Kingman Arizona Short Sales

As of today there are 67 single family homes listed as a short sale in Kingman Arizona in the local MLS. Since 1/1/2010 until today 4/11/2010 there have been 13 closed Short Sales in Kingman Arizona.

Short Sale Definition: The sale of Real Estate where the proceeds fall short of the money owed on the current mortgage.

Seller Items for Short Sale Qualification

If you are selling a short sale you will want to have the following items ready and updated documents accessible throughout the Short Sale process.  As a buyer of a short sale you will want to ask your agent if the seller has supplied the listing agent with the following documents.  These documents at a minimum would make a complete Short Sale package.

• Sellers' hardship letter
• Tax returns
• W-2s
• Payroll stubs
• Financial statement
• Bank statements

Some sellers do not want to cooperate and are slow to return these documents. Others have never been told by their agent that these documents are mandatory. You don't want your short sale purchase delayed because the listing agent doesn't have the required documents.

How Many Short Sale Offers?

When a home is priced under market value it typically gets multiple offers. You want to know how many offers there are so you understand what you are up against. The seller and the sellers agent are not required to disclose the terms of the other offers but you can base it off of what usually happens as described below.

Here's how it generally works:

• On a new short sale listing the first offer is usually just a little lower that the list price.
• The second, may be at list price.
• The third offer may be slightly higher, maybe by a $1,000 or $2,000.
• The fourth offer may be significantly more.

In order to beat the competition you want to make an offer that is appealing yet still below market value otherwise you shouldn't even waste your time.

FAQ from most short sale buyers:

Question: How Long Should I Wait for Short Sale Approval?

Buyer: "I put in a short sale offer over 3 months ago, we still have not heard anything. My agent calls every week to find out if the bank has accepted our offer. Most of the time my agent doesn't get a call back. We don't know if our offer is good of if the bank has multiple offers and if they have multiple offers we don't know if ours is the best offer. How long should a buyer wait for short sale approval?"

Answer: Short sale buyers across the nation are singing the same blues right now with you. Every short sale is different and as much depends on the lender as it does on the listing agent.  Here are some tips on what you can do.

Qualify Your Short Sale Before Writing the Offer

Ask your agent to do a little ground work before making an offer on a short sale.

Examine the Comparable Sales Some of banks will discount the price a little bit from market value, but to get an acceptance, offers should be reasonable and close to the comparable sales.
Ask How Many Short Sale Offers Have Been Submitted
While the listing agent may refuse to disclose the offer prices, the agent should let your agent know how many offers have been received. If there are multiple short sale offers, you may need to offer more than list price.
Find Out if the Sellers' Short Sale Package is Complete
Bank negotiators will not process a file if the sellers' short sale package is incomplete. That file will go to the bottom of the pile if it's missing paperwork that the bank requires.

How Long Do Short Sales Take?

This is the million-dollar question. Some lenders can and have closed short sales withing 60-90 days. Other lenders such as Bank of America are so swamped with short sale submissions that their employees can't respond in timely manner. What once took two months can easily take four months.
The short sale process, from submission to short sale approval, is generally as follows:

• Submission of offer and complete short sale package from the seller.
• Bank acknowledges receipt -- 10 to 30 days.
• Bank orders a BPO or appraisal -- 30 to 60 days.
• File is reviewed -- 30 to 60 days.
• Negotiator is assigned -- 30 to 60 days.
• Level II negotiator may be assigned -- 30 to 90 days.
• File is approved or rejected -- 60 to 120 days.

 For Short Sale Sellers:
If you are wondering about the government programs towards short sales you can visit www.makinghomeaffordable.gov to find out all the information they are offering.  I will be posting another blog on this topic in the near future.

Below is a current list of Kingman Arizona Short Sales that are available on the market.  Please feel free to contact me anytime if you are interested in buying or selling a Kingman Arizona Short Sale.