Elizabeth Weintraub • Sacramento Short Sale Agent • Land Park

Which is better? A bird in the hand or 2 birds in the bush? Yes, this is a trick question. Because the answer is neither. Who wants a stinkin' bird when what you're after is short sale approval?

As a competent Sacramento Short Sale Agent, I gather feedback from buyer's agents after they show my listings. I want to know if the buyer's agents have any questions or if I can help them to write an offer. I realize not every agent is as intimately familiar with short sales as I am. I don't want them to feel uncomfortable writing an offer. That's why I attach a tip sheet to MLS for agents. I also want to know what their buyers think about the property. Is there some slight improvement we could make to attract an offer?

But time and time again I get feedback that is almost impossible address. It's impossible to address because it involves making each of the parties understand that the information they are relying upon is false. And nobody wants to believe they could be misled by false information. So they tend to deny it. Yet, it happens over and over.

Some yo-yo will put a short sale on the market at an unbelievable price. Hey, sometimes I'm that yo-yo, and there are reasons to do it. But the problem is buyers see that price and they believe that is what the bank will accept. When that price is fabricated; it's made-up -- pulled outta somebody's butt -- and you can bet your bottom dollar that the bank will reject it.

Yet, I will hear the objection: but the house around the corner is for sale at $150,000 and yours is $185,000. Yes, but mine is approved. Mine will close escrow. That house around the corner is not approved. It's not going to close escrow. Which would you rather have? A sure thing or a stupid thing?

The house around the corner.

Oy.

It's funny how perception works. You can say what you want about hocus-pocus positive thinking hoo-ha, but how we look at things shapes how we perceive them. I was looking at my listing inventory this morning and finding the glass half-full. Freaking out a little. Thinking, crap, my listings have fallen to 10. I better go get some more listings lest I no longer care to carry on my business as a listing agent.

Notwithstanding that I have 52 listings in escrow. Nope, my focus is centered on those 10 that haven't sold yet. Notwithstanding that 5 or 6 years ago, with an inventory of 10 listings, I'd be set for the year and definitely a Master's Club member. But now, when my inventory dwindles to 10, I start thinking about standing in the soup line. I'm gonna slap my own face twice with a glove.

I was joking in my office yesterday that this is the only business in which everybody hates you. The short sale business. The buyer's agents and their buyers hate me because I push them to conform, to be accountable and to sit in escrow until we get short sale approval. The short sale banks hate me because I'm on the seller's side. The sellers hate me because I'm doing my job, which involves disposing of a home they love.

I'm the person my clients count on. We're part Sacramento short sale agent and part psychologist / social worker. Clients need an agent to be analytical, but they also need us to be compassionate, to be understanding, to care what they're going through. For some Sacramento sellers, making that decision to short sale is heart breaking. It might be their dream home, their retirement home and all of that has vanished, gone up in smoke. The years of planning, hoping, dreaming, finally accomplishing it, and now it's gone.

People think I'm crazy to do Sacramento short sales. Maybe I am. I try to be sensitive to my client's needs. It's a bittersweet moment to call and tell a seller her short sale has closed. On the one hand, she's overjoyed. On the other, she's devastated because of the closure. That chapter of her life is over. For some sellers, that door may never open again. They might have poured their life savings into a black hole.

I get the job done for my clients. They get a release of liability and are able to soldier on, free from baggage. I help them to concentrate on the future and not look backward. Except for that one moment at closing. That moment of reflection and acknowledgment of what was lost. There has to be closure. I recognize that task is part of my job.

As long as it's not further than 90 minutes away, I can sell that short sale for you. The question is whether I will drive wherever you are, and I might not. I have sold short sales for sellers I have never met. I have sold short sale homes I have never seen, although I did send another agent to inspect. But for the most part, I prefer to sell a short sale when I have personally inspected the property and met with the seller. But if not, that's OK. The important things are the home gets sold and the seller gets released.

