What does the short sale process look like?

So you have found yourself at the point of needing to move forward in the short sale process.  What are the basic steps?  In a later post, I will cover the details of each step to have a short sale go through to closing.  For now, here is a quick outline of the steps and timeline of the short sale process.  Keep in mind that these time frames are estimates and can always be different.  

1. Put your house on the market and get a contract -- 30-45 days.  When you submit an offer to the bank to short sell your home, they are going to want to see that you have done everything you can to sell your home at the highest and best price.  Now, to some of you, this may seem unrealistic because of what you are hearing about the market.  I will tell you that even in this market, a properly priced and marketed home will go under contract in 30 days... plain and simple.  
2. Get ratified contract and submit it to the bank --5-7 days.  This is another confusing area where a lot of people misunderstand.  In order to get the short sale process going, you must have a contract with a buyer on your house.   
3. Have a bank negotiator assigned to “the file” --30-45 days.  After you get your contract submitted to the bank, it will then go into a stack of other files that are being submitted to sell short.  When your file is reviewed and they see that it has everything it needs, it will be assigned to a negotiator who will be your main point of contact on the file.  
4. Bank to determine fair market value --15-30 days.  In this process, the bank will evaluate the value of the home to make sure the contract price is realistic.
5. Bank will counter or accept the contract and short sale --20-40 days.  Just like the original negotiations of the contract, the bank will now decide whether or not to move forward with your contract or re-negotiate.
6. Buyer to complete inspections and close on the house -- 20-30 days.  Once the bank has agreed to the short sale process, the buyer will have all of their inspections done and move forward with closing.

Over the next few days I will be addressing each one of these steps in much more detail.  This will give you an idea of what to expect and what the process looks like.  As always, feel free to email me or visit our website with any questions you may have.  Have a great day!