Short Selling You Home? Should I Move?

I have been dealing a lot with short sales recently. both on the seller end and the buying end. One question I get with sellers looking to sell their home is "Should I move out now?" There is a stigma about losing a house and a lot of people do not want there friends or neighbors to know what is happening. However; unless you absolutely have to; why would you move out of the house prior to closing on it? Generally, you are doing a short sale because you are behind on the mortgage payments and cannot afford to continue to make them anymore. As long as you have a legitimate hardship showing why you cannot make the payments the banks will work with you on a short sale. (see here is a little hidden secret: they do not want the house back either). So, you can live in the house rent free while we negotiate out a short sale for your home. That for me s the number one reason to stay. if you are having a difficulty paying the mortgage now...why leave and rent someplace when you can stay there for free? it can help you get your finances in better order for when you do move out. Yes, there are occasions where a home will not sell during a short sale process and the house will go to foreclosure. But even in that case you will have ample time to move out of your house. generally from the time a judge orders the foreclosure to the actual time of the sale is 30 days. then there is a little lag time for you to get out of the house. Even though the bank prefer you be out at time of sale. Also, in Charlotte, NC. the average time from initial filing to actual foreclosure on average is 21 months. that is almost 2 years you could live int hat house. now there are occasions where it can go faster and others where it can take longer. But from the time you are delinquent on your payment to an actual foreclosure the quickest i have seen is 7 months. There really is no financial benefit for you moving out. In addition you run the risk of the home being vacant that it can be subject to vandalism and other random acts of property destruction. You also run the risk of issues coming up with the house in the winter months if you are not properly winterizing the house; or if you are keeping the utilities on why pay for something you are not using. It makes the house easier to sell if someone is living in there. As long as the home is neat and tidy the home will reflect better than if it were empty. And you are more likely to get a better offer on the house. A vacant house sends a signal of desperation to buyers...Something like they have to sell so they will take so much less. I have found that my offers on vacant short sales are substantially lower in relation to what I feel the bank will accept versus ones that someone is living in. There really is no good reason to move out of a house that you are short selling; unless you have to for your job or other reasons..... The financial part alone makes it viable to help you through the tough times. Dave diCecco Realtor/Broker www.davedicecco.com