As more homeowners discovered they could no longer afford to pay their monthly mortgages, lenders started to conduct an increasing number of short sales in order to avoid the lengthy, expensive foreclosure process. Popular among mortgage holders with “under water” properties, short sales have been conducted at a higher rate than usual.
But since 2009, an additional 19,000 debtors fell into foreclosure in the Bakersfield metropolitan area despite the best efforts of lenders and homeowners. These figures, surprisingly, do not include the thousands of other properties in financial distress that have yet to be foreclosed upon. As a result of all of this uncertainty and upheaval in the Bakersfield real estate market, short sales have shifted the dynamic between local buyers and sellers, so here is a quick overview of Bakersfield, CA short sales from the perspectives of both parties:
Buying a Short Sale Property in Bakersfield, CA
Recently, commentators affiliated with the National Association of Realtors have reported that the short sale real estate market in the entire southern California region seems to be shifting from a sellers’ to a buyers’ market. This trend has created an interesting situation for home buyers who want to take advantage of the current market conditions. For example, a two-story 4 bed, 2 bath, 2,500 square-foot Bakersfield, CA home in Brimhill Estates sold for over $400,000 in 2007 according to public real estate records; however, the same house in 2010 is now listed at $300,000 and dropping. Other similar prices can be found throughout the city.
Conducting a Short Sale in Bakersfield, CA
The good news for mortgage holders who want to take advantage of a short sale to free them from a bad loan is that the real estate market in Bakersfield, CA has remained relatively neutral even though the current economic conditions in the region are holding down home prices to near-record lows. As always, short sale listings must be coordinated between the buyer and the lender in order to be considered legitimate and deficiency judgments vary on a case by case basis. Also, as mortgage lenders begin to sell off their back list of foreclosed properties, short sales will continue to be an attractive option.
