mortagesandforeclosures

by Brandon Fletcher

It seems that everyone knows someone who is facing losing their home to foreclosure. It can also be said that if you know somebody in foreclosure, the chances are someone has told them that a short sale as the strategy to unlock the foreclosure prison.

While short sales can save many homes from a foreclosure auction, it is a very complicated process and one that should not be taken lightly by the someone who is not educated about short sales.

If you are a homeowner who is facing foreclosure, a short sale may might be for you. However you will need to be open, honest diligent, cooperative and you must comprehend that the following 5 tips are vital to your short sale being approved by the bank:

1. While you may be able in some instance to convince a bank to work with you, the smart homeowner knows that they are not an expert and should let the authority in the market handle the short sale. Whether an experienced real estate agent, title processor or attorney, make sure the person coordinating your short sale really has experience in regards to the short sale process.

2. Make sure you stay actively involved and you cooperate fully with the timely submission of forms and other paperwork as may be needed by the lender. This includes that you, not your agent or advisor, but YOU write a clear and compelling Hardship Letter. Having someone else write your hardship letter may be the reason that your short sale request will be turned down.

3. Make sure you know what is expected of you. The lender is going to want a complete short sale package and that will include a full financial work-up complete with bank accounts, tax returns and more. Your reluctance to give the bank this information could get your short sale request turned down.

4. The bank lent you money and they have every reason to collect. You have the obligation to reveal your assets and to liquidate them to reduce what you owe them. You cant ask them to take less while you are cruising around town in your Porsche. It just does not work that way. You must be ready to show a reason you are unable to pay them back (i.e. show a hardship.

5. Make sure you dont wait until the last minute before you request a short sale. Most people facing foreclosure dont do anything and just stick their heads in the sand hoping it will all go away. No Realtor or lawyer is a magician. Short sales take time to succeed. If you want to save yourself from the embarrassment of a foreclosure on your familys home then you must act in timely fashion.

Short sales can take as long as 6 months to get accepted. These are just 5 simple strategies you can implement to give your short sale request the best chance for approval. This is not an easy process for lender or homeowner and your ongoing cooperation can mean the difference between a successful short sale or your home being sold at the Courthouse steps.

Whatever you do, take some action. If you want to try to effect a short sale on your own, some banks are now letting homeowners do just that. If you want to learn more about how short sales should be correctly completed please visit our short sale information resource center for videos and tips as to how to successfully complete a short sale.

By learning about the short sale process you will be better educated to talk about things with your lender and you'll be more prepared to spot inadequacies and mistakes in the process with any real estate agent that you may choose to hire to represent you.

If you're a Realtor reading this, you too may want to visit our short sale resource center. It will help you learn how to properly complete short sales and generate higher commissions.

About the Author:

If you're a homeowner faced with the prospect of losing your home, you need to take a momentto educate yourself about Short Sales. Don't think your agent knowsall of the ins and outs of the Short Sale process.

Get all the information and photos:: http://mortgagewide.info/short-sales-arent-hard-5-strategies-to-make-sure-you-get-your-short-sale-approved/