A successful short sale closing is like a recipe for mole poblano. Are you familiar with mole poblano? It’s a chocolate-tinged sauce made famous in the colonial days in Mexico and it includes over 20 different ingredients. Just like the 20-plus ingredients in this sauce, there are at least as many different details that need to be balanced in order to assure that your short sale transaction closes quickly and efficiently.
Chocolate features prominently in mole poblano and there are three key ingredients to short sale success that also make for a perfect recipe.
Engage Homeowners Early
- Learn whether the homeowner owes more on the home than it’s worth.
- Discuss short sale opportunities in the initial conversations with the homeowner.
- Explain the short sale process and how it can help to avoid foreclosure. (Help the prospective short sale seller to determine whether s/he needs to speak with an attorney or an accountant.)
Contact the lien holders before the home is listed.
- Find out if the homeowner can be evaluated for any of the special short sale programs: through the government (HAFA), through Fannie Mae, and through Freddie Mac.
- Find out if the homeowner will qualify for any of the unique programs offered by specific lenders (such as Bank of America’s Cooperative Short Sale Program or the Chase Bank or Citi incentive programs).
Complete required tasks on time.
- Provide all the necessary documents as quickly as possible in order to keep the process moving along.
- Communicate with all parties in order to keep unnecessary delays to a minimum.
While there are certainly many more ingredients to a successful short sale closing, these are just a few. And, if all of the short sale details are not managed correctly, the short sale may give you a weird feeling in your stomach—just like a bad batch of mole poblano.
Photo: flickr creative commons by stevecadman
