On Average it will take 90 to 120 days to hear back whether your offer is accepted or rejected in a short sale. If the short sale is already approved it can be much quicker but I would expect to be in the months category to hear back.

Best wishes,

Matt

It depends where in the process the sellers are when your offer is submitted. Has an offer already been accepted and the buyers declined? Has the necessary paper work for a sellers hardship been submitted? Has the bank ordered a BPO (Brokers Price Opinion)? And perhaps most important, does the sellers agent know the process and is he/she on top the situation with the bank and sellers.

As everyone has said, with short sales no matter what the question, there can be several different answers!

Good Luck!

Laura Giannotta
Keller Williams Atlantic Shore

Hi Cheers442, concur with other posters, far more likely that the timeframe for approval will fall in the month's category - the wait, followed by the hurry up and close in 30 days common practice after acceptance. So be just as ready for the expectation of a quick close as you are for the delay in acceptance.

Good luck!
Best,
Jeannie Feenick
Search and connect at http://www.feenick.com

Don't count on days or weeks (though congrats, John - that's awesome). The quickest I've ever been able to get one through is 3 weeks. It will depend a lot on who the lender is and how many liens are on the property. The listing agent will also make a big difference. Have your Realtor interview them to make sure they know what they are doing. The key with being a short sale buyer is patience. He who last longest usually wins.

Best of luck!

Shar Rundio
Keller Williams Integrity First Realty
@sharrundio

The secret to short sales being accepted is to: a. know what the lending institution requires, b. get the completed package to them, c. keep in touch with the correct person by the institution's preferred method of communication and d. be patient.

Many of these institutions are overwhelmed with short sale requests. I had one where the institution didn't tell me their preferred method of contact, yet finally after I reached the right person, things moved along fairly quickly. My buyer nearly decided to flee, but ended up buying the property. As these go, it's pretty much up to the lender as to how quickly they respond to the short sale offer. If you're working with a real estate agent, the agent needs to keep on top of the process to make sure all documents have been submitted correctly by either you, the agent, or the seller and their agent. Best to you!

Gina Kay Landis
ginakay DOT landis AT realliving DOT com
Follow me on Twitter: @ginakay

All of the above.

It depends on a lot of factors. I actually had listed, got an offer and got it accepted within 3 days -
But I did a l-o-t of schmoozing on that one... I am proud of it though.

I have not had one go "months" usually 3 weeks.

I also do a lo of follow up work and get myself as an approved representitive for my homeowners.. and I try to find out who is approved to speak to the bank when I have a buyer for a short sale. Cuts the red tape down to a minimum.

More like months. It will depend on how well the owner cooperates with the bank, which lender carries the loan, how many liens are on the property, and what percentage of what is owed on the loan is offered by the buyer.