Destin (4)

"Day in the Life" of a Destin Short Sale Agent

Just one of my normal days selling real estate and short sales in Destin, Florida...Buyer agent emails me to say buyer is “walking” if no response from Niceville short sale lender this week.Another buyer agent calls me to say buyer is “walking” by October 31 if no approval given on Destin short sale condo.Another buyer agent calls and emails me three times asking when the approved Bank of America Santa Rosa Beach short sale can close.Another buyer agent calls to ask if my seller will put $7000 in escrow for “as is” short sale for roof repair, HUH?Bank of America emails me asking for all new financials and a revised settlement statement within two days, or they will close the file on a Sandestin short sale.Two days before closing on Destin short sale condo, I am trying to obtain junior lien approval letter from Suntrust Bank. They have been promising the letter for a month.Seller emails me that an agent left the door unlocked after showing his property. Seller is upset.Buyer agent for Fort Walton Beach short sale calls to ask for status on approval.On hold 40 minutes with PHH for Niceville Florida short sale. I ask for supervisor of supervisor, as this short sale has been in process seven months. I finally have to hang up after hold music gives me a headache.Checking on another Suntrust approval, I am told no BPO or appraisal has been ordered after 60 days. I ask “When” is it going to be ordered. The rep tells me she would be a “rich woman” if she could answer that question every time it is asked.Checking on Aurora Loan Services short sale. They say they have moved back all approval estimates by another 30 days.I let Navarre short sale seller know we cannot sell her property if we cannot show it. Tenant-occupied and every showing is denied.My computer starts typing on its own, repeating the same character ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, for ten minutes. This is the third time in two weeks. I am shut down! I replace the mouse and it starts working again.I create a ten-point counter-offer addendum for Destin short sale seller to respond to an offer.Another buyer agent emails me buyer is walking if my Santa Rosa Beach short sale seller won’t agree to his bank’s demands for deficiency balance to be paid.Good email- Boeing relocation for Destin buyer (wow, non-short sale work)Get pre-approval letter for buyer for Fort Walton Beach commercial property. Letter is dated 1999. My seller is concerned.At the end of the day, I tell my husband I am exhausted, as it was a bit stressful. He says, “You wouldn’t have it any other way.”He is right.It's Wendy!Wendy Rulnick, Broker, CRP, CRS, GRI, ABR Rulnick Realty, Inc.Search All Destin Florida Real EstateDestin Short Sales & Pre Foreclosure Help.Read Destin Real Estate BlogCall toll-free 1-877-ITS-WNDY (1-877-487-9639) or local 850-650-7883 ext 204Email Wendy to sell your home or buy a home: itswendy@rulnickrealty.comCall Wendy Rulnick, Destin real estate agent, to list and sell your home or condo in Florida: Destin, Santa Rosa Beach, Fort Walton Beach, Niceville, Bluewater Bay, Navarre, Seagrove Beach, Watercolor, Sandestin, Seaside, Crestview, Rosemary Beach, Mary Esther, Shalimar, Eglin AFB, Hurlburt Field. Wendy is a short sale and pre-foreclosure specialist and has been featured in Kiplinger Personal Finance Magazine and Florida Realtor Magazine.
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This is a first for me. As a short sale listing agent in Destin Florida, I have a parcel of land for sale in a ritzy golf course community. It is in a newer gated neighborhood where building lots used to fetch over $200,000. When I took the short sale listing at $90,000, it seemed realistic. But the lot market near Destin has steadily declined, fluctuating between a 3 and 15 year inventory in the past two years. That means it would take at least three years to sell out all the lots for sale at the current rate of sales. A normal market is six to seven months inventory.After a year and a continued down market, we eventually lowered the price to $23,000. When I got a contract this week the offer was for $19,000. The most recent comparable sale, a foreclosure, had commanded a whopping $18,000. So the offer was fair.The problem came after I ordered the HUD settlement statement to provide the short sale lender, Federal Trust Bank. Of course, I had done preliminary title work a year ago, but things had changed, including the price by 75%. Not only were there past due taxes of $12,000, there were thousands of dollars in unpaid homeowner association fees. In fact, the closing costs on the HUD would pay zero to the short sale lender, and would require cash to close of several thousand dollars! You see the closing costs were well over the sale price!The seller has no money to bring to closing and the buyer will not. The short sale lender probably won’t pay for the privilege of allowing the short sale to get not a single dollar.My question is, "What would YOU Do?"It's Wendy!Wendy Rulnick, Broker, CRP, CRS, GRI, ABR Rulnick Realty, Inc.Destin FL Real EstateDestin Short Sales & Pre Foreclosure Help.Read Wendy's Destin Real Estate BlogCall toll-free 1-877-ITS-WNDY (1-877-487-9639) or local 850-650-7883 ext 204Email Wendy: itswendy@rulnickrealty.comWendy is a short sale and pre-foreclosure specialist and has been featured in "Kiplinger Personal Finance Magazine" and "Florida Realtor Magazine". Call Wendy Rulnick, Broker/Owner,to list and sell your home or condo on the Emerald Coast of Florida in Walton, Okaloosa and Santa Rosa County- Destin, Santa Rosa Beach, Fort Walton Beach, Niceville, Bluewater Bay, Navarre, Seagrove Beach, Watercolor, Sandestin, Seaside, Crestview, Rosemary Beach, Mary Esther, Shalimar, Eglin AFB, Hurlburt Field.
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When NOT To Take A Short Sale Listing

Today, I turned down a listing. It was not easy. It was a short sale. When listing a short sale, there are certain parameters that must be met. Here they are:1. The seller must allow you to set the price. You know the market.2. The seller must allow you to adjust the price based on your judgment.3. The seller must provide all financial documentation necessary to complete the sale in a timely manner.4. The seller must authorize you to speak with the lender on his behalf.5. The listing period must be longer than six months. Allow time for short sale processing, so make it one year.6. The seller must be reasonable with his expectations for a short sale.7. The seller must trust you.Short sale outcomes are not guaranteed. The seller may have to bring a cash contribution to the closing. The seller may have to agree to a promissory note. The seller will probably get a 1099-C for cancelled debt. He may get a deficiency judgment and be responsible for the remaining balance. Or the short sale may be denied.In the case today, the seller had returned my listing agreement marked up with additional terms. He added that the short sale lender would remove negative reporting from credit bureaus, not issue a 1099-C, waive all rights to a deficiency judgment and relieve the seller of any further obligation.I informed the seller that these demands were not likely to be met. I would not agree to an undertaking with unreasonable expectations. He insisted. I declined the listing. Would you?It's Wendy!Destin Short SalesCall toll-free 1-877-ITS-WNDY (1-877-487-9639) or local 850-650-7883 ext 204Email Wendy: itswendy@rulnickrealty.com
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Alas! There is more than one version of the Bank of America approval letter. One without the dreaded "deficiency" reference. Mind you, not stating they reserve the right to pursue a deficiency may not mean Bank of America has given up that right, but it does cause less trepidation.

Deficiency... what deficiency? My theory - they are leaving out the deficiency reference, but not "forgetting" about it!It's Wendy!Wendy Rulnick, Broker, CRP, CRS, GRI, ABR Rulnick Realty, Inc.
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