Don’t let your home go to foreclosure.  Zoom Real Estate can help you sell your home and you may be eligible to receive cash back!

Short sales are the hottest thing going in the distressed-property market, and the trend is expected to get even hotter in coming weeks, when the government starts handing out cash to encourage lenders to close these deals.  In the past there was little incentive to any of the parties to successfully “short sale” a home.  Now, the banks, mortgage investors, second mortgage holders, and home sellers will receive financial incentives to short sale their home and avoid foreclosure.

Under the new Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives  (HAFA) program, borrowers will earn a $3,000 “relocation incentive” and servicers will get $1,500 for handling a short sale.

The investors who actually own the mortgage notes will get $2,000 in exchange for sharing proceeds of the short sales with any second-lien holders. And, finally, those second lien holders will receive up to $6,000 for releasing their claims.

Another big change is that the process should speed up now as banks that are part of the program must approve or deny an offer in 10 DAYS!

The Federal government instituted HAFA, which is intended to streamline the short sale process, at least for transactions in which the home sellers have mortgages owned or guaranteed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac.

While most HAFA rules affect only the home sellers and their lender, a few of the streamlined rules impact buyers. They include:

  • Buyers must present documentation of funds or a pre-approval letter from a lender with their offer for a short sale; sellers need to present this to their lender within three days of receiving the offer.
  • Lenders must approve or deny the offer for the home within 10 business days of receiving the offer.
  • Settlement must take place within a reasonable period of time after the offer is made, but the lender cannot require a closing earlier than 45 days from the date of the sales contract unless the home seller agrees.
  • Buyers cannot sell the property again for 90 days. This is meant to prevent investors from “flipping“ homes by purchasing at a low price and selling at a quickly inflated price.
  • Short sale transactions through HAFA must take place at “arm’s length,” meaning the home sellers cannot sell the property to a relative or anyone else with whom they have a closer personal or business relationship.

Give me a call today to find out if you are eligible for this new government program.   Call Kris with Zoom Real Estate at 801-792-5040. The call is free and there is no obligation.