Something isnt clear?,homeqwner would have some say so,but not after sheriff sale,maybe was withdrawned,and didnt go to sale.as far as shortsales go,bank has final say,it doesnt sound like listing agent knew what she was doing,for you have to for them to be successful.Let me know if ur still looking?sounds like you didnt get this one.

TJ

Vito gave you and excellent answer, and you figured out part of this problem already - the agent did not know who the lender was and apparently she also did not negotiate the short saller herself, therefore she was not aware of the exact status of this file.

Banks do not have to accept a short sale, and many times they will pretend to be working on a short sale when their true intention was to get the property to auction as quickly as possible to "stop the bleeding" and possible collect some insurance money.

I am sorry you had to go through this. If you are stil interested in the property, feel free to email me the address and I can notify you when it comes up for sale as a REO.

Kristin:

Unfortunately, not every short sale is legitamate. The lienholder for the seller has to agree to take a loss (substantial one in most cases). Some listing agents will put homes on the market at a price they are not sure the lienholder will release the title for in hopes they get an offer and can sway the bank into accepting it. It does not matter that the owner signed a contract b/c he cannot sell his home wihout clear title which cannot be given without a release from the bank.

The National Assoc. of Realtors had an article last year that always sticks out in my mind-they stated that near 80% of short sales do not make it to closing before foreclosure. That number has likely improved slightly due to the mortgage crisis, but you can see, that is not a huge success rate.

Best advice-allow at least 60 days for a response and dont be surprised if it does not work out..

hi....the homeonwer is still the homeowner up until the sheriff's sale.....in ohio, the foreclosure sale is absolute...meaning that once it is sold at sheriff's sale....the deed conveys from the owner to the investor who purchased it at sale...more than likely the lender took a lender credit and got the house back ..that is probably the timing of your negotiations..........best of luck to you.bob mcclure- success mortgage parters- plymouth, michigan.

I agree with Vito's response. If you are still interested in this property, you should ask your realtor to find out if the bank or a third party was the highest bidder. It takes 30 days for confirmation of the sale at the sheriff's auction. If the bank was the high bidder, it will most likely become an REO soon and you will want your realtor to contact you as soon as it comes back on the market.

These short sales can be very confusing and frustrating. I have heard only 20% of them work and I can see why because the banks are very difficult to work with on these. It seems like there was a communication problem withe mortgage holder, the owner and the agent. If the bank bought it back at the sherriff sale then it will be listed with an agent and will be easier to purchase as a REO property.

Was your counteroffer submitted before or after the Sherrif's sale? It is quite possible that the bank that held the original mortgage took the property back through the Sherrif sale process. If this was the case you may have submitted the first offer and counteroffer while the property was in a "short sale" process, meaning the homeowner would still have had to approve any offers. Whereas now the property may be classified as Real Estate Owned or (REO) meaning the bank owns the property and the former owner is no longer involved in the process.

Do you have an agent representing you in this transaction? If so they should be able to specifically advise you as to who currently has title to the property. It appears that you need to have someone give you more precise information as to who the current owner is and who actually has the right to accept offers and convey the sale of the property.

Vito Boscaino
Managing Partner, MBA
North High Realty, LLC
Dublin, Ohio
614-571-9054 Mobile
http://vito.servingcolumbus.com