“I’m behind in payments…do I have to give my Oregon Coast house back to the bank?”
The Coronavirus pandemic has turned the economy upside down. If you’re falling behind on your house payment, you’re far from alone. Nobody wants to lose their home, but when financial circumstances turn against you, your financial commitments can become simply too much to manage.
If you can’t find a way to avoid foreclosure, you may be forced into the unfortunate situation of having to give your house back to the bank in Tillamook or anywhere on the Oregon Coast. The consequences of a foreclosure go far beyond just being without a place to stay. There will be long-term consequences, including a dramatic and long-lasting impact to your credit (and your ability to get a house in the future).
No one wants that. That’s not an ideal outcome. Fortunately, there is a strategy you can take today to help you proactively protect yourself and get back on track to financial solvency.
Here’s a brief overview of the foreclosure process
The foreclosure process can vary depending on the type of mortgage you have.
Usually, if you miss a few mortgage payments, your loan company will start sending you notifications and then warnings. If you fail to get your mortgage payments caught up, the lender will take possession of your home and put your home up for public auction.
How long you can stay in your house after it is sold at auction depends on how fast the eviction process moves. At some point, however, you will need to find a new place to stay.
Fortunately, you have options!
If you wait until your home is foreclosed, it will have a devastating effect on your credit rating for seven years. This will affect your ability to borrow money and the interest rates you qualify for. One option to protect yourself is to work out an arrangement with the loan company called a “deed in lieu of foreclosure”.
This is when you hand over ownership of the house to the loan company so that they save the money they would spend on foreclosure proceedings, which can be significant. And you get to avoid having a foreclosure listed on your credit rating.
You can also avoid foreclosure by selling your house before it’s lost at the auction. If your loan is paid in full then there will be no more penalties against you and your credit rating. (If your loan isn’t paid in full you will need to make up the shortfall).
Here’s an example: Let’s say you owed $200,000 on your home and you sold your home to us for $175,000. You would give that money to the loan company, along with $25,000 to make up the short-fall, and your loan would be paid off. (If you contact a real estate attorney, you may be able to negotiate a deed in lieu of foreclosure deal in which the loan company agrees not to go after the difference in exchange for the deed to the house.
At 101 Home Buyers, we’re professional real estate investors. Contact us today at 503-383-1686 to find out what we can offer you for your house — even if it needs repairs.
I want to avoid giving my house back to the bank on the Oregon Coast!
Why do people choose to sell their home instead of going through foreclosure (After all, they still don’t live in their home anymore)?
Well, losing a home can be difficult but the impact on your financial situation and your credit is considerably less than if you simply wait out the foreclosure process. In fact, going through foreclosure could impact your credit score by as much as 100 to 150 points. So the short-term challenge of selling your house is still a better choice than the long-term pain of giving your house back to the bank.
At 101 Home Buyers we always recommend doing everything you can to avoid foreclosure. If you’re not sure about your options, give us a call and we can help you come up with a plan that works best for your situation and your future goals.