When this particular short sale in Marin County was referred to me, I was a little hesitant at first. Ordinarily, I prefer to service the four-county area in Sacramento. That's my stompin' grounds. But then short sales are a specialty and few agents specialize in them. Those who do sell short sales probably do not sell anywhere near the number of short sales that I close. I have almost 100 short sales on the books for 2011, but a few will roll into January. That's a lot of short sales, yowza.

I know this because I was lucky enough to snag a lunch date with Sylvia Barry. Sylvia is an ActiveRainer and an agent at the number-one selling office in Marin County, Frank Howard Allen. She asked me how many short sales I close, and I hadn't counted. I rarely count. I just sell short sales. She is not the agent who referred the listing but she is a great agent in Marin County. I would not be surprised if she finds a buyer for me. If you live in Marin County and need a fabulous agent, give Sylvia a ring.

See, somebody reading this would probably wonder why a Sacramento short sale agent would drive all the way to Marin County to take a listing. They might think it's a million-dollar-plus listing but it is not. People who know me know that I am not that motivated by money. This short sale is a small 3-bedroom. The sellers are special people, though. The person who referred the listing is a good friend and associate in Sacramento. I owed him one. When I owe, I pay up.

But the drive across 37 West is spectacular. It's breathtakingly beautiful. You can catch 37 West by the Fairgrounds in Vallejo off of Interstate 80. If you've never taken the drive around San Pablo Bay, let me tell you, it's incredible; you won't regret going. There is the San Pablo Bay National Wildlife Refuge located there. Miles and miles of waterfowl and shorebirds. The view is of open water in the bay, tide pools, marshes, drainage ditches and streams and mudflats.

I drove in early morning. The waters were still, reflective of golden yellows, burnt oranges and brilliant blue color mirrored upside down in the stream along the road. Not a ripple in the water. Quiet. You could bounce a dime off it. Flocks of birds suddenly swooped and dived, then abruptly changed direction to dive again. My only regret was I did not have enough time built into my schedule to pull off the road to shoot photos. Out in the middle of the water, ducks formed entire islands all by themselves. Bobbing white splotches. And it goes on forever. One section of the road is just like a roller-coaster -- too bad there were cars on it.

This is worth a drive from Sacramento. Especially this time of the year because it's located in the Pacific Flyway. Lots of migrating birds. Another reason why I love being a Sacramento short sale agent. I get to go to the most cool places.

Back in the old days, like 5 years ago, I used to get really bummed out if an active contingent short sale flipped back into on-the-market status. It meant as a Sacramento short sale agent I had to start over. I had to find a new buyer and put up with the inevitable questions such as "What's wrong with this house?" because now it was back on the market.

What is wrong with this house is nothing. It's what is wrong with buyers who shouldn't be buying short sales: not much commitment, little patience, easily frustrated, confused and annoyed.

An agent yesterday wanted to negotiate the waiting period for the short sale addendum. We wanted 90 days and she wanted 60 days. It doesn't matter what she wants. It matters how long it will take the bank to approve and, in that particular situation, it would take 90 days. There is no negotiation. There is no reason for a seller to gamble. None. That agent's buyer is a cancellation waiting to happen. It's like putting a gun to my head and not pulling the trigger for 2 months. No, thank you.

However, now if a buyer flakes, I view these temporary blips as an opportunity. It's a step forward because it has saved me from dealing with a buyer who has vanished at the time of short sale approval or worse, after a home inspection. My sellers and I are just that much closer to success and closing. I know the odds are greater that our new buyer will probably be in the deal when we get approval.

When a buyer walks away and cancels a short sale mid-stream, the process doesn't always start over from scratch. We've already got the BPO, all the sellers' documentation has been submitted, now all we need is a committed buyer. The new buyer won't wait as long for approval. We probably already know how much the bank will take. A lot of the crap in a short sale at this point has already been sorted out.

