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Avoid Foreclosure With These Homeowner Options

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Avoid Foreclosure – Here are Options of Homeowners

Avoid ForeclosureThere are a ton of homeowners right now struggling to make payments and hoping to avoid foreclosure because let’s face, things just aren’t the same as they were before the market took a dive.

People are working harder and longer for about half or a third of what they use to make. Retirement accounts look about as good as they did when you first started dumping into it. Any savings has been depleted.

And now to make things worse, even if you wanted to sell your home, most homeowners wouldn’t be able to because their home is not worth what they paid for it. Yes, nearly 25% of all homeowners are underwater or upside down, meaning they owe more than what their home is worth. [Read more…] about Avoid Foreclosure With These Homeowner Options

Behind on my house payments with PNC.

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Question:  I am behind on my house payments with PNC. I filled out the loan modification package as they instructed 4 WEEKS AGO and I still don’t know anything. I have an appt. to meet with a HUD attorney in Oakland next week. She said we should talk before I contact PNC myself. She said that since my loan is FHA that PNC HAS to ‘work with me’ in regards to OBAMA loan mod. packages, etc. Does anyone know what my chances are with PNC? I do have a legitimate hardship. I have Cornea Ecstasia which caused me to go blind. I had a cornea transplant over 1 1/2 years ago and subsequently missed a lot of work and got behind. My hardship is documented by two physicians AND I had to be retrained since I am no longer able to teach/see in the classroom as I have for over 20 years. I don’t want to lose my home and now PNC is not accepting any payments at all until my problem is remedied. How long will this process take? HELP!!!

 

Answer:

Unfortunately, you are not the only one in this situation where it seems like the bank is dragging their feet. I hear story after story of loan modification failures, poor communication, lack of cooperation on the banks end, etc. and there is not much you can do besides the daily phone calls or having an attorney get involved. They will tell you the loan modification will take a month or two when realistically it could take 3 to 4 months. The problem is that the lenders typically don’t put a hold on the foreclosure process while you are waiting for the modification, which means while you are waiting, the auction date gets closer. And if you are denied the modification, you’ve just wasted valuable time in finding a solution to avoid foreclosure. It’s always a good idea to have a backup plan “just in case” the first option didn’t go as planned because time is your biggest enemy right now. Here is a list of homeowner options for you.

My question to you is, do you have a 2nd mortgage? If so, there might be another alternative to loan modification. You can wipe out your 2nd mortgage completely which will help lower your payments, in essence do the same thing as a loan modification, however, by wiping out your 2nd mortgage, you also eliminate debt which a loan modification does not do.

Counter offer to HELOC settlement

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Question:  Hi, many of these subjects are interesting but my questions and situation is a bit different.
After going through a long process with my 1st mortgage, finally a loan modification with a 3 month trial is being worked on. Still owe about 145,000 on 1st mortgage. House value is now around 50,000. Took a HELOC of 30,000 of which I still owe 24,000. After unemployed and some rough times, just getting back on my feet. Heloc lender wants a lump sum at this point of 19,500. If I can’t come up with it then a down of $4,500 and a monthly of $200. If I could I would but can’t. I counter offer $50-$75 month. My weekly budget has no rooms for extras. I have not heard on my counter offer. Can you explain what will happen if they don’t accept to me, my house which I am trying to keep and working with my 1st lender. Thank you for any help or suggestions you can provide. will look out for a response.

If I stop making payments now do they have to go thru foreclosure all over again?

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Question:  I had rented my house out and thought I could never save it but about 8 months of no payments they said lets do a loan mod. Took another year before I got it. In the meantime they knew I did not live in it and had rented it (told them) and I was working 100 miles away. They insisted that it be owner occupied and told them I would have to quite…no cares here so I did hoping I get could work here. So now I am not making enough to pay the mortgage with the modification. With the terms I will never pay this house off. the mortgage is $200 more than its worth.
If I stop making payments now do they have to go thru
foreclosure all over again. Read my mod agreement and nothing has addressed that question. HELP…thank you

Answer:  – Yes they will start the foreclosure process all over again.

short-sale, foreclosure, or bankruptcy… what should I do?

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Question: Looking at short-sale, foreclosure, or bankruptcy… only is Social Security Disability, VA Disability (100%), and disability insurance monthly payment… what should I do? can they come after any of my income in a deficiency judgement? will they even come after me? how will bankruptcy affect me… I currently have NO assets at all except for about 15,000 dollars in savings. thanks Tom from FLORIDA

Answer: -Tom, I have to make the assumption that you’re planning on or you’ve already stopped making payments on your home or you wouldn’t be asking these questions. A short sale in my opinion is by far the best option if you can’t sell your home for what’s owed, rent it out or can’t work out something with the bank like a forbearance or loan modification. A short sale will affect your credit but will eliminate a foreclosure on it. If done properly will also eliminate the possibility of a deficiency judgment. If a short sale is not accepted an ultimately your home ends up at the foreclosure auction, then you will either receive a 1099 or they will file a deficiency judgment against you. If they file a deficiency judgment and you can’t pay, they can garnish wages. Depending on the amount of the judgment, this forces most people to file bankruptcy to eliminate the judgment.

I am in California. I missed my first payment Sept 1. I got a letter telling me to bring things current by Dec 16th. What happens now?

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Question: I am in California. I missed my first payment Sept 1. I got a letter telling me to bring things current by Dec 16th. What happens now? I am not sure when the period of redemption begins? Was I already in it? Or does it begin Dec 16 and go three months? People tell me different things and I am a single mom of four kids and need to plan. Thank-you. Nomi

Answer: -Nomi, the California redemption period is approximately 3 months and begins after you receive the notice of default. Typically you won’t receive a notice of default until you are at least 3 months behind on your mortgage, especially now, banks are slower issuing the notices of default because they don’t need any more inventory. So you’re about 6 to 8 months out from foreclosure, if it goes that far, so you do have several options as a homeowner. Unfortunately Obama’s HAMP program hasn’t turned out the way we had all hoped, however there are alternatives. Assuming you want to stay in your home, one option is a loan modification. This is something you can do yourself or you can hire an attorney to do it for you…just be careful in choosing the right attorney that really does care about your situation and will guarantee their work. Another option is to sell your home, if it has equity, and move into something smaller or less expensive until things pick up again. If your home does not have equity and a loan modification doesn’t work, you could try to do a short sale where a buyer offers the bank less than what is owed on the property. Whatever you do, don’t give up.