Are You Behind on Your Mortgage Payments?
A FREE information guide with your best options to PREVENT foreclosure.
A FREE information guide with your best options to PREVENT foreclosure.
The longer you wait, the more dire the situation becomes, costing you more and more every day.
We have 11 options below that will help you deal with the problem and may prevent further financial pain.
Your lender wants you to succeed, they don't want your house. They have options for you and need to hear from you.
If you're behind on your mortgage payments, it can be a confusing and lonely road. You need help but it's hard to determine who to seek help from. Your friends? Relatives? Maybe. But often they may make things worse, not better, because emotions get involved and your choices become fuzzy and confusing.
Eventually your bank starts calling and sending threatening letters which means you are headed down the foreclosure path unless the problem is addressed head-on in a timely fashion.
We made this site to clear up some confusion about the process and your options. We've been in the business over 15 years and we know a thing or two about the process. If the information here is not enough, we can help you out one on one, or at least put you in touch with someone who can help.
Before we get too far, lets get some definitions out of the way so we all know what we are talking about.
Pre-Foreclosure:
The property owner is behind on their mortgage payments and the lender has not completed the foreclosure process. The property owner has been notified by the lender of the problem.
County (Foreclosure) Auction:
In Georgia, this is the auction that takes place at the county courthouse on the 1st Tuesday of every month. Typically, the attorney representing the lender will appear in a pre-designated area at the courthouse and “cry” the bid for the properties that are in foreclosure. The highest bidder wins and must present cashier’s checks for the bid amount at the sale. If there is no high-bidder, or bidder that reaches the lender’s minimum bid amount, the title of the property being bid on will revert to the lender.
Foreclosure:
In Georgia, the foreclosure auction is the 1st Tuesday of the month after four weeks of consecutive advertising in the legal organ (newspaper and/or web site) of the county where the property is located. For example: the legal organ of Fulton County, at the time of this writing, is “The Fulton County Daily Report.” You should be able to locate the property address in the legal notices section of the legal organ paper or online and by Georgia law it should be there four weeks in a row for the property to be eligible for the courthouse auction. After the end of the four weeks, the next 1st Tuesday of the month will be the county auction sale where one can bid on this property. Some properties don't make it to the auction because the lender has reinstated the loan, many times due to an investor stepping in and paying all arrears, penalties, finance charges, attorneys fees, etc. to bring the mortgage current.
Post-Foreclosure:
If the property is not purchased at the courthouse auction, the property ownership goes back to the lender. This type of property is now referred to in the real estate community as an REO (Real Estate Owned). An REO real estate broker will now put the property on the market in the multiple listing service and looks much like a traditional real estate sale with an agent.
Loan Modification enables a property owner to restructure their loan with their lender so that they are more easily able to pay. There are no guarantees with this method because 94% of the property owners are not able to do this. Being able to do this or not will be based on the lender’s criteria and judgment for loan modifications.
A loan modification will allow the property owner to keep the house and avoid foreclosure. To start this process, call your lender immediately.
If a property owner doesn’t qualify for a loan modification, then they may be able to do a forbearance agreement.
“Forbearance” means “holding back” and it is a special agreement between a lender and borrower when the lender delays their right to foreclosure if the borrower can catch up on payments in an agreed amount of time. It’s designed to stop the foreclosure process.
It’s typically done when there is a temporary setback in the borrower’s ability to pay. If there are more extenuating circumstances and it doesn’t look to the lender as though the borrower will be able to eventually get back on track, then the lender may not agree to forbearance. Each lender will have their own set of unique options for forbearance.
Realize that all penalties, finance charges, etc. that the property owner has incurred for failure to pay in a timely manner on this mortgage will ultimately need to be paid to the lender, even if the amounts are added to the end of the loan, thereby extending the amount of time you must pay the mortgage.
A forbearance agreement will allow the property owner to keep the house. To start this process, call your lender immediately.
Equity Partnering allows an investor to step in, take over and make the mortgage payments on the loan, get the loan caught up, pay finance charges, pay penalties and ultimately try and sell the house.
When the house is sold, the investor recoups all of their initial investment and then splits the profits with the previous property owner (you). The amount of money the previous property owner is able to receive in this situation depends on the agreement split with the investor, the amount of money it takes to bring the loan current, the amount of repairs needed for the house, and the eventual sales price as it relates to the loan balance. An investor should discuss all possible options with you. Most investors will charge a 10% fee for this service since they are taking on considerable risk with this method.
The property owner cannot keep the house with this method but it will prevent foreclosure and help the property owner’s credit.
To start this process, get in touch with us or find an investor that you trust and one that understands the issues.
Subject-to is the process of taking over a loan subject to the existing financing. With this method, an investor enters the picture and takes over the loan you have on the property. The investor does not have to qualify for new financing but uses the property owner’s existing financing (loan) already in place. This is advantageous to the investor because it helps them avoid thousands of dollars in finance fees if they were to purchase the property traditionally.
