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Pre-Foreclosures

By
Real Estate Agent with Home Alliance Realty

Don't let the bank take your asset! That's the first piece of advice I can give you! The next is to let you know that there are options available to you that you should explore.

First, talk to your lender. Although you may have to talk to many different departments to get any answers, persistance will usually payoff. In some cases the lender will agree to a Forebearance or some kind of workout deal to bring you current. Contrary to popular belief, they really don't want your property. 

You always have the option to sell your home to preserve your equity. While many think about this and decide they don't want to sell, sitting idle while the interest and penalty fees mount on your home is not a good idea.   Try refinancing if you want to preserve the home you have. However, many times a homeowner won't qualify for this option when they haven' t been making payments.

Have no equity? The next option is to sell your home but take a short sale with the bank. In this event, usually the lender requires a homeowner to agree to walk away from the property without receiving any proceeds from the sale.  This can preserve your credit so it doesn't show an actual foreclosure and get you out of the debt that is due. Unfortunately, you won't have any proceeds to move on to where you need to go.  Talk to an attorney before signing off on a short sale so you understand the pros and cons of doing this.

Then there is the bankruptcy method. An attorney acquaintance of mine usually suggests this as your last option.   

It always boggles my mind why homeowners ignore a foreclosure and ultimately don't do anything until the last moment before a sheriff sale.  By then, it can be too late.  If you've worked so hard to get where you are, do something about it. Protect what you have worked hard for!

Comments/Questions? 

 

 

Comments(1)

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Lynda Eisenmann
Preferred Home Brokers - Brea, CA
Broker Associate ,CRS,GRI,SRES, Brea,CA, Orange Co

Hi Lisa,

Welcome to Active Rain.

You second paragraph advice...talk to your lender is absolutely crucial! I did a post a couple of weeks ago reporting on Countrywide's updated short-sale process. Bottom line, they (lenders) don't want your home back, they want the money, bottom line. It's normally far cost effective for short-sale or another type of work out as opposed to a foreclosure.

Aug 15, 2007 02:44 PM