What’s a “Short Sale”?

In simple terms, if a home Sellers’ financial obligations on the property (the loan, closing costs, etc. ) exceed the properties value, or what the homeowner is able to sell the home for, the sale is short.

In a Short Sale, the seller will need to get the Creditors consent in order for the sale to close. This is because the creditor(s) may have to agree to accept less than the outstanding amount of Seller’s debt that is owed.

A short sale can be different than a home that is facing foreclosure because the Seller may be current in their mortgage payments and has not defaulted on the their loan.

Generally, the Seller will have little control over whether its creditor(s) will consent to the sale. Buyers should understand that Short Sales can be time consuming and complicated. And typically there may not be much room for negotiations.