I have a home owner ready to list and it will be a short sale. Are most of you listing the home and initiating the file in Equator (bank of america) at the same time? So much of the instruction of Bank of America's website are geared toward me already having an offer when I open the file. AND...what if it gets HAFA approved, and I have already listed it at a price that conflicts with HAFA's appraised price? Do you all find it easier to submit the file first, before it is listing, or do it at the same time? Thanks!
You need to be a member of Short Sale Superstars to add comments!
**********************************
like buttons
Replies
I have much better luck with an offer if I can advertise an approved short sale with approved list price. We have alot of non-short sale opportunities in NC, so why wait 3 months for a short sale? So, if I can tell potential Buyers that everything is ready to go for final approval with an offer, there is a better liklihood I will get that offer.
So, I list the home, but take it temporarily off the market - thus not actively soliciting buyers. The BPOer can see the listing information and can see the price I want. The BPO comes in at or near where I need it, then I pull the trigger and activate the listing. I submit the offer with the already approved HAFA or Co-op sale. We still end up waiting a long time, but it is better (for me) to at least have the wheels greased before I look for a Buyer.
At least that works better in my market. So many agents won't take their Buyers to non-approved short sale listings.
I agree with Kevin. I actually don't even talk to the bank until I have executed offer and all paperwork in hand. No need to tip the ball in their court. If you initiate first and wait...they could send out someone to do a drive by BPO and who knows..you may not sell it for a month or two later and prices could be SOOO far off at that point. They now have some drive by in their hand that doesn't reflect actual value.
I don't think it's helps a seller whatsoever to call a lender to give them a heads up that their COULD be a sale coming.
Smitty, the problem with this approach is that the Realtor could be making a decision that would completely disqualify the seller for the oportunity to participate in a program that will allow them to have full deficiency waiver. I'm not experiencing BOA doing drive by's in over a year and a half are you over there?
Keri,
If you are talking about HAFA, that is not true. Servicers will qualify a homeowner for HAFA when the property is submitted. If they qualify, they will alert you and have the homeowner fill out additional paperwork. Also, I've gotten deficiency releases on almost every file and I would say that about 90% of my files AREN'T HAFA.
Freddie Mac HAFA will automatically be denied if you submit the request with an offer.
I'm sorry, perhaps I wasn't clear in my posting...it saves your buyer's time in HAFA to submit without an offer and I can only speak from my own personal experience (approx. 530 ss negotiations in the past 3.5 years) but I have found this to be the most effective process for the seller's I have worked with. In BOA cooperative short sales, I have always been told by BOA that they will not review for coop with an offer...perhaps I have been misinformed? The one thing I know is that I certainly don't know it all, it's forever changing and there is always something to learn. As for deficiencies, the lenders have been negotiating more on this point as of late and requesting more contributions from the sellers to waive deficiencies, at least in Florida. I couldn't tell you the percentage off the top of my head but it's fairly consistent that if it isn't an owner occupied, primary residence there will be a discussion/negotiation regarding the deficiency.
Additionally, if you are listing a property and know what the banks are looking for (BPO's reviewing SOLD properties in the last 90 days within a 1 mile radius) and you see that there are damages to the property, you can proactively get a contractors bid and pictures of the damage etc. uploaded to Equator before a BPO is ever pulled. This way if there IS a valuation issue during the HAFA/COOP review you can immediately get a BPO dispute handled before you even have a buyer in play. Why not get all that done, then get your buyer and close in less than 30 days? Maybe I'm missing something and PLEASE if I am put me in my place, I'm all for learning in this gig! :)
Thanks for all of your input. And I can agree with all of you...however...as far as Keri's comment, I do agree. I just closed a short sale, and I opened the file, submitted paperwork from seller at the same time we listed property. By the time I had an offer (about 5 weeks later) Bank of America had gone through the approval process and approved my seller for HAFA. I then submitted the offer and we closed in 3 weeks. HOWEVER...with HAFA, they give you a suggested list price. That was a little tough because I already had an offer. Luckily I had priced it right in line with what hafa wanted. I guess if there had been a big discrepancy, I would do like you all have suggested and disputed their value with my own comps etc. As I am now listing another short sale soon (she is not ready to put it on the market for about a month...) I wonder if I should start the process now, and try to get the ball moving, so by the time an offer comes in, we are well on our way to an approval (HAFA or otherwise...) OR does bank of america really NOT want files open until after you have an offer?
Thanks Keri...I hadn't read all your comments before I posted my comment. I think I will continue to submit all information I have asap, to get the ball rolling and send it offer as soon as I get one (and as soon as bank will accept it.)
No prob...SSS has a link up top for a Bad BPO...I haven't watched it but it might have some good tips? Everything else on here is stellar! Good luck! :)
-
1
-
2
of 2 Next