As you may know, lenders send out appraisers to gauge the market value of a property during a short sale, which in turn helps them make their decision on whether to approve or disapprove of a given short sale. 

Following are reasons why this gentleman exemplifies the characteristics of a successful short sale agent: 

 1.  He carried out his due dilligence on behalf of the distressed homeowner and was fully prepared not only for the BPO, but for potential buyers/investors and anybody else that would be interested in purchasing the property.  

2.  He helped the BPO Agent gauge the true market value of this property, which in turn gave the bank a more accurate understanding of the property undergoing the short sale. 

3.  He prepared written proof of everything that needed to be fixed about the property, further substantiating his claims. 

I do not believe agents should spend their time negotiating short sales.  Instead, agents should spend their time doing what they do best:  listing properties and marketing them to potential buyers.   The most successful real estate agents in the country doing high volumes of short sales are not actually negotiating them at all. 

Agents should be experts at understanding real estate, not faxing hundreds of papers and knowing how to repair the fax machine when it eventually jams.  This is precisely why the agent is the perfect candidate for meeting the BPO.  For example, qualified short sale negotiators will almost always ensure that the BPO is met by SOMEBODY, whether it be the homeowner or the buyer.  They call these people the bank’s “ACCESS POINT.”  Yet is it not most fitting for the agent to be the access point, rather than the homeowner or the buyer?  For instance, an agent is neither the distressed homeowner (whom the bank is trying to foreclose) nor the investor (whom the bank is trying to negotiate with).  They are a 3rd party real estate expert and thus are in a perfect position to be meeting the BPO and assisting them in understanding the true market value of a given property.

HOLD ON, BECAUSE I HAVE YET TO TOUCH ON THE MOST IMPORTANT REASON WHY AGENTS NEED TO BE MEETING THE BPO.  

Ready?  The most important reason why agents need to be meeting the BPO is precisely because in order to save your homeowner from foreclosure, YOU NEED TO BE ABLE TO SELL THE PROPERTY.  Now if the bank genuinely believes your property is worth $400,000 (perhaps because you didn’t meet the BPO) when in actuality the property is worth $370,000, this will pose a problem not only for you as the listing agent, but for the negotiators, the buyers (who would NEVER IN THEIR RIGHT MIND buy a property above market value in this economy, I mean, how foolish do you need to be to OVER PAY on a SHORT SALE?! Think about it) and ultimately the homeowners who are desperately trying to walk away from this season in life. 

Remember what your broker used to say?  “Price it right or don’t even list it.”  The same principle applies here.  In order to maintain a high closing rate with short sales, you need to work with expert short sale negotiatiors who can negotiate a low price for the buyer.  Furthermore, you as an agent must meet the BPO in order to help these negotiations succeed.  Imagine the confidence you will have marketing the property at the “right price” (a deep, attractive discount).  The buyers get a great deal, you make your commissions & the homeowner completes the short sale.  When you do your part, EVERYBODY WINS! 

I help agents on all aspects of a short sale, from negotiations to the basic agency work (such as meeting the BPO).  We do this at no charge to the agent, in fact, agents are paid a 100% of their hard earned commission when working with our team.  So stop trying to negotiate all your short sales!  Never again do you need to stand next to your phone listening to automated messages all day or spend 4 hours trying to clear your paper jam.  Forget all that!  Just do what you do best and together we will close these deals and save thousands of homeowners from foreclosure.  Sound good? 

 Now let’s close these deals!