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My fellow Short Sale Superstars how many times can you shake your head? 5 and even 10 Short Sales(COMPLETED) Doesn't make you an Expert... agents are playing with someones biggest investment...and biggest loss; agents should know what you are doing when they take on a short sale, PERIOD...So again I hear the tale of a listing lost to a Very Good Agent...who sucked at short sales....by the time the potential client realized it...it was too late to re-list and get it sold....UUGGHHH

So the story goes of a great couple needing to complete a short sale with 1 lien(we all know how rare and what a dream it is to just have 1 lien)with Wells Fargo...mind you the agent originally taking the listing was well known in that area...BUT, that agent also knew my team...it was not long after taking the listing that the essential hardships of having a short sale starting popping up, paperwork, participation requests, title searches, etc., etc...so we know...that is truly when the Agents that aren't in the trenches with this stuff every day start to flounder...which happened here...

Where the client needs HELP and someone who can maneuver ins/outs of a short sale, can knock down doors and get this transaction done...A Short Sale Superstar...you know by now if you are one or not...I am not knocking anyone, we all have strengths in our job abilities...I say stick with those, Maybe you can wing showing luxury homes if your just a "newbie"...maybe you can get that listing even if you have never listed in that neighborhood before...BUT DON'T TAKE A SHORT SALE LISTING IF YOU TRULY HAVE RESERVATIONS ABOUT DOING THEM....

I'm happy to pay a referral, I'm happy to help be brought in on the deal...I am happy to help them, BUT THEY NEED YOUR EXPERTISE AND HELP, DIRECTION, KNOWLEDGE REGARDING POTENTIALLY LOSING THEIR HOME...

If you don't have that, move over...But do it before they call me and realize...IT WAS TOO LATE!

If you are the Personal Representative for a  San Bruno Home in Probate that has a delinquent mortgage, but there is equity in the home, DON'T BE AN OSTRICH!!!!!!

It is now very common for San Bruno homes that are in Probate to have mortgages. Many homeowners were enticed to refinance in the last decade because of easy money or low interest rates, many seniors have reverse mortgages on their  San Bruno Probate homes, and some people did not refinance because of low interest rates, but because they were helping out family members.

When a mortgagee dies the mortgage still needs to be paid. Death does not eliminate the obligation. So what do you do if the mortgage is late, the home is in foreclosure, and the estate has no money to pay the mortgage? It is very common for San Bruno Probate estates to be house rich but cash poor.

The first thing that has to happen in a probate with this situation is that a personal representative needs to be appointed. This sounds like a no brainer, but sometimes there are fights within a family as to who that person is going to be, and while people are fighting the bank could be foreclosing. So stop fighting and get someone appointed. 

Once the Personal Representative is appointed he or she should hire a real estate agent. This agent should have experience in both probate and short sales. Probate experience is a no brainer, but the reason for short sale experience is because that person will know who to talk to to postpone the foreclosure.

You will need to give authorization to your agent to speak with the bank and that takes a few days, so do this right away.

Once the postponement is granted get your San Bruno Probate home on the market and get it sold. Postponements generally are only good for 30 days at a time, and you may not get a second one if the home does not have an offer, so don't delay.

If the home has no equity then you should speak with the bank about a Deed in Lieu of Foreclosure. You may be able to negotiate the bank giving the estate $5,000 to $10,000 if you give them the keys and empty out the San Bruno Probate home. However, prices are appreciating so rapidly right now that you may believe your San Bruno Probate home is underwater when it really isn't.

So, if you have a San Bruno home in Probate and there is no money to pay the mortgage, don't just stand there, do something. Take the necessary steps to get help to make sure the estate's home is not lost to foreclosure. If you hide your head you could lose hundreds of thousand of dollars in equity.

If you have any questions about selling a San Bruno Home in Probate please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

D.R.E. 01191194

650-619-9285

As the year comes to a close you may be wondering what the foreclosure and short sale market looks like in Santa Clara County. In a word, things are pretty quiet. The numbers of sales are down. Here is what it looks like:

Closed sales from June 1,2012 to Dec 26, 2012:  

Bank owned: 579

Short Sales: 1743

Compared to the first 6 months of 2012:

Bank owned: 978

Short sales: 1603

Current Active Sales:

Bank Owned:  33

Short Sales: 76

Current Pending Sales:

Bank Owned: 54

Short Sales: 1044

As you can see there has been a large drop off in REO sales with a slight increase in short sales.

