"Should I make my mortgage payment?" This is question that I have been asked many times by property owners considering doing a short sale. My first answer is always the same. I let them know that I am not qualified to give that kind of advise and that they should consult their financial planner, tax advisor and/or attorney for this kind of advice.
The type of home owner asking this question is often the honest, hard working, responsible citizen type of person that really just wants to do what is right. They are not trying to rip-off the the lender, or re-nig on their financial obligations. Usually, they are experiencing some kind of hardship, and go no longer afford their mortgage payment. They may be making the payment on time, but struggle each month to do so. I have seen owners start using credit cards to make the payment. They may also be pulling from retirement accounts.
I do let the struggling home owner know, that from my experience, most lenders will not even review your file, let alone approve a short sale, unless the home owner is delinquent on payments. I do also let them know, that most likely those missed payments will be reported to the credit bureaus and show up on the credit report. Whatever a struggling homeowner decides to do, they should consider all options before missing payments deciding to miss a payment. If after reviewing all options, the owner decides that attempting a short sale will be their best option, then they should check with the lender to see if they will consider a short sale if they payment is current.
Intentionally missing a payment is a hard thing to do for a person who is trying to do the "right thing" and trying to do what is best for their own financial future.
Comments(3)