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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.

Under $150,000 La Pine

In the last couple weeks we have started to see some interesting things with the real estate markets in Central Oregon. Several times, in the last 2 weeks I have had a buyer ask for information on homes in a specific area, at specific price ranges. The lists are getting much smaller than we have seen in the last couple years.

In La Pine you will find that homes under $150,000 are much harder to find than they have been recent past. Many of the homes in this price range are wonderful homes, a few are short sales. What seems to be absent is the bank owned home.

It makes me think, that the banks are holding on to more listings than before. The good news is that for the seller that wants to sell and can do so for under $150,000 in the La Pine area now might be the opportune time.

Many of the REALTORS in La Pine are reporting the same type of activity and observing the same situation.

Seller’s for the La Pine area – if you own a home, owe less than $130,000 now might be the time to sell and walk away with a little cash in your pocket.

Many times throughout the last couple years I receive requests to provide listings or show bank owned homes.  We have a lot of them in Central Oregon and in the past most of the Bank Owned Homes were priced well below a traditional sale.  Today we are seeing some changes in that pricing.

Every area of Central Oregon, offers a few awesome bank owned homes but they also offer some great buys in a traditional sale.  So, what is the difference you might ask, below is a list of things you can expect with a purchase of a bank owned home and a traditional sale.

Bank Owned Home

• No guarantee how long a home has set vacant – in our extreme temperatures this can be an issue.
• No repairs – other than major safety or code violations
• No  history of the home to know how something may work
• Occasional delays because the asset manager (person over seeing the transaction) has multiple files.
• Title and escrow is generally handled with an out of area company
• Often times past due water and sewer accounts are not checked.

The Traditional Sale

• Home has been typically lived in or at least taken care of
• Sellers are more inclined to do repairs to sell the home than a bank will
• Sellers are generally willing to share how the systems of the home work, like winterizing the sprinkler systems and such.
• Sellers are more motivated to get documents signed and keep the contract moving forward
• Title and Escrow is handled in the area of the home, where the title company is familiar with the local associations, districts and so on giving you better protection.
• Water, sewer and other expenses are generally current, or are brought current at time of closing.

Great prices are available in both the bank owned listings and the re-sale listings – if you would like to be notified of listings that fit your price, or other needs I would be happy to set you up with an automatic email for listings that fit your specific needs.

La Pine Bank Owned Homes

Three Rivers South Bank Owned Homes

Sunriver Bank Owned Homes

Lapine has a great selection of homes for sale in all price ranges. With Spring here buyers are find some great real estate deals.

No matter what your needs are you will most likely find it in La Pine. Many of the properties in La Pine are on acreage allowing a little more elbow room than what most people relocating here expect.

This home is located on Pine Ct and is ready for you and your horses.  Over 2 acres with deeded access to Forest Land a beautiful home with 3 bedrooms, 2 baths family room and huge living room.  Hot Tub, oversized garage with additional bonus room with it’s own bath and a pool table.

The barn is set up and ready for your horses click on the photo for search including this property.

Now that spring is here the buyers seem to be more active and the banks are starting to place properties on the market that have been sitting for a while.

A couple of the homes that you will find on these lists have been sitting vacant  for several months.  That does not mean they are a better or worse home, I only point it out so that you will understand that these lists may start growing for the simple fact that the banks are starting to get properties put on the market for sale. The weather is improving although we certainly could use some of our beautiful sunshine.

Bank owned homes can appear to be the best deal on the block, but remember there are other homes that may be a better value.  My job is to know what you need or want in your dream home and help you make that dream a reality.

Each Box Below will take you to a current list of Bank Owned homes in each area.