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Your Perfect Home a Short Sale?

You have found the perfect home in Central Oregon, and you discover it is a short sale!  One of the most common questions is…. How long will it take to buy this home?  The answer is not simple; it just depends on a lot of different conditions.

What is a Short Sale?

A short sale (sometimes called a pre-foreclosure) is a home offered for sale at a price that will not pay the entire amount owed to the lender, the closing costs and so on.  So, why or how can someone list the property for less than they owe?  Market conditions, do not support the amount owed on the home.  However there must be a hardship, the bank that is owed the money will not take a loss just because the seller has decided they don’t want to own a home that may have lost value.  History shows that Real Estate trends go up and down today may be a down market – but over time this will change.

The Seller is Upside Down is NOT Reason Enough

If you owe more than you think your home is worth today that is not a good reason to short sale.  If you continue to make your payments and ride the market out the day will come when your home is worth more than you owe.

The home that is on the market today as a short sale can be a great deal, if you are patient.  However statistics show that only about 40% of these transactions actually close escrow.  The reason is not necessarily because of the bank, but that the buyer gets impatient and wants a home they can move into in a shorter period of time.

The agent that has a home listed as a short sale will need to be in constant contact with the bank.  As a buyer your agent can be as on top of things and aggressive as can be but if the seller’s agent does not know what to do or how to do it the buyer can sit and wait in frustration.  More and more agents are educating themselves as to the short sale process and banks seem to be getting through the process a little quicker to.

Personally I do not think the short sale home is the perfect home for a first time home buyer.  A short sale takes time, and the frustration of waiting can kill the excitement of the first time home buyer, not to mention that lending programs change rapidly and the loan you plan to use may no longer be available when you finally get the approval from the bank on the price and terms of the short sale.

Sunriver has not had the number of short sales or bank owned properties that the rest of Central Oregon has seen.  But there are a few great homes to choose from that fall into this category, remember not to limit yourselves to just the bank owned or short sale, a lot of  sellers have lowered their prices to compete with the bank owned and short sales in Sunriver.

Click here for your List of Bank Owned and Short Sale Homes in Sunriver

One of the biggest questions from Short Sale Sellers, and folks facing bankruptcy in Central Oregon is how long before I can apply for a new mortgage?  The answers have been slow in coming but finally some mortgage folks are stepping up and answering our questions.

Jason with Home Loan Ninjas  answers this and a couple of similar questions in his FQA section.  See for your self What Jason has to say, and feel free to give them a call for you mortgage needs.

Please note that Jason talks about keeping your credit clean, and having a few other things you may have to work through.  This is just when you can apply as with any loan or service this is a case by case determination.

Additional Ask The Mortgage Professional Articles

Looking for a mortgage professional? I would encourage you to contact;

Jason or James – your Home Loan Ninjas at 503.799.4112 or you can visit their website and see more info about mortgages and what you should expect.

Do you need assistance with your mortgage? This program may be of help to you! On December 10, The Oregon Housing and Community Services will open online applications for the Mortgage Payment Assistance.

The Mortgage Payment Assistance will award homeowners in states hit hardest by the economic and housing market downturn through a fund established to help at least 5,000 homeowners in Oregon. This fund will provide up to one year of mortgage payments or $20,000 whichever is less or comes first.

The payments provided by the Mortgage Payment Assistance program will be a five year, forgivable, interest-free and non-recourse loan. The Oregon Housing and Community Services will forgive 20% of the balance each year. Mortgage Payment Assistance recipients that refinance or sell their homes within the first 5 years may be required to repay part of the assistance they receive.

Funding for this program comes from the U.S. Treasury’s Hardest Hit Fund. This fund was established to aid homeowners in states hit hard by the current economic and housing downturn. The Treasury has awarded $220million for foreclosure prevention in Oregon.

To Apply online for Mortgage Payment Assistance on December 10 go to www.OregonHomeOwnerHelp.org applications will be accepted for one month. The State of Oregon will then have a drawing to select the Mortgage Payment Assistant recipients – this is not a first come first serve basis. The Mortgage Payment Assistance website has additional information on this program.

If you need immediate foreclosure prevention help, please call the Homeowner’s HOPE Hotline at 888-995-HOPE (4673).

Sunriver Oregon does have a few short sales and bank owned properties.  Some buyers have recently told me that other agents have told them that Sunriver has not been affected by this market.  To them I say “please tell the truth.”  Sunriver prices are lower than we have seen in years, homes with great updates, remodels and in awesome locations can be purchased for lower than expected prices.

Click here for a List of Bank Owned and Short Sale homes in Sunriver

Bank Owned Home Articles