While the economy has seen a bit of an upturn and home foreclosures and short sales are starting to level out there are still many who are looming in the dark halls towards facing foreclosure.
What should you do? Do you ignore it and just let it happen? Do you call the bank? Do you contact anyone? Can anyone help?
The answer to the final question is the answer to all of the others. YES! Yes, there is someone who can help and that someone is a qualified, certified realtor.
Finding a realtor who deals with foreclosures and short sales and has true experience may not be as hard as you think nowadays. Many agents are currently stating that 65% or more of their sales are short sales. While some areas are seeing more and some are seeing less it's no surprise that the previous few years have had a vast amount of foreclosures and short sales. Needless to say these vast amounts of foreclosures and short sales have given many agents some very intricate and valuable experience to utilize in this particular area.
What Other Options Are There to Foreclosure?
First, you have to act quickly. Once the foreclosure proceedings begin it's very hard to stop them or get a change in actions. So if you know you're going to be up against foreclosure in the near future, now is the time to act. Contact an agent and assure that they've handled short sales before. While you will still lose your home, the damage done to your credit history isn't nearly as hard as when a foreclosure goes through.
Many times your agent can negotiate with your lender and talk them into doing a short sale. Generally, lenders lose less money with a short sale as opposed to a foreclosure. They take ownership of the home and now the agent sells it; however, the agent doesn't necessarily sell it for a huge bargain price but instead at the price of what the home is assessed at by a professional.
The amount will be well under what you owe the bank but whatever the amount is that it sells for is what the bank will take to pay off your loan and consider you out of the picture. There is less damage made to your credit history and you can often go out and purchase another home in a reasonable length of time. Some have even purchased a new home almost immediately depending upon the individual situation.
Other options are also now available to home owners who are underwater with their homes; also known as owing more than the home is currently worth. Once you have contacted an agent ask them what your options are. Some things you may want to ask about are federal government-sponsored programs that have recently come into place to help the numerous home owners who have been faced with this same dilemma.
These options are often various forms of loan modification program and can vary depending upon your situation. If your agent doesn't feel comfortable guiding you in this area, ask them to suggest a Broker or Lawyer that can help you. These loan modification programs may or may not help; but either way it can't hurt to look into them.
Another possibility is working with your lender through an agent to sell your home while you live in it. There are advantages to this because the home is maintained for the lender and they don't have to worry that the home will be vandalized and the value of the home depleted even more, making their loss even greater. Often agents know lenders' styles and which buttons to push to get them to say yes, as opposed to trying to deal with a lender on your own. If you can get this type of agreement you need to get prepared for moving and handle the situation as a positive move towards getting you out of a situation that could get or could have become much uglier; instead of seeing it as a negative part of your life where you are losing your home.
You are being given a chance to sell your home under nearly "typical" conditions with minimal damage. You are also being given the chance to prepare for your move and your future. Of course not all lenders will agree to this type of sale and will instead want a Short Sale where they take ownership and you must move, but in either case it is a much more positive action than facing a foreclosure.
The Most Important Things to Remember
- Act Quickly - waiting just makes your situation worse.
- Contact an Agent/Realtorâ„¢ as soon as possible for guidance.
- Be open to various suggestions and options - chances are that any option will be better than foreclosure.
- Ask questions, especially when it comes to programs put in place to help people just like you in the same position. Find out what governmental programs or even lender programs may be available to you.
- Most of all try to keep a positive attitude towards it all even though it seems a dire situation it may end on a positive note.
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Orignal From: Avoiding Foreclosure
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