Sharing Short Sale Approval letters
I was just wondering once you receive an approval on a short sale if you share the approval letter with the other party? Is it okay to share the letter with the sellers personal information with the other party to the transaction?
Replies to This Discussion
-
Permalink Reply by Janna Rankin Scharf on
-
The Buyer needs to recieve written notice of the approval by the Seller's lender in order to proceed with their loan application Contrary to some of the earlier comments here, the approval letter certainly does contain sensitive information beyond the SS # that shouldn't be shared - terms of the short sales such as promissory note, past due bills that are being paid, cash relocation incentive, etc. I always provide to Buyer a copy of ONLY the portion of the first page that names the buyers, states the approved purchase price, amount of seller concessions to buyer, and the deadline date for closing. I've never had a Buyer's lender come back and say that wasn't sufficient. We have an obligatoin to maintain the confidentiality of our Seller clients which includes the terms of their short sale approval. It may not seem like a big deal to share the entire letter, but it certainly does violate our obligatoin to maintain our client's confidentiality.
-
Permalink Reply by William F Griffin Jr on
-
I agrre with Rick also. I have not received an approval yet that had the sellers SSN on it. I have not had a seller not agree to share the approval with the buyer. I have had two sellers this year that were able to secure an attorney. We did have a buyer walk two days before closing and that buyer had an attorney and guess how the attorney got they buyer out ? The buyer never saw an approval letter. The buyers agent had a copy but the savy attorney was able to get the buyer out using the argument that no one ever presented it to the buyer. The reason the buyer walked was that she found a house she liked better that was cheaper. So now when I forward a copy to the other agent I want them to confirm receipt and confirm that the buyer was presented the approval. If I have the buyer I print a copy and have them initial or sign.
-
Permalink Reply by Rick Ketterling on
-
That is the approval letter. I wouldn't give the buyers agent any paperwork pertaining to any side deals with the bank for re payment of any monies in a promissory note. As far as fees being paid and covered at the closing table. In MN the HUD has everyones fees on them, so whatever the bank is paying is on the HUD. You can hide an association bill, tax bill or whatever the bank will cover fro a little while, but in the end it will be seen by all. On a side note my sellers know the buyers agent WILL get a copy of the approval when it comes in. To me this is a small thing to ever argue with a buyers agent over. If the buyer walks because we dont give the approval, how much good are we doing for the seller now.
-
Permalink Reply by Stephanie Hart CA 310-930-2342 on
-
I ask for it w/buyers... On seller side I give it to the buyers lender. Pre Coe condition, usually
-
Permalink Reply by Jeff Payne on
-
Just to play devils advocate, does everyone here request of copy of the sellers payoff on non short sale properties? If not, why? Wouldn't it be important to know that there are enough proceeds to cover the sale? Or if the proceeds are short and the seller has to bring money to closing, do you request a copy of the sellers bank statement proving they can come to closing with cash?
-
-
I have confirmed with listing agents that they have verified mortgage statements even on traditional sales. I dont ask for a copy of it but I do ask them to verify. If they are coming to closing with $$ to cover losses I do ask for them to verify and prove the sellers ability. I have never had anyone deny the request in light of where our housing market is.
I ask my sellers to show me their mortgage statements when listing the home. I also check records to see what mortgages have been recorded against property. If there are more than the ones they tell me about I ask them to show when they were paid off. I do get personal with all my clients and their information and they all are very happy about it. They feel I am working 100% in their best interest which is selling their home and getting through the closing.
-
Permalink Reply by Tony Syedin on
-
For the most part, the answer is cleverly hidden in English in the body of the contract. You only HAVE to do what the contract, or the short sale addendum to the contract says your party will do. Everything else is just a common courtesy. If Buyer's agent says they need to show a copy to the lender, no need to get technical, help them out. At the end our goal is not just to close, but to help the sellers out in this difficult chapter of their lives. If I send a copy out to buyer's agent, I only send a first page and I white out all the info on payoff and terms leaving just the first paragraph saying this SS is approved.
I'm in Florida and do NOT know how things are handled in other states, but if my contract says that my seller will send a written notice to the Buyer, then a short, to the point and factual email will be sent to the other party.
-
Permalink Reply by Mary Ferris on
-
In Calif we have a shorte sale addendum that is used with every purchase contract. It states. Seller shall deliver to Buyer a copy of Short Sale lenders consent or term sheet within 3 days afrer receipt by seller. WE just do it. Buyers lenders alway ask for a copy also.
-
Permalink Reply by Marti Sauers on
-
I'm a bit taken back by all of this. I cannot imagine sharing the actual letter with the other side of the transaction. We have let third parties dictate too many things in our industry. There is fraud, always has been, always will be. That's why the contract is 9 pages long with addendums galore. But please don't violate fiduciary in an effort to appease. We have a fiduciary to our client, whether buyer or seller. Short sales and other market dynamics haven't changed that. Everything outlined here can be very easily solved with the Agreement Notice Addendum, including the Buyer's Lender's requirement to see proof. If I had a buyer's lender ask for the actual letter after I provided an Agreement Notice Addendum, I would remind them that asking for information between my seller and their lender is private and remind them that they would never provide me the actual loan documents from the buyer--- that's what Pre-Qual and LSU forms are for. There are many many lawsuits in Arizona about short sale practices. Short sales represent some very slippery slopes. I wish you all the best with this.
-
-
Marti - I can only share our experience as buyers. Our mortgage for the SS we bought was contingent on our bank (Wells) getting proof that SELLER had fulfilled all of the contingencies in his lender approval. WF wasn't willing to take anything other than the approval letter itself. This was last November and things might have changed, but nothing would have sufficed.
-
-
I agree with Harry in previous post, providing the approval letters is contractural.
I would also add that in CA the very first line of the Short Sale Addendum states that "This agreement is contingent upon Sellers receipt of and delivery to Buyer of written consent ("Short Sale Lenders' Consent") to the Agreement from all existing secured lenders and lienholders."
The SS Addendum alsto states that the time periods begin the day after Seller delivers to Buyer Short Sale Lenders Consent.
-
Permalink Reply by Johanna Devon on
-
Here in VA..the buyer's lender usually requires it. I think it's really none of the buyer's lender or the buyer's business. As long as I have short sale approval and the title company gets it..that should be enough. In the future, I am only going to provide the buyer's lender with the first page of the approval and that's it.
© 2024 Created by Short Sale Superstars LLC.
Powered by
**********************************
like buttons