I expect a decrease in both short sales and foreclosures as Santa Clara home values increase, loan modifications increase, and the Homeoner's Bill of Rights takes effect in 2013. As prices increase fewer homeowners are underwater, and the need for short sales and foreclosures decrease. Also, the tax exemption of the debt forgiveness on short sales and foreclosures expires at the end of 2012. This will be a big incentive for homeowners to try to hold on until they are no longer underwater.

If you have any questions about Santa Clara County Short Sales or Foreclosures please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

D.R.E. 01191194

650-619-9285

It's time for the short sale/vs REO round-up for the first half of 2012. Today I will do the entire county, and then will break down the numbers by city.

So, in Santa Clara County from Jan 1, 2012 until June 30, 2012 there were:

1783 closed short sales

1099 closed bank owned home

Total sales during this time period were 8201

Total % Short Sales: 21.7

Total % REO Sales: 13.4%

Total Percentage Santa Clara County Distressed Properties: 35.1%

This is still a significant number in terms of percentages and at this percentage they are bound to have an effect on the overall market.

If you have any questions about short sales or foreclosures in San Santa Clara County please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

650-619-9285

DRE  01191194

It's time for the short sale/vs REO round-up for the first half of 2012. Today I will do the entire county, and then will break down the numbers by city.

So, in San Mateo County from Jan 1, 2012 until June 30, 2012 there were:

517 closed short sales

430 closed bank owned home

Total sales during this time period were 2520

Total % Short Sales: 20%

Total % REO Sales: 17%

Total Percentage San Mateo County Distressed Properties: 37%

This is still a significant number in terms of percentages and at this percentage they are bound to have an effect on the overall market.

If you have any questions about short sales or foreclosures in San Mateo County please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

650-619-9285

DRE  01191194

Are you in the market to purchase a home this year? Homebuyers and investors are now presented with prices at unprecedented lows and interest rates that have never been so desirable. For those who are now “looking,” the big questions to ask would be, did our housing market really hit rock bottom and should I look into these cream of the crop deals AKA short sales, reo’s & foreclosures?

So, have we hit rock bottom? 

The housing market showed signs of improvement this 2012 year. Non-distressed properties show on average a 1.7% increase in prices according to a recent HousingPulse survey and experts are optimistic for the latter half of 2012.

Does this mean the only direction house prices can go is up from here on out? Not necessarily. One of the key factors that result in house prices increasing is the decrease of supply in the market (less supply, more demand). Although it may seem our nations shadow inventory is decreasing as investors are rapidly buying homes at all-time low prices, a new wave of foreclosures are set to flood the market again as a result of the robo-signing scandal. This incident caused many lenders to lag behind in listing their foreclosure properties and ultimately pushing them through. One could reasonably presume prices to halt its gain again or drop even lower.

However, this does not mean that now is not a good time to purchase a home.  If your financial status suffices to buy, looking into short sales and REO properties can win you an outstanding deal in today’s market. Mortgage rates recently hit another all-time low. According to Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey released on July 5^th, 30-year fixed-rate mortgages sunk down to 3.62 percent which is a considerable decrease from a 4.6 percent just one year ago. Concurrently, rent prices have gone up on an average of 5.4 percent over the last 12 months according to real estate website, Trulia.

Washington State (Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA), is in the top 20 nationwide for rising short sale discounts. The average sales price is $224,294 with an average discount of 31.35 percent.

*Before you begin putting offers on properties, I highly recommend following Dave Ramsey’s guide prior to purchasing a home.

Our team of agents specialize in short sale and reo properties and have been extremely successful in helping clients purchase discounted homes in the Washington State area. If you are looking into purchasing a home this year, contact our team of local agents to find the best deals in your desired location(s).

Peter

In Sunnyvale from Jan 1, 2012 until June 30, 2012 there were:

58 closed short sales

32 closed bank owned homes

Total sales during this time period were 447

Total % Short Sales: 12.9%

Total % REO Sales: 7.1%

Total Percentage  Sunnyvale Distressed Properties: 20%

20% of all Redwood City sales being distressed is enough to still have some effect on the overall market. However, as inventory is still so low unless these homes are truly physically distressed, which is more common with bank owned homes at this level, it probably will not have a long lived effect. It is interesting to see there are almost twice as many short sales as bank owned sales.

