Sellers that are attempting a short sale need to be aware and careful. Agents of these homes should also be on their toes. Friday I got a call while I was at a home inspection, and preoccupied. The caller had called my office and spoke to my principal broker who directed the caller to call me about an expired la pine home listing of mine.
The caller was looking for information on a la pine home that has been listed as a short sale for several months. The home has not sold and the sellers have moved out and into a rental. The sellers have not abandoned the property and are there usually daily.
The caller claimed to be with an asset management company and needed access to the property to winterize it. I know for a fact that the sellers have until February to resolve their back payments and that the bank that hold the note on this property has been in contact with the sellers. When I questioned the caller as to why they would need access to a Central Oregon home that did not belong to the bank they could not answer my questions.
They did not hang up and tried to convince me of their urgent need with the cold weather coming. I did not give them access to the home and let the seller know right away. Today, I discovered that there is a group of people posing as asset managers and stripping homes in Central Oregon listed as short sales. They are removing everything they can from homes such as lighting fixtures, heat pumps, even toilets.
I was thankful that I took the approach that a bank has no right to a home prior to auction any more than a bank will allow early occupancy to a buyer. Sellers even if you are not in a short sale but your home is vacant please be careful – make sure the people entering your home have authorization to do so and that your agent is not giving these people free reign to your home.