As the economy has slowed in Casper and in Wyoming the housing market is starting to change to a buyer’s market. With this a relatively new term is being heard called short sale. Many people today are becoming familiar or hearing the term short sale but do not understand what this is or how it compares to a foreclosure. Here is a simplified explanation.
A short sale occurs when the bank has not foreclosed on a property but has agreed to take less than full price for the sale of a home. The title to the property is still in the owners name but the Bank must agree to take less than full payoff of the loan. Usually the bank or financial institution has to approve the offer before an agreement between the seller and buyer takes place.
A foreclosure occurs when the financial institution has been through the legal process and has foreclosed on the property and now owns the property. Offers to buy are now submitted to the financial institution and not to individuals who owned the property.
Short sales are occurring more often these days as financial institutions believe that the 1st loss is the least loss which is usually the case. If you are a seller understand that short sales do have tax and credit implications so do your homework first before choosing this method of sale.
