Most lenders require buyers to sign short sale affidavits confirming there’s no relationship between buyer and seller, no side agreements outside the contract, and no undisclosed cash changing hands. These are standard fraud-prevention documents.

Buyers occasionally treat these affidavits as a sign something unusual or suspicious is happening with the transaction. In reality, they’re some of the most standard, predictable paperwork in the entire short sale process, required on nearly every file regardless of how routine the underlying deal is.

Why this paperwork exists at all

Short sale fraud, particularly insider deals where a buyer and seller secretly know each other and arrange to flip the property quickly at an artificially low approved price, was a real and costly problem for lenders, especially during periods of high foreclosure activity. The affidavits exist specifically to put the buyer on the record, under penalty of the representations being false, confirming there’s no hidden relationship or side arrangement undermining the lender’s approved sale price.

What’s typically included

These documents generally confirm that the buyer and seller aren’t related and have no business relationship outside this transaction, that there are no agreements existing outside what’s written in the purchase contract, that no money is changing hands under the table beyond what’s disclosed, and that the buyer intends to purchase the property in good faith at the agreed-upon price.

There’s nothing to be concerned about in being asked to sign these. It’s a routine, expected part of nearly every short sale closing in Florida, and a buyer or buyer’s agent who pushes back on signing them, or treats the request as unusual, is generally working from inexperience with how short sales operate rather than from a legitimate concern about the transaction.

Considering a short sale purchase, or have questions before you write an offer? Call or text Michele Lee Scherger at 561-309-2950 for guidance specific to the listing.