If you have any questions about short sales or foreclosures in San Mateo Clara County please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

650-619-9285

DRE  01191194

In Redwood City from Jan 1, 2012 until June 30, 2012 there were:

46 closed short sales

22 closed bank owned homes

Total sales during this time period were 363

Total % Short Sales: 12.6%

Total % REO Sales: 6%

Total Percentage  Redwood City Distressed Properties: 18.6%

18.6% of all Redwood City sales being distressed is enough to still haves some effect on the overall market. However, as inventory is still so low unless these homes are truly physically distressed, which is more common with bank owned homes at this level it probably will not have a long lived effect. It is interesting to see there are twice as many short sales as bank owned sales.

If you have any questions about short sales or foreclosures in San Mateo Clara County please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

650-619-9285

DRE  01191194

In Santa Clara from Jan 1, 2012 until June 30, 2012 there were:

97 closed short sales

47 closed bank owned homes

Total sales during this time period were 491

Total % Short Sales: 19.8%

Total % REO Sales: 9.6%

Total Percentage  Santa Clara Distressed Properties: 29.4%

29.4% of all Santa Clara sales being distressed is enough to have an effect on the overall market. However, as inventory is still so low, unless these homes are truly physically distressed, which is more common with bank owned homes at this level, most homes will not sell for much less than fair market value. There are twice as many short sales as foreclosures in this time period which is what we are seeing in many other cities. 

If you have any questions about short sales or foreclosures in Santa Clara County please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

650-619-9285

DRE  01191194

In Mountain View from Jan 1, 2012 until June 30, 2012 there were:

16 closed short sales

22 closed bank owned homes

Total sales during this time period were 349

Total % Short Sales: 4.58%

Total % REO Sales: 6 %

Total Percentage  Mountain View Distressed Properties: 10.58%

10.58% of all Mountain View sales being distressed is not enough to have a major effect on the overall market. Additionally, as inventory is still so low unless these homes are truly physically distressed, which is more common with bank owned homes at this level, it probably will not have much effect at all. Ther are so many employed people looking for homes near Google, Apple, and other high tech companies, that homes are getting multiple offers, selling at appreciating prices, and are almost always in high demand. It is interesting to see there are more foreclosures than short sales which we have not seen in other cities. 

If you have any questions about short sales or foreclosures in Santa Clara County please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

650-619-9285

DRE  01191194

Many homeowners are now capable of purchasing a home with the all-time low home prices and interest rates. Short sales and Foreclosure/REO properties offer cream of the crop deals that are difficult to simply pass by. If you are looking into the housing market, it is wise to adequately educate yourself especially when looking into distressed properties.

The big question we’ve been getting is, is a short sale or a foreclosed property the better deal? Below is a large pros and cons list for both short sales and REO properties.

*Information derived from Foxbusiness, ABC ActionNews, RealtyStore, WhisselRealty

Pros

• The seller of the property is a bank that has no emotional attachment to the property…they are all about the numbers.
• They are often priced aggressively as the bank wants to sell the property as quick as possible.  They want to stop the business of managing and selling property, and get back to the business of lending money.
• These homes are typically vacant and are very easy to show.
• The banks will usually respond to your offer in 3-5 business days.
• If the home is owned by Fannie Mae, it may qualify for HomePath financing which only requires 3% down and does not require an appraisal or mortgage insurance (MI).

Cons

• Because these homes are aggressively priced, they often received multiple offers.  This is where it becomes important to work with an agent that has a strong understanding of how to write your offer to make it stand out from the competition.
• These homes are sold as-is and the bank will often make no repairs.  As you have probably seen in the news, many of these homes have been stripped by the previous owner and/or vandalized by criminals.  Because of this, they may not qualify for FHA or VA financing.
• You will also have no disclosure forms from the previous owner with REO properties, nor will you be able to get good answers about the neighborhood with repossessed homes as simply as you would through the normal process with a realtor and private seller.
• In these post-bubble days, a bank may also not own the repossessed homes as cheaply as was the norm in previous economies. They may also try to recoup some of their expenses from the foreclosure process as well as the monthly costs of owning and carrying REO properties.

Short Sale Properties: Homeowner sells for less than what is owed.