The investor brings the loan current by paying all unpaid mortgage payments plus penalties and finance charges. The investor also makes the future mortgage payments until the property is sold.
The terms of the loan that were initially created with the lender stay the same. That includes the name the loan was purchased in.
In other words, the loan is not being assumed by the new buyer.
A subject-to helps re-establish a homeowner's credit.
If the property owner sells outright while behind on their mortgage payments instead of doing a subject-to with an investor, it will show on their credit that they were "X" number of payments behind and then sold which is not very good for the property owner. The subject-to process fixes this since it brings the loan current.
Some people, including real estate brokers and agents, like to scare property owners saying this method is illegal. This is absolutely not the case. They say this most likely because they don't understand the concepts involved and would rather cast doubt so as to possibly gain a new listing from you. There is even a standard line-item on the standard HUD-1 Settlement Statement that allows a spot for the attorney to put in the appropriate numbers for a subject-to closing - Line 503. https://www.thebalance.com/the-hud-1-settlement-statement-1797890. This is a standard federal form that almost every residential real estate closing uses.
Also, an important point is that all subject-to transactions that we are involved in are closed in an attorney's office and are perfectly legal. You should not use this method unless there is an attorney to close who can legally make sure everything is done correctly.
The property owner cannot keep the house with this method but it will prevent foreclosure and tremendously help the property owner’s credit. This is done by the investor bringing the loan current and then making the mortgage payments until eventually selling the property to another buyer, thereby paying off the original loan.
To start this process, get in touch with us or find an investor that you trust and one that understands the issues.
A short-sale is when a lender (bank) will take, as payment in full, less than is owed on the loan.
The bank will typically only get 60% of the value of a home if it goes through the entire foreclosure process so this is a viable option for lenders in certain cases.
The property owner cannot keep the property with this method.
Also, there is a possibility that the lender could issue a 1099 to the property owner for the difference between the short-sale amount and the amount owed, but the property owner can stipulate in the final agreement that this will not take place.
To start this process, get in touch with us or find an investor that you trust and one that understands the issues.
Chapter 13 Bankruptcy - Repayment plan
Chapter 13 allows borrowers to save their homes from foreclosure. By filing under chapter 13, individuals can stop foreclosure proceedings and may cure delinquent mortgage payments over time. Property owners must still make all mortgage payments that come due during the chapter 13 plan on time in order for this to save them.
According to the Fair Credit Reporting Act, a Chapter 13 bankruptcy will typically be removed from your credit report after seven years. The time clock starts running when you file your case, not when you receive your discharge. Most Chapter 13 bankruptcies last three to five years so your credit will most likely be affected only another two.
The process starts when then the debtor (property owner) files a petition with the bankruptcy court.
Bankruptcy Chapter 13 will allow the property owner to keep the house as long as payments continue to be made to the lender.
Following is a link to the USCOURTS web site about Chapter 13: http://www.uscourts.gov/services-forms/bankruptcy/bankruptcy-basics/chapter-13-bankruptcy-basics.
Chapter 7 - Liquidation
One of the primary purposes of bankruptcy is to discharge certain debts to give someone (a debtor) a "fresh start." The person filing chapter 7 bankruptcy has no liability for discharged debts and their financial liabilities (with a few exceptions) are essentially wiped clean. However, this process will trash their credit and will affect everything from car buying, house buying, renting an apartment, credit cards, etc. for up to 10 years. There are ways to diminish the impact and lessen the time of Chapter 7 but the best way is to avoid it altogether.
Part of the process is that the bankruptcy trustee gathers and sells the debtor's nonexempt assets and uses the proceeds of such assets to pay holders of claims (creditors) in accordance with the provisions of the Bankruptcy Code. Filing of a petition under Chapter 7 may result in the loss of the property.
The process starts when the debtor (property owner) files a petition with the bankruptcy court.
Following is a link to the USCOURTS web site about Chapter 7: http://www.uscourts.gov/services-forms/bankruptcy/bankruptcy-basics/chapter-7-bankruptcy-basics
Deed In Lieu (of foreclosure) is a process where the borrower conveys all interest in a property back to the lender. In other words, the property owner deeds the property back to the lender and gives the keys back so that the lender does not have to go through the entire foreclosure process. This is much more advantageous to the bank than a true foreclosure since, theoretically, this method is less expensive to the lender. A Deed in Lieu "may" be more advantageous to the property owner's credit than a full-blown foreclosure.
Some lender's may be weary of taking back a home Deed In Lieu for various reasons. They may want to investigate junior liens, make the property owner document and validate hardship, see that the property owner has tried to sell the property, etc.
