The Kestner Team

Nina recently attended a seminar on short sales (pre-foreclosures) that was very interesting and informative. She wrote the following review:

We all know foreclosure sales have increased and I truly believe that one of the reasons is the media has made it sound as though foreclosures are easy and the perfect way to get out of trouble. However, both foreclosures and short sales have long term consequences. Again, if you are feeling any kind of financial duress or feel that you will not be able to afford your home or an investment property, PLEASE let us see if we can help you before you let your property go into foreclosure. You will be much better off if we can sell your property and keep it out of both a short sale situation and a foreclosure. As a real estate agent, I am not allowed to give legal advice and I’m certainly not an accountant. Therefore, it is strongly suggested that you consult your attorney as well as your CPA prior to considering a short sale or a foreclosure as there could be tax consequences.

Here are a few points of interest regarding Short Sales:

• A short sale will lower your score about 100 points, reduce your ability to purchase anything, and increase the interest rate you will be charged when you do purchase something.
• A foreclosure will lower your credit score about 250 points.
• You must demonstrate to your lender that you are facing financial hardship.
• If you have an investment property, you must demonstrate that you are having severe financial hardship.
• Filing for bankruptcy makes the short sale process much more difficult if not impossible.
• You must be willing to provide all the paperwork required by your lender immediately – and there is a lot of paperwork.
• It can take up to 60 days to get the lenders approval on a contract.
• Most lenders prefer that you be current and stay current on your payments during the short sale process.
• Before considering a short sale, consult a credit counselor. I have a list of HUD approved counselors I’m happy to forward to you.
• If your financial problems are short term, discuss “forbearance” with your lender. This simply means they will forgive your mortgage payments for a short term. Be aware, however, that this amount is added to your payoff total.
• If you have a 2^nd mortgage, or HELOC, or any kind of lien against your property, each of these will have to be negotiated as separate short sales.

Again, if you think you are getting into trouble, CALL ME. I have direct contact information to the Loss Mitigation Department for over 40 lenders. I can help you determine the best route to take and the best possible list price for your property.

NINA KESTNER, CPM, ABR, CRS, GRI

Licensed Broker

nkestner@comcast.net

615-465-3700 office

615-289-1340 cell

615-465-3744 fax

www.TheKestnerTeam.com