Nothing like having high expectations.  Although the process went smoothly, I was floored when I was told the final valuation on the property.  In less than 2 months the new valuation came in over $22K  than the previous BPO.  Despite escalation the new servicer was not budging and the buyer walked which I understood.

Despite the property being on the market for almost 3 years and going through 3 buyers, the servicer and the investor had decided that prices were going up and that their property deserved the increase. 

One last attempt by raising the price almost half of the current list price should really be an interesting process.  The homes' condition is far from move in ready but you would not know that from the outside.  Its always interesting in the short sale niche but this has to be one for the books.

With a 3 bedroom 2 bath custom log home and a 4 horse stall barn, you can live out your fantasies of "Little House on the Prairie" and enjoy the peace and quiet of this area with neighbors that are a bit of a distance away.  Let your imagination go - whether you want to raise your own egg laying chickens, have your own Alpaca farm or plant your own vegetables and become a "gentleman farmer", you will have the space to do it.  For the price of a 2 bedroom Chicago Condo you can move into a unique log cabin home and a simpler lifestyle.

Your own private retreat, yet close to transportation - Metra train, I88, shopping in St. Charles, restaurants, etc.  Currently offered at $339,900!  Bring in a reasonable offer!  Relax in the lifestyle you have always wanted!

Sent negotiator an email and no response this morning so I called.  Unable to reach her I called her supervisor who was kind enough to conference her in and drop off the call.  Well, the latest is that so sorry but not its 3-5 days!  Oh, we are working on getting the negotiator to be able to issue the short sale approval letter but your file is not iincluded.  Probably because its a year old!

I am not surprised by this.  Unlike many of its competitors it appears that BOA still has not figured out how to streamline the process.  Hopefully, that will change now that they are suppose to be putting FHA short sales on Equator...Something that I was told about last year at one of the BoA seminars when they were touting about how they wanted us to be their preferred partners. 

All I can say is,  if this is how they treat preferred partners imagine how they treat everyone else!  So here's to another case of over promising and under delivering from one of the Too Big to Fail but Not Too Greedy to Get a Handout Banks.  Glad that I stopped holding my breath waiting for the final approval letter.

So when I had an offer on one of my short sale listings in a relatively short time span, and the servicer was really quick in approving the homeowner into one of the better short sale programs, I was floored and totally taken aback when the homeowner refused to sign the offer!  This was the 2nd time that this had happened and they had sworned that they were through in searching for other options since their foreclosure date was eminent.

Despite all my explanations on what the consequences of their actions, the homeowners stopped taking my calls, never answered my emails, answered the door,  nor did they sign the letter that I sent, so that I could cancel the listing which they requested!

This is a scenario that I had not experienced before.  How do you make sure you cover your fiduciary responsibilities to someone that refuses to speak with you or thier attorney?  Short sales are difficult enough without having those that you are trying to help turn on the process.

Unfortunately, the servicer closed the file because the homeowners' stopped cooperating which was spelled out by the program.  With the closure of the file by the bank a short sale is no longer possible.  The home will be sold in a couple of months as just another foreclosure.  No one wins in this scenario but how can we, as realtors, prevent this?

So when I had an offer on one of my short sale listings in a relatively short time span, and the servicer was really quick in approving the homeowner into one of the better short sale programs, I was floored and totally taken aback when the homeowner refused to sign the offer!  This was the 2nd time that this had happened and they had sworned that they were through in searching for other options since their foreclosure date was eminent.

Despite all my explanations on what the consequences of their actions, the homeowners stopped taking my calls, never answered my emails, answered the door,  nor did they sign the letter that I sent, so that I could cancel the listing which they requested!

This is a scenario that I had not experienced before.  How do you make sure you cover your fiduciary responsibilities to someone that refuses to speak with you or thier attorney?  Short sales are difficult enough without having those that you are trying to help turn on the process.

Unfortunately, the servicer closed the file because the homeowners' stopped cooperating which was spelled out by the program.  With the closure of the file by the bank a short sale is no longer possible.  The home will be sold in a couple of months as just another foreclosure.  No one wins in this scenario but how can we, as realtors, prevent this?

So when I had an offer on one of my short sale listings in a relatively short time span, and the servicer was really quick in approving the homeowner into one of the better short sale programs, I was floored and totally taken aback when the homeowner refused to sign the offer!  This was the 2nd time that this had happened and they had sworned that they were through in searching for other options since their foreclosure date was eminent.

Despite all my explanations on what the consequences of their actions, the homeowners stopped taking my calls, never answered my emails, answered the door,  nor did they sign the letter that I sent, so that I could cancel the listing which they requested!

This is a scenario that I had not experienced before.  How do you make sure you cover your fiduciary responsibilities to someone that refuses to speak with you or thier attorney?  Short sales are difficult enough without having those that you are trying to help turn on the process.

