By now every Oakland real estate agent knows what a short sale is, because we are seeing record numbers of them. If you are a real estate agent and you started your career less than four or five years ago, then it is very possible that you didn't even know what a short sale was until recently.
Unfortunately, today short sales are simply a reality if the business and the market that we are in. From the perspective of a real estate agent, a short sale is much more of a riskier edeavor. In a typical sale, the decision that
is made on any offers that are received is made by the owner of the home, which makes perfect sense.
However, in a short sale situation, any offers that are received are subject to lender approval. Since the lender will most likely be losing money on the deal, it is up to them whether or not the offer that was received is accepted.
The same is true for the agent commission for both agents in the transaction. It is possible for the lender to accept the offer, but not agree to compensate the agents involved.This creates an environment where your agent (on the buying or selling side)can work for months trying to get the home sold, and still end up not getting paid for thir work. It's very important for any agent considering handling a short sale to get in contact with the lenders as early as possible. If the property in question has a 1st and 2nd loan, then it may be more difficult because both lenders must agree to the terms of the sale or it can't go through.
