Foreclosure Options

Tips To Avoid Foreclosure
By Pauline Go

Listed below are some important tips to avoid home foreclosure.
Forbearance agreement: In case of any financial crisis, it is important to have a discussion with the lender. One good solution available with the lenders is a forbearance agreement in which the lender might agree to lower or eliminate payments for a specified period of time.
Loan modification: This is one good option that can be considered by borrowers. In loan modification, all terms and conditions on the existing home mortgage loan are modified. These include lowering interest rates, extending loan repayment period or including any delinquencies into future payments.
Loan refinancing: The home equity can be used as collateral to get the home mortgage loan refinanced at a lower interest rate. This means having lower monthly payments to the loan. However, you have to have sufficient equity to be able to opt for mortgage loan refinance. In addition, you have to be sure that the closing costs justify the refinanced loan.
Selling the home: One should consider this strategy as the last option. Selling the home at a reasonable price is a good way to avoid foreclosure. Although the homeowner faces the risk of foreclosure, there are chances where one can obtain a far higher sale price on the home. In this way, one can repay the loan amount and also improve his/her credit ratings.
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In Foreclosure Trouble? Don't Trust Anyone!
By Corwin Grant

Today, with millions of Americans in foreclosure trouble, it's all too easy to make the wrong choice under the pressures of either trying to save your home or delay the time it takes for your lender to foreclose. In fact the FBI says over the past two-years there has been a 71 percent increase in scams targeting citizens facing foreclosure.
The first place many people look for help is the internet - which in the case of real foreclosure help seems to lead more often that not to nowhere.
The second place most people turn to for help in times of trouble are professionals like lawyers and mortgage brokers and real estate brokers.
If you are going to seek outside help with your problems be sure to do your homework. Read anything you are going to sign before you sign it. Ask for references of people who have dealt with the lawyer, or real estate broker, or mortgage broker in the past. Look for long-standing well established people. If they have been in the community for many years they should have developed good relationships with their clients and can provided more than a few good references. Check local organizations, like the better business bureau, the local law associations (usually bar associations) for complaints filed against the person or company you are considering.
Watch out for quick cash offers and rescue scams and web sites asking you to enter your personal information (including you name and home address).
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Short Sale May Provide Option to Foreclosure
By Mike Carter

One option for a home seller is a "short sale." A short sale occurs when the net proceeds from the sale of a home are not enough to cover the seller's mortgage obligations and closing costs, and the seller is unable to cover the difference.
For the lender to agree to a short sale, the homeowner needs to provide a financial statement demonstrating a true financial hardship. Since the short sale process involves a lot of detailed paperwork, problem-solving skills and persistence, a homeowner should utilize a real estate professional who understands the process to achieve a successful conclusion.
Some "upside-down" home sellers think they can't afford a real estate broker, so they try to sell the home on their own. Many don't realize that in a short sale, the lender pays the broker's commission.
The REALTOR®'s job is to negotiate for the home seller and show the lender that it is in the lender's best interest to accept the short sale versus foreclosing on the property. Obviously, lenders don't like to take less than what they are due, but they also don't like to foreclose a non-performing loan. There are legal costs, repair costs to the property, remarketing and carrying costs, and the uncertainty of getting the highest price in a market already flooded with inventory.
In a short sale, the home still needs to be placed on the market, a buyer needs to be found and a bona fide offer received. Without a viable purchase offer, a short sale proposal won't be considered by the lender.
If the lender does agree to the short sale, the homeowner will not receive any money at closing, since the lender is accepting less than what they are owed. However, the homeowner will be able to avoid a foreclosure on their credit, which is a lot harder to clear than slow-pays. The lender could, but doesn't always, pursue a deficiency judgment against the owner, or some lenders may, as a condition to the short sale, ask the seller to sign a promissory note for all or part of the difference between the proceeds of the short sale and the debt obligation. Homeowners also need to be aware that a short sale is considered a "forgiveness of debt," which may be viewed by the IRS as taxable income to be reported.
A short sale is one way, with the help of a knowledgeable REALTOR®, to relieve the financial strain on families due to changes in the housing market.
Additional information available online at http://www.jaxhomeinfo.com Contact Mike at (904) 825-2800 or mcarter@assist2sell.com
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