So, if you see an active short sale come back on the market from active short contingent status, you might be looking at a little gold mine. Instead of thinking what is wrong with this house you should be thinking: how can I buy this short sale before somebody else beats me to it!

Photo of Garden of the Gods, by Adam Weintraub, who is on his way back home

I was reading Valarie Swanson's post this morning about short sale timelines and realized I do have something to add that conversation. That's how it goes with most articles I write. Many outside influences trigger thoughts about short sales. It seems to be in my dna, and part of the reason that I've become so successful at being a Sacramento short sale agent.

Believe me, it wasn't a title I intended to obtain for myself, but over the years, it's turned out that way. People tell me how brilliant they think I am because I headed into the short sale pool early on in 2005. I wasn't that brilliant. I was just wading around without a single clue that I'd be swimming in it years later.

The best time to list a short sale is, of course, when you are ready. But when you are ready, might be too late. I often get calls from sellers up against the clock, and I can't help everybody in that situation. Ideally, you want to list your home just prior to default. Some types of loans require default and some do not. There are situations in which you can be current on your mortgage payments and do a short sale.

The problem with being current and then discovering you need to be delinquent because your short sale was rejected is you might have to start over with a new buyer. Starting over with a new buyer means finding a committed buyer for a dated short sale will be a lot more difficult.

It's almost better to cancel the listing at that point. Moreover, some banks are now requiring 60 days delinquency instead of 30. This means if you find out in the middle of September that you need to stop making mortgage payments to be considered for a short sale, you can't resubmit your offer until December 1. How many buyers will wait that long? Because you won't get approval until sometime next year. Not to mention, there are fewer buyers in the marketplace in December.

If you're remotely considering a short sale, talk first to a Sacramento short sale agent. Get the skinny on your loan and your particular situation in advance. Arm yourself with the facts. And please, don't wait for that trustee's auction to be posted before calling. Because the best time to list and sell a short sale is before you are 30 days delinquent.

I had a couple of closings yesterday. One was in Roseville, and the other was Rocklin. Both were short sales. As a Sacramento short sale agent, I list and sell short sales from Galt to Lincoln. I'd like to say that I sell only in Sacramento, but that's not the case. In fact, we've got a short sale in Grass Valley, of all places.

One of those short sales was a nail biter. Or was it? It was definitely a nail biter to the mortgage loan officer. He called me earlier this week with his knickers in a twist. He was pretty upset. How could I let his client spend all of this money on inspections and appraisals when we didn't have the approval letter from the second lender?

First, his client is not my client. My client is the seller. Second, I've been selling short sales for 6 years straight. I know what happens when Greentree is the second lender. I am also very familiar with a Bank of America short sale. In fact, I'd say I close more Bank of America short sales than any other type of short sale. And this short sale involved Bank of America and Greentree.

Bank of America issued approval a long time ago. But Greentree dragged its feet. When it finally did issue an approval letter, it gave us 2 days to close escrow and deliver funds. Coincidinky, that approval letter arrived just when I said it would. Two days before closing. Stressful? Yeah. But many short sales are like this. If we hadn't started the loan early, this would not have closed. This short sale would have gone to trustee's auction.

Of course, when we received the Greentree letter, we needed approval from the first lender because there was a contribution. SB 458 didn't stop that. If you think SB 458 is some kind of magical savior in a short sale, think again. But Bank of America was fast in its turnaround and revised its letter.

In all honesty, there was a certain amount of satisfaction in telling the mortgage lender I did my job. I performed. But what was amusing if not frightening was when the MLO said he didn't know if he could fund. This time I got to the point the finger at him. And I reminded him that if he could not fund, everybody would blame him. All eyes were on him. The focus was in his direction now. Funny how the tables turned, huh?

We had a good laugh. Well, I had a belly laugh. He funded. We closed. He was a good guy, a good mortgage broker. The thing is it doesn't just take a village to close a short sale these days. It takes a freakin' country.

