Negotiations are KEY to closing your short sale!
Short Sales are made up of many different components. We all know about the stacks of documents, the necessity of an experienced List Agent..and what else? Who exactly do you meet during the process of a Short Sale?
List Agent: Critical. Choose an experienced Agent that CLOSES their short sales. Certified is great, familiar with the different Lenders and their different MO’s is also required.
Buyer’s Agent: I LOVE when my Buyers’ agent understands short sales and can explain it to their Buyers. I keep my buyers’ agents updated, but if they don’t understand the process, it’s often a moot point.
Customer Service Rep: First level of contact for yoru Lender. You can call them, and you can bet I will be!
Equator: The online Customer Service Rep. This system keeps us all honest. It creates an online record of what documents have been asked for and received and any correspondence your List Agent has had with your negotiator.
Negotiator: The person that actually gets your file and starts reviewing it to see if any docs are missing. There are several levels of negotiators. Each level gets you a little closer to the Investor.
Investor: Once the negotiator decides the file is complete, it is passed to the Investors to either counter it or accept it.
Closing Representative: This is your contact that sends your List Agent the Approval Letter. If you need an extension on your close date or a buyer substitution, you hope this person is competent!
Remember that the entity you write your mortgage check to is called your “Servicer.” The entity that actually decides on the net amount they are going to write off in your note is called the “Investor”.
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..another homes SOLD!
Inventory is low..lucky to have 3 months of inventory where a normal inventory amount of homes for sale is about 5-6 months at the low end. I think we will continue to see more inventory listed as we approach season (this is very normal for the desert market). I sure hope so! There is built up Buyer demand in all price points so more homes for Sale..if they’re priced right, will just ease demand..
Valley Prices up 20%!!!! (Courtesy of The Desert Sun)
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Sailing on the lake at Shadow Lake Estates in North Indio, Calif.
Shadow Lake Estates, a luxury water front community located in the Indio Hills, is literally the only one of it’s kind; A Water Sport & Recreation development in the desert. Located off the I-10 heading East, look for the Jackson St. exit and head North to the hills. The gated entry to Shadow Lake Estates is at the end of Jackson.
This custom home development boasts 45 acres of lake and waterways. Water Sports such as skiing (2 slalom slopes), Wake boarding, paddle boatings, sail boating, motor boating and fishing are all here in this desert oasis.
Homes are large and sit on sites of approx. 28,000 -35,000 sf., with water front locations. Many offer private boat docks and even boat lifts! There is also a community boat ramp, walking paths, and close access to hiking. Truly an outdoor oriented development. Home prices range from approx. 2 million to approx. 3.5 million.
HOA’s are approx. $750/month and include maintenance of the lake, common areas, front entry gates and walking paths.
Shadow Lake Estates entry gate is approximately 5 minutes away from the Landmark Golf Club where you can golf if the notion strikes, 10 minutes from the Bermuda Dunes Airport, 15 minutes from the Thermal horse show and Car Track, and approx. 30 minutes from El Paseo with it’s shopping/dining and art galleries.
If you’re looking for water living in our beautiful desert, look no further!
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The Palms in Palm Springs!
Certain cities pull people in. Other cities pull us back..again and again. Palm Springs is one of the latter. It did that to me over 25 years ago. I remember driving over the hill from Long Beach, hitting the Whitewater Pass and letting out a deep breath. Miles of open space, warm and balmy air and a feeling of Freedom!
This is a great article about why people come back to Palm Springs..
Then there are the Art Festivals..Palm Springs offers 6 of them and the number is growing! Starting in January and going throughout the season, film buffs can see all the new ones hitting the screens. Live entertainment? Try the Coachella Music Festival and Stagecoash Festival in April. Lots to do here in the Valley!
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I often hear, and believe, that our Palm Springs Valley offers something for everyone. And so it is with Desert Island in Rancho Mirage. One of a kind, this 226 unit condo complex built in approx. 1971, on Bob Hope and Frank Sinatra in Rancho Mirage, consists of 3 hi-rise buildings, each with it’s own heated pool/spa.
Condo sizes range from approx. 1500 sf to approx. 3000 sf with some penthouses coming in at near 5,000 sf. Prices range from approx. $170,000 to approx. $1,000,000 for penthouses.
What’s the draw?? Desert Island is nestled on a lush, green 25 acre island right in the middle of Rancho Mirage!! The island is surrounded by a mesmerizing lake, which is encircled by a 110 acre, 18 hole Championship, private golf course! Wow!
