Real Estate Short Sales: The Approval Process

You’ve made the difficult decision that a real estate short sale is the best way out of bad situation.  Now you will need to navigate the short sale approval process. 

Your first step should be to seek out a professional real estate agent with demonstrated experience working with short sales. Like many professions, special certifications are available for those that want to work in a particular niche.  For real estate professionals in the field of short sales, two certifications are available, the SFR (Short Sale and Foreclosure) and HAFA (Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternative) Short Sale certification. The best suited agent for your needs will have this specialized training, will actively work in the area your property is located and possesses firsthand knowledge of the real estate trends and issues specific to your area.

Next, the process of gathering and preparing the necessary documentation begins. This documentation is a critical step, so you will need to contact your lender and get their specific instructions and follow those instructions to the letter.  Your documentation will make your case to the lender, and should present clear, compelling reasons why the short sale is the best solution. An important component of your documentation will be the Hardship Letter, a personal and factual appeal you write to your lender that details the financial difficulties of your present situation and ties together all your supporting documentation  The letter should also convey the seriousness with which you take your responsibilities as well as the earnest effort you have made to remedy the situation without success. When all the necessary documentation has been assembled, it is mailed or faxed to the lender’s Loss Mitigation Department according to the lender’s instructions.

Once the proposal has been submitted, there will often be a period of negotiation between the lender and borrower, but provided all the necessary documentation was provided with the initial proposal, a decision on the short sale should not take more than thirty days. However, a final decision could take longer if additional documentation is needed or if there is a backlog of applications ahead of yours.  Depending on the presence of additional lien holders or insurers, however, you should be prepared for quite a bit of back and forth as the parties all do their best to ensure that the solution offered is the best possible for the circumstances. Once approved, you will need to act quickly in order to finalize a sale and pay all proceeds to the lender, usually closing on the sale of the house within 30 days.

When short sale has been completed, you may still be left with responsibility for paying the difference between the sale amount and the amount owed, and arranging an equitable and manageable arrangement for this balance will be the final steps in the process. It is possible that your lender will forgive the remaining balance, but that should be established during the negotiations.  Once the sale is completed, however, you will be in a position to begin taking real positive actions towards improving your situation, having avoided the severe credit implications of foreclosure and ultimately retaining more control over the remaining debt burden.

Tracey Louis likes to research and write about changing market conditions and has been an active real estate investor in several Southwestern states for several years.

The Road To Your Dream Role In Finance

It is highly likely that you will mention the term “career in finance,” the majority of the people listening will automatically think of accounting. While that is understandable, it is important to stress that there are many career fields in finance aside from accounting. This article discusses several of them, noting what they entail, as well as the education needed to obtain one of these degrees. In doing so, it will broaden your understanding of the field and may very well serve as prompt for you to look into a particular area further.

Many different careers can be pursued by individuals interested in finance. Corporate finance, public finance, banking, and consumer finance are four that are highly popular. Within each of these categories there are several subcategories, but an overall view of each is adequate for this discussion.

When businesses want to raise funds to expand, typically they assign that task to corporate financial officers. Similarly, government entities constantly need to repair their resources: one of the most common areas that we are all aware of is their work on roadways. When the budget lacks sufficient funds for these tasks, public finance officers are given the job of raising them.

Because money is the mainstay of banks, they have several finance positions. A bank manager, for instance, is given the task of overseeing the operations of one or more branches. Banks also have a wide array of lending officers, some assisting businesses, others geared to consumers.

Speaking of consumers, consumer finance holds a vast array of opportunities. Those engaged in it help individuals find the proper loans for their realty and other property, construct a savings and investment plan suitable to them, and offer counselling on managing risk.

Of the above categories, education has been most widespread for individuals with financial careers in banking. Indeed, some of the financial officers in banks have little formal education aside from a high school diploma and training courses, often given by the bank that employs them.

For most of the other positions, a college education is a necessity. Though there are specific courses for the major one is pursuing, the following courses are typically required for all finance majors, despite the specialty: 1) budgeting, 2) economics, 3) financial management, 4) risk management, and 4) general accounting, often including taxation.

Once you have obtained the degree desired, your opportunities are vast. Banks, credit unions, government entities, and a whole slew of businesses are constantly replacing or adding to their list of employees in finance. Also, there are several websites on the Internet which list such positions, allowing you to locate work from the comfort of your own home.

If you’re interested in pursuing a job in finance, visit http://www.badenochandclark.com