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Sacramento Real Estate is experiencing a bit of rust.
Rust is the deadening reality of corrosion when left unattended in the elements.
This is what is happening in real estate today with Short Sales and Foreclosure properties.
Banks are allowing the corrosion to continue and spread.
Yesterday, I spent an entire day looking at bank owned homes for sale that were vacant and an eye sore inside and out. To view foreclosure homes for sale, click link. These corrosive homes have a negative impact on the neighborhood.
No home should be left unattended. I think we can all agree that a striving and productive neighborhood is one where people live, love and work. The more homes left unattended and uncared for the more the rust penetrates and spreads throughout the house and homes on the street.
Banks need to take a more pro-active approach to this dilemma. It will not only help the neighborhood and the house in foreclosure or short sale but it will also help the bank.
The CA real estate contract is very specific and requires time lines for inspections and contingency release. And the biggest time line is the date and time a seller must respond to an offer. Banks ignore those dates. They keep silent and answer when and if they are darn ready. They even punish the home buyer if they don’t meet the deadline set by the bank. While the bank ignores the many State disclosures that must be given to the new home buyer.
Home buyers who wish to purchase some of these foreclosed homes and houses in short sale are left hanging. In the meantime, home buyers move on and find another house to make an offer on. This is a loss and it’s time the banks wake up and get a clue…life moves on with or without you! You would be so much better off if you, would simply reply to the home buyer’s offers in a timely fashion.
I certainly realize that the banks have taken a large hit and have very few personnel to deal with foreclosures and short sales but hey, it’s costing you money each and every day that you delay. The bank would be much better off hiring additional staff, answering in a timely fashion and closing on these houses.
And if I dare say, it would be in your best interest to take a look at some of the agents that you have these houses listed with. When I call an agent, the last thing I want to hear is that the agent does not accept phone calls and does not answer them. We seem to have quite a few agents who think they are the banks. Let’s get back to doing a professional job. Answer your phones and return phone calls. Act like a Realtor.
The sooner these houses are off the market and we get through the inventory, the sooner there will be a recovery in our economy. The longer the banks drag this out, the higher the inventory and the longer it will take to recover.
It’s all in your hands BANKS. You have the ability to make this smoother or cause more problems. You need to improve the way you do business. Bite the bullet and let’s put an end to this madness. Get rid of the RUST!
Want to drag this subprime mess out longer or get it over with and either negotiate with the homeowner or start accepting home buyer offers in a timely manner?
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Other Bank Owned and Short Sale Articles:
Sacramento Realtor Right On Target
The Lights Have Gone Out For Many in Foreclosure
Short Sale and Foreclosure Real Estate Tax News
Sacramento Real Estate Writes Letter to All Banks
Are Short Sales and Foreclosures A Good Deal?
Foreclosures, Buy or Don’t Buy?
You said it, Gena! First time buyers like me are anxious to hear answers, but often we are left wondering if we should get into the market and buy a house. If the banks want these empty houses to be occupied by people who can pay the mortgage, they need to be more responsive. Thank you for your blog posts!
LNH,
It’s such a pleasure to have a home buyer that I am currently working with come and comment on an article.
You certainly have had experience seeing bank owned houses and short sales over the past few months.
Let’s hope that the banks get wise and start accepting short sales and bank owned offers quickly.
Since there are a tremendous amount of First Time Homebuyers obtaining an FHA loan, it is imperative that the banks clean-up these properties and pay for a section 1 Clearance.
I hope today when you see the next 6 houses in our tour that this will be the day you find a house to write an offer on and the bank accepts you offer.
You have been VERY patient!
The banks are making it very difficult. They are taking way too long to make decisions. I had a buyer who put an offer in on a home that expired in three business days. They called us back three weeks later to see if we were still interested. They never even bothered to reject our offer in the mean time. We had long since moved on and committed to another property.
Scott,
Here in CA we don’t even assume we will begin to hear anything in 3 days. The contract does not appear to mean anything to the banks.
They answer in their own sweet time.
Buyers are not waiting to hear from the banks. The savvy ones realize that they must continue to look, write offers and deposit checks…hoping that at some point a bank will accept their offer.
It’s not the way we want it to be for our home buyers but at the same time, they will get a tremendous savings if they can weather this sad storm.