If the lender does accept a Deed in Lieu and if the lender eventually sells the property for less than was owed, they may give a 1099 (taxable income) to the property owner for the difference. Or the homeowner may get a deficiency judgement. The property owner can file form 982 with the IRS as a hardship case.
The lender should give a waiver of deficiency to the property owner to avoid this.
Selling with a real estate agent is a viable option if you have time or already have a buyer. And, if you have enough equity in your property to handle the costs associated with this type of transaction. The clock is ticking though, and time alone may be the biggest hurdle for you.
Since time is of the essence, a quick sale is what you are looking for. It's important to know what the Days On Market (DOM) is for your particular area and type of property you have. Days on Market is available from the Multiple Listing System in your area (available to real estate agents) and reports how long most houses take to sell in your area. Pay close attention to this number because it could tell you your chances of selling quickly. In most all cases, it will be over 30 days which is a problem for you to start with if you are facing foreclosure.
As far as the number go, anyone selling a house with an agent typically has a 3% cost for a buying agent (the agent showing the new buyers your home) and a 3% cost for a selling agent (the agent that is listing your property). This totals 6% before even accounting for all the other factors.
The vast majority of homes do not sell for exactly what the property owner is asking. In a good market, a general rule of thumb is that an owner receives 95% to 97% of asking price, assuming the initial asking price was at market value.
In additon, most homeowners pay closing costs for buyers of about 3% since most buyers need help coming up with all the money to close on the home.
Example with numbers:
Let’s say you have a house on the market for $200,000. A buyer’s agent finds you in the multiple listing service and brings their client to see your house. They like it and make you an offer. In the end, they negotiate you down 3% on the sales price - a number that happens every day. A 3% reduction would make your sales price $194,000. But of course they want you to help with closing costs too (again, very normal) and negotiate you to pay 3% of the price of the house in closing costs. In this scenario, that amount equals $5,820, bringing down the amount to you to $188,180. The buying agent and selling agent will get paid their 3% each for bringing a buyer and seller together. They will each get $5645.40 or a total commission cost of $11,290.80. Subtract that from the $188,180 and the final amount to you will be receiving is about $176,889.20
This is a good case scenaro and doesn’t even factor in repair costs which are usually requested by a traditional buyer. And lets face it, even if you think your house is in pristine condition, there are always needed repairs and inspectors tend to find them.
In this scenario, you will need $23,110.80 in equity in the house just to break even. It would be safe to round up and assume you needed $25,000 in equity in this scenario just to break even since all these numbers are fluid.
Do you have enough equity in your house to handle this type of transaction? And just as important, do you have the time to go through this process? Remember that many traditional buyers will plan on moving into your property and they will request 30 days or 45 days to close AFTER the contract is signed.
To start this process, get in touch with us first to see if we may be interested in buying. We will certainly make you an offer.
You can always sell your house yourself by sticking a sign in the yard and putting an ad on Craigslist. Again, time is not on your side and you will have to sell extremely quickly to pull this off before the foreclosure auction. Remember that most any buyer will want to inspect the property and will request a week or two to do just that. In addition, a title search will take days, more like a week if someone decides to buy. You've basically run out of time with these items in mind.
This is an option, but it is highly unlikely you can pull this off within the limited timeframe unless you have a buyer in mind or one that is immediately interested.
To start this process, get in touch with us first to see if we may be interested in buying. We will certainly make you an offer.
Almost every modern loan is not assumable. Mortgages written in the last 30 years or more contain language like "due on sale" which means that if you transfer the loan, then the entire loan must be paid off immediately.
However, in a foreclosure situation, you may be able to convince your lender an assumption is the best option. The lender will likely want to know the qualifications of the new buyer, but may allow them to assume your loan in the end.
To start this process, contact your lender immediately.
You can always do nothing and wait. But, there will come a day when the property will be taken from you by being sold on the courthouse steps. If you inhabit the property at that time, you will be legally and possibly forcibly evicted by the new owner. It would be beneficial for you to take some action as outlined above as soon as possible. Doing nothing, although a choice, is the worst option available to you.
These guys were great. They went above and beyond in educating me and saving me from foreclosure.
Atlanta, GA
Highly recommended service! I couldn't have done it without them.
Marietta, GA
They helped me stay in my house and they did not receive anything in return. Wow!
Roswell, GA
No. We give you solutions to choose from. Many have nothing to do with us. Some may involve us, but we never charge a fee just for our help.
We are in the business of helping people so we have provided this helpful guide to show you your options. If you need further assistance, we are here to help. Currently, we are only servicing property owners with property in Georgia.
Immediately. Foreclosure is a ticking time-bomb and the sooner we help you address the problem, the easier it will be on everyone.
Yes. These are all possible and legal options, some being better than others, depending on your time and circumstance. We have had great success with most of these in one way or another.
P: 678-250-3115
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Roswell, GA 30077 USA
