Prevent Foreclosure Now

WHY YOU SHOULD PREVENT A FORECLOSURE NOW!

Millions of people are struggling to pay their mortgage. The huge amount of inventory on the market, rising unemployment rates, and declining house prices are creating a mess for the average home owner to sell their property. What do they do? Go into foreclosure? What does one do to prevent foreclosure? There are a number of options available to the seller to prevent foreclosure, but most may not work. It is best to get educated on the options and figure out what works best for the homeowner.

The first step to preventing foreclosure is to not give up. So many of the sellers that I talk with are so emotionally drained that they do not want to deal with anything else that may put more pressure or stress on them or their family. Most sellers will admit that by the time their house is in foreclosure, they have already been struggling with debt for a very long time. The savings account is gone. The checking account is gone. The credit cards are maxed out. Eventually, payments cease on one of the above. The homeowner is desperate. If they have good friends or families that aren’t being burdened by the current economic crisis, they borrow money not having any idea how to pay them back. They lie away at night not knowing how to resolve this problem. They are scared. Their whole sense of self is robbed from them. They feel like a failure and experience all sorts of emotions, but mostly depression or anger. They are ready to give up and go into foreclosure, just so the problem will go away. They know their credit is already ruined, so what does a foreclosure matter?

It matters a lot. Can you think back to a time when you were so angry about a situation, and instead of walking away, you just let the person have it. You probably said things you would not have normally said, had you been in a better mindset. It is a fact…as emotion goes up, intelligent goes way down. The same rings true for a homeowner that is struggling. They are in such a bad position, that they cannot think clearly. The only thing they want is for their situation to just go away. The financial problems begin to take a toll on relationships, and the seller begins to feel all alone. Why wouldn’t they give up? How easy would it be to walk away?

I understand why this method seems so attractive, but I caution our distressed homeowner. Right now your credit may not seem valuable. Your relationships, health and peace of mind really want you to go into foreclosure, forget preventing foreclosure, and still struggling. But, what happens down the road, once you are in a better spot? It is impossible for you to think intelligently when you are struggling. I ask you to have faith, and take the action today to prevent the foreclosure. You may ask why…I will tell you why. One day when this storm passes, you may regret letting your house go into foreclosure. A foreclosure on your record looks a lot worse than late payments or non-payments on other items. Credit card debt, auto debt, and medical bills and a host of other types can be negotiated for a fraction of what is owed on them. Creditors know that usually the house payment is the last to default. I have seen a number of people repair their credit if the credit doesn’t have a foreclosure or bankruptcy on it. You can too. Maybe you need a friend to help you prevent foreclosure.

There are steps that need to be taken and maybe some hand holding will get you through this horrible nightmare. Here are some ideas on what to do, even if you want to sell your house and try to get above ground again.

1. Contact your lender immediately. Explain the situation to them. They may be willing to do a forbearance. This means that with an agreement with your mortgage lender, you maybe be able to pay some of your regular mortgage payment, or no payment at all for a certain amount of time. At the end of that period, you have to make regular payments along with additional monies to pay off the past due amount. This buys you time to figure out how to make this work before losing your home.
2. Repayment Plan- Your mortgage company may allow you to catch up by scheduling certain payments for the overdue months.
3. Mortgages owned by Fannie Mae, have a plan where you may be able to get an unsecured personal loan to help you get current with your house payments. But, how will you pay it back?
4. Try to sell your house by listing it. You do not have to pay a commission if the agent doesn’t sell it. If you sell it, you had better had it in writing that the agent doesn’t get a commission if you sell it. I would advise pricing it as cheaply as possible to get it sold quickly.
5. Short Sale-If you are not able to sell it for what is owed on it, since the prices have dropped, you may be able to get the back to agree to accept a certain amount that is lower than what you owe on it. Do not list it at a price lower than your house debt, if you have not gotten a lender to agree to this price, in writing. You must disclose this information in your listing.
6. Sell your house and move into something more affordable. I know it is going to be hard to move on, but if peace of mind is what you want, stop struggling with this debt. Try to eliminate it and rebuild your life. This is much easier than it sounds, but what choice do you have? If you get foreclosed on, you will be forced to do it. Do it now, on your terms.
7. If all else fails, you can sell the property to an investor. The advantage is they can normally close fast, accept the property as-is, and give you a fair price. But, do not wait until the last minute to contact them. Give yourself as much time as possible.
8. Accept the truth. Sellers are not getting more than their house is worth. Try to price it as low as you can, and let it go. You will feel better later, once this monkey is off of your back.