Desert Island offers many amenities for it’s approx. $845/month HOA.
Interested? Give me a call at 760-285-3578 to schedule a showing of any of the Condos currently available for sale.
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La Quinta Fairways entry gate
Location is everything, right? When you are looking for a reasonably priced single family residence in the city of La Quinta and it has to be gated..consider La Quinta Fairways.
Located off of 50th in La Quinta, this RJT built community is lovely. Homes were built in early 1990’s,and offer both quiet, interior locations and also fairway homes. The low HOA of approx. $220/month includes front yard landscape and guard manned front gate + trash pick up. The fairway is part of the Mountain Course at the La Quinta Hotel and Country Club. Golf Membership is available through that club which is just down the street.
About 5 minutes from charming Old Town La Quinta, this quiet, friendly community offers both full-timers as well as seasonal home owners a secure place to call home.
Home prices range from approx. $275,000 to approx. $650,000.
If you are looking for a nice sized home in a gated community with manageable HOA’s..consider this to be one of your best choices in La Quinta…La Quinta Fairways.
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Stellar Views South and West!
This ideally located income producing farm has just been reduced for the 2013 season to $33,000/acre. A total price of $945,000. Stats for this farm are as follows..
Location: Corner of 53rd/Calhoun. Two paved roads, and approx. 5 minutes from the Polo Clubs and 10 minutes from grocery stores, cleaners, pharmacy, coffee shop. Old Town La Quinta is 10 minutes away also.
Features: Private Well that is approx. 500 ft. deep. CVWD water for irrigation. Small home that rents for approx. $500/month and is currently rented. Out-buildings that are currently rented for approx. $1,000/mo. Well irrigated alfalfa fields that produce approx. 7-9 cuts/yr.
Zoning: A-2 Two homes/acre. Could easily be sub-divided into 4 parcels and the well would serve all 4 parcels.
Recent Sales in the immediate area: In the past 6 months there have been 4 land parcels sold within a couple miles of this lovely ranch. Price/acre has ranged from $22,000-$26,000/acre. Those ranches were not located as close to La Quinta nor were they already under work like this one is.
Grab this farm if you are looking this season..the phone has been ringing!
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The Palm Springs & La Quinta Valley housing market is recovering..
I like to keep up with my local Palm Springs Valley statistics too, but I found this chart very interesting..it actually looks at the number of active Brokers. We are at the lowest rate since 2007! I was around in the boom when every other person you met was a Realtor. I think many people were not doing Real Estate as a career, but rather a “part time” supplement to their income..flipping or representing family/friends.
Take a look at these statistics..
In my local market here in the Palm Springs Valley, even vacant land is beginning to generate calls, and that’s something I haven’t had happen in almost 3 years! My ranch/small farm listings in the East Valley are being toured and I expect I will receive offers this season. Land is always the last thing to turn around in a housing crash, so land sales are very indicative of builder and investor confidence returning.
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..Don’t forget to sign and return all your docs!
Buyers and Sellers of ALL properties here in the Palm Springs Valley-return all of your documents! Whether it’s a Short Sale, Foreclosure, or equity Sale, there always seems to be a “few missed.”
A word of caution to Buyers and Sellers alike…please review your docs carefully and return them all. Docusign helps dramatically, but as the deal moves forward, there are going to be disclosures coming from the other side, negotiations on Repairs and credits, Pest results and potential negotiations..really, on and on.
Read your documents slowly, review them carefully, call with any questions, sign and date every single place indicated (I always put large arrows so you cannot miss them.), and return them all together when possible as it is then easier to track what you have signed and returned. If a signature/date place is missed, it will be returned. Not a panic, but a time waster.
With so many of my Sales coming from out of towners, it is really critical to slow down, ask questions, then take your time signing/dating the docs. Most importantly? Return them! Always call with ANY questions, then follow up and return all the docs. If you delay, you may misplace something and then when the clock is ticking down, the pressure intensifies..who needs that?
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The Debt Forgiveness that people with Foreclosures and Short Sales on their Primary and investment proerties 
have been enjoying since 2007 expires the end of 2012. What’s going to happen? It’s an unknown. It would seem that the Debt Forgiveness would be extended since it is one of the primary reasons that people have been able to re-organize and get back on their feet.
But..there is NOTHING logical about the Lenders I we know all too well from working Short Sales for the pasat 4, almost 5 years. If they see that it will affect their own bottom lines, I suspect it will be extended. In the mean time, be sure you get your Short Sales closed by 12/31 of this year.
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