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South Lake Tahoe Short Sales

Short sale listings in South Lake Tahoe have become a big part of our real estate market and are not going away any time soon. Close to 20% of the South Tahoe Real Estate listings are currently short sale listings.

What Is A Short Sale?

A Short Sale is the term used to describe a real estate transaction in which the sale proceeds fall short of what the seller owes on the property’s loan. Instead of buying from a seller, you are purchasing the property directly from the lender.  Although you are buying the property from the lender, the seller must first accept a suitable written offer from a buyer.

Once an offer has been accepted by the seller, it is sent to the lender for approval.  Along with the offer, the seller and listing will submit a short sale package which includes information such as the sellers financial statements, listing information, a hardship letter, and many other various forms.

Short sales are often difficult transactions taking considerably longer than a typical transaction to complete. There is also no guarantee that the lender or lenders will agree to the terms of the purchase offer or that they will respond at all. Once the short sale package has been submitted, it may take many weeks or months for the lender to respond,  if they decide to respond. If the lender approves the short sale offer, the home buying process is very similar to buying a property from a regular seller. One main difference is that the property will probably sold in “As Is Condition”. Most sellers and lenders are not willing to make repairs on a short sale property.

Why Make An Offer On A Short Sale If They Are So Difficult?

Although the short sale process can be long and difficult, it can sometimes be worth the trouble. A large percentage of the Real Estate listings in South Lake Tahoe are short sales due to the decline in property values over the last few years. Many of the short sales are priced below the market value, and some lenders are approving the sales of these properties to cut their losses. Lenders know that they could loose a lot more money if the property goes to foreclosure. Many buyers have been able to get great prices on recent Short Sales in Lake Tahoe.

Foreclosures in South Lake Tahoe

Foreclosures in Lake Tahoe have become a popular target for buyers investing in South Lake Tahoe real Estate. Foreclosure listings have become popular with buyers because they are usually priced below the current market value.

The term “Foreclosure” is actually the legal process by which the bank or lender uses to sell the property in order to satisfy the loan balance in the event of a default. In California, this process is most commonly a non-judicial foreclosure.

When a homeowner stops making mortgage payments, a Notice of Default is recorded with the County Recorder. The homeowner then has 90 days to cure the default. If the homeowner does not cure the default, a Notice of Trustees Sale  is recorded. The Notice of Trustees sale states that the lender or trustee will sell the property at  auction in 21 days.

The Trustee Sale Auction is held as a public auction conducted by the lenders representative. The winning bidder must pay with cash in the full amount of the bid. The lender usually bids in the amount of the balance due plus costs. If no one else bids higher than the lender, the property reverts back to the lender. Once the property reverts back to the lender it becomes an REO.

Why buy an REO?

An REO property is an investment  gone bad to a lender, so REO’s represent a loss to the lender. Real Estate holding costs are expensive and will add to the lenders loss. In order to get money loosing assets off of the books, lenders will price REO’s ( foreclosure listings) to sell quickly. Most of the foreclosure listings in South Lake Tahoe are priced below the current market value. Many times the foreclosures are priced low enough to attract multiple offers.

Purchasing a foreclosure that is listed on the South Lake Tahoe MLS is similar to purchasing a property from an individual seller. Buyers can finance foreclosures just as they can finance re-sale and new homes. Buyers will also have an inspection period that ranges from 10 to 17 days to to any property  inspections that may be  necessary.  Delinquent tax and utility liens will be cleared by the seller, and buyers are issued a clear title and title insurance.

 Most foreclosures are sold in “As Is Condition” which makes a Home Inspection and a Termite Inspection very important.  If problems are found in the inspections that are more costly than anticipated, the buyers can back out and the initial deposit will be refunded, less any inspection expenses. REO property owners are exempt from providing a Transfer Disclosure Statement or a Natural Hazard Disclosure. The seller is exempt from these disclosures because in most cases they have never seen the property and know little about it.

Because Bank Owned Listings in South Lake Tahoe are usually priced below the current market value, they can be a great investment opportunity.  If you are interested in speaking more about foreclosures in South Lake Tahoe, please feel free to call me at (530) 416-2625!

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