Detroit Real Estate

I closed a Novi short sale on Monday this week and a second short sale is closing next Friday.  I still hate short sales.  But l am happy for my clients that these Metro Detroit short sales got closed.  I was the listing agent on one and the buyers agent on the other.

What I don't like about Michigan short sales is:

1. short sales take too long ... One took 4 months one week and the other took 3 days under 4 months 
2. lack of communication on the banks or lenders part... Sometimes we would not hear anything for over a month.  Then it would be.... we are working on it.
3. inability to talk to the lender or bank when there is a problem....  On one of the Livonia short sales we called and emailed for 4 days before we got an answer.  We never got an answer on some questions. 
4. many time the bank or lender continues to market the property....  We put an offer on a Novi home for sale last spring.  The lender continued to market the property.  They verbally accepted our offer.  They got a higher offer a month and half later.  We upped our offer  We heard nothing.  Then after 4 months the other buyer lost his job and withdrew his offer.  Then we were stuck with a higher offer on the Novi short sale.  And they were still marketing the Novi property.
5. many times the bank or lender never accepts the offer.  I have had an offer in for three months and then have had the offer rejected.  No real reason why other than it didn't meet the guidelines of the bank.
6. sometimes the deal can't close because it goes into the banks foreclosure process and gets switched to the banks foreclosure department.  I had one that went on for 5 months.  Then one day before it switched to the banks name/property they called to agree to the deal.  The problem was that it had to close in one day and the bank never even had the title work done.  It became a Plymouth foreclosure.  It never closed because it was impossible.  The home ended up as a foreclosure and finally the water pipes burst because it was never winterized.  My clients didn't want a water damaged property.

I try to keep my clients from getting involved in short sales if possible.  Many home buyers don't have the patience to wait for 4 months.  Many Michigan home buyers don't like not knowing what is going on.  They don't like that they may be out bid during the time they have a bid in or accepted offer in.  Many Metro Detroit home buyers don't like that the sale may never close.

So my advice to you is:  DON'T GET INVOLVED IN Michign SHORT SALES UNLESS YOU HAVE A LOT OF TIME TO BUY, YOU DON'T MIND NOT KNOWING WHAT IS GOING ON, AND ABLE TO ACCEPT YOU MAY NOT GET THE HOUSE AFTER 4 OR 5 MONTHS.  THAT WILL HAVE TO START FROM SQUARE ONE IN THE HOME BUYING PROCESS IN 4 MONTHS.  

I especially don't recommend a short sale if you are a first time homebuyer.  Usually once a home buyer goes through a bad short sale they want nothing to do with them.  I go through them all the time and I don't recommend them unless you really love the house.  I run from them.  I send short sale listings to you because it is my job to show you what is out there. 

My quote of the day:

Martin Luther King, Jr. didn't carry just a piece of cloth to symbolize his belief in racial equality; he carried the American flag.

Adrian Cronauer