HELP!!!....Lemon House Woes...

[MrsHill]

Hi all

So the deal is this. We purchased this house we are living in, in 2004. You know what happened to the market, need I say more?(smile).
However, since then we had baby #6 too. Things were okay when he was little, he just roomed in with us. Problem is, he's still rooming in with us. And he will be five, in as many months. Our house was a bit overcrowded before but now we're bursting at seams.
We desperately need to buy another house, but what do we do with this 'lemon'? There is no way that we can sell this house and reap anything from it. And judging by the comps from around us, its highly unlikely that we will even be able to sell it, especially now that our selling point, the pool, is long gone (not even a year after we purchased the house).
So tell me, what can we do in a situation like this? We seriously cant go on like this.

Thanks in advance

[Cat Damiano]

Hi all

So the deal is this. We purchased this house we are living in, in 2004. You know what happened to the market, need I say more?(smile).
However, since then we had baby #6 too. Things were okay when he was little, he just roomed in with us. Problem is, he's still rooming in with us. And he will be five, in as many months. Our house was a bit overcrowded before but now we're bursting at seams.
We desperately need to buy another house, but what do we do with this 'lemon'? There is no way that we can sell this house and reap anything from it. And judging by the comps from around us, its highly unlikely that we will even be able to sell it, especially now that our selling point, the pool, is long gone (not even a year after we purchased the house).
So tell me, what can we do in a situation like this? We seriously cant go on like this.

Thanks in advance

Welcome to the forum and thank you for joining..........

Who is the servicer on the loan? What type of loan is it conventional or Fha? You can check to see if the loan is backed by either Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac here;


For Fannie Mae: 1-800-7FANNIE (8am to 8pm EST)
www.FannieMae.com/loanlookup

For Freddie Mac:
1-800-FREDDIE (8am to 8pm EST)
www.FreddieMac.com/mymortgage


Unless you are able to qualify for a new loan for both a new property and the current property amount versus income, then under any of the choices to vacate the property such as short sale, deed in lieu, or foreclosure, you will be facing a wait time before you will be able to purchase again.

Buying a Home After Short Sale or Foreclosure


In MD the foreclosure process can take anywhere from 90-100 days or more depending on the circumstance and deficiency judgements are allowed.

Maryland Foreclosure Laws - Foreclosure.com

Foreclosure Proceedings in Maryland

[MrsHill]

Thanks for the advice. Chase holds the loan right now. We were lucky and qualified for the Making Home Affordable program after our adjustable rate went sky high and the mortgage payment ended up being close to $4,000. My only angst about walking away is the fact that we did get thru with MHA after so many others, but aside from the fact that its too small, I have grown to hate this house and the location. Its an older house that is slowly falling apart on us. Initially our plan was to turn the house into a rental, maybe a section 8 kind of deal, but then we wrestled with possibly just walking away from it.

[MrsHill]

Although you sent me the link for info pertaining to MA not Md, I went ahead and read it anyway. I figured it would still give me an idea of what we are up against. Knowledge is power!!!

[Cat Damiano]

Although you sent me the link for info pertaining to MA not Md, I went ahead and read it anyway. I figured it would still give me an idea of what we are up against. Knowledge is power!!!

The MA link is just to a generic article not MA specific, on being able to purchase again which is a question you had asked in your original post.

[MrsHill]

The MA link is just to a generic article not MA specific, on being able to purchase again which is a question you had asked in your original post.

Oooops, my apologies to you...Thanks so much for the info...

(Open Mouth, Insert Foot...Hop Away)

[Cat Damiano]

Oooops, my apologies to you...Thanks so much for the info...

(Open Mouth, Insert Foot...Hop Away)

No apology needed, we reference the article because it is the most informative on waiting periods for a new loan.

[MrsHill]

So today we received a letter from our mortgage company offering us a chance to do a short sale or the Deed in Lieu of foreclosure thing, because we were 2 payments behind and we are at risk of a foreclosure. (I say were becsuse we have already made one of those payments. However, I guess they got crossed in the mail. So we are just late for September). The letter also mentioned something about qualifying for settling the entire debt and owing nothing, but if we wanted to take advantage of that we had to turn in the title and be prepared to vacate the premises when we do it. Then, right on the back of the letter was another option. There was a number to some place, MHA where we ould get assistance with paying the mortgage. All I could think about was 'Here is the OUT that we need'. But of course the is a date in which we had to act by. And there's no way, no way we can pull something together by that. Now, my two questions are this: Has anyone ever heard of the possibility of qualifying for settling this debt and walking away owing nothing? And what is MHA and what's it all about? I'd rather hear from a live person than reading the bylines and fancy dressed up stuff.

Again, Thanks in advance!

[Evan Bedard]

All I could think about was 'Here is the OUT that we need'. But of course the is a date in which we had to act by. And there's no way, no way we can pull something together by that. Now, my two questions are this: Has anyone ever heard of the possibility of qualifying for settling this debt and walking away owing nothing? And what is MHA and what's it all about? I'd rather hear from a live person than reading the bylines and fancy dressed up stuff.

Hey MrsHill,

MHA stands for Making Home Affordable and it s a government initiative to help homeowners avoid foreclosure through a variety of programs. I believe the program you are referring to is the Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternative program that allows you to short sale or DIL your property and release you from any liabilities once the transaction is complete.

Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives (HAFA) Program

In either case, HAFA offers benefits that make the transition as favorable as possible:

• You can get free advice from HUD-approved housing counselors and licensed real estate professionals.
• Unlike conventional short sales, a HAFA short sale completely releases you from your mortgage debt after selling the property. This means you will no longer be responsible for the amount that falls "short" of the amount you still owe. The deficiency is guaranteed to be waived by the servicer.
• In a HAFA short sale, your mortgage company works with you to determine an acceptable sale price.
• HAFA has a less negative effect on your credit score than foreclosure or conventional short sales.
• When you close, HAFA may provide $3,000 in relocation assistance.

[Grimmhope]

I have a similair situation and need some advice. I've had water damage in my house and it looks like a disaster zone affecting three rooms and repairs from different contractors range from $1100 - 3500.

In the mean time, I filed for CH 13 in Dec and am looking to file a 7. In July BoA denied me a HAFA SS and HAFA DIL, but NOW my realtor agent has received a notice that I qualify for a SS and then someone is looking at a DIL. Someone from from the DIL dept contacted my attorney in Aug to see if I was still interested in a DIL. I have yet to speak to this person, it's like they fell off the face of the earth after they made that inquiry. I have called this person, left messages; sent e-mails all to no avail.

I am in a quandry as to what to do. Fix up the house or use the money to move. I haven't made a payment since Feb 2012 and have been paying down bills.

In the mean time, when I call BoA they give me the run around from one dept to another.

I am so very tired of living like this.

[Grimmhope]

Still haven't heard from BoA one way or the other. Realtor wants to move forward and start listing, I'm tell her to stand down. I don't want to do anything until i know which way BoA is going to go.

Spoke to my attorney and he says I can convert CH 13 to a 7 and walk away from the property with no liability.

Can someone tell me what has been the norm for someone to stay in property after filing a 7 before they have to move out?