Only lenders should set a price in a short sale

Editor,

I recently read some of the comments posted regarding the short sale survey. I said it once and I’ll say it again: The asking price for a short sale property NEEDS to be set by the bank or lender in first position.

For example, if a homeowner is going to sell their house, their listing agent, having determined that the sale will not satisfy the loan, should contact the bank in first position and notify them that the homeowner wants to market the house for sale, and that the transaction will constitute a short sale. The bank can then do their BPO (or two) and set the “market price.” Imagine that. In a matter of 7-10 days, we now have a property on the market, in the MLS, advertised for sale at a price that we know the bank will accept. Granted, the BPO may only be reflective of the bank’s estimate of value on the day the price is set and another BPO might be necessary if too much time elapses. Nonetheless, this CarMax approach to pricing is what we need to assist homeowners in expediting short sales and avoiding foreclosure.

What a concept. The bank sets the price and the buyer knows exactly what their net offer needs to be in order to purchase the house. Imagine how many uneducated, bottom-feeders and ignorant buyers we could all avoid if they only knew that they weren’t going to get that already discounted house for 50 cents on the dollar, just because it’s going through foreclosure and the “sellers must be desperate.”

I guarantee with this approach many foreclosures can be avoided and many of these sellers will be back in the buying pool a lot sooner with a short sale on their credit report rather than a foreclosure or deed-in-lieu.

If there are any bankers or lenders out there reading this, you have my permission to latch onto this concept and claim it as your own. If anyone asks, just tell him or her that it is an old and proven concept called common sense.

John C. Davison
The Davison Real Estate Group
Longwood

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