Paso Robles Real Estate

Delinquent on Your House Payments?

If you are delinquent on your house payments or you are anticipating it in the near future, you should contact your lender immediately. Your lender may be willing to make accommodations for you if you find yourself in a difficult financial situation; particularly if it is temporary. If you can, let the lender know upfront before the problem becomes too serious to handle.

Some lenders allow homeowners to refinance, reduce a payment or even defer a payment. They may also renegotiate the interest rate, monthly payment amount, maturity date or waive late payment charges. If the lender feels they were fully and accurately informed about your intentions, they may even agree to delay filing a Notice of Default. This could, in turn, make it easier for you to sell the property, if that is necessary, and may preserve your credit. Other solutions available when payments are delinquent may include a Deed in Lieu of Foreclosure, a Short Sale or Bankruptcy.

Why would a lender work with borrowers and their agents? Lenders prefer to avoid foreclosures if at all possible. You may be surprised to know that lenders do not want to own your home. In the case of foreclosures, many times the homes are in poor condition, and the lender will have to keep the home vacant while it is for sale, which means no rent or interest paid on the loan, yard maintenance, and the lender will have to pay commissions to the listing and selling agents for their services. Undoubtedly, they will have to list the home either near its current value or under value to achieve a quick sale and hopefully multiple offers. Given all of the uncertainties, if there is a reasonable chance that you, the borrower, can make up the payments, the lender is likely to listen.

From your perspective, working with the lender to make the payments more affordable makes sense if you would like to stay in your home and wait to sell it when the market values improve. You may be able to better preserve your credit if you arrange a solution with the lender. Remember, your credit may be adversely affected if a Notice of Default is recorded with the County.

If you cannot see any future in working out a solution with your lender, walking away from the home may be more attractive to you than the day-to-day stress of going through the foreclosure process. There may be potential tax considerations in a short sale, so be sure to seek the advice of a competent tax advisor if you are contemplating taking that route.

If you are in need of a Realtor® in the Paso Robles/North San Luis Obispo County area to help you market your home as a short sale with your lender, feel free to contact me via email.

Contemplating attempting to sell your home on your own? Contact me via email, and I will send you my free e-report, 450 Ideas… To Help Your Home Sell Faster!

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Tags: delinquent house payments, foreclosure, foreclosures, free e-report, Notice of Default, paso robles, sell your home faster, short sale, short sales