Previously Posted on www.tonycard.com
This past weekend, I was thinking about what property I planned to show my clients. My clients were driving up from Los Angeles to look at property in Big Bear and I wanted to make sure that I had the best properties picked out. The day that my clients arrived in Big Bear, I noticed that one of the properties that I had planned to show had been withdrawn from the market. This was a cabin that my clients really liked and so I called the listing agent to enquire as to why the cabin was no longer for sale. I was rather surprised to hear that the seller had not been open with the listing agent and that the seller owed more on the cabin than they were selling it for. How could this happen?
I see a number of short sale listings in the Big Bear area that will never close. The reason I say this is because the bank is not going to agree to sell a property for less than it is worth. For the bank to agree to a Short Sale, the sale must make good financial sense. The bank is not going to sell a cabin in Moonridge for $150,000.00 when they can foreclose on the property and sell it for $200,000.00. Yet time and time again, I see properties throughout the entire Big Bear Valley listed for sale with unrealistic asking prices. Potential buyers see these prices and get an unrealistic picture of the market. A good example of what I’m talking about is this. Just today, I was speaking to a buyer who wants to look for homes priced at $400,000.00, expecting to buy the home for $300,000.00. That is NOT going to happen in the current market in Big Bear.
I’ve been very successful in selling Short Sales in the Big Bear Valley. The success that I’ve had, has been because I ask a lot of questions. I’ve never had to withdraw a listing because I have learned that the seller has been less than truthful with me. More often than not, distressed sellers call me and asking me to help them sell their Big Bear property as a short sale. Before I agree to take the short sale listing, I sit down and interview the property owner to see if they qualify to sell their home as a short sale. I understand that talking about your failed finances to a stranger is not a pleasant thing to do and it’s easy to leave a few things out. If I am going to be able to help the home owner, it is imperative that they answer all of my questions completely, honestly and truthfully. Once I have answers to all of my questions and I’m confident that the home owner has been truthful with me, I can then determine if they qualify to sell their home as a short sale.
So, if you see a home listed as a Short Sale and the price seems too good to be true, it probably is!
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