Free Short Sale & REO Scripts for Agents (Printable PDF)

The distressed seller first call

Homeowners behind on payments have been called by a dozen investors already. Lead with relief, not with a pitch.

Opening: Hi, is this [Name]? My name is [Your Name], I'm a real estate agent here in [Market]. I work specifically with homeowners who are behind on a mortgage. I'm not here to buy your house — I'm calling to tell you what your options are. Do you have two minutes?
Permission frame: I'm going to ask a few uncomfortable questions. You can stop me anytime. Everything you tell me stays between us.
Situation question: How far behind are you right now — one payment, or several? And has the lender sent anything in writing with a date on it?
Motivation question: If you could wave a wand, would you stay in the home or get out from under it clean?
Options statement: There are really four doors: reinstate, loan modification, short sale, or foreclosure. Three of them protect your credit far better than the fourth. Most people don't know door three exists.
The close: Let me pull your payoff, your comps, and your timeline and show you all four side by side. It costs you nothing. Are mornings or evenings better for a 20-minute sit-down?
If they say "I'll figure it out": Totally fair. Can I do one thing? I'll email you a one-page timeline of what happens month by month if nothing changes. If it still looks fine after you read it, you'll never hear from me again.

Short sale listing appointment

The seller is not buying a service. They are buying certainty about the next 120 days.

Reframe the transaction: A short sale isn't a sale — it's a negotiation with your lender that happens to have a buyer attached. My job is the negotiation. The buyer is the easy part.
Set expectations honestly: This takes 60 to 120 days, sometimes longer. Your lender will lose paperwork at least once. I will resubmit it without complaining, because that's the job.
Deficiency question: The single most important sentence in the approval letter is whether the lender waives its right to pursue you for the shortfall. I ask for that in writing every time, and I don't recommend you close without understanding what it says.
Cost objection: You don't write me a check. My commission is approved by your lender out of the sale proceeds. If the short sale doesn't close, you owe me nothing.
Package checklist: Hardship letter, two months bank statements, two years tax returns, two recent pay stubs, financial worksheet, authorization to release, and the listing agreement. Miss one and the clock restarts.
Hardship letter coaching: One page. What changed, when it changed, what you did to try to fix it, and what you're asking for. No blame, no legal threats, no essays.
Referral out: I'm not an attorney or a CPA. Before you sign anything, I want you to talk to both about tax consequences and deficiency. I'll give you names — you pick.

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Talking to the lender's loss mitigation department

You will speak to a different person every call. Assume nothing carries over.

Every call opens the same: This is [Name], the listing agent, calling on loan number [####] for [Borrower]. I have a signed authorization on file. Can you confirm you see it before we go further?
Ask for the file owner: Who is the assigned negotiator, and what's the best direct line or extension? If there isn't one yet, when is one assigned?
The status question: What is the file status today, what document is outstanding, and what is the next system-generated date on this loan?
Always close the call: Can I get your name, your ID number, and a reference number for this call? What is the exact date I should call back if I don't hear anything?
When the value comes back high: I'd like to submit a value dispute. I have three closed comparables inside [radius] and [#] photos of deferred maintenance with contractor estimates. Where do I send them and who reviews it?
When the foreclosure date is close: There is a sale date of [date]. I have an executed contract at [price] with proof of funds. I'm requesting a postponement while the file is under review — what's your escalation process?
Escalation ladder: Negotiator, then the negotiator's supervisor, then the executive resolution or customer advocacy line, then the investor (Fannie, Freddie, FHA, VA, or the private investor) directly.

Buyer scripts for short sale and REO offers

Half of your job is keeping the buyer from walking during the silence.

Setting the timeline: If you need to be in a home in 30 days, this isn't your house. If you can wait 90 to 120 days for a below-market price, this is exactly your house.
Explaining lender approval: The seller can accept your offer today, but the seller doesn't control the answer. The lender does. Until the approval letter arrives, we're in a maybe.
As-is condition: You still inspect. You still walk if it's bad. What you don't do is ask for a repair credit — the lender has already told us the answer.
Highest and best on REO: Asset managers score offers, not personalities. Clean terms, real proof of funds, short inspection window, and a closing date that matches their quarter beat a slightly higher messy offer.
Backup offer ask: Even if we lose, I want us in backup position in writing. A third of these fall apart in financing or title.
Keeping them warm: You'll hear from me every Friday whether there's news or not. If a Friday goes by without my update, call me — it means something's wrong on my end.

REO and asset manager business development

REO is awarded, not won. It goes to the agent who is boringly reliable.

Intro to an asset manager: I cover [counties]. I complete BPOs in 48 hours, occupancy checks in 24, and I carry a preservation vendor, a locksmith, and a cleanout crew who answer on Sundays. May I send my resume and coverage map?
Your one-page resume: Coverage map, average days on market, list-to-sale ratio, BPO turn time, current REO inventory, E&O proof, and three asset-manager references. One page. No headshot montage.
Occupancy report: Date, time, photos of all four elevations, utility status, personal property present, vehicle plates, neighbor statement, and the posted notice with a timestamp photo.
Cash-for-keys open: I'm not here to fight with you. The property has transferred and the timeline is fixed. I have authority to help you move out with money in your pocket instead of a sheriff on the porch. Can we talk about what a smooth exit looks like?
Cash-for-keys terms: Broom clean, all personal property out, all keys and remotes to me, no damage. I inspect, then you get the check that day. If anything's missing, the amount changes.
Getting rehired: Close the file clean: final utilities, final photos, HOA payoff, and a two-line closing summary emailed the day of funding. That email is why you get the next asset.

Objection handling, word for word

Say these out loud ten times before you need them.

"A short sale ruins your credit": Both hurt. Foreclosure hurts longer and shows up on every loan application you'll ever fill out. Most people can finance again far sooner after a short sale — talk to a lender about your specific situation, and I'll set that call up.
"My lender already said no": Said no to what, and when? A denial on a modification isn't a denial on a short sale, and a denial six months ago on an incomplete package isn't a denial today.
"I want to keep the house": Then let's fight for that first. Retention is door one. I'll help you build the modification package, and we only talk about selling if that door closes.
"An investor offered me cash today": They might be your best answer. Before you sign, let me put an actual market number next to their number. If theirs is better, take it — with my blessing and no hard feelings.
"Why should I use you?": Because I've read the approval letters, I know which department to call, and I don't disappear during the 90 days of silence. Ask me for two sellers who've been through it and call them.
"How much is this going to cost me?": Nothing out of pocket. The lender approves the commission out of proceeds at closing. If it doesn't close, there's no bill.

Free through September

Studying alone is the hard way. Sit in on a live Deal Clinic — free.

Reserve with your email and we'll send the link each week. Unsubscribe anytime.

Training material only. Short sale, foreclosure, and cash-for-keys rules vary by state, investor, and servicer — confirm requirements in your own market, and refer clients to an attorney and a tax professional before they sign anything.