Rancho Santa Margarita, CA

I received a call the other day from the owner of a Las Flores home. "How did I get myself into this mess?", she said, referring to the short sale deal that was being negotiated on her home. When I questioned who was negotiating the deal, she shared that her agent was working with a third party that was responsible for getting answers from the bank. "But there are no answers coming back.", she shouted.

Short sales in this new market can be extremely frustrating. Some methods are proven to get better results than others. We have found what works and are happy to share it with you.

Be sure to interview your agent carefully prior to signing any listing agreement.

RE/MAX Homes & Estates

Pre-Foreclosure Division

(714) 588 -7676 ∙ www.orangecountyshortsalerealtor.com

If you are in a situation where:

• You lost your job

• Your Medical Expenses are too high

• Just went through/going through a divorce

• You are behind on your payments

• You have no equity

• You can't afford the cost of selling your home

• Your income has been reduced

• You are in foreclosure

WE CAN HELP YOU! It's easy and doesn't cost you any MONEY! Our services are Free!!!

WHEN THE DEBT EXCEEDS YOUR HOME'S VALUE... we can help is with a SHORT SALE.

Benefits of a Short Sale:

• Avoid Foreclosure

• Avoid Bankruptcy

• Reduced damage to your credit

• Postpone your foreclosure sale date

• A short sale will stay on your credit approx 3 years

• BE FREE of financial and emotional burdens!

We are licensed Realtors that specializes in avoiding foreclosure. We will NOT buy your home, but will assist you in selling your home quickly. The lender will cover all closing costs including Realtor commissions. We can make selling your home MUCH EASIER FOR YOU and lift much of the financial burden off your shoulders-- OUR SERVICES DOES NOT COST YOU ANY MONEY!!!

You can sell your property and lift the financial weight off yourself with the help of a experienced short sale Realtor. Re/Max Homes and Estates short sale division has closed over 120 short sales nationwide within the last year. We have a 95% success rate. Do not trust just anyone to handle your short sale. List your home with an experienced Orange County short sale Realtor.

Regardless of your current situation I am here to assist you, so call me today to help you find a solution! You have options which can enable you avoid foreclosure proceedings and escape the 10 year scar it will leave on your credit, therefore, your future. Stop the inevitable and don't face Foreclosure IF YOU DO NOT HAVE TO! Best of all with a short sale my commission will be paid by the bank, so you won't have any out-of-pocket expense!

www.orangecountyshortsalerealtor.com for more info or give me a call at (714) 588-7676

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We had a new short sale come on the market. The clever listing agent only allows showing for one weekend. He publishes the dates and time in the MLS, and clearly states that if you are interesed, you must view it then. All offers were due by 5:00PM Monday.

He was asking for Highest and Best offers.

Why is this a good idea.

The seller isn't bothered with having to show the property, it's only shown Sat and Sun.

The agent only has to hold one open house, well technically 2.

The open house creates a lot of traffic, getting those interested, enticed to make a more substaincial offer.

The listing agent also states in the MLS that the "seller" will make a decision by Thursday. Ok, so the seller making a decision doesn't really help that much, but if it helps a potential buyer make a decision, then it's a good move.

Some banks will only consider one offer at a time. Getting the Highest and best offers, then submitting THE absolute highest and best offer to the bank should greatly increase the odds of getting a short sale approved.

He has made a believer out of me. I'll handle my next short sale listing this way.

Oh - how many offers did he get? 18!!!!

Now, please cross your fingers for me and my client, because we were on of those 18 making an offer.

Paul McDuell - looking for comments.

Nothing to see here folks - Just noticed that I had 199 blog posts, and figured I would make it an even 200.

Interest in Rancho Santa Margarita Real Estate continues to increase. Foot traffic at open houses is the best I have seen in years.

Some have said it because the tax incentive is coming to an end, but I don't think that fully explains it. There are too many investors paying cash, and certainly most of those are not first time buyers.

Have we reached the bottom?

Have prices started to climb?

I did a quick comparison of sold condos for 3 different time frames in Rancho Santa Margarita. I looked at condos from 900 to 1200 square feet. I pulled sales data from the three following time frames:

12/1/2008 through 1/31/2009

1/1/2009 through 3/1/2009

9/1/2009 through 10/18/2009

Anyone who is working in this market can attest to how it's changed over the last 9 months. We have gone from a lot of bank owned properties, to almost none.

We are seeing HUGE demand in this sector with several offers on every condo that is reasonably priced, and is not a short sale.

We are seeing several ALL cash offers.

We are witnessing FHA, first time buyers being forced to the sidelines as investors swoop in and grab these homes at bargain prices.

In the first time frame above, the Median selling price per square foot was $256.34. That dropped to $252.30 for the second time frame. Prices have since risen to $254.29.

While the price increase seems insignificant, extrapolated over a 12 month period equates to a 1.5% increase - which in my opinion equals healthy growth.