Tag: Orlando short sale realtor

Orlando Short Sale Negotiator confesses to using stall tactics

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

I’ve been doing short sales in Orlando since 2005 and something happened last week that has never happened to me before. I’ve been working on this Orlando shorts sale listing for the past 3 months. After negotiating with the bank we got the payoff approved at $192,000.00 and the buyers were ready to close. Each time I would get a hold of the negotiator he would say that I would have the approval letter the next day so I would then update my clients with the same update that was given to me. After hearing the same story from me day after day and week after week It got to the point where everyone thought it was all somehow my fault.

To make matters worse, the buyer got tired of waiting and walked from the deal, my client even talked about hiring another agent. The following day I received a call from the negotiator and I couldn’t believe what he told me. He actually told me that he was purposely stalling this particular file because he didn’t want it to close until the month of March. He explained to me that the bank can only handle a certain amount of loss per month and they had already hit their limit for the month of February. He then proceeded to explain to me how he was purposely stalling me by not providing me with the approval letter. When I heard this I felt like reaching through the phone and slapping him. That wasn’t possible so I did the next best thing, I gave him a piece of my mind.

All he had to do was inform me of what was going on from the start and everything would have been fine. The buyers would have had no problem at all waiting as long as they knew what was going on. After I vented my frustration with the negotiator I insisted that he personally call my client and explain the situation to him. Thank God everything is back on track and all is right with the world, we’re closing at the beginning of March.

Short sale negotiations can get complicated and can be extremely frustrating. If you’re in need of an Orlando short sale expert call me at 407-902-7750 for a free analysis of your situation.

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What happens when an Orlando Short Sales get approved for more than appraisal value?

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

When a buyer puts in an offer on an Orlando short sale property, that person believes that they are getting a great deal. Many times this ends up being the case and after several months of waiting…the bank approves the offer but don’t celebrate yet,…  there are still a few things that can make the deal fall apart.

The appraisal is a crucial and unavoidable part of this process. let’s say for instance that the bank approved your short sale offer of $100,000.00, the next step is to get your financing in line which means getting the property appraised, inspected, etc. The issue now is to get the property to appraise for at least the amount of the contract. If the property falls short on the appraisal, let’s say $95,000.00, then there’s a problem because your lender is not going to approve a loan for $100,000.00 for a house that just appraised for $5,000.00 less.

How and why does this happen?

Appraisers have to go off of recently sold properties only, not pending properties, or active properties. So even though the BPO may have come in at a higher valuation, the reason is that BPO agents have a bit more leeway on what comparables they are able to use. As opposed to appraisers, BPO reports may include active listings, pending listings, in addition to sold listings in order to determine true valuation.

Will the short sale lender adjust the approval price to match the appraisal price?

Most lenders will actually change their payoff letter so that the deal can go through. As a matter of fact, this is something that happens all of the time in our office. The only drawback is that it takes a bit longer because there’s a process which typically 2 to 3 weeks. It all comes down to how much of a hurry the buyer is in to buy the house. If the buyer is in a position to wait the extra time, then this actually benefits them because they get an even better deal than the original price.

Lenders like Fannie Mae for instance are less likely to lower the approval amount regardless of the appraisal value. I know what you’re thinking and I agree… It makes no sense.

What happens if the lender is unwilling to adjust the approval price?

There are a couple of different scenarios that may ensue if the lender doesn’t want to lower their payoff amount. One thing that can happen is that the buyer walks away and keeps looking for another Orlando short sale. Another way to get around this issue is if it’s a cash buyer that really wants the property. However, not too many people will purchase a property for more money than the appraised value unless it holds some kind of sentimental value for them.

Need help with a short sale? Call our office at 407-902-7750

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Orlando Short Sale Realtor, A labor of Love

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

I remember when I  became a FL REALTOR back in 2004, the gentleman speaking at the podium that day, I don’t recall his name but something that he said that day resonated with me and still does until this day. He said, “when practicing real estate don’t make it about the money,… you’ll make more money”. What he was really saying was to always,… ALWAYS put the client’s needs first in any real estate transaction and by doing so you will eventually make more money.  The word will get around that you are the type of agent that goes “above and beyond” for their clients and people will seek you out for all of their Orlando real estate needs.

Well, here I am eight years later telling you that he was totally right! The only marketing that I do, if you want to call it marketing, is writing this blog about real estate [which I love doing!].  Most of my clients are referrals from past clients and my office is running at full capacity, it’s because of this that we are constantly on the lookout for Orlando short sale superstars to recruit.

When I take on a new short sale listing, the law says that my fiduciary responsibility is to my client. However,  I feel that a realtor’s responsibility is to look out for everyone involved.. the seller, the buyer, the lender as well as the buyer’s agent. It’s like I tell the agents in my office “Everyone involved in the transaction needs to walk away satisfied with the results”, and if they practice real estate with that mindset they will be successful.

Orlando short sale specialist… not just a job

Making both sides of the closing table happy… there’s no better feeling in the world.  Being a good real estate agent is kind of like being a good teacher, you really have to love it to be great at it and there’s just no way you can fake it. Have you ever had a horrible teacher in grade school or high school? I’m talking about the teacher that just doesn’t care and it’s painfully obvious to everyone in the classroom. I’ll bet that there’s at least one teacher that just popped into your mind as you were reading that last sentence. Well, imagine having a realtor represent you that just doesn’t care about you. Sure they go through the motions of what a realtor is supposed to do and they do just enough to scrape by.

