Fannie Mae - No Negotiation of Preforeclosure Sales Commission

Great news shared from our state association today that affects all of us across the U.S. negotiating short sales with Fannie Mae.

Here is the article (abbreviated) sent out to us from VAR (Virginia Association of Realtors). We heard about this 2 weeks ago but seeing it 'in print' as it were is very comforting.

Fannie has now announced that effective March 1, 2009, the approval and closing of short sales will not be conditioned on the willingness of the listing firm to alter its fee arrangement with the borrower, as long as the total commission does not exceed 6%. The official guideline is set out below.

No Negotiation of Preforeclosure Sales Commission

Servicing Guide, Part VII, Section 504.02: Contacting Selected Borrowers
Effective March 1, 2009, closing of preforeclosure sales may not be conditioned upon a reduction of the total commission to be paid to real estate agents to a level below what was negotiated by the listing agent with the borrower, unless the fee exceeds 6 percent of the sales price of the property in the aggregate. Servicers are reminded that they must continue to obtain any approvals that may be required by interested third parties in connection with preforeclosure sales.

Here is a link to the new Fannie Mae guidelines (18 KB PDF download) and the page at eFannieMae.com which shared this news.