New Fannie and Freddie short sale guidelines.

Just yesterday we received a letter from the California Association of Realtors (C.A.R.) announcing new Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Short Sale Guidelines.  See below:

Over the course of the past year and a half, C.A.R. has been working vigorously to address your concerns related to short sale transactions.  As a direct result of our efforts, we have made significant improvements through discussions with legislators, housing regulators, and lenders.

C.A.R. has long advocated for a streamlined, standardized short sale process, and I’m happy to inform you of changes announced today by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) that will align guidelines for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac short sales and allow lenders and servicers to quickly and more easily qualify borrowers for a short sale. 

Here are some specific changes that are effective Nov. 1, 2012:

Additionally, FHFA clarified that a borrower experiencing a hardship must wait at least two years before becoming eligible for a Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac loan.

Short SaleThese changes follow FHFA’s announcement in June that established strict timelines for servicers to respond to short sales within 30 days of receipt of a short sale offer, provide weekly status updates to the borrower, and communicate a final decision to the borrower within 60 days of receipt of the offer.

For details of Fannie Mae’s new short sale guidelines.
For details of Freddie Mac’s new short sale guidelines.