Pros

• Many agents will not show short sales due to the long response time which opens up opportunities for those buyers that are not in a hurry to buy.
• These homes are typically in better condition than bank owned homes because the homeowner is usually still occupying them and taking care of the home.
• The banks will often accept less than market value because they do not want to foreclose on the home and take on the task of managing and selling the home.

Cons

• The process of negotiating a short sale with the mortgage bank typically takes 1-6 months.
• The bank is under no obligation to approve a short sale offer.  Less than 50% of short sales that are submitted to banks are approved.
• Often times the banks will not pay off all of the liens against the property (HOA dues, property taxes, ….) and the buyer may be asked to pay for these items.

In conclusion, one of the main discrepancies between a short sale vs an REO property can be described by the scenario of buying a used car either from a dealer or from a private owner. If you get it from an owner (REO), you may get the vehicle at a more discounted price but the quality of the asset is a gamble. You may end up spending a lot in repairs because the vehicle’s engine hasn’t been maintained.

In many cases, an REO property is vandalized and/or the previous owner out of spite, trashes the property prior whereas in a short sale, the property is significantly less likely to be vandalized or mistreated prior to transferring the home.

What do you think? Which would be the better deal? Short sale vs Foreclosure

In Los Altos Hills from Jan 1, 2012 until June 30, 2012 there were:

1 closed short sales

0 closed bank owned homes

Total sales during this time period were 45

Total % Short Sales: 2.2%

Total % REO Sales: 0%

Total Percentage  Los Altos Hills Distressed Properties: 2.2%

The low number of distressed property sales in Los Altos Hills is consistant with the other high prices neighborhoods in Silicon Valley. These areas are showing strong sales, good appreciation, and plenty of buyers with enough cash and income to purchase. Compared to the same time period in 2011 there were 2 closed short sales and 5 foreclosures with 52 sales for a total of 13.5% sales being distressed. 2012 is definatley different.

If you have any questions about short sales or foreclosures in Santa Clara County please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

650-619-9285

DRE  01191194

I just had to share this.

I had just gone to the post office to pick up my mail in the morning, after that I was on my way to my office. When all of the sudden a block away from there, I see an attractive For Rent sign.  It read, "House for rent, 3bed 1 bath and 2 car garage, for $1,100 a month" Considering the area, and the features of the house it seemed like a very good deal. I wanted to rent it myself. Right away I called the number, and the man who answered wouldn't give me the address of the house. He told me that he'll tell me the address when he get's to the house in 15 mins.  He called me and showed me the house, the house was near by. When I saw it, I was impressed; the house was in great condition. I told the guy that I wanted it, but he wanted for me to give him cash, cashiers check or money order. I made an appointment with him, at the end of the day so I can show it to my wife, to see if she liked it too. Also to give him the money.
 

I was still thinking of the house the rest of the day, but I saw that it had combo lock boxes, and an electronic box keys that Real estate agents use, but not a for sale sign. He had told me that they were there for other agents to show it and rent it. Still when I got home, I logged on to the Home Search system and looked it up. Turns out it was For Sale, I called the listing office and they said: IT'S NOT FOR RENT, IT'S AN REO LISTING". Man I was so mad. I told the listing office of the situation, so they put a for sale sign back on right away the next day. The guy wanted to scam me for my money!!!!  He wanted first months rent, last months rent and $1,000.00 for cleaning deposit. That was a total $3,200.00. I got to be careful next time.

Now, this is one of the first things I tell people who are looking for a house to rent. Be aware.

After that, 3 weeks later, one of my clients calls me and tells me to look up an address for him, to see if the house was for sale. I looked it up and it was for sale! Then I noticed his his reaction. He said, the house only had the post, but not the for sale sign, and that he had given $1,800.00 cash to rent this house, to this man that showed him the house, they didn't do a contract or got his information, they just did a verbal agreement for the mean time and a contract later. So this guy just got the money and disappear, so he got away. My client tried calling him but hi's number all of the sudden got disconnected. TOTAL SCAM ARTIST!!

Now, I'm advising all my clients, renters, friends, realtors and also REO agents,  about these scams, BE CAREFUL OUT THERE.

Most times when agents or homeowners know I have a listing down the street...they can safely say "This chic is about to destroy the values in my neighborhood"...OK, mostly true because of my Short Sales, really...I am just bringing the neighborhood down to it's true Market Value, none the less, I have been called The Grimm Reaper....

