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Short Sale Info

Who Pays the Real Estate Commission in a Short Sale Transaction?

The number one question I'm asked by home owners contemplating a short sale is "Who pays your commission?" Often people are already cash strapped in a short sale situation and they wonder if they have to pay a real estate agent out of their own pocket in order to short sell their property. The short answer is that is the bank. Of course, every real estate company writes their own listing agreements. Some require that owners make up any short fall in what the bank will pay with their own funds. But, most will settle for what the bank will agree to pay them.
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Is it me or are Santa Maria CA Short Sales getting easier?

Are Santa Maria CA short sales getting a little easier? Maybe I'm on a high because I just received a short sale approval the other day, and I'm in escrow on another approved short sale that will close in less than 30 days. But, it seems like more and more short sales are being approved every day. A buyer of mine received an approval on another short sale they bid on this month, and lately I'm noticed an increase in the amount of "approved" short sales on the market.
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What is a “contingent” listing on the Central Coast market?

Approximately 25% of the 500 active single family listings in the Santa Maria California market are "contingent." Buyers run up against this time and time again, and often wonder, "what exactly is a contingent listing?" Before the housing bust, "contingent" was primarily used when a seller accepted a contract that was contingent upon another home selling. For example, if I offered to buy your home but I needed to sell my own home to make that happen, I could make an offer contingent upon my home sale.
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Buying An Approved Short Sale in the Central Coast Market

What is an approved short sale? Let's start with what a short sale is -- a short sale is where the owner owes more on their loan than their home is worth but they still must sell the home. So, the home is placed on the market and offers are accepted -- subject to lender approval. Lender approval can take months to obtain. An approved short sale is a short sale where the seller has already received approval from the bank. So, usually they list the property at a price that the bank has already indicated that they will accept, and they typically indicate how much closing costs credit and any repair credits the bank will allow.
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Santa Maria CA & Orcutt CA Short Sale Buyer Information

With the majority of single family homes and condos being listed as "short sales" in the Santa Maria CA and Orcutt CA market, buyers are considering this type of listing more often. A "short sale" is a property listing where the owner owes more than the homes' current value, but still desires/needs to sell. Unfortunately, this is not an uncommon position for sellers in Santa Maria CA.
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Central Coast of California Short Sale Seller Tips

Short sales are common these days. Santa Maria has 255 active short sale listings, Lompoc lists 72 short sales on the market, Nipomo has 14, and Arroyo Grande also has 14 active short sales. The difficult part is obtaining “lender approval” which adds delays to the process. Because approvals attach to a specific buyer, it is vital to find a committed buyer for your short sale. Often lenders require the process to start over if the buyer abandons their offer. This can draw out the process even further. But it is important to note that short sale transactions are closing all over the Central Coast. In the month of December, 18 short sales closed in Santa Maria (2 of these were my listings), 2 in Lompoc, 2 in Nipomo, and 1 in Arroyo Grande.
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Selling Your Home as a Short Sale in the Santa Maria CA & Orcutt CA Market

Short sales dominate the Santa Maria and Orcutt CA market. Simply put, short sales are sales where the owner owes more than the house is currently worth. Currently, 50% of the active listings in Santa Maria and Orcutt are short sales. However, 60% of the homes sold in the past 30 days are bank owned homes (REOs), and only 10% of sold homes in the last month were short sales.
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