I honestly don't know which move to make. Any advice appreciated!

[Stuck_In_FL]

Hello,

I've learned quite a lot from this site and the people who take the time to post here. I wish there was an obvious choice to make but given the circumstances I don't see it. Hopefully someone here can help. My situation is as follows:

-I'm current on my 30yr fixed rate FHA loan (w/ relatively low interest rate) w/ PMI in Florida (recourse state)

-House has been up for sale now for about 3 months (listed to basically break even on the sale) w/ ZERO activity (shocker right)

-Laid off in Oct. of 08 and barely getting by by on unemployment since (read: dipping into dwindling savings each month just to make ends meet)

-Unable to find a job that pays enough to cover all my monthly expenses (which have been cut to the bone and some into the bone) and leaves me with some money to ACTUALLY live.

-Only real debts are house and car. (nothing else I have is on credit and note this excludes monthly payments for utilities, insurance, cell phone etc.)

-I don't know how to legitimately gauge MY home's value but those selling in my neighborhood similar in SqFt and some even larger are selling (most as bank owned) for about 30-35k less than what I owe on mine.

-Last but not least: I don't want the house anymore and I do not wish to reside in FL any longer!

Known resolutions include:

Short Sale - likely to fail from all I read and hear from people who tried and realtors alike.

Foreclosure - credit=ruined and if the bank does not get a DJ on me at some point it will likely be because the PMI company paid them but then I'd expect to then get sued by the PMI company sooner or later. Upside is 6mo rent free.

Deed In Lieu - Try to make a deal to sign over my home that's in immaculate shape and only 2 yrs old? I figure since the bank has PMI on the loan it's unlikely that they will go for that. Even if they did, if I understand correctly, I'd have to move out and go through the motions and in then end have a good chance of things falling through anyway.

Stick It Out - Try to hang on as long as I can and even if I do manage to make ends meet, barely eek out an existence in a state I have come to loathe?

Only other thing I have considered is trying to refinance to a 5yr Interest only ARM to drop payments to manageable levels to try to rent out the house to float it but that's not w/o it's share of caveats either.

I'd love to be able to get the hell out of Florida and start over somewhere else. My family urges me to try to stick it out and suck it up until things turn around. I don't mind hard work but the prospect of working 1 full time job and another part time job just to pay for a house I don't even want anymore seems like a waste of my young life. If I thought in a year or two things were going to get better I'd probably have a different attitude about it but I just don't see that happening. Ultimately my goal is to leave FL behind forever it seems to be matter of how much financial damage I'm going to have to sustain to do so. Sorry for the long winded post but all thoughts and advice are appreciated! Thanks and good luck to all out there struggling. You are not alone!

[The Professor]

Given the nature of your situation and the issues relating to Florida law which appear to favor the lenders when it comes to post-foreclosure remedies, I simply do not have a suggestion. That is an unusual answer for me.

Sorry,

Daniel

[StPeteFL]

Wow, your situation is so similar to mine...I started drinking after I read Shay's response to you.

Here's me: CW 80/20, never been late, need help

[trappedincali]

Life is too short to spend unhappy. You're either gonna be unhappy and struggling to keep your house, or unhappy with a deficiency judgement on your back. Pick the lesser or two evils and move on.

I'm impulsive, and find that if something is important to me and it's not going to totally devastate those around me, I usually just do it and correct course along the way. I'm going to be facing the a DJ on my second, as well as tax implications, but I know that eventually I'll be facing a foreclosure. Hopefully, the judgement will be better terms than my upside down mortgage, and they'll be hope of breaking even much sooner than 10-15 years from now.

As far as 'sticking it out' until things improve, I think everyone agrees that it is not going to happen for a long long loooooooooong time. How long are you willing to wait? I, for one, don't care to wait until the banks and mortgage companies push through legislation giving them more power over our lives.

Why exactly do you want to leave Florida? I've moved several times throughout my life and found that some problems cannot be eliminated by simply changing location.

