Legal issues associated with buying short sale properties

The current real estate market is flooded with short sale properties, i.e. the seller owes more to his lender(s) than the house is worth. Many people are seeking to take advantage of low prices and low interest rates to buy homes now, either for personal use or to rent to others. You should be aware that there are certain dangers in buying a short sale property which do not exist when buying real estate from a seller with equity. It can often take a very long time to get the seller’s lender to approve a proposed short sale so it is best to be flexible on your closing date and not be in a hurry to buy. It is important to have a contractual provision which allows you to cancel the deal and get your earnest money deposit back if the short sale is not approved within a set time frame. Lenders often disapprove a proposed short sale or request an increase in the price that a buyer is not willing to make so be prepared to walk away and move on to another property if necessary. Our attorneys have handled many short sale transactions, both successful and unsuccessful. If you are considering buying a short sale property, feel free to contact us.