Jason Salsbury

Short Sales are a growing part of the current Las Vegas market and are certainly a great opportunity to get a property at a price substantially below market value. I primarily work with Buyers and have had the chance to negotiate multiple Short Sale transactions... Some were successful, others were not so successful.
From my knowledge of Short Sales I can tell you this...
If there is not an experienced and aggressive Listing Agent on the other side of the transaction, it doesn't matter much how efficient your Agent is. Let me explain... It is the Listing Agent who submits the Short Sale package to the Lender/Bank with your Offer and is their liaison throughout the transaction. The Buyer's Agent does not generally communicate with the bank officers or the Sellers in this type of transaction.
In a Short Sale situation, You are essentially asking the bank to accept less than what is owed on the note... So even with a superb Listing Agent, many Short Sales do not end up getting accepted... even at a full list-price offer. If there is a Second on the property it becomes much more difficult.
You are correct in pursuing Short Sales that have been approved... but make sure that the property is placed in Contingent status after your offer is accepted by the Seller. Otherwise, while waiting for an acceptance... other offers may come in and you would then have to contend with a multiple offer situation.
If you are looking for "direct personal contacts with bank officers"... You could always look to the Listing Agents of the Short Sales you are interested in, who are communicating directly with the bank... That is, if you do not mind a dual agency which is created when the Agent is representing both the Seller and the Buyer in the transaction. If this is your preference... I would recommend simply calling the Agents of interest... see how quickly each one gets back to you. This is a great way to judge how important your interests are to any potential Agent... If it takes two days for an Agent to get back to you, then how much more quickly do you think they would be with putting the paperwork through and actively pursuing your real estate goals? Also... Can you get through to speak directly with your Agent of interest... Or are you only able to reach an Assistant/s?
Anyhow... I wish you the very best of luck in your property search & Agent search. Welcome to Las Vegas! This is arguably one of the best Buyers' markets that Vegas has ever seen... I congratulate you on taking advantage of this opportunity and wish you the best of success in your relocation. - Sat Mar 15 2008, 01:02

This is definitely one of the strongest Buyer's markets that Las Vegas has ever seen...
Since your monthly payment would be building Equity... I would always recommend Buying over Renting if it is at all possible.
Loan guidelines are tightening up... but with the large downpayment you mentioned, there may be the possibility of getting you approved. Or there is also the option... if you were able to pay off the collections... To get an FHA loan for only 3% down.
I would be happy to put you in touch with a Loan Officer who also does FHA... to discuss all of your financing options. She has helped other Clients of mine when other lenders had turned them down. I think it would be at least worth a shot... to try and get approved before you decide to continue renting.
If you do get approved... I would be happy to help you find an ideal home as your Buyer's Agent at NO cost to you. Anyways give me a call (702)351-9863 or you can instacall me from my website below...
Best of luck!!! - Tue Mar 4 2008, 06:30

Hello Jay,
If you sign in on Realty Track, they will forward your name to a Realtor... This is a website where Agents pay to get leads from them.
You can search the MLS for free from my website below... Or if you email me exactly what type of property you are interested in, including areas, price range, etc. I would be happy to email you what is available, as well as notify you of New Listings as they come available on the MLS.
There is definitely no shortage of Foreclosures/Bank Owned homes in our current market... I have helped multiple Buyers find ideal properties of this type and would be happy to assist you in any way that I can.
Take Care... Best of Luck to you in your home search... - Mon Mar 3 2008, 06:48

Hello Richard and Lori,

Yes... I normally try to avoid the Short Sales as well. But they are such a huge part of our market now... this has become increasingly more difficult. Especially since today's Buyers are much more tech-savvy, and many choose to take a more active role in the home search by searching themselves on the MLS, Realtor.com, etc. Since it is not unusual to find foreclosures in a neighborhood that are listed tens of thousands below market value and then a couple of Short Sales that are listed tens of thousands below the foreclosures… The Buyers will naturally come across these and inquire about them, since many times it does not specify “Short Sale” in the public description.
I like to address this issue up front and educate my Buyers as to the difference between Short Sales, Foreclosures, and REO’s. I primarily am a Buyer's Agent and believe that Short Sales can possibly be a great disservice to my Clients... depending on the situation of course. The biggest objection I had with Short Sales was that they would remain listed as available even after an offer was received… which could mean that my Buyer’s could end up waiting patiently for weeks only to be beat out by another Buyer at the last minute or have to end up contending with Multiple Offers, which could be a big waste of time and they could have missed out on another property while waiting around for the process… However this was addressed recently by GLVAR and hopefully will not become an issue in future transactions. Here is the link to that info: http://www.lasvegasrealtor.com/newsletter/default.asp?file=M…
And to be quite honest, I have never been thrilled with the idea of my commission being a negotiating tool as part of the transaction. If a Client is interested in a Short Sale... I will tell them up front of the possible implications and the patience that is required in this type of transaction. Short Sales are often in much better condition than Foreclosed properties… and if a Buyer has the time and patience, this can be a very lucrative opportunity to get a nice property at an incredibly low price.
I have experienced the Short Sale process as a Buyer’s Agent on multiple occasions… Some transactions turned out well, others not so well. I will say that the transaction can go much more smoothly with a good Listing Agent on the other side of the transaction. Communication is very important… Being able to get a hold of the Listing Agent for weekly updates is a huge difference. This way the Buyer can be kept informed as to the status of the transaction. If phone calls go unreturned, etc… Then it can put the Buyer’s Agent in a bad position and the Buyer may be more likely to withdraw the Offer because they feel their offer is being neglected.
Overall… I believe that Short Sales present a great opportunity for both Buyers and Sellers. Since Bush’s signing in December that relieves the Seller of the added tax implications of a Short Sale concerning the forgiveness of debt… It is a great option to provide to Seller’s who may be facing foreclosure or financial difficulty. And for Buyers who have the time and patience for this type of transaction, it is a lucrative opportunity to get a property at a substantial savings that is listed well below the market. It is definitely a lot more work for the Agents involved in the transaction… but I don’t mind putting in the extra effort since it is of great service and benefit to both Buyer and Seller involved in the transaction. - Sun Mar 2 2008, 08:15

Hello Kpbc,
This is definitely one of the best Buyer's markets that Las Vegas has ever seen for residential Real Estate. There are certainly some great deals to be had right now. Len is right... Our commercial market seems to be holding up very well. Because of the economical and business/tax benefits of Nevada, Vegas has never really seen a dramatic shortage of new commercial ventures and developments.
Since you want to spread your risk... I would recommend picking up some Commercial and Residential property to diversify your Real Estate portfolio.
Real Estate is always speculation... but with the growing concern of land scarcity for future Residential building in Las Vegas, it may be nice to pick up a couple of Custom homes homes on nice sized lots. 1/2 acre + and especially 1 acre + lots are becoming more and more of a rarity it seems.
I have some great ideas I would love to email you for you to take a look at. I also would be happy to email you some great sources of info on the Las Vegas market. If you are interested... just shoot me a quick email at JSalsbury3@cox.net or you can visit my website below to contact me.
I hope this is of some help... I look forward to hearing from you. - Mon Jan 28 2008, 07:09