-Lee

[The Professor]

trappedincali said:
Why exactly do you want to leave Florida? I've moved several times throughout my life and found that some problems cannot be eliminated by simply changing location.

Meaning, where ever you go you bring yourself to that location.....

Daniel

[Stuck_In_FL]

Originally Posted by trappedincali

Pick the lesser or two evils and move on.

I wish it was that simple. How do you decide the lesser of two evils when they balance each other out? Florida sucks and I'm unhappy here but how great will it be to wake up everyday somewhere I'd rather be with ruined credit and a huge sum to pay for something I don't even own anymore? I guess what I will try to do is a short sale or DIL and try to keep my head above water until either one of those two things happens or circumstance forces me into foreclosure. Damned if you do and damned if you don't but at least this way I can say I tried.

[Enough Already]

Hi Stuck In FL,

I like the advice given by Trappedincali. Regarding the possible deficiency judgment, I'm in FL too, and I've talked to a few attorneys who all told me if they do come after you it's most likely you can settle for pennies on the dollar. It costs them money to try to collect, so they are often open to a settlment. I've also read several posts on this site where people have been offered settlements for 5% -10% of the deficiency amount.

We're walking away, and after worrying myself sick over the possibility of a DJ, then talking to some attorneys, I now feel I have a good handle on what may come.

If you can save up your missed mortgage payments you'll be ready with some cash to pay them off when/if the time comes. To me paying to settle the debt is better than sticking it out here for the next 30 years, and paying a huge mortgage payment on a house that is upside down $80K.

Good luck to you. Please keep us posted.

[trappedincali]

and I must counter-agree with Enough-Already. Talk to a few attorneys....

I've found at least five of them that have talked with me over the phone, and a few that offer free one-on-one consultations. Take some of their advice with a grain of salt since getting you to file BK is good business for them. That's why I like second, third, and fourth opinions. It will give you some idea what you're up against from a professional point of view.

I was on the fence as you were and continually talked myself back over to the other side of the argument. You're brain is good for that. Give it a lot of time to figure out a problem, and it will turn it into a mental monster.

For me, it was the simple fact that I don't own a home. I own a ridiculous mortgage on an upside down house the bank owns. Knowing that it will take 10-20 years to just break even, is stomach turning. I will have paid over 300,000 over the next ten years before getting out of the red, IF I'm lucky. I can escape this hell for a lot cheaper and a lot sooner than that, even with a judgement. Worse case scenario, they won't settle and I file Ch 13 and satisfy my debtors in 3-5 years.

-Lee

[nana8]

Trappedincali-
You have hit the nail right on the head! You don't own your home the bank does. After I myself came to this conclusion...and seperated myself from this house emotionally...it helped me to think much clearer. Not that that was an easy task....we have raised 6 kids, and a couple of our soon to be 8 grandchildren in this house. There are alot of memories tied to this house, but now I can walk away knowing I tried my best and take my memories with me......

[bella2001]

Wow, Stuck In Fl, I thought that I was reading a post about myself. We too own a home (townhouse) here and can't wait to get out. My husband's business is closing- they are finishing up some work and then its over. So by the end of the year (or July- the date keeps changing) we won't be able to pay the mortgage. His mother was diagnosed w/pancreatic cancer and is currently going through chemo. She lives in PA and he wants to be with her. He hates it here and I never wanted to come down. Anyway, we are current on our mortgage but want to do a short sale (WaMu/Chase). Spoke to a lawyer who said stop paying- they won't talk to you about a short sale until you are delinquent. I want to call WaMu but am terrified. I want second and third opinions from other lawyers but don't know any (other than recommendations from various real estate agents and I don't trust them). One real estate agent I spoke to is handling a short sale for another employee of my husband's company, found a buyer w/in 3 weeks and is in the process of working with the lender but this is the first short sale dealing w/ a seller. She usually deals w/buyers. Other realtor has successfully negotiated several short sales. Where do you find realtors with short sale experience? Or lawyers? I feel like I can't trust anyone at this point.