My husband believes that some things I say just pop up out of the blue with absolutely no reference point. He says, in conversations, I don't signal my turns. My brain is constantly in transition. Yet, he loves me anyway.

During brunch at Bistro Michel yesterday, we were discussing vampire teeth. You mostly see this in women, not men, but I suppose men aren't immune. I'm talking about those long canines. The type that suggest I'd like to bite your neck, in a Bela Lugosi kind of way. They say that the eyes are the windows to your soul, but I suggest you look a little further south for insight. You can tell a lot about a person by the way they smile and their teeth. No offense to any English people or those with vampire teeth, by the way.

My point is we're all initially judged by how we appear. However, if you don't have a photograph of a person to look at, then the only thing you can go on is what they say to you over the phone. That's why when prospective sellers call me to talk about doing a short sale in Sacramento, I look up their property online. It always amazes them how I can access the information so quickly.

Not only do I pull up property information online while we're talking, but I check to see where they live, how many other homes they own, and I might run their name through Google. It's not that I'm spying; I'm gathering information to help them. A woman called to say she wanted to sell an underwater home as a short sale. It's a rental. We talked for a while, and then I asked her if she wanted to sell her residence, too.

This surprised her. She asked me why. Well, because her residence is worth about $200,000 and she owes more than $400,000. This information came as a shock to her. She had no idea. She's losing her job. She's also been busy renting out rooms to help make the mortgage payment. She's in the middle of a loan modification. And the lender never told her? But she likes her little house. That's fine. We all make our own decisions.

I suggested she think about it. Talk to a person she knows and trusts. Get legal and tax advice. She wrote yesterday to say she plans to retire in 5 years. She's thought about it and has decided to keep her home. She plans to sell it in 5 years so she can buy a smaller home. That's not gonna happen. It breaks my heart to have to tell her that. But something she said to me is a clue that it won't matter what I say. She said that she can sell in 5 years because people sell homes when they have a mortgage. It doesn't have to be paid off.

Yes, when they have equity.

It's obvious to me that she needs a Sacramento short sale agent. I don't think it's obvious to her. It's not my place to tell her to sell her home as a short sale. I'll just give her the information and make a left-hand turn. The safest way is three left-hand turns and I'm around the block. See, sometimes, I do signal my turns, but it can be painful.

Some mornings I get up and think to myself, "So many things to gripe about and so little time." Like, what's worse than getting a ton of emails back from people who say nothing more than "thank you?" Yup, 2 words. That's it. It's one thing to acknowledge receipt so the sender knows you got the email, but business email is not a conversation we're having between two people; there is no need to send half the emails I receive.

I'll tell you what's worse, though. Getting an encrypted message from a Wells Fargo short sale negotiator that says thank you. Because I have to click on the email. Click on the attachment. Click on the continue. Enter my password. And for what? To read: Thank You. And that's dependent on getting my password right, which half the time I screw up.

There are other times I get out of bed and am grateful that I'm alive. That the sun is about to rise in the sky. That none of my cats is puking up. It's the little things in life that are important, right alongside the little annoyances. It's sort of the yin and yang of the way the world works. If you don't experience irritation, how can you recognize joy?

My late mother used to say that surviving struggles builds character. Probably because we had lived through yet another Minnesota winter. Which makes me so thankful for springtime in Sacramento. But at the moment, I have an offer for a seller I can't locate. I know he doesn't want the home to go to foreclosure, and this is a good short sale offer, but I can't find him. I'm going to his house tonight to poke around. I hope I don't find him inside. Motionless. Hey, the thought crossed my mind.

I have another seller whose listing I had to extend yesterday. It was about to expire. And I take my short sale listings for a year, for crying out loud. We have approval again -- with buyer #5, and I pray to the short sale gods that this buyer doesn't flake at the last minute. There seems to be little dedication among Sacramento buyers lately. Some of them are as committed to the transaction as a termite is to cement. They hop from one escrow to another when the wind changes direction.