That’s because that type of realtor chose the wrong profession to be in and they’re miserable. I’ve known many of these agents over the years and have even made the mistake of hiring a few for short periods of time. These agents will eventually show their true colors and everyone around them will know that their heart is just not in it. Don’t get me wrong…I’m not saying that they are bad people what I am saying is that these people will never be successful real estate agents and sooner or later will realize that they’re in the wrong line of work.

When choosing a real estate agent to represent you and do your short sale, make sure to do your research. I’ve said this countless times and I will continue saying it. Doing a short sale on your home will be one of if not the most important transactions in your lifetime. Make sure that you choose an Orlando short sale realtor that absolutely loves what they do!

 

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Great Deals on Orlando Real Estate are Drying Up

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

Between 2008 and 2010 you could easily buy a property in Central Florida for at least 25% below the property’s market value. Since then we’ve seen these huge discounts on real estate shrink to about 3% or less. Even with Orlando short sales, the banks are just not giving us the deep discounts that they were just a couple of years ago.

When I tell people that we’ve been specializing in doing short sales since 2005, they would ask with a bewildered look in their eyes “did short sales even exist back then?” or “how were you doing short sales in a hot market?” and the truth is that we just marketed to people that were in foreclosure and tried for the short sale with the bank and they were accepting these jaw-dropping low ball offers. And believe it or not our closing rate on short sales back then was about 85%.

I believe that the lenders were always a bit behind when it came to knowing what was really happening in the real estate market, there seemed to be a delay, kind of like getting today’s newspaper next month. Within the time it took them to catch up to what the reality really was, home buyers were getting some really great deals on Orlando short sale properties,  especially cash investors that we’re able to buy multiple properties at one time.

These days it’s evident that lenders are more “on the ball” when it comes to knowing what the true market value of a property really is.

I think it’s pretty obvious to everyone that the Orlando real estate market is getting hot again and we’re not done yet. We’ve had buyers just a few months ago that didn’t want to pull the trigger and buy yet because they wanted to hold out for a  better deal, against my advice. When they contacted me again recently they didn’t like what I  had to say, not one bit. These same buyers are now scrambling to buy a property with a great sense of urgency. This holds true for a lot of people who thought that the market was still on a decline.

With very little inventory out there, prices continue to rise and it looks like this trend will continue for a while. Every new Orlando listing that we get in our office ends up getting a contract on it within three or four days.

Some properties fall short on the Appraisals

When an Orlando property gets listed for a certain price many times buyers will submit a contract for thousands of dollars over the asking price. The problem lies when it’s time to get the property appraised and the numbers are just not there. As solid as the market appears to be right now, appraisers are being more careful when doing their job. Appraisers get their numbers from properties that have been recently sold in the neighborhood so that means there’s not much wiggle room on what they can do or what they’re willing to do.

Before the real estate market crashed in 2007, appraisers along with a whole lot of other real estate professionals got into some big trouble for bending the rules to benefit their clients as well as themselves. These days appraisers are more “by the book” than ever and I think it’s a good thing.

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Short Sale in Hunters Creek, FL | 2722 Runyon Cir.

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

This week our featured property is located in the beautiful neighborhood of Hunters Creek. This neighborhood was recently voted the 21st best place to live in America. The top-rated schools in addition to everything else mentioned below, Hunters Creek is one of the most desirable neighborhoods in Orlando. The good news is that you can still find a great deal in Hunters Creek.

The Parks of Hunters Creek

If you have kids, you will love Hunters Creek,  It’s obvious that when they made the plans for building Hunters Creek 25 years ago, they had young families in mind all the way. There are playgrounds, soccer fields, baseball fields, football fields, basketball courts, tennis courts, and racquetball courts for residents to enjoy. Hunters Creek also has youth sports programs for just about any sport you can think of for children wanting to participate. There are also gazebos and community centers that can be used for private activities.

Shopping and Restaurants

Hunters Creek is conveniently located close to several good restaurants right there in The Village. Wherever you live in Hunters Creek, you’re only a few minutes away from a healthy selection of family restaurants, pubs and there’s even a Farmers market. If it’s a mall your looking for, try going to the Loop. It’s just minutes away and it has a wide array of stores as well as a movie theater.

Shingle Creek Trail

Over the years we’ve seen enough animals in our backyard to start a zoo. We’ve seen deer, turkeys, river otters, bobcats, foxes, wild boars, bald eagles, Sandhill cranes, and owls just to name a  few. With ponds everywhere, most residents are able to go fishing, kayaking, or canoeing without even having to drive. Although we’ve seen small alligators in the water, the larger ones are removed by animal control and taken to Gatorland.

Shingle Creek Trail is a beautiful conservation area that consists of hiking trails, bike paths, lakes and there’s even a trail that travels along the side of Shingle Creek where people go kayaking, canoeing, and fishing. We often go bike riding through the trails because my boys love it.

It’s a 1 story home with 4 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms and 1,878 sq ft of living space.

Here are just a few of the property’s features

* Large master suite

* Open Kitchen with tons of cabinet space

* Granite countertops throughout

* Vaulted Ceilings

* Solid wood cabinetry throughout

* Dining and great room designed for family gatherings and entertainment.

* Lots of natural lighting

* Huge backyard on a pond

* 2-car garage

* In-ground screened in pool

Easy access to schools, first-rate shops, and restaurants. A must-see!

Call to make your appointment, You DO NOT want to miss out on this Great opportunity! Make an offer today before it’s too late.

Are you currently searching for your Orlando dream home?  Look no further just click on;  search Orlando Luxury real estate and you’ll have access to all the properties listed on the Florida MLS. Within just a few clicks of your mouse, you’ll be searching out Florida real estate like a pro.

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