Just wondering if any of you have ever done this? I got a referral from someone I know well. He has a client that's on the verge of getting foreclosed on. They have one month to sell their home and asked me to list it for them. I've got an offer right now, and have countered back a little higher. It seems like the only way we're going to get this buyer is if we agree to pay closing costs.

If we do that, I'll have to cut my commission to about 0, because my clients won't have any money to come to the table at all (they're going into foreclosure for a reason).

I'm probably going to do it, because they're really trying to turn their lives around and avoiding a foreclosure would be a HUGE help. The house is only priced at $118, so it's not an enormous chunk.

Just wanted to know if anyone else has done similar deals in the past. Was it worth it in the long run? Were there any cons to it other than not making anything?

I'm not doing this because I expect to get anything in return, but it would be nice to see something good come of it.

Are you not doing a shortsale? If you are , then this shouldn't be a issue.

Assuming you're NOT doing a shortsale, its upto you , if you feel there would be a benefit to closing a deal with no comission.

To be honest, I haven't even thought about the short sale route. I'm still new enough at this that I haven't experienced one. I've called the bank and they're sending me a packet.

I'll take a look at it and hopefully make something work that way.

Take it if you feel led to help. If you want to help, it doesnt matter you have long-term benefits. They might turn around not to use you the next time they are ready to buy. Would you be disappointed then? Sure you would, but would that make a difference to help them this time?

These would be my train of thoughts.

You probably need to make something on the transaction. Most E&O companies require that you were compensated on the transaction in order to cover you.

I did one of these where I sold my mother-in-laws condo for free. I double ended it and my check from escrow was for $350 (on a $365,000 condo)

ask the other agent to cut their commission in half as well as yours in half. this might work for both of you.

The other agent's not acting like she's willing to do that. I know that she sounded pretty desperate when they found the listing because nothing stays on the market long here and they were having trouble finding one, but once I mentioned cutting commission a bit, she got quiet. I'm looking into a short sale, but from what I'm hearing, banks aren't really doing much to help avoid foreclosures right now because they can sell them in a day.

Who knows? I'd love to help someone avoid foreclosure. Especially since they're really making an effort to change their lifestyle and get back on track.

Wow,
I really want to know what banks are able to sell a foreclosure property within a day? Normally foreclosure is a process that is not at all speedy. Most banks would much rather accept a short sale than go through the foreclosure process because they are usually money ahead of selling after the foreclosure process. If the buyers are so desperate and having so much of a problem finding a suitable house have them pay the closing costs!

Hi i specialize in this.You have a few options,if the homeowner can pay some the bank might do a repayment plan,remodify,or other modification to the loan.It all depends on the investor pool servicing guidelines on what workout options will be offered from that company.If you go the short sale route,the banks will usually pay up to 5 percent total commission.2.5 for you and 2.5 for the other agent.

If you do the short sale how much they will take off of the loan amount will depend if it is a private,va,or fha backed loan and what kind of mortgage insurance the lender has.

You also have to watch out for any liens or clouds to the title.If there are second or third mortgages,tax liens,mechanics liens,property taxes,etc.Even if you get the seller and the bank to agree to the short sale the other liens would have to be negotiated down to make it work.

When the bpo is ordered always request that it be an full interior bpo,some lenders order drive-bys which doesn't depict the true as-is value of the property.If the lender doesn't want to pay for an interior bpo kick in the 20 to 30 bucks for them to order it,it's worth it to save a possible deal.

You need to check the lien index on this property you have listed in the county clerk recorders office to get a brief snapshot if there are any liens that would kill this deal before working on it.

The seller could always try a deed-in-lieu of foreclosure as a last resort and try to make part of the deal that the bank will not persue a defeciency judgement against the seller.Defeciencies are not allowed in some states but permissable in others,you can check your state statutes to see which applies.

good luck

In Texas right now they're flying off the market. We're in an incredibly hot market. Banks are being really stingy with short sales. I just talked to an agent in my office that was one hour from closing on a short sale and the bank killed the deal and foreclosed on it. I never dreamed that they'd WANT to foreclose on a house instead of getting the sale.

I appreciate all the good insight. I'll do what I can to sell this bad boy. Hopefully this bank will oblige. The VA has agreed to extend us if I get an executed contract. It's going to be one hell of a learning experience.

Thanks for all the insight so far.