Many of the calls I receive today are clients looking for Hilton Head Island Foreclosures and Short Sales. Most of these clients come through my website and use the “Short Sale and Foreclosure” button just under the others on my Quick Search dashboard. They like my website because it is linked to the Hilton Head MLS and receives daily IDX feeds.

Right now, there are many good foreclosures and short sales available on Hilton Head and in the Bluffton Area. While both a short sale and a foreclosure can be great buys, you should know the difference between the two.

Short Sales occur when the property owner owes more that the home is worth AND they don’t have the cash to make up the difference. The owner completes a short sale package for the lender and then, with their permission, lists the home for sale with a Realtor. When an offer comes in, it has to be approved by the lender. Since there are so many short sales today, the lenders are backed up and it may take up to 6 months to get and answer and close on the property. This is the biggest drawback and why some purchasers prefer to purchase a foreclosure.

If you're like most prospective buyers of resort and vacation property, your Hilton Head Island real estate search for a home or villa will probably start at your keyboard. You may be interested in a specific neighborhood such as Sea Pines, Shipyard or Palmetto Dunes, or you might be focused on foreclosures and short sales.

My site includes a complete local MLS listings "real estate for sale" search engine, so you instantly have access to everything that¹s for sale on Hilton Head Island and in Bluffton. And it's updated every morning, so if you see something you like, it's probably still available.

On my home page, you can enter detailed search criteria including price, neighborhood, number of bedrooms and number of bathrooms desired. You'll see photos and descriptions of the properties that match your needs.

By creating an online account on my website, you can save your searches and favorite properties as you browse, for quick retrieval later. It's easy to create an account, and you can login anytime to continue your personalized Hilton Head Island real estate search.

Are there any Oceanfront foreclosures on Hilton Head Island?  Hilton Head Island has many attractive foreclosure properties on the market right now, including oceanfront homes and villas (condos are known as villas on Hilton Head Island).  Foreclosures can even be found in exclusive communities including Sea Pines, Palmetto Dunes and Shipyard. Real estate owned properties (REO) is a real estate industry terms for homes, lots and villas that are owned by a bank. Some, but not all, REO and foreclosure properties are bargains. 

If you're at home or even here now on vacation and dreaming of buying Hilton Head Island real estate, browsing through listings on RandysRealEstate.com is a stress-free way to view everything that's currently for sale. My list of Hilton Head homes and villas, including Hilton Head foreclosures and short sales, is updated every morning. This information comes to me directly from the Hilton Head area Multiple Listing Service, and includes all real estate for sale on Hilton Head Island.

To search for Oceanfront homes or condos for sale on Hilton Head Island, it helps to have a few neighborhoods in mind that interest you. For example, say you're interested in Sea Pines oceanfront villas or Palmetto Dunes homes for sale, I have conveniently placed Quick Search buttons on RandysRealEstate.com homepage. Click on a community tab like Forest Beach or Shipyard and you'll see a short description of that community, and the homes and villas for sale with information about each property including photos.

When searching , you may come across the term "Short Sale" and wonder what exactly does that mean.  A short sale does not have to do with the time it takes to close (purchase a home).  A short sale is the when the asking or "list price" is lower than what is owed to the lender.  For example, there may be a home on Hilton Head Island that is listed for $400,000.  The seller may have purchased the home for $550,000 and now owes $440,000.  There is now a difference, or shortage, of $40,000 from what the home is listed at and what is owed to the bank ($440,000 owed less the list price of $400,000 = $40,000). 

With the $40,000 shortage, the seller can either pay the difference OR, like in most cases, asks for the difference to be forgiven or waived (this could become a deficiancy judgment against the seller).  This requires approval from the bank/lender.  When an offer comes in on a Hilton Head Island SC home or villa noted as a short sale, the seller first negoitates the offer.  After there is a contract signed by the seller and purchaser, the contract is then given to the bank/lender to approve the shortage.

Depending on who the lender is, waiting on their decision could take several weeks and even months.  The waiting time is usually the biggest drawback with purchasing short sales on Hilton Head Island.  Randy Smith is a Certified Short Sales specialist and can offer both experience and guidance throughout the Hilton Head Island short sale process.