Short Sales and Cancellation of Debt

For review, a short sale is a sale in which the purchase price offered by the buyer is less than the mortgage amount owed by the short-sale seller. Here’s a summation of  Tom Kelly’s article on the subject, published in the Miami Herald on March 117th:

 “When a lender agrees to a short sale, it can either retain the ability to collect from the short-sale seller the amount of mortgage debt owed by the seller that is not satisfied by the purchase price, or it can discharge all or a portion of the unsatisfied debt amount.

If the lender discharges debt, it reports this to the IRS on a 1099-C Cancellation of Debt Form.  Under the Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act (MFDA)  of 2007   individuals are allowed to exclude from tax up to $2 million of mortgage debt cancelled by lenders.  Some short sale negotiations do not include language of the forgiveness- that the difference between what is owned and what is paid will actually be “forgiven”.  In cases where, for whatever reason, that is not negotiated as part of the short sale, a recent court case ruled that even if the bank gives the borrower a 1099 they still can go back after the borrower for the remaining amount for up to three years.  The distinction to keep in mind is that currently a 1099 does not necessarily indicate that the debt is forgiven, just that, for the time being, the bank is writing it off as a loss on their taxes.    MFDA benefits end at the close of 2012.  As always, seek the advice of a real estate attorney and accountant informed of short sale details and how they apply to your situation.

Know the market, call Sheryl DiCarlo 305.332.3256 before your next real estate move.

Spread the word. Share this post!