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Short Sales 2010 Statistics

Posted Monday, July 26, 2010

Short sales have been promoted as an option to avoid foreclosure.Homeowners negotiate with the bank to sell their homes for less than the marketvalue or the amount owed. As a way to keep more distressed homes from enteringthe market, lenders were encouraged to use this tool.

However, market statistics are showing that the process is not being utilizedto its fullest, nor is it preventing foreclosures from occurring. These samestatistics show that foreclosure notices reached over 1.9 million in the first6 months of 2010 and that 1.6 million properties were affected.

Lenders are always leery to use this form of loss mitigation, and often theprocess is slow and grueling. Sales often take to long and the homes enterforeclosure proceedings. Many people find that negotiating with the lender,even with assistance, can be difficult.

Analysts are predicting that the later half of 2010 should show a largeincrease in the number of short sales that are approved. As banks and privatelenders prepare to close their books for the year, the prospect of having toomuch inventory is frightening. In an effort to prevent this, it is anticipatedthat short sales will have a significant rise.

Current figures show that the remainder of 2010 does not look good for the realestate market. Year end sales are often lower, even during good times. One ofthe only ways to keep the foreclosure numbers down is to approve the shortsales.

There are many realtors that are now specializing in this type of transaction.Distressed property specialists are the titles they are using. These realtorsknow and understand the process of the short sale. It is with great hopes thatthese experienced sales people will be able to change the course offoreclosures and encourage the use of short sales.

Short selling was, in the past, a very rare transaction. Now, with housingprices as low as they are and the amount owed against the homes so high, thisprocess may be the only salvation an upside down mortgage holder has to avoidthe foreclosure process.