Unless you’ve been living in a cave, you already know bank foreclosures are at an all-time high. All predictions are calling for the numbers to keep rising in 2009 and 2010. The President and Congress are pressuring banks to work out loan modifications and short sales if possible, and only as a final option go through the foreclosure process.
This presents a tremendous opportunity for the Real Estate Agent or Investor who is willing to work with the banks and to help people with their mortgage problems. In this chapter I am going to show you how I get this done. Understand that this is not theory; this is a practical and successful approach gleaned from many years of trial and error.
The first thing you must do to have a successful transaction is to understand that your bank mitigator has more files than he or she can handle. Your first step is to take control of your file.
Be prepared when you talk to the bank mitigator. They know if they are dealing with a professional or a wanna-be. So be ready with your information when they get on the phone.
Now let’s get down to business! Here are my steps to short sale success:
FIND OUT
1. How they want to be contacted: Some mitigators prefer to be contacted by e-mail first and to have the package sent that way as well.
2. Time Zone: This is important! If they are on the West Coast they will work till 8PM West Coast time. That makes it 11PM East Coast time. Will you be ready to answer the phone? Many times they call late presuming they will get an answering service. This way they can say they left a message and put your file back in the pile. If you actually answer when they call, they will be surprised and you’ve just moved your file to the top of the pile!
Steve’s Tip # 1
Get their phone number and jot down the area code.
All calls from them will show the area code so you’ll be able to immediately identify the call as important.
3. How many short sales they are working: I have had people from one of the largest lenders tell me they have so many they don’t even know the number. I have had others tell me they have a couple of hundred.
Steve’s Tip # 2
You may only get a couple of chances to sell your deal so be prepared and professional.
4. Ask about the “BPO”: Broker Price Opinion. You must control this part of the process. I always tell the bank Mitigator to have the BPO Agent contact me. I like to talk to the agent and get them all the information needed to produce a true picture of the market. If you get a “BPO” that is just not in line with the market conditions your deal is dead. The work to try to get a BPO adjusted is very time consuming and may not get your desired results.
5. Tell the Truth: If you are an investor working with the home owner and you are buying the property tell them. They will find out eventually, and you will lose credibility if you omit this minor detail. The mitigator might wonder what else you are trying to pull.
