On Friday and Saturday, at our office, Century 21 at the Rockies, we had an Accredited Buyers Rep. Class taught by Jim Dague of Las Vegas.  It was a great class and as part of the class, John of Crossland Title was there this morning for a few minutes. He  informed us that about 80% of all closings are having problems just before closing.  A lot of it is last minute problems with lending.  Since by then, we are past all of our usual deadlines, I wonder if it would be possible to put up less earnest money or extend our lending and appraisal deadines to the day of closing.  What do you think out there?

During these economic times, every Buyer wants to make sure they are getting the best possible price.  That is why so many people take the risk and time to wait for a short sale.  Even with the Home Run Grant, the $8,000.00 tax credit, 100 % loans and other grants out there, it always boils down to price.  The best buys are over $400,000.  Yes, there are fewer Buyers, but if you want to move up, this is the time.  Interest rates are low and prices in the upper range are down to 2003 prices.  It looks like the economy is turning and now is the time to get the most value for you dollars.

In my experience, a bank owned property is usually a better buy than a short sale for several reasons.  The two main reasons are price and time frame.

I know of several homes that had short sale offers on them, but for whatever reason, went to auction and the bank bought them.   The bank listed them for less than the highest short sale offer.  The reason this is common is because most homes in a short sale position have a first, a second, and maybe other liens.  So if you can find a home that has already gone through the foreclosure process, it has removed those.   Our office has a lot of bank owned pr0perties listed and I know that they go under contract quickly.

The second reason is time.   Who knows when a bank will approve a short sale.  It depends on which bank, the asset manager, how the offers are being submitted by the agent and on and on.  There are investors that make offers on properties all the time, and for them a short sale may be just the ticket.  However, for the Buyer who is moving up or it is there first house they may want to consider a bank owned property first.  After all, time is money.