Olive Belcher

Today one of my short sale listings closed only two weeks after receiving the buyer’s offer. Two weeks, as we all know, is just the blink of an eye in “short sale years”. How did we close so quickly? An asset management company, rather than a bank took over the debt of the homeowner. The company was quick paced, demanding and in all honestly unpleasant at times. However, the hardnosed approach of the company worked and today I received my commission check in record short sale time! It seems that the asset management companies (AMC’s for our purposes here) can process short sales faster than the bank for a couple of reasons. Firstly, the AMC’s are in direct contact with the real estate agent. The representative from the company I worked with was in constant communication with me; via calls, emails and even texting! Secondly, upon listing the property the AMC gave me a packet of documents and forms that had to be completed with any offer. Submitting the packet of AMC forms with the offer saved time in the approval process as there was no waiting on the bank to get back to me with paperwork; it was all completed in the first step. Each day brought a new challenge, sometimes for the seller, sometimes for the owner, usually for me. For instance, scheduling the inspection within the week and getting the inspection company to rush the report... However, with everyone’s cooperation, when it was all said and done we closed a short sale in just two weeks –and that’s what counts.

We've recently noticed an increase in ‘For Rent' signs in East Boca Raton. You're probably thinking for housing rentals, but that's not the case. Some people have decided to advertise their empty dock space in order to make some extra income. I've never seen this in the past, as it's banned by the city and Home Owners Associations due to the liabilities involved. However, with the recent change in economy it's not just houses that are for rent anymore...

The problem with this situation is that the docks are not deeded anyone but the homeowner. Therefore if an accident was to occur the homeowner would be responsible and said homeowner could be setting themselves up for a major lawsuit. At the same time, if one is comfortable with the liability, should Boca Raton H.O.A.'s stand in the way? Something to think about...