I noticed yesterday on another Sacramento short sale listing that we've had an unusual amount of traffic. I've certainly handled my fair share of calls about this short sale. Like most Sacramento short sale agents, I generally check to see if the buyer's agent actually showed the home when I receive an offer, and we've received multiple offers on this home. There seems to be an increased interest among foreign investors from the Bay area wanting to buy short sale homes in Elk Grove. I find that agents who represent these buyers often don't respond at all. Not even a senseless thank you from them when I ask whether the buyer has viewed the home. Just because the agent accessed the lockbox doesn't mean he / she had a buyer in tow. Perhaps that's because they don't want to answer. Because their answer will result in no acceptance.

So I ask you what's worse? No response or a meaningless response like thank you?

I guess the news of bin Ladin being killed also managed to kill our TV, which is 3 months out of warranty. It's a good thing it happened on my husband's watch because if it had happened to me, I would have chalked it up to my clueless operational methods. My idea of turning off the TV involves pushing every conceivable button until something shuts down. Much to my husband's delight.

He said a red light was blinking 7 times in a row which, according to Panasonic's website, is the kiss of death. I guess the power source is dead. Well, we can probably watch a movie on one of our computers, but even a 24-inch screen seems pretty small. It's all a matter of what you get used to. Where your bar is set. In the 1950s, we had black-and-white TV, lousy reception on 3 VHF channels, no remote control and a tiny screen. Yet, I was happy to sit on the floor to watch it.

Some other things never change. Like selling real estate. Some principles remain the same. If you own a desirable home, maintain it well, employ a bit of home staging and price it right, it will quickly sell. Doesn't matter if it's a Sacramento short sale or a traditional sale in Carmichael within a gated community.

Over the weekend, I sold a few more homes in Sacramento. We had 5 offers on an Elk Grove short sale, two of which were backup offers. How often do I have to tell an agent that we did not accept her buyer's offer as a backup because it was only at list price and not higher? Actually, fairly often. Another sold that was not a short sale. One day on the market, full price. Of course, there were 3 months of preparation time leading up to that one day on the market that people don't see.

I imagine everywhere I go today I will see signs of celebration that we finally nailed bin Ladin. I'm glad it happened during this president's watch.

BTW, I just finished reading a book recommended to me by a treasured old friend. I recommend it to you. Deer Hunting With Jesus. The author, Joe Bageant, died last month from cancer. The book was written in 2007.

I prefer to think of New Year's resolutions as goals and not resolutions. Because resolutions are things you break. Aw, come on. You know it and I know it. How many years have you sat down and written something like, "lose 10 pounds," and then you go out and buy a box of chocolate-covered cherries? Ok, maybe I'm talking about myself. Or, how about you lose the 10 pounds but gain back 15, so it doesn't count? Oops.

I'd rather make goals, something that I will work to achieve, and something that's more important to me than losing 10 pounds. I've already set some goals in place such as making reservations at the Four Seasons in Hawaii to explore the western side of the Big Island next year. Another goal is not to start smoking again. It's one thing to quit, it's quite another to not start. Anybody can quit. Staying quit for years and years is a goal.

But when it comes to my Sacramento short sales, I have goals that I will continue to implement. It's what I've done the past 5 years in short sales and what I will continue to do. Here are my 2011 goals for selling Sacramento short sales:

• Be compassionate and understanding that these sellers are losing their homes; be gentle and kind
• Step back from the transaction and do what is best for the clients; don't insert my own feelings into it
• Analyze each situation independently and separately from other short sales
• If necessary, fight the banks until I have no breath left with which to fight; never give up
• Work only with clients I like and respect -- whom I feel truly need to do a short sale

I closed more than $15 million in sales for 2010. I'd say what I am doing works. If it's not broken, then I don't need to fix it. If you're looking for a Sacramento short sale agent in 2011, why not call Elizabeth Weintraub at 916 233 6759? I'd love to talk with you and hear about your goals for 2011.

Photo: Big Stock Photo