Steps to Avoid Foreclosure
Douglas County Colorado and More
Below is a complete list of active homes for sale of Bank Owned Properties and Foreclosures in Douglas County, CO
PLEASE NOTE: You may be able to find additional listings of foreclosed homes on the government web sites. These two web sites are HudHomeStore.com and HomePath.com
Steps to Avoid Foreclosure
Are you a homeowner trying to avoid foreclosure? If you are struggling to make or are already behind on payments, here are some ideas that may help to avoid losing your home. Whether you live in Douglas County or anywhere in Colorado, familiarize yourself with strategies and options to possibly save your home.
Get in contact with your lender immediately. As soon as you think you may miss a payment or foresee financial distress ahead, stay in contact with the lender. The key is to be proactive with your mortgage lender; do not push the issue under the rug until you start receiving collection notices or calls. Often by the time it is too late to avoid foreclosure.
Lenders are often reluctant to work with the homeowner after foreclosure proceedings begin. Let them know if your situation is temporary or something more serious like loss of employment. Keep an accurate detailed record of all information discussed and utilize certified mail for proof of any payments or information asked for by the lender. Keep in mind that lenders lose a lot of money in foreclosures, so it behooves both parties to remain in close communication. Contact your Colorado lender as soon as possible.
Early on consider a short sale or even selling your home. Interview experienced foreclosure real estate agents to determine if either of the these are viable options. Selling your home may not be what you want to do but it is better than a foreclosure on your credit record.
Mortgage Forbearance is an option to avoid foreclosure and is sometimes offered to the borrower as a temporary way to hold off foreclosure proceedings. The goal of mortgage loan forbearance is to help you get your home loan payments including tax and insurance escrow or impound accounts suspended or reduced for a set period of time. If you’re suffering from a temporary significant reduction in your income or an increase in your expenses, you may qualify. Talk to your lender to see what you need to do to qualify.
Reinstatement is when the lender may reinstate the loan if the borrower promises to make up the back payments by agreed set time. Reinstatement is often coupled with forbearance and a repayment plan.
Loan Modification is an important option to consider. The lender can make a permanent change to one or more of the terms of your loan in order to make your payments more affordable. Those terms could include the amount of money paid each month, reducing the interest rate, extending the repayment term of the loan, agreeing to reduce the principle balance of your loan or changing the loan’s annual percentage rate (APR) to a fixed rate. There is a processing fee involved with a loan modification.
Refinance your mortgage is sometimes a good option especially if you have a high interest rate. However, be mindful that refinancing can be expensive because points, closing costs and additional fees may be included. Make sure you and your lender are on the same page.
Chapter 13 Bankruptcy may also help avoid foreclosure because the lender may not proceed with the foreclosure once under the supervision of the bankruptcy courts. This allows you to restructure your debt while you retain possession of your home.
If you absolutely have to give up your home consider Chapter 7 Bankruptcy. This will stall the sale for a few months while the bankruptcy is pending allowing you to live in your house for free. Chapter 7 also cancels debt that is second by your home such as home equity loans and mortgages. Either way always hire a qualified attorney that will work with your lender and have the ability to protect you and possibly apply some leverage that you as a layperson could not readily do yourself to avoid foreclosure and the loss of your investment.
So before you give up and walk away from your home consider looking into one or all of these options. Foreclosing on your home will damage your credit and make it very difficult to buy another home in the future.
If you are looking for a Realtor to help you sell your home or would like more information regarding avoiding foreclosure, use the contact form on this website or Call me at (720) 385-4497.