Unfortunately, the servicer closed the file because the homeowners' stopped cooperating which was spelled out by the program.  With the closure of the file by the bank a short sale is no longer possible.  The home will be sold in a couple of months as just another foreclosure.  No one wins in this scenario but how can we, as realtors, prevent this?

As I was driving to an appointment I received a call from someone on behalf of Bank of America who wanted to know my side of the story regarding the blog I wrote about Bank of America trying to force agents to break state law.  I asked her which of the 3 blog posts she had read and that I would be happy to discuss the situation with her.  I explained everything in great detail...the fact that this file has been in process since April, 2012, the fact that we have had numerous negotiators, the fact that we have lost 2 buyers already and the fact that BOA's request would break my local Real Estate Associations advise, state law and just common sense.  Only the buyer and the seller are party to the purchase contract.  Everyone else is a service provider to the real estate transaction - the Realtor, attorneys, lender, and the HOA/management company.

All that information is provided in our standard contract for informational purposes.  But not for signature.  So why would only the real estate agents be targeted to sign the contract?  For what purpose is having the real estate agents sign the contract?  The same goes for the Hud-1.  Although no one has informed me the "why" behind the request apparently I rattled enough cages that I had another call this morning from the negotiator's supervisor.

He informed me that he had spoken to the closing attorney (i.e. seller's attorney) and understood our concern and had done research and knew we were right regarding the signng of the real estate purchase contract.  Regarding the HUD-1 issue they came to an understanding that the agents names would be included in parenthesis after the brokerage names.  Despite a lot of verbiage again the reason behind the request was not given.

Apparently the checklists for documentation is not state specific although they are working on that.  That is the excuse that Bank of America has.  Considering that they have physical banks in Illinois you would think that a call to their local mortgage division's underwriting staff would have given them the Local rules and regulations. 

Assuming the rules are the same across all 50 states is a stretch.  I would love to know in what states the real estate agents sign the purchase contract.  Can anyone that knows of a state where this is common practice please let me know by commenting on this blog.

The bottom line is that after the closing attorney submits the new Hud-1 with the agents names included we should get an approval letter that we can  give the buyer to start their mortgage process.  They are so sorry and they promise to do better.  Time will tell and hopefully they now realize that you need to be state specific in a heavily regulated industry such as real estate.

Moral of story:  Don't  break your state law to complete a short sale request by a bank.  Escalate internally if possible.  If that does not work and you know you are right - blast it on social media as often as necessary.  Make a complaint to HUD, the Consumer Financial Protection Board, your local association, state association and NAR.  Don't be bullied by banks requirements that have nothing to do with the seller's qualification for a short sale.  If we don't stand up for ourselves and our clients, who will?

As I was driving to an appointment I received a call from someone on behalf of Bank of America who wanted to know my side of the story regarding the blog I wrote about Bank of America trying to force agents to break state law.  I asked her which of the 3 blog posts she had read and that I would be happy to discuss the situation with her.  I explained everything in great detail...the fact that this file has been in process since April, 2012, the fact that we have had numerous negotiators, the fact that we have lost 2 buyers already and the fact that BOA's request would break my local Real Estate Associations advise, state law and just common sense.  Only the buyer and the seller are party to the purchase contract.  Everyone else is a service provider to the real estate transaction - the Realtor, attorneys, lender, and the HOA/management company.

All that information is provided in our standard contract for informational purposes.  But not for signature.  So why would only the real estate agents be targeted to sign the contract?  For what purpose is having the real estate agents sign the contract?  The same goes for the Hud-1.  Although no one has informed me the "why" behind the request apparently I rattled enough cages that I had another call this morning from the negotiator's supervisor.

He informed me that he had spoken to the closing attorney (i.e. seller's attorney) and understood our concern and had done research and knew we were right regarding the signng of the real estate purchase contract.  Regarding the HUD-1 issue they came to an understanding that the agents names would be included in parenthesis after the brokerage names.  Despite a lot of verbiage again the reason behind the request was not given.

Apparently the checklists for documentation is not state specific although they are working on that.  That is the excuse that Bank of America has.  Considering that they have physical banks in Illinois you would think that a call to their local mortgage division's underwriting staff would have given them the Local rules and regulations. 

Assuming the rules are the same across all 50 states is a stretch.  I would love to know in what states the real estate agents sign the purchase contract.  Can anyone that knows of a state where this is common practice please let me know by commenting on this blog.

The bottom line is that after the closing attorney submits the new Hud-1 with the agents names included we should get an approval letter that we can  give the buyer to start their mortgage process.  They are so sorry and they promise to do better.  Time will tell and hopefully they now realize that you need to be state specific in a heavily regulated industry such as real estate.

Moral of story:  Don't  break your state law to complete a short sale request by a bank.  Escalate internally if possible.  If that does not work and you know you are right - blast it on social media as often as necessary.  Make a complaint to HUD, the Consumer Financial Protection Board, your local association, state association and NAR.  Don't be bullied by banks requirements that have nothing to do with the seller's qualification for a short sale.  If we don't stand up for ourselves and our clients, who will?

