Real Estate Short Sales

In real estate, a short sale is when a bank or mortgage lender agrees to discount a loan balance due to an economic hardship on the part of the mortgagor (or rather the lender allows the home to be sold for less than what is owed to the lender currently).

The home owner/debtor sells the mortgaged property for less than the outstanding balance of the loan, and turns over the proceeds of the sale to the lender usually for full satisfaction of the debt. In such instances, the lender would have the right to approve or disapprove of a proposed sale.

Extenuating circumstances influence whether or not banks will discount a loan balance. These circumstances are usually related to the current real estate market climate and the individual borrower's financial situation as well as the negotiating powers of the person negotiating your short sale. Law firms typically have more credibility and get more respect in this area than others, because the lenders/servicers are worried about the threat that attorneys pose. In short, a short sale is negotiating with lien holders for a payoff for less than what they are owed, or rather a sale of a debt, generally on a piece of real estate, short of the full debt amount. Call the Law Office of Mandy Pavlakos at 407-688-1301 ext. 303 for a consultation.

Lenders have a department (typically called a loss mitigation or work-out department) which processes potential short sale transactions, and these are the departments that we directly negotiate with.In all of our short sales transactions we always negotiate deficiency judgments.

Working with Real Estate Agents / Brokers

Many people are using real estate agents/brokers these days to negotiate their short sales, and many of them are excellent at what they do. However, we do recommend using an attorney to assist with either the negotiations for an approval if needed or at a bare minimum to review the contracts and approvals sent by the lender to make sure your legal interests are adequately protected. Real estate agents are not attorneys and are also subject to liability for guiding their clients in the wrong direction or not informing them of any legal liability they may be facing. Utilizing an attorney helps all involved, real estate agent and homeowner. Our full service short sale negotiations include deficiency judgment, for every one of our short sales or deed in lieu of foreclosures.

Call: 407-688-1301