?"
Look out for our future blogs/articles from our Short Sale Leadership Series content.To view our blog updates, visit www.whbsolutions.com/blog
