Short sales can make a difference

The decision to become a short sale specialist for some agents is a very personal one. For others it seems like a viable business opportunity. For me, it was a couple of reasons. One, the market in the Detroit area was declining at a rapid rate, and I needed to make an income. I also began to see the effect that decline had on honest, hard-working people. The economy shifted, corporations began laying people off in record numbers, and good people were losing their homes. I felt it was my duty as a real estate professional to do what was within my power to help them save their credit.

From a speaking standpoint, I saw an industry trend of seminar after seminar pop up teaching agents and investors how to take advantage or essentially steal people's homes. There was also an influx of companies out there claiming to be "Loss Mitigation Services," stating that they had relationships with all the banks. As a REALTOR®, I knew that just wasn't true. As a speaker, I wanted to teach agents what is true, and a step-by-step process for helping their customers in their market area out of a tough circumstance. In my experience, lenders prefer to work with REALTORS® rather than investors or Loss Mitigators for four reasons:

1. We are licensed by the state.
2. We adhere to a code of ethics.
3. We carry E & O (errors and omissions) insurance.
4. We have too much to lose. As licensed professionals we are less likely to commit fraud for fear of losing our ability to practice real estate

This was a great article with great insight

by Will Weaver