One thing I come across a lot when doing short sales, is that the homeowner is not only behind on their payments and taxes, but also defaulted with the HOA. The bank generally will not pay any money towards the delinquent HOA dues and the buyer, many times, is prohibited from contributing by their lender. That leaves the payment outstanding, even if the short sale is approved, and if the
seller can't pay it, it becomes an issue. In certain cases, we can try and negotiate with the HOA company to reduce the owed amount by removing the late charges and interest, but that can be difficult as well. The bottom line is, if you can't pay your mortgage payments and property taxes, try to keep the HOA current because that will make the entire process much smoother for everyone involved.

Sean Seckar - Realtor
RE/MAX of Santa Clarita
661-644-2945
www.SeanSeckar.com
www.TheSCVShortSaleSpecialist.com
DRE License # 1336429