Which is more work -- a divorce or a short sale?

If I am to alienate anybody with my blog this morning, let's start out with a joke I heard. OK, a conservative, a moderate and a liberal walk into the bar. The bartender says Hello, Mitt.

Now we move to lawyers. First, let me say that many, many of my clients are lawyers. I'm not really sure why but I imagine it's because I tend to think first, act second. I don't go around clicking on every "like" button I see. But maybe it's because I like lawyers that I have so many as clients. Or, perhaps we have too many darn lawyers in the world, just like real estate agents.

Did you know that in California almost one person in every 35 people has a real estate license? That's a disgusting number!

Some of my clients hire a lawyer to do a short sale. Some do it upfront and others do it toward the end. I encourage it. For one thing, I am not a lawyer. I can't give legal advice. I can't tell you how many times a client has told me she understands that I can't give legal advice but . . . what about this, that, or the other thing? She's not asking for advice, she's asking for my opinion. Sorry, she's asking for legal advice. I can lose my real estate license for giving legal advice. Do you want me to lose my license, is that what you are suggesting?

I have no qualms sharing with short sale sellers what kind of red flags they should look for, what might possibly happen. And then I say, "Get legal advice because you can't count on anything I just told you as I am not qualified to give you legal advice." Go talk to a lawyer. What is $200 or $2,000 or whatever as compared to the rest of your life? As compared to a deficiency judgment? As compared to thousands of dollars in taxes?

One of my clients asked yesterday why her best friend spent $900 for a divorce but my client's short sale, because she hired a lawyer, cost her three times as much. She wanted to know which was more work. A divorce or a short sale?

Hands down, I'm telling ya, it's the short sale. I would know. I've been divorced 4 times. As a Sacramento short sale agent, I've closed tons of short sales, and a short sale is a lot more work than a divorce. A short sale involves a lot more people. It's more painful. It's more time consuming. But at least -- unlike a divorce -- you're only gonna do it once. So, do it right.

If I think you need a lawyer, you can bet I will tell you. Not every seller in California does, unlike other parts of the country in which lawyers are mandatory. We have SB 458 and CA Civil Code 580e in California. Plus, some short sales are easier than others. But every short sale seller needs legal advice. You can't get legal advice from your short sale agent. If your agent tries to give you legal advice, you better fire your agent.