BORROWER ASKS: AREN’T SHORT SALES SUPPOSED TO BE EASY?

Q: We have been trying to get our lender to approve a short sale for several months. The bank just emailed a short sale approval letter that was expired. When we called the bank, we were told that we have to start over from scratch. I thought short sales were getting easier. What happened?

A: It did seem that short sales were becoming less of a hassle after the $25 billion national mortgage settlement was announced in 2012. But borrowers still are struggling to get the necessary approvals. In some cases, borrowers fail to provide the proper paperwork in a timely manner; in others, the bank negotiators don’t have the proper training.

Borrowers must be as persistent as ever. Get all your information together and jump through all the hoops that are presented to you. Send in the same paperwork again and again, reply to all requests quickly and fully, document everything.