How long do we have left to go in our short sale?

Profile picture for thunder44
We are buying a short sale that is being processed by Bank of America. The Title Company is reviewing it this week. How long before we get an Approval letter from Bank of America for the sale. Is the title company even part of the short sale process?  We thought that was something the buyers(us) would have to do? 
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August 13 2011 - Hollywood

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There's no defined exact time it takes for a short sale to be approved. It can take anywhere from 3-6 months or more. The title company works as a middle man/negotiator for the sellers/selling agent with the bank to ensure all paperwork and financials are correct and up to date.
 Being a buyer in a short sale, while you do have to wait an undisclosed amount of time and potentially have to adjust your offer once you get an answer from the bank, is the "easier" job.
 Once a home for short sale gets an offer, the sellers than have to state their hardship and prove they qualify for it while the bank sends professionals out to assess the home and decide what their best price will be. This is all usually done through a title company.

 Your Realtor will get updates from time to time and should keep you up to date, but in the meantime - as the buyer, it's a waiting game. One that will hopefully result in you getting a great deal on a great home!
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August 13 2011
The seller's are losing their house and the bank is in total control on a "short sale".  Your patience will be tested.  Nothing ever goes smoothly in a short sale

Dasvid Cooper
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August 13 2011
Profile picture for Ofe Polack
Just by reading your message, it seems to me that you are not working with a buyer agent....correct?  The role of the title company is limited to preparing the HUD initially and subsequently do the actual closing and title search.  I have done quite a few short sales and the BPO/Appraisal has always been ordered by the lender's negotiator, never the title company, but according to Christine  "This is all usually done through a title company,"  maybe in Brevard County, FL title companies provide that service.  In any event the title company does not review a short sale, once the seller has signed the offer it is entirely up to the lender to make the decision.  Unfortunately, at this moment, there is no timeline on a short sales.  The shortest I have ever done, with Chase, was 6 weeks, the longest....too long to even mention.  Take your "patience pills" and wait.  Good luck!
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August 13 2011
Profile picture for thunder44
The BPO has already been done(few months ago) by Bank of America.  The most recent development was the title company  looking it over. we are using the sellers agent.

 we understood the short sale process as: 
make offer
bpo
lender approval/reject
title company(buyer initiated)
inspection
sign
keys

 
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August 13 2011
In my experience, Bank of America is one of the banks that takes the longest. Once you get back the approval price, etc, it's about another 2 months to get to closing. It's all a case by case basis though - that's why there's no determined amount of time for a short sale.
 Your understanding of the short sale process is fairly correct, it's just the time in between those events that can take what feels like forever.
 Be patient, it'll be a wait and I understand it can be annoying to wait on banks but if it's the house you really want, it'll be worth it!
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August 14 2011
Profile picture for AngelaHardy
Sounds like the Seller's Agent did not have a very frank discussion with you about the length of time generally required for a short sale  - especially one through Bank of America.

The agent is representing the best interest of the seller - which means they needed to get an offer to the bank.  A buyer's agent representing you would have throughly explained the pros and cons of a short sale to the buyer.

As mentioned in previous answers there is no "standard" for a short sale. From experience I can tell you that BofA takes 3 - 6 months to respond  with an approval or counter offer. Did the agent write into the offer that you (as the buyer) can walk anytime before bank approval with no penalty? Or did they commit you to waiting for the bank response?

Short sales are short on money - not short on time. So be patient! Good luck!
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August 14 2011
 
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