Finding a short sale expert
While there’s no shortage of real estate agents, experienced short sale agents are harder to find.
Short sale agents do a lot more than agents. They go through tons of work including negotiating with the bank, hiring contractors, and if need be, evicting occupants who won’t move out of their foreclosed homes.
You would want to look for an experienced short sale expert given the responsibility they face.
Here are a few tips that can help you find the ideal short sale agent:
- Look within the area. Certain areas may have more foreclosures rather than regular homes for sale. In these areas, many of the sellers may know an agent who has already successfully closed a short sale or two.
- Ask your Realtor for a referral. Many agents pay each other referral fees, so you may find a short sale specialist just by asking for a referral from any agent. It’s likely you’ll find an experienced one as well—the agent you approach won’t get his referral fee if the short sale expert he recommends doesn’t close the deal.
- Google it. Enter your keywords, click or press “Go,” and be prepared to find dozens of blogs and websites owned by short sale listing agents. You can ID them by going through the blog and checking out the number of short sales they indicate in those listings.
- Go to an open house in your area. There’s a good chance the agent hosting an open house is also the listing agent, if not an associate. Talk to the person in charge and find out whether he or she is experienced in short sales.
- Search the MLS. If you know anyone with access to the Multiple Listing Service, you can try searching for results that only show short sales. Don’t limit your search to a specific neighborhood –short sale experts are known to conduct business in a certain area. You can then check out the agent’s sales record during the last few years, and see how much short sales he or she has closed.
