Eden, UT

I had the pleasure of representing some awesome, patient buyers who recently closed on a short sale transaction in Utah "only" five months after their original offer was written. I have represented only buyers in short sale transactions, and after many attempts, I can finally say that short sale trasnactions CAN actually close. Having closed only one of 10 short sales transactions, my personal recommendation to buyers looking to purchase a short sale property is to avoid them unless they enjoy waiting for inept, non-responsive mortgage companies to respond (if at all).

Now to the shocking figure in the subject line of this blog entry: As of 2/26/2011, 3427 of the 15,057 homes (22.8%) actively listed on Utah's largest MLS system are short sales. Many buyers and most agents are now well educated on the low odds of getting a short sale transaction over the finish line, so this does not bode well for the housing market, especially the over 3000 Utah homeowners who hope to sell their home as long as lenders continue to drag their feet in responding (if at all) to offers on short sale properties. The odds of a short sale property getting shown to a prospective buyer in the first place is very low, and if the property IS shown AND a buyer likes the property enough to write an offer, the odds are 10% (at best by my estimate) that the buyer will hang in there long enough to wait for a bank negotiator to actually become engaged in the process.

I often wonder why once a bank forecloses on a property and takes over ownership (known as REO, "Real Estate Owned" property) that same lender is suddenly able to respond to an offer within days vs months? Are we as real estate agents and the general public really getting the straight scoop regarding short sales? Does anyone else wonder if there may be an incentive for mortgage companies to drag out short sales, forcing many homeowners into foreclosure? Comments are welcome!

Thanks,

John Allaire

Prudential Utah Real Estate - Eden

Eden, Huntsville, Powder Mountain Utah, and Pineview Reservoir Area Now Have a Certified Infrared Home and Building Inspector

Living in the Eden, Powder Mountain, Pineview Reservoir Utah area is what most would consider living in paradise. The summer days can be spent golfing, water skiing, hiking, listening to concerts at the ski resorts, fishing, and on an on.

Winter days can be spent sking some of the greatest powder on earth, snow-mobiling, ice fishing, sledding, or just being lazy while viewing some of the most beautiful scenery in America.

Many of the homes throughout the area are custom built offering many of the amenities most only dream about.

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Wolf Creek Properties recently filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. According to information released, Wolf Creek Properties has filed several motions allowing it to continue day to day operations. Wolf Creek Properties owns Wolf Creek Utah Ski Resort, formerly known as Wolf Mountain and Nordic Valley Ski Area.

Wolf Creek is exploring restructuring options while talking with potential purchasers of what it considers "non-strategic portions of its operations" in an effort to attract new ownership. The press release did not indicate which assets Wolf Creek may be interested in divesting.

Wolf Creek Properties has at least 100 creditors, and larger debts include approximately $450,000 owed to Randy Marriott Construction.

Following a three hour, standing room only public hearing I attended last night (June 1st), Powder Mountain owner/developer representatives (Western America Holdings management company, Pronaia Capital Partners) Joseph Pierce and Steve Nielsen and 40 primarily Ogden Valley residents voiced their respective opinions, the Weber County commission unanimously approved a ten-point BINDING Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). The MOU gives the green light for the development agreement (DA) process to move forward for Powder Mountain.

Bottom line: 1477 units are allowed before a traffic safety/impact study of any type is conducted. As defined in the MOU, a single family home represents one unit, while a 100 unit hotel would count as 33 units. The developer stated over 80% of the total acreage in Powder Mountain would be open space, and that Eden Heights would be removed from the MOU. The MOU provides for a total of 1477 (phase 1) and 1323 (phase 2) units for a total of 2800 units over 4475 acres.