Question: What questions should I ask before making an offer on a short sale?
Answer: – I hope I understand your question… You want to ask as many questions as you can to help you identify what the property is worth and their motivation. I like to start out with some basic questions to get a feel for the property, then ask additional questions when I show up to the property. Here are some you can start with.
- Are you the owner?
- What’s the house worth?
- How did you get to that price?
- What do you owe on the home?
- How many payments are you behind?
- Have you received a NOD?
- Has the lender set an auction date?
- What do you want from your home?
- What’s the address of the property?
Now go verify the information they gave you and see what it’s worth to you.
I just wanted to make one comment here for your readers to highlight something you mentioned above. I assume if you’re buying a short sale, you’re a somewhat sophisticated buyer, if not investor. Although you might be able to get a bank to take a write-down on a loan, in many cases, they don’t prefer to do this.
That being said, one of the greatest questions one can ask is: “How much do you owe on the house.” This is so very important because if they are upside-down, then you’ll have a much harder time making the numbers work. If, however, they own the house free and clear, or owe far less than the house value, you can make a deal. The sweetest deal you can make, especially in this economy, is to have the seller be the bank. You’d be surprised how many owners are willing to hold the papers on a property that is a short sale. Give it a try.