Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Paola Martinsen on March 5, 2012 at 7:18am

Hi, I would recommend to hire a realtor ASAP and let them do all the work for you. They will do all the calling and setting a price for the home until the appraisal is completed then they can ago ahead and change the price and mark it as price previously approved. 

Its my understanding that per HUD guidelines you do not need to have it listed but we willing to list it once the appraisal comes back but Wells does require that you have it listed in order to move forward with the short sale. You could escalate to HUD directly but I dont think thats they way to go. In order to get your short sale done I would suggest to hire a Short Sale Superstars realtor that can get your home sold for you without having to deal with the bank yourself. Plus, you will need to hire a realtor at some point.

Good luck :)

Permalink Reply by Angela on March 8, 2012 at 4:04am

Paola, 

Thank you for the clarification.  It was very helpful. 

Kind regards,

Permalink Reply by Angela on March 8, 2012 at 4:05am

Christy, 

Thank you for taking the time to reply to my question.  I appreciate the clarification.

Kind regards,

Permalink Reply by John Edelman on March 5, 2012 at 8:36am

Hi Angela,

 

I do quite a few Wells Fargo FHA short sales.  I know that it sounds somewhat backwards to have a listing agreement prior to them doing the appraisal.  But that is how things are done.  FHA requires that the homeowner work with a real estate agent to list the house unless you have a purchase contract when you start the process - which is usually not the case.

 

I am not sure what state you are in - but I would seek an agent in your area that is familiar with FHA short sales.

 

The process, unless you have an offer already, is that the short sale package to get the property into the PFS program is sent to the lender. This package includes a listing agreement.  Once Wells Fargo has reviewed the short sale package - if it meets their guidelines, they will order an appraisal of the property.  Once the appraisal comes back - you or your agent will be sent a form called the Approval to Participate and it will tell you what price to list the home at (based off of the appraisal).  The list price may need to be chaged at this time - and they give your agent a few days to get the property into the MLS.

 

Hope this helps.

Permalink Reply by Angela on March 8, 2012 at 4:14am

John,

Thank you taking the time to rely to my question.  This process can be difficult to follow even with the help of a realtor.  We are finding that just getting to the right department can take days or more. My short sale is due to a relocation.  I am discovering that this is a very lengthy process and financially it is becoming increasing more difficult to maintain this home along with living expenses at the new distant location.  I thought I read somewhere that with an FHA SS it must be owner occupied. This wouldn't have been a problem if Wells had been timely on there end. The house is now listed. Considering we continue to maintain the home's lawn, utilities, etc - Do I need to remain at this residence until it is sold?  Thank you. 

Permalink Reply by Shane Blondin on June 15, 2012 at 3:30pm

John-
For clarification purposes - are you stating that the listing agreement is signed, but not LISTED? Or were you simply saying that the new PRICE needs to get input into the MLS.

 

Thanks!

Permalink Reply by John Edelman on June 15, 2012 at 4:05pm

Having a property listed and entering it into your MLS system are 2 different things.  Having a listing (or having a property listed) means that the property owner and the agent have entered into a written agreement to have the agent represent the property owner in a sale.  (I am sure that someone can probably find fault in how I stated this) - but the point is - just because a property is "listed" does not mean it has to be in an MLS system.

The PFS program requires that the property be put into the MLS system within a specified period of time (not looking at an ATP right now) after receiving the ATP from the lender - which specifies at what price to list the home.

 

So - in a nutshell - in order to initiate an FHA short sale using the standard process- the agent will get a signed listing agreement from the property owner and turn it in to the servicer along with the other required documentation. Once the servicer has order the appraisel and the value has come back - the servicer will send out the ATP to be signed by the property owner. The ATP will specify the list price that the servicer is requiring. At that point the listing agreement may need to be amended to this specified price and the property needs to be entered into the MLS.

 

There is also a protocol in which an offer is received prior to submitting the paper work to get the home into the PFS program - but I won't go into that here.

Permalink Reply by John Edelman on March 8, 2012 at 4:27am

If the vacancy is due to a relocation - this is typically alowed and approved.  What HUD does not like is voluntary vacancy when the homeowner could have stayed in the property.

 

Is the agent that you have listed your house with familiar with FHA short sales?

Permalink Reply by Kevin - Greenville, SC on August 7, 2012 at 10:38am

I would go ahead and list now, but the FHA doesn't actually require it to be listed until an ATP is received.

The property must be listed for sale with a licensed 

Realtor unrelated to you within 7 days of your receipt of this 

letter for a list price at or near $ ________,

http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/documents/huddoc?id=DOC_16791.pdf

Permalink Reply by Suzanne White on August 21, 2012 at 10:48am

When a homeowner has a FHA mortgage, I do not list the property until the 90045 is issued and this is the reason why - if there are any liens on the property other than a second mortgage, the Approval to Participate will not be issued.  You have then wasted your time, energy, and reputation as a real estate agent listing a property you cannot sell.  I have learned this the hard way from my inexperience.  Not all sellers will tell you of the judgments or liens they have or they may not even know.  FHA will do a title search on the property and if there are other liens, the request for a short sale will be denied. 

The listing agreement does not have to be sent until the 90045 is issued. I have just completed this process with WF and was issued the ATP and then had 7 days to submit the listing agreement as are the FHA guidelines.