But what bites my behind is when I go to bat to get a Short Sale approved, show comps and get a bank to lower their BPO/Appraisal pricing to what clearly is a fabulous deal and then....wait for it...I hear....CRICKETS from the Buyer's side...the buyer agent frantically trying to pin down their buyer, wondering if that buyer has possibly gone on a crusie to a third world country and cannot be reached to take The Deal of The Century....

BofA countered at $216K, and since I felt that it was still too high, and the buyer's offer was still lower...  we were able to "Convince" the bank to "come to the light" and see the true value is at $200K....which the buyer wanted...then...and stil NOTHIN', good news here is at  10am this puppy goes back onto the market as an Approved Short Sale, but we all know what happens...I WILL NEED TO RE-ENTER ALL THIS INFO AGAIN ONCE WE HAVE ANOTHER OFFER & BUYER...

Dear Buyer, If you don't surface by 10am, Good Luck, Hope I dont eventually come to  neighborhood where you end up buying...because I know you have heard of That Chic That Does Short Sales.... .

In Los Altos from Jan 1, 2012 until June 30, 2012 there were:

3 closed short sales

3 closed bank owned homes

Total sales during this time period were 192

Total % Short Sales: 1.5%

Total % REO Sales: 1.5 %

Total Percentage  Los Altos Distressed Properties: 3%

Again, we have a high priced neighborhood and almost no distressed property sales. Values are appreciating and there are more pople trying to buy homes than there are homes available. Additionally, there is very little new contruction before the crash, so there is not a big group of people who bought into a large development and are now underwater.

If you have any questions about short sales or foreclosures in Santa Clara County please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

650-619-9285

DRE  01191194

In Blossom Valley from Jan 1, 2012 until June 30, 2012 there were:

263 closed short sales

104 closed bank owned homes

Total sales during this time period were 626

Total % Short Sales: 42%

Total % REO Sales: 16.6%

Total Percentage  Blossom Valley Distressed Properties: 58.6%

58.6% of all Blossom Valley sales being distressed is enough to still have major effect on the overall market. However, as inventory is still so low unless these homes are truly physically distressed, which is more common with bank owned homes at this level, many homes will get multiple offers and the values should increase this year. It is interesting to see there are over two and half times as many short sales as bank owned sales which has also happened in other cities. This area is great for investors with a lot more activity than in some areas like East Palo Alto or Belle Haven.

If you have any questions about short sales or foreclosures in Santa Clar County please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

650-619-9285

DRE  01191194

In Menlo Park from Jan 1, 2012 until June 30, 2012 there were:

9 closed short sales

9 closed bank owned homes

Total sales during this time period were 227

Total % Short Sales: 4%

Total % REO Sales: 4%

Total Percentage  Menlo Park Distressed Properties: 8%

8% of all Menlo Park sales being distressed is not enough to have any effect on the overall market. This is evidenced by the appreciation and high activity level of the market.

If you have any questions about short sales or foreclosures in San Mateo Clara County please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

650-619-9285

DRE  01191194

Rent rates are continuously increasing in our country while home prices and mortgage interest rates have hit unprecedented lows making home buying more feasible. Home buying now would be a great investment if your specific financial situation permits but let’s explore the time frame of this window of opportunity.

Am I losing my chance to snatch me a discounted home?

To be blunt, NO ONE can say for sure where the direction of the market will go. However, you may infer predictions based off a few key factors:

• Overall health of the economy – i.e. employment (or lack thereof –un and -under)
• Interest Rates
• Supply & Demand of the Housing Market

Keep in mind there are a number of other factors that affect the housing market such as demographics, government policies, consumer confidence, and etc.

Mortgage rates have consecutively hit lower percentages for some time now. Based off data from bankrate.com (last checked 8/8/12), 30 yr fixed rate had a slight increase to 3.81% and a 15 yr fixed at 3.00%. These are premium low rates and it is unlikely that it will move further down than the current rates.

Meanwhile, based off information from dsnews.com, unemployment rates stands at 8.3%. There are also issues with underemployment. For more information, please read the article Economy Surprises with 163k New Jobs in July, Unemployment Rate Up from dsnews.com.

