If you are considering a short sale, how can you complete this process? Our Oak Park foreclosure defense lawyers can provide you with the information you need.
Learn About Short Sales
The first step in completing a short sale is to learn more about the process and what it entails. As a Bank Rate article explains, a short sale is the sale of a property that occurs “when a lender agrees to accept a mortgage payoff amount less than what is owed in order to facilitate a sale of the property by a financially distressed owner.” Then, in most short sales, the owner enters into an agreement with the lender that it will forgive any amount remaining on the mortgage so that the owner can walk away without owing the bank any additional money.
To clarify, let us give you an example: A homeowner purchased a property for $500,000 and has a mortgage payment of approximately $2,400 per month. The homeowner is struggling to make that monthly mortgage payment and is behind on the loan by numerous months of payments. The homeowner wants to avoid a foreclosure, but the property has recently been appraised at only $300,000, and the homeowner still owes $400,000 on the original loan. With a short sale, the bank can agree to accept $300,000 and to forgive the remaining $100,000 the homeowner owes on the loan.
Work With an Attorney to Obtain Approval From Your Lender
Once you understand how the short sale process works, you can begin by working with your foreclosure defense attorney to obtain approval from your lender to complete a short sale. Once your lender approves, then you can move forward by listing the property as a short sale with a real estate agent who has experience handling short sale properties.
Get an Offer
Next, you will need to find a buyer who is interested in the property and who makes an offer. Properties that are sold as short sales are sold on an as-is basis, so some homebuyers may not be interested in making an offer or may not be able to secure funding to purchase the property.
Present the Offer to the Lender
Once you have an offer, you will need to submit the information to the lender, who will need to approve of the sale price and the other aspects of the sale.
Contact an Oak Park Foreclosure Defense Attorney
If you have questions about completing a short sale to avoid foreclosure, an Oak Park foreclosure defense lawyer at our firm can assist you. Contact the Emerson Law Firm today.
See Related Blog Posts:
Benefits of a Short Sale Instead of Foreclosure
Short Sale or Chapter 7 Bankruptcy?