Charleston short sales [The Good, the Bad and the Ugly]
From the title of the famous Clint Eastwood "spaghetti western", a quick look at possible advantages and disadvantages of buying a short sale in today's and tomorrow's Charleston real estate market.
Possible advantages of buying a short sale might be that you might get a good deal, the seller will provide a seller disclosure, you can have the home inspected and you are negotiating with the seller.
Possible disadvantages of buying a short sale might be the long time frame to actually get final approval and close, the home will be sold "as-is", there are additional addendum and the bank may change their mind.
Let's repeat that last one, the bank may change their mind and that is exactly where buying a short sale might get ugly.
You see, all short sales are contingent upon 3rd party lender approval so even though the seller agrees to the terms of the contract, until the bank gives final approval, you don't have a ratified contract.
And generally, the seller will continue to review additional offers and present them to the bank and the bank will withhold final approval as they in effect look for a better offer to limit their loss. Should the bank approve a subsequent offer from another buyer, you, the original buyer will simply receive notice that your contract was not accepted by the bank as per the bank approval contingency in your contract.
Now for some good news, despite failures in most of the government's efforts to intervene in the housing mess, there actually is some good news on the horizon for short sales to become easier and quicker.