About San Joaquin County, CA

As a Stockton Real Estate Agent - servicing the Central Valley , I can tell you that these listed below are definite deal killers à unless they are satisfied and in a quick, fast and in a hurry fashion.

• Seller do not have a hardship - too much money, too many assets, bank account amount is way too high to allow for a hardship
• Seller sign listing agreement, give the agent the necessary documents, sign the offer and the agent send in the short sale request ---àthen disappear!
• Offer price is way too low for the mortgage servicer and investor to find a way to approve the short sale
• Buyer walks! And there is no time to get another buyer before the Trustee Sale that the lender will schedule immediately.
• There is outstanding liens on the property: could be à IRS outstanding taxes, Child Support arrears, Condo/HOA outstanding fees that have turned into a judgment, mechanics liens, family loans or any kind of outstanding loans in which liens were filed...all of which need to be satisfied to close the short sale.
• Property is a one of a kind, or hard to find comps to show that the offered price is a match for the market value

Summary: Homeowners make sure you understand the requirements for a short sale approval, be upfront with your agent and submit all documents and hardship letter in honesty and completeness. This is time to upfront about your full situation - before you start the short sale request.

Buyers make sure you want this property that you put the offer in for, be real about your offer and let your agent know immediately if you are not going to be there to close - should the lender approve the short sale.

Agents, take time and ask the right questions to that you are not surprised at the wrong time. Update and check with that buyer's agent to be sure you still have a deal.

Is it necessary to supply documents that I have already submitted? Yes. Always make sure you cover yourself and give updated and complete documents to the servicer. Never assume they have the document already. There could be several reasons why they will need you to submit a complete package.

Lost the first one you submitted when trying to get a loan modification or a short sale

Different person working on your file... what they see is an incomplete file (avoid them having a reason to put your file in the round file).

Documents have a time restraint on them - usually it is 90 days, but never assume this - if they ask for a certain document provide it and always submit a complete package

I cannot list all the reasons you should always make sure your servicer have all the documents and if they ask for one that you have already submitted --- just do it and give it to them again.

What if we get more than one offer on my property? This is common in this market. You and your agent should review the offers you have on a given date and you decide which offer you want to submit the mortgage servicer along with the required document to complete the short sale request package. Your servicer will have a list of documents that they require (Copy of the listing, offer, buyer information, estimated HUD, listing agreement, your financial documents: pay stubs, W2, bank statements, financial worksheet, hardship letter, letter of authorization, etc.)

It is wise to select the highest and best offer and also have a backup.

What do you mean my servicer purchased the property at the Trustee Sale? What this means is that the trustee sale was held and no outside bids were received or they were not high enough and so the mortgage servicer placed the winning bid on the property. Either way, the property is foreclosed at that sale.

What if my agent forgets to ask to postpone the Trustee Sale

- will my Servicer automatically postpone that date if they are working on the file? NO, NO, NO. Never forget to ask. And don't be assume to ask more than once to be sure it is registered in the system and that you have an answer as to the new Trustee Sale date. There is no going back and correcting or reversing this....

If the trustee sale happens, it's like the heartbeat that stopped. Its over!