My phone rang this morning.  A buyer wanted to know, “Should I buy a short sale or a bank owned home?”

I hate these calls because short sales are like the Temple of Doom … alluring, but booby-trapped.  Consider the latest proof.

If you are a Seller facing foreclosure, by all means list your house and try to sell it short.  You should also consider a deed-in-lieu.  Make sure the agent you select knows what he’s doing (contact me direct at 951-571-9229 or sean.giorgianni@gmail.com for a list of questions to ask).

If you’re a Buyer and a short sale is EXACTLY what you want, then write a fair offer and be patient.

But the truth is, short sales are not closing in this market.  Bank owned homes are, but not short sales.

32 of the last 100 listings in Moreno Valley are short sales; only 4 of the last 100 sales that closed were short sales.  Your chances of closing on a short sale are even worse though!

If you do the math you find that only 1 of every 167 short sale listings in Moreno Valley closes. That’s better than the odds of getting a royal flush in Vegas, but not by much.

What do you think?  Share your thoughts by sending me an email directly or, better yet, post a comment right here on the blog.