Hello, Bella!
Thank you very much for raiting my answer. I hope you are doing OK with your short sale purchase.
Yelena

Not all short sales are necessarily cash offers. If the bank is asking for cash or has accepted a cash offer over your offer it might be because of the condition of the home. With cash offers it is a done deal knowing the potential buyer will take the home in "as is". condition. Many short sale homes have been abandoned by the homeowner leaving the home in an unsuitable living condition. With a mortgage contingency the buyers mortgage company , usually FHA ,will find repairs need to qualify the home for the new mortgage. . In this case the banks are not willing to negotiate repair issues.
In any case...
* expect a long process before hearing if your offer is accepted
* expect other offers to be considered by the sellers bank
* know that the term " as is' really means as is
*you are entitled to a home inspection. Usually for your own knowledge to true condition of the home. But if you find structural, septic, water, etc..... that can not be corrected you can have your attorney request to release you from your offer.
Best of luck to you. Home ownership is a wonderful thing and there are many homes left orphaned and waiting for new owners.

Bella,

For starters, be prepared to for a long wait. Provided the listing agent submitted all the required documentation for the short sale package to the bank, the short sale can still take up to 6-9 months to get bank approval. Depending on the condition of the property, the property may not be able to be mortgaged or at least in the condition that it is in and the bank doesn't want to deal with the CO or any other repairs that would be required by the owners/bank in order to get the CO. Typically the sellers have no money which is why they aren't responsible for obtaining the CO and most short sale properties fall on the buyer to obtain. I know in some parts of Morris County the town will not issue a temporary CO to the new owner which means the current owner and/or bank must make the necessary repairs.

Yes, you would only be responsible for the approved sales price. Keep in mind that if you put an offer in on a short sale, once the short sale is signed by the owner and you, attorney review will start (before the bank decides on accepting or declining your offer). Typically by the end of attorney review you will be expected to proceed at your own cost with inspectionm that is, if you choose to have an inspection. This is a cash deal but if you were to mortgage a short sale property, you would be expected to proceed with the appraisal, mortgage application, etc. Again, the buyer bearing all costs before knowing if the bank accepts your offer. Remember too that the bank will only accept a short sale if they will lose less money selling short as opposed to foreclosing on the property.

There have been quite a few buyers who proceeded on several short sales have had the banks deny their offers after they incurred many costs and fees to proceed with the purchase. Be prepared to be at the mercy of the bank and when they say its time to close...you better be ready. Hopefully you do not need to give much notice where you are living now because the banks give very little notice once they've accepted the offer and are ready to close.

Good luck with your purchase!

Gina Chirico, Sales Associate
Prudential New Jersey Properties
973-715-1158 cell
973-992-6363 ext 116
Gina.Chirico@PrudentialNewJersey.com

Hello, Bella!
How are you?
Yes, you will be sale price that approved by a bank, very often today that price is even less than bank needs to cover seller's debts. Often banks ask for a cash deal, because they afraid you may stop paying mortgage as many homeowners these days.
You are buying house in “as is” condition and you are responsible for a certificate of occupancy.

Your present an Offer to purchase the property following the instructions listed on the MLS Property Listing sheet. You would most likely use the FARBAR AS IS form and make an offer. Most banks consider your offer the same as any other offer. You must meet financial criteria and it takes time to get approval from the bank. I recommend that you or your agent do research on what is currently owed to the bank on the property, how many mortgages or other liens, etc. If it is more than one lender that must approve the short sale the process will take much longer. Good luck, it can be done but you must be fair and patient.

When buying a short sale many banks will ask for cash because they are not willing to get a certificate of occupany, which oftentimes requires a well and septic certification or other repairs. In a regular sale, these costs are usually covered by the seller.

You pay the price approved by the bank at closing. At that point, the bank's interest in the property is satisfied and you're done with the bank . At no point in the process do you pay someone elses mortgage.

Laura Giannotta
Keller Williams Atlantic Shore