(This was the view from the entryway)

(The “open” hallway)

(Note that you can see the kitchen through the brokenout door and hallway)

(You can also see the next room through the shower enclosure)

(The fact that they left the cabinets intact amazes me!)

 

(A green pool isn’t all that uncommon these days but it makes for a nasty picture!)

 

What do you think of this “right” that many seller’s claim as they are evicetd from their houses?

I used to go dumpster diving with my best friend when I was young.  Stacy and I found all sorts of treasures: an artificial Christmas tree (that my family used for years), office supplies, a wedding/honeymoon album with mementos from  Acapulco (I didn’t realize the implications of finding that in the dumpster until years later).  One person’s trash is another’s treasure, right?

Back to current times…we pulled up to look at a bank owned house and low and behold across the street there was another bank owned house (I know crazy, huh?) with a trashout going on.  A trashout is when the bank or listing agent hires a company (or their brother) to go in and remove the remaining belongings and debris of a foreclosed house prior to listing it for sale.  

There were two guys each with big trucks and a HUGE trailer with tall sides.  As I am trying to reach the listing agent on the phone (because the lockbox is a contractor’s lockbox with no code and no indication that I wouldn’t be able to use my normal lockbox key — that’s a rant for a different day) I hear Mrs. Buyer say, “Are they just going to throw that away?!”  When I get off the phone I find that Mrs. Buyer has approached the workers and inquired as to what they are doing.  She’s learned that they have to keep anything with a value over $50 but the rest is going to in the dumpster.  

Here’s where the fun begins.  She starts scurrying around grabbing things: an infant car seat, 2 bicycle helmets, a Boppy…I’m trying to find places to put things…my trunk is small (it’s a hybrid) and has a bunch of real estate and personal junk in it.  We all start picking through the “junk” cautiously at first and then not so much.  The guys are helping by bring out more and listing stuff off for us.  Mr. Seller and I wind up IN the trailer.  Then comes the bigger stuff…an ice chest, a wagon, a kids basketball stand & hoop, a small Fisher Price play set with slide.  (Now what to do with it?)  We decide to stuff this behind the gate of the initial house we went to look at and they’ll pick it up later.  

Want to see the treasure I ended up with?

Not a big ticket item but who can’t use some extra napkins around the house?  

The buyers keep commenting on it throughout the remainder of our time looking at other houses.  Why didn’t the homeowners take their hard earned stuff?  Why didn’t they sell it?  Why didn’t they donate it?  Why doesn’t the trashout company sell it, donate it, something other than send it to the dump where good stuff will take up precious space on our limited planet (I added that last bit)?  I don’t know the answers to this particular situation but it’s similar to those I see every day.  Maybe the time frame they needed to be out within, maybe denial, depression, laziness, apathy.  

I still don’t have a great place to put all these napkins, anyone have a spill?  

Short Sale, what?

If you’ve been paying attention to the real estate industry at all in the past year or so one of the buzz terms that you’ve heard frequently is SHORT SALE.  In short, (pun intended) a short sale is occurs when the owner of a home (or more commonly their REALTOR) negotiates with the bank(s) to accept less than what is owed on the note(s) as payment in full.  This in turn allows the owner to sell the property to a waiting buyer. 

The most common times we see the need for a short sale include when a homeowner is upside-down in their home and finds themselves unable to make the payments (loss of job, ARM increase, health issues), when the owner needs to relocate out of state, or in the unfortunate case of divorce and a forced sale.  A short sale is very often a pre-foreclosure process and a better alternative to foreclosure.

In a form of sick irony and contrary to their name, there is nothing short about a short sale.  The time frame is getting better but it usually takes a minimum of 3-4 months and we had one that took nearly a year. 

The faxes aren’t short.

The phone lines aren’t short.

The conditions aren’t short.

The commission cuts aren’t short.

The only other short thing we find occasionally is that the tempers are short (usually not ours, you get more flies with honey…but that is a different post).

The process isn’t easy and it surely isn’t fun for any of the involved parties.  You’ll find that many REALTORS turn up their noses at short sales and won’t do them.  They are too hard, too time consuming, too low in commission…the excuses go on.  While we concur that they aren’t the easiest thing to do, when did we ever commit to you (our customers, clients, friends, family) that we would only work hard for you if it was the easy thing to do? 

We’ve sat across the table from people during the difficult times. 

We’ve cried with clients and friends and clients who’ve become friends. 

We’ve talked to agents who did this the last time around and were profusely thanked years later for “saving our marriage”. 

If you know of anyone who is in a difficult situation we’d love to speak with them.  They DO have options and we can help.  Please just call us at 480.444.2231 with their contact information and we’ll take good care of them.