Tony and Libby Kelly, CRS, ABR, ePro, SRES, CLHMS, CNHS

Before recently most people had never even heard of a short sale, now buyers are out looking for them to make sure they are getting a deal.

A short sale is when the bank agrees to discount the loan balance for a seller who owes more on his mortgage than the home is currently worth. And since nowadays these are everywhere, you are going to find one on your house hunting trip whether you want to or not.

So there is a down side to these things, you have to work for them. There is the extra step of getting approval from the bank and this one step can add months and months to the process. Especially now because they are so backed up with all the short sales being processed.

First of all, you want to be aware of what your are getting into, patience and persistence are going to be key. Do not think your transaction will be different and be easy and short, because it won't. So do not plan on a particular move in date, have a place to stay till it is all finalized.

Second, you definitely need a realtor who has done these before. You need someone advising you properly and calling the lender daily on your behalf.

Thirdly, try to avoid short sales with extra liens on them. The more banks you include the longer it will take. If you can help it, you also want to avoid homes that already have other offers. This too will extend the process and decrease your chances of getting the home.

Fourthly, you want to price right so have your agent research the comparables, do not just go off the list price. The bank may be low-balling to attract multiple offers. You will also want to get pre-approved or the bank my not even look at your offer.

Fifthly, try to get the lender to pick up the closing costs. You also want to let them know that you won't be paying for appraisals and inspections until you have an approved offer. No reason to be throwing money away on every house you MAY get. While you are at it, try not to put in earnest money over 3K in case you want to pursue more than one home at a time.

Finally, be willing to be annoying. You should be calling your agent at least once a week so that you know they are calling the lender constantly. The processor dealing with your loan will not be putting your off because they want the phone calls to stop. But if you are willing to put in the effort, you can score a major deal!

http://money.cnn.com/2009/01/27/real_estate/short_sale.moneymag/index.htm?postversion=2009012806

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It is said that 20% of home owners are "underwater" on their mortgages and more and more homes are going into foreclosure every day. For many the best financial option is to let their home go into foreclosure instead of throw away thousands of dollars that the home has lost in value.

The prediction is that most of these home owners will do just that but some think that people aren't always so rational.

One reason is that people tend to over value their own home. That makes it to valuable for them to just walk away from.

Secondly, people tend to place greater importance on immediate consequences than they do the long term ones. Walking away might help you out down the road but is a lot of pain and effort right now.

Then there is the morality of it. Some feel it is just plain wrong to walk away because if you borrowed the money, then you need to pay it back, it's that simple. Check out this article with great real-life examples of home owners situations and what they intend to do about it.

http://money.cnn.com/galleries/2009/real_estate/0903/gallery.walking_away/index.html

PLEASE CHECK OUT OUR NEW PODCAST ON THE HOMEPAGE OF OUR WEBSITE http//:www.TonyandLibby.com & OUR NEW PORTLAND METRO BLOG AT http//:www.TonyandLibby.blogspot.com (make sure you leave comments)

The good news is that we are ranked #4 in the U.S. for best housing markets.

The bad news is that we still declined 14%, although the national average is 18%.

PLEASE CHECK OUT OUR NEW PODCAST ON THE HOMEPAGE OF OUR WEBSITE http//:www.TonyandLibby.com & OUR NEW PORTLAND METRO BLOG AT http//:www.TonyandLibby.blogspot.com (make sure you leave comments)

I am just so, so excited that I had to share. I just recently filmed another two episodes of "My House Is Worth What" for HGTV. On top of that exciting news I received a phone call to do an episode of "My First Place" for HGTV as well. I will try and keep you guys updated on when those will air.

PLEASE CHECK OUT OUR NEW PODCAST ON THE HOMEPAGE OF OUR WEBSITE http//:www.TonyandLibby.com & OUR NEW PORTLAND METRO BLOG AT http//:www.TonyandLibby.blogspot.com (make sure you leave comments)

No matter what the market condition, there is always going to be a group whose turn it is to be in the most advantageous position. Right now it is the first-time home buyer. This is evident by the stat saying 41% of buyers at the end of '08 were first-timers.

This stroke of luck is for a few reason. With the new lower prices they are able to afford better than they could before, if they could afford anything at all before. Not to mention all that inventory just sitting there, sellers are negotiating.

Then there are the low interest rates that compliment the low home prices so perfectly. It's like stars are aligning.

Of course buyers right now have to have good credit and a significant down payment, but if a buyer has that in order they are in a great position to get a deal.

There is still a question of whether or not prices have hit bottom yet, but there will always be that risk. Perhaps it means a buyer can take the time to find the perfect deal.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123431356988570855.html?mod=rss_Today%27s_Most_Popular

PLEASE CHECK OUT OUR NEW PODCAST ON THE HOMEPAGE OF OUR WEBSITE http//:www.TonyandLibby.com & OUR NEW PORTLAND METRO BLOG AT http//:www.TonyandLibby.blogspot.com (make sure you leave comments)