Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Short Sell or Foreclosure?



Many of my friends and family know the situation we are in with our condo. If you do not know, I will give you a little rundown of the situation.

Our condo is an balloon interest only 80/20 mortgage. It will balloon in about 10 months to double our mortgage payment (around $3000.) We are not eligible to refinance so our only option is to sell. Like all homes, our condo has lost value and is worth $65,000 less then when Doug purchased it four years ago. Because our condo is interest only we have no equity in our home. Therefore, short sell is our only option. If you do not know, a short sell is selling your property for what it is worth market value right now and the bank agrees to the sell. This is different from a foreclosure but effects your credit about the same. The benefit of doing a short sell is you can make a deal with the bank to not come after you for the difference. Yes, we could possibly get a big fat bill from the bank for the difference. This is the same if we foreclose also. 


It cost the bank about $50,000 to $75,000 to foreclose a home so we figure if the difference of our condo is about $65,000 then we have a good shot of the bank accepting a short sell. The bank also gets more with a short sell then if we foreclose and the bank sells it on it's own. 


A good friend of ours did a short sell on his condo in Arizona. In the paperwork, the bank put that he is free from any recourse. This will effect his credit, but who cares because he is protected from recourse. This is what we are desperately praying for. 

Sadly, many families are in this situation. We have a Dave Ramsey certified realtor and he is going to put our condo on the market in the next 30 days. We knew since we first got married that this was going to happen and I am happy the process has finally started. It's definitely in God's hands and if we do end up foreclosing then so be it. I know God will take care of us and I'm excited to see where God will put us once we move out. I'm trying to learn to be content in all situations and trust in God. It's super hard!

Some articles I found regarding this to topic:

Do Homeowners Still Owe Money After a Foreclosure?

Do I Owe Money After I Have Been Foreclosed On?

Short sale is no salvation

Homeowner frustrations mount as foreclosure proceedings double in Snohomish County

Homeowners at a loss

Second mortgage can limit options

Fannie Mae fights strategic defaults

Many bail on mortgage bailouts

Snohomish County foreclosures mount

5 comments:

  1. Hey Jess thanks for sharing. I got a notice in the mail today from my mortgage company that made me cry. They are raising our monthly payment by 336 dollars per month. That is ALOT. Especially when we are tight already. As of right now we can't make the extra 336. I am going to call the bank tomorrow and talk to them. It has to do with escrow. My mom says God can provide the difference which I know he can...but does he want to? I could go back to work part time but then I would never see my husband. Anyways. I just got the news today. Your blog is timely. Thank you for sharing.!

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  2. Dear Whoever You Are,

    I feel your pain, girl! (or man?) Go to hopenow.com and there are programs to help couples as yourself. Pray, pray, pray and God will open doors. If the worst happens and your mortgage is too much to pay, know that A LOT of people are going through this! You are not alone!

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  3. Jess-I don't want to pry too much, but are you certain that you cannot refi? Is it because of your credit score? You can answer me privately or not at all if you want. Marci PS are you going to Willis Tucker park tomorrow to meet up with fam?

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  4. Hey Jess, Have you checked to see if you qualify for a Home Affordable Modification refinance program? It's definitely worth looking into if you haven't already.

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