Short Sales and Foreclosures

Short Sales, Foreclosure and Bank Owned Properties For many real estate professionals, short sales and foreclosures represent the new “traditional” real estate transaction. Knowing how to maneuver the complexities of short sales as well as how to identify the distinct real estate opportunities in foreclosure are not merely good skills to have in today’s market-they are critical.

Distressed Property Terms 

Pre-Foreclosure
Anytime homeowners are behind in their mortgage payments, they are considered in “pre-foreclosure.” The length of what is considered pre-foreclosure varies depending on the state laws. During this time, the homeowner is initially notified of the mortgage payment default. The contact typically occurs within 30 days following the default on a payment. Before placing a lien on the property, the lender may follow up with letters and phone calls. It is still possible at this point for the homeowner to avoid foreclosure. 

Short Sale
A short sale is a situation in which the Seller owes more money on the loan that the sale of the property will likely produce on the market and the Seller is unable or unwilling to bring money to closing. The Seller may or may not be in a pre-foreclosure situation. 

Foreclosure Sale
The actual foreclosure sale is the sheriff’s auction/sale or trustee sale. 

REO/Bank Owned
This is the status of the property AFTER the foreclosure sale as ownership transfers from the former homeowner to the lender. REO is the acronym for Real Estate Owned. This term is used by lenders to differentiate between the properties they have loaned money on and those they have foreclosed on and now own.

In light of what going on in our economy and in the local housing market and with so many people facing foreclosure or finding themselves upside down in their mortgages I have taken special training on helping homeowners in distress. A foreclosed property in a neighborhood can have an extremely negative affect on the entire marketplace and one of my goals is to help homeowners avoid foreclosure completely. 

One of the biggest problems according to all of the statistics is that most people do not know of their options if they are facing a financial difficulty. One of the issues we’ve been trained in is explaining those strategies to the homeowners so they can make the best decision for their future.

If you know of anyone who may need some help, please have them contact Mark Roncone. I assure you I will give them the finest professional service available.