As I was driving to an appointment I received a call from someone on behalf of Bank of America who wanted to know my side of the story regarding the blog I wrote about Bank of America trying to force agents to break state law.  I asked her which of the 3 blog posts she had read and that I would be happy to discuss the situation with her.  I explained everything in great detail...the fact that this file has been in process since April, 2012, the fact that we have had numerous negotiators, the fact that we have lost 2 buyers already and the fact that BOA's request would break my local Real Estate Associations advise, state law and just common sense.  Only the buyer and the seller are party to the purchase contract.  Everyone else is a service provider to the real estate transaction - the Realtor, attorneys, lender, and the HOA/management company.

All that information is provided in our standard contract for informational purposes.  But not for signature.  So why would only the real estate agents be targeted to sign the contract?  For what purpose is having the real estate agents sign the contract?  The same goes for the Hud-1.  Although no one has informed me the "why" behind the request apparently I rattled enough cages that I had another call this morning from the negotiator's supervisor.

He informed me that he had spoken to the closing attorney (i.e. seller's attorney) and understood our concern and had done research and knew we were right regarding the signng of the real estate purchase contract.  Regarding the HUD-1 issue they came to an understanding that the agents names would be included in parenthesis after the brokerage names.  Despite a lot of verbiage again the reason behind the request was not given.

Apparently the checklists for documentation is not state specific although they are working on that.  That is the excuse that Bank of America has.  Considering that they have physical banks in Illinois you would think that a call to their local mortgage division's underwriting staff would have given them the Local rules and regulations. 

Assuming the rules are the same across all 50 states is a stretch.  I would love to know in what states the real estate agents sign the purchase contract.  Can anyone that knows of a state where this is common practice please let me know by commenting on this blog.

The bottom line is that after the closing attorney submits the new Hud-1 with the agents names included we should get an approval letter that we can  give the buyer to start their mortgage process.  They are so sorry and they promise to do better.  Time will tell and hopefully they now realize that you need to be state specific in a heavily regulated industry such as real estate.

Moral of story:  Don't  break your state law to complete a short sale request by a bank.  Escalate internally if possible.  If that does not work and you know you are right - blast it on social media as often as necessary.  Make a complaint to HUD, the Consumer Financial Protection Board, your local association, state association and NAR.  Don't be bullied by banks requirements that have nothing to do with the seller's qualification for a short sale.  If we don't stand up for ourselves and our clients, who will?

As I was driving to an appointment I received a call from someone on behalf of Bank of America who wanted to know my side of the story regarding the blog I wrote about Bank of America trying to force agents to break state law.  I asked her which of the 3 blog posts she had read and that I would be happy to discuss the situation with her.  I explained everything in great detail...the fact that this file has been in process since April, 2012, the fact that we have had numerous negotiators, the fact that we have lost 2 buyers already and the fact that BOA's request would break my local Real Estate Associations advise, state law and just common sense.  Only the buyer and the seller are party to the purchase contract.  Everyone else is a service provider to the real estate transaction - the Realtor, attorneys, lender, and the HOA/management company.

All that information is provided in our standard contract for informational purposes.  But not for signature.  So why would only the real estate agents be targeted to sign the contract?  For what purpose is having the real estate agents sign the contract?  The same goes for the Hud-1.  Although no one has informed me the "why" behind the request apparently I rattled enough cages that I had another call this morning from the negotiator's supervisor.

He informed me that he had spoken to the closing attorney (i.e. seller's attorney) and understood our concern and had done research and knew we were right regarding the signng of the real estate purchase contract.  Regarding the HUD-1 issue they came to an understanding that the agents names would be included in parenthesis after the brokerage names.  Despite a lot of verbiage again the reason behind the request was not given.

Apparently the checklists for documentation is not state specific although they are working on that.  That is the excuse that Bank of America has.  Considering that they have physical banks in Illinois you would think that a call to their local mortgage division's underwriting staff would have given them the Local rules and regulations. 

Assuming the rules are the same across all 50 states is a stretch.  I would love to know in what states the real estate agents sign the purchase contract.  Can anyone that knows of a state where this is common practice please let me know by commenting on this blog.

The bottom line is that after the closing attorney submits the new Hud-1 with the agents names included we should get an approval letter that we can  give the buyer to start their mortgage process.  They are so sorry and they promise to do better.  Time will tell and hopefully they now realize that you need to be state specific in a heavily regulated industry such as real estate.

Moral of story:  Don't  break your state law to complete a short sale request by a bank.  Escalate internally if possible.  If that does not work and you know you are right - blast it on social media as often as necessary.  Make a complaint to HUD, the Consumer Financial Protection Board, your local association, state association and NAR.  Don't be bullied by banks requirements that have nothing to do with the seller's qualification for a short sale.  If we don't stand up for ourselves and our clients, who will?