I feel your pain. I made an offer for a short sale on 1/1 and was told nearly 2 weeks later the auction and foreclosure process had been stopped and the bank was reviewing the offer. Since then....nada. The bank hasn't provided a spec of information since and I'm growing increasingly agitated. The bank has already cost me several thousand dollars (my approved interest rate was significantly lower, I qualified for a first time buyer program worth about $10,000, my apartment lease was up). Not to mention the house is sitting there rotting away and has suffered from more depreciation.

I'm back out and looking again. Even if the bank comes back and says it's approved, I might request they chop off an additional $5,000 or they can foreclose. Any ideas what happens at that point?

Either way, that house is pretty much dead to me! Good luck and I look forward to hearing how it works out for you.

After almost 3 months now my buyers' offer to purchase a short sale has been accepted!!!! Whew! This was very hard for my buyers to have to wait so long. I think that after we get this closed (30 more days) they will think it was worth their wait.

We got an excellent deal...just make sure you want to wait it out. The listing agent only had one bank to work with and it still took this long!

Short sales are generally not the best homes to negotiate with for a primary resident. As you have witnessed, the uncertainty of the process drives most buyers crazy and just doesn't work for their situation.

Agents often set prices low in order to attract an offer. Most lenders do not discuss a price with an agent until there are offers to negotiate. So, a full price offer does not necessarily mean anything to the bank.

I have personally worked on short sale offers that are reasonable for the market, rejected by the bank, the home foreclosed upon and the following agent listed the home for less than my offer 2 months earlier. It makes no sense.

My advice is to make sure the listing agent is continually attempting to contact the bank for a response or move on to another home. Or wait for the home to come back on the market and buy it for a better price.

I agree with everything Patrick and Dot have said.

I will also comment that we have successfully represented a seller in a short sale in the last week, and we literally called the lender 2-3 times per day everyday for over a week to get a response. This is after the lender said they would have it done each time.

The only short sales we would consider going after are those being listed by an experienced short sale specialist with a proven track record or those that are utilizing the services of a third party negotiation company. How do you find this out??? Have your agent ask....

Well Tom,
My unofficial poll in Arizona, has 80% of Short Sales becoming REO`s.

I actually have a buyer in a short sale right now, six weeks we haven`t heard a thing, except the bank lost the paper work. Don't be surprised to hear that.

Prices over the last 6 weeks in Phoenix have fallen, The property is not as good a deal as it once was.

When we entered the Short Sale, I told my client this can take two weeks or two months, I was more optimistic back then.
In the interm, we will keep looking for a better deal, we are starting to see comparable deals. My client has saved at least a full ( 1% ) off his 30 year fixed also.

My advice to you is don`t get your hopes up, keep looking. Do not sit idle and wait

Yes they can ignore your offer.
Yes the can sell the home at a trustee auction
Yes they are still marketing the home to attract more buyers.
Full asking price to the bank is all the money owed on the first and second.
Don't blame your agent for the banks failure to respond.

Finally, Please report back with the final outcome, so we can have an accurate account of our local market.
Good Luck
Patrick

Tom, I feel your pain. I have been awaiting a reply for my buyers on a short sale that they have their hearts set on. When you get involved in a short sale you need the patience of Job!

Ask your agent to follow up with the listing agent once a week either by telephone or by email. And, yes, the bank can do whatever they want - if they feel they can get more by foreclosing they will do it. Chances are they will sell it through the short sale process to get it off their books.

Wishing you the best,
Dot