The designation of “Short Sale” in the MLS indicates that if a full price offer is brought to the Seller,
there will not be enough proceed at closing to payoff the Sellers mortgage(s). It will be short of a
full payoff. It is notice to all potential Buyers that this will be a contract contingent on obtaining
the third party bank’s approval. Further, it discloses to the potential Buyers that the parties have
to go through this long and often arduous approval process with the bank with no guarantee of
success.
There is another designation, depending upon your MLS, such as “Possible Short Sale.” This
designation or similar indicates that if the Buyer brings a full price offer they may be able to
proceed to closing without going through a short sale. If circumstances change or the offer price
is less than a full price offer, then it is likely to be a short sale. Again, it serves as notice and
disclosure to any potential Buyers considering this property that if it falls into a short sale then the
rules change and the Short Sale Addendum becomes the controlling document.
Be safe and play nice out there.