Short sales and you.
More people are calling me these days with a similar scenario: They thought their bank was working with them on a loan modification, short sale, or some other workout based on what the representative told them on the phone, and then … boom! They come home to find someone changing the locks, or get a knock on the door from the “new owner” of their house. One of the problems is people don’t realize the foreclosing trustee, not the lender, ultimately conducts the foreclosure sale auction.
People in these situations need to be tracking auction dates and any postponements directly with the trustee, and not be relying on whatever underpaid and overworked lackey they happen to reach at the other end of the lender’s loss mitigation 800-number that day. Secondly, most people also don’t realize that in Oregon postponements of trustee sale foreclosures typically happen by “oral proclamation.” In other words, if you are not at the courthouse that day, then you won’t know about it (unless, of course, you check back with the trustee as I just suggested).
There are so many legal aspects of foreclosure, short sale, loan workout and the alternatives the average borrower is just not educated or equipped to deal with. When they got their loan, they had someone walking them through the process, and most just signed on the dotted line, made their payments, and went on with life. Simple, right? However, in a loan workout it is borrower versus lender in a battlefield strewn with legal landmines, complex issues and serious consequences for making the wrong moves. Despite all the “happy-grams” with the “we are here to help you” messages sent out by loan servicers to delinquent borrowers, the real truth is that the lender is not your friend when you stop paying them as agreed.
You are on opposite sides of the table in a rigged game with unequal bargaining power, and therefore you ought to have an advocate and advisor on your side. This is why we always recommend at least one consultation with a knowledgeable attorney who understands the issues, and can answer a borrower’s questions and come up with a strategy and game plan.
In a short sale scenario, part of that game plan will typically entail a referral to a knowledgeable real estate agent who understands the short sale process and issues, and can effectively market and present offers to the lender for consideration and review. Not just anyone will do, as many agents do not understand and/or want nothing to do with the difficulties and time involved in short sale transactions.
