California warns about short sale scams.
Posted by Tony Leocadio Admin on Friday, July 23rd, 2010 at 1:59pm.CALIFORNIA WARNS ABOUT SHORT SALE SCAMS
Attorney General Jerry Brown is warning homeowner’s o be wary of scam artists offering o short cut the system or promising results that are not reflective of a true short sale. His office offers the following tips:
1) With limited xceptions, only licensed real estate agents or attorneys can engage in short-sale negotiations with a homeowner’s lender.
2) Licensed agents eeking up front fees from homeowners for short sales must first submit an advance fee contract to
the Department of Real Estate and receive a no-objection letter.
3) Surcharges and hidden fees just to place an offer on a home are illegal.
4) Misrepresenting the market value of a property to a homeowner’s lender by only submitting offers on the property from affiliated straw buyers is illegal.
Most short sale transactions are handled by Realtor’s directly with no up front fee, and negotiated directly with the lender by the agent, escrow, or a short sale intermediary hired by the agent.
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