Comparative prices, in a given market, tend to find common ground. Sellers of properties, not controlled by banks, are aware of the need to price competitively if they wish to sell.
 
There are dramatic differences in the processes for buying bank-controlled and seller-controlled properties. The involvement of a lender forces buyers to deal with the laborious multi-phased decision processes of large bank bureaucracies. The nature of these processes is often vague. Buyers have no practical way to know how long it will take to get a response to an offer, if a response is forthcoming at all. Buyers may have no idea how many other offers are being considered simultaneously. It is difficult for buyers and their agents to make informed decisions in this environment because it is often impossible to gather the required intelligence which is pre-requisite to crafting a reasoned and competitive approach. In the past year, I have prepared and submitted solid, all-cash offers, on behalf of clients, for two bank-controlled properties. In each case, several months passed and no response was received, despite numerous inquiries.
 
Communications with agents who represent lenders frequently fall below customary standards of business practice. Calls frequently go unanswered. Agents often avoid customary discussions about the needs and processes of the seller/lender in favor of requests that offers simply be e-mailed to them. In one recent case, I finally reached an agent by phone, after several days of unanswered calls. I was told that he had 27 offers on the property.
 
Keeping in mind that owners are now realizing that they must follow the pricing set by lender-controlled properties, let’s take a look at the usual sequence of events in the case of Seller-controlled properties which do not involve a lender. In the absence of bank bureaucracy, the events usually move swiftly. A fixed time for close of escrow, which often is just 30 days, can be set. A buyer can set a time frame for response to her offer with a reasonable expectation that she will have a response in the allotted time. A productive discourse can be established between the agent for the seller and the agent for the buyer. Issues which might arise can then be resolved in a timely and business-like manner. The variables are transparent, and the course to close of escrow can be set with a high probability of the escrow closing at a price which is close to what might be attained in a bank-controlled situation, at a time which is, or is close to, the time called for in the agreement. In short, the buyer’s odds of success sky-rocket while avoiding the aggravation and uncertainty inherent in bank-controlled properties.
 
ARE YOU SURE THAT YOU WANT TO COMPETE FOR BANK-CONTROLLED PROPERTIES?
 
If the process described for seller-controlled properties is more in line with your needs, then it would be my pleasure to assist you in your search, negotiation and assimilation into our excellent community.
 
Thank you for your consideration.
 
Dale Price J.D.
Broker/Associate