Supply and Demand is also big factor for the fluctuation of home prices. Supply has decreased especially in this 2012 year as properties flew off the market by investors. However, there is a worry about the ominous shadow inventory that experts are afraid will drag prices even lower (supply increase, demand & prices decrease). The influx of distressed properties is largely due to the robo-signing scandal which occurred earlier this year. This incident caused many lenders to lag behind in listing their foreclosure properties and ultimately pushing them through. Still, Freddie Mac gives assurance by saying the “shadow” over the housing market is not as long as some may think.

Bottom Line: Again there is no way to give a 100% accurate prediction of where the housing market will go. Based off a few factors such as interest rates being low, -un and –underemployment rates remaining constant, and supply & demand showing positive signs exempting the shadow inventory fear, one can be optimistic about the housing market now.

In my personal opinion, I believe that although the housing market is rebounding, we will not, as Robert Shiller stated in the video above, be expecting a U shaped recovery. Although history doesn’t repeat itself exactly, based off the historical housing cycle, we have time with this window of opportunity.

The worst thing an individual can do is purchase a home without being financially prepared. We will be regressing into the subprime mortgage crisis era if we are purchasing homes we are not able to afford. Just because someone is able to afford the mortgage payments, does not mean you are able to afford a home. In fact, the monthly mortgage payment amount should be a third of a homeowner’s monthly income. We should also take into consideration taxes, insurance, HOA dues (for condominiums), maintenance costs, upkeep, and more. Lastly it is wise to have accrued 3-6 months’ worth of emergency prior to purchasing. These are all factors to consider prior to looking into homes. A great place to start would be www.daveramsey.com.

Do not rush into a home just to seize the opportunity. Make sure you are able to afford the opportunity first and then move forward.

If you believe you are able to afford purchasing a home, contact our distressed properties experts in Washington State for more information on these cream of the crop properties! Submit your information here and our experts will get in contact with you within 24-48 hours.

Peter

Full article at:www.seattleshortsaleblog.com

Next Article: Is A Short Sale or A Foreclosure/REO property a better deal?

In Palo Alto from Jan 1, 2012 until June 30, 2012 there were:

1 closed short sales

3 closed bank owned homes

Total sales during this time period were 284

Total % Short Sales: .3%

Total % REO Sales: .9%

Total Percentage  Palo Alto Distressed Properties: 1.2%

1.2% of all Palo Alto sales being distressed properties is not enough to even comment on. The price of homes have in Palo Alto is now up to pre 2008 prices in the $2,500,000 price range and the homes over $2,500,000 usually do not have loans that are a very high percentage of their value so anyone who is having financial problems can generally sell and be made whole. So if you are looking for a bargain, look outside of Palo Alto.

If you have any questions about short sales or foreclosures in Santa Clara County please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

650-619-9285

DRE  01191194

Marcy Moyer Keller Williams Realty Palo Alto, Ca. Specialist in Short Sales and Trust and Probate Sales

There are often overlooked benefits to buying an owner occupied short sale home. It’s amazing just how much of a difference having someone living in a property can make. Here are some of the upsides that I have noticed in a Wisconsin owner occupied short sale home versus a vacant Foreclosure:

-  It feels like a home. When someone is living in a short sale home, there is furniture and pictures on the wall. It has already been somewhat ‘staged’ for showings. This helps potential home buyers get a feel for what an office or kids bedroom would look like if they purchased the home.

- The grass is mowed. This helps with weed and rodent reduction. It also keeps the neighbors happy.

- The air conditioning remains on. I have come across some foul smells in vacant foreclosure homes. When a property sits sealed up for too long, there is almost always a stale smell that results.

- The heat remains on in the winter. This helps to prevent plumbing from freezing and the resulting water leaks.

- The electricity remains on. In Wisconsin, this is important for basements. When sump pumps don’t have electricity, flooding often occurs. This can result in a very costly fix. It also means that the refrigerator is cooling and dishwasher is being used. This can prevent mildew growth.

- The water is being used. Many Wisconsin homes require a water softener due to hard water. With the water being used, the softener is allowed to work. This will prevent sediment build-up which can ruin a water heater and clog up pipes.

- Property Condition Report. When a bank lists a foreclosure property, they do not have to provide a Property Condition Report. Wisconsin doesn’t require a report if the current owner has not lived in the property. In a Wisconsin Short Sale, the owner is legally required to inform potential buyers of any defects they are aware of.