short sale; how soon after can we buy a house?

aaple4theteacher,

Any real estate purchase is helped with a 20% down! You don't say was the short sale completed while the house was still in default or had it entered foreclosure (had the sale date been recorded)?

In default; we beat the foreclosure. I was told the foreclosure sale would have taken place in August. Do you think this will be a problem? The foreclosure sale date was set, but never took place.

Good for you! Even in default you credit score (FICO) probably suffered...take some time to get your credit back in shape - if nothing else interest rates are FICO driven - and start checking into your options.

One option you might want to look into is a lease option but although these can be great when you are rebuilding your credit but especially in this market they require extra caution. :idea:

We'll work on it; we sure appreciate your input!

Hi aaple4theteacher,

Foreclosure will have much bigger negative affect on the credit than short sale. In case of short sale you can get approve for another mortgage with affordable rates and terms after 18 months if you can work on your credit but if you face foreclosure it will take longer period of time for you to get approve.

Feel free to ask if you have any further questions.

Best of luck,
Larry

What about if I sold my house in a short sale, but I wasn't late on the payments, how soon can I buy a new home?

I believe they Fannie Mae changed the law in 2008, that if you were never late on your payments, and do a short sale, you can immediately buy another home without a wait. I would think the 20% down would also help when you go to get the new mortgage.

20% is always a great start. But take your time to fix ur credit to take advantage of the low interest rates right now.

i sold my home in may 2008 and yes i did have late payments how long do i have to whait. :?:

If you had a short sale, then you are liable to wait for 18 months as a guideline.

it's three years

If I sold a home on a short sale about a yr ago. Do you think I can Get financed on a home if I Put 50% down on a 15Yr Fixed term. The Houses I am looking at are selling for about 60-70K I have about 40K in Cash.

Hi,

One usually has to wait for at least 2 years after a short sale to get approved for a new loan. It will be difficult to qualify for a loan only a year after a short sale. A 50% down payment is quite good. But given the market situation, I doubt if any lender will offer you a loan. What is your credit score? If you have worked on your credit since the short sale and have established a good score, the lenders can consider getting you approved for a loan.

I went through a short sale recently, and it hit my credit a few weeks ago, showing as "legally satisfied for less than amount owed," but my score actually went up, from 696 to 738, I assume due to the large debt being taken off. I'm wondering when I can buy another home as well, and am confused as to why my FICO hasn't lowered. Any thoughts? Is it normal for it to take awhile to affect score?

Hi azdc,

It generally takes some time say, 30 days or so, for the short sale or the foreclosure to affect your credit scores. So, if your house was short sold recently, it will not reflect on your credit scores immediately. A short sale usually lowers your credit scores by almost 75-100 points, much less than a normal foreclosure.