For many of Americans, things happen in life and they get behind on mortgage payments for some reason or another. Maybe a loved one passed or a job was lost. The uncertainty of not knowing what’s going to happen to your home is scary and stressful. The good news is there are ways to avoid foreclosure if an unexpected life event happens to you. Avoiding foreclosure is possible!
Get help.
As soon as you realize that you are not going to be able to keep up with payments, let your lender know. Depending on your situation, your lender can give you options to help you keep up with payments.
Understand your options.
There are lot of programs out there that can you if you are facing foreclosure. You need to speak with your lender about what programs they offer and see if you qualify.
-Refinance: If you have enough equity in your home,
your new mortgage could pay off the old loan along
with any late fees and attorney fees.
-Reinstatement: With this option, you can make a
lump sum payment to catch up by a specific date.
-Forbearance: For a short period of time, you can
pay less than the full amount of your mortgage with
the understanding that another workout option may
be used to bring your account current.
-Repayment Plan: This option will allow you to catch
up over a short period of time by paying a little more
than your original monthly mortgage payment.
-Loan Modification: The lender may be able to
restructure your mortgage by adding missed payments
to your mortgage, adjusting your interest rate, or even
extending the number of years you have to repay.
Short Sale.
If you’ve tried all other options and not sure what else to do, then a short sale could be the answer. A short sale is when your lender will take less on your home than you owe. This will help you avoid foreclosure and avoid a big credit hit that a foreclosure can cause. But don’t let the name short sale fool you, depending on your lender, these can take anywhere from 30 days to over a year to get done. Using a real estate attorney who has experience in short sales can help streamline the process and make it go much smoother.
If avoiding foreclosure is your ultimate goal and no lender options are available, this is where we can help! We have bought short sales since 2012 and we know the process inside and out. Our process is simple. We will take a look at your home and make you a cash offer. We then get your file to our experienced short sale attorney (no cost to you) and let them deal with your lender. Once the short sale gets approved, we’ll buy your home, as-is, for cash!
Even if you are just thinking about your options, give us a call and we can walk you through all of them and help you make the best decision for you and your family!