I buy houses! — Clark Howards website just published an article stating that banks are offering to pay defaulted borrowers up to $20,000 to initiate a short sale! The article doesn’t go into much detail, but it lists the phone numbers of the banks that are doing it. And there is good news for Panama City house sellers…the article says that Florida is one of the states it is happening in!
The article is short on details. Does the borrower get the money up front, or only after the house is sold? Are the banks offering “cash for keys”, or paying people to sign a “deed in lieu” so they don’t have to go through an expensive and time consuming foreclosure? How do the banks determine who qualifies? How is the payment taxed? There are lots of unanswered questions, but it sure is an interesting development. If you are underwater and behind in your payments, it might be worth a