Worthless Pre-Approval Letters!

I can't tell you how many times I receive worthless mortgage pre-approval letters with offers on my listings. They say "congratulations, you are pre-approved for a home loan", then it goes on to say that this pre-approval is based on verbal information given to the lender or some sort of inadequate information disclaimer. The letter is not based on a review of a complete loan application, credit review or anything like that!!! It's a letter that's not worth the paper it's printed on. I see this happen all the time. Do these buyers and their agents think this is acceptable? It's not professional to say the least, and they lose some credibility in the offer. If buyers want their offers seriously considered, they should use a reputable lender and be pre-approved based on a complete review of a credit application, verifications of income, job and bank accounts and have a letter that states all this has been verified. With a valid pre-approval letter in-hand, the buyers offer will have more power.

Short Sale Listings Are Increasing in Fresno MLS!

I am noticing many "short sales" in our Fresno MLS. My advice to active buyers right now is to avoid getting involved with short sales if at all possible. Short sales are situations where the owner is typically behind in his mortgage and owes more on the loan than what the value or asking price is of the property. Even if the owner accepts your offer, you may not get the property, because the mortgage company for the seller has to approve the "short", or approve how much money they will lose by selling to you. Most of the time, it's a huge waste of time for buyers and agents alike because the lender drags their feet and eventually denies the short sale or tries to negotiate different terms than originally accepted by the owner. With so many homes on the market, why get involved in a short sale escrow?