timeframe/advice on leaving property

[thisishard]

Hi,
I stopped paying my mortgage 11/01/11. This week, I started receiving calls and hangups, as well as 5 calls from a realtor, so I figured something was up. Today I called the (slimy) realtor and did find out that the NOD was recorded on the 21st. (This realtor actually told me he had "No Idea" why he called me! Vultures at the picnic!)

Anyway, I guess I am the last to know, as Wells has not informed/written me of the NOD. (However, I am somewhat relieved that the foreclosure will likely take place this summer, as I was concerned about possible tax implications in 2013.) My Question:

As I understand, I likely have 3 months and 10 days after the NOD (I live in NorCal), perhaps more time, Correct?

I also want to understand the ramifications (if any) of leaving before the sale of the house??? What happens if the house is stripped or other issues when I do leave??? While I am waiting here until summer to try and find homes for my animals, I also need to find a home for myself, and honestly, it is depressing to wait it out here too. I would appreciate any advice/suggestions/links.

Also, in advance, I want to thank everyone here for all the help and support they have given me and others during this stressful time! This forum is amazing, and I am so very grateful to everyone!

thanks again,
this is hard

[Evan Bedard]

As I understand, I likely have 3 months and 10 days after the NOD (I live in NorCal), perhaps more time, Correct?

I also want to understand the ramifications (if any) of leaving before the sale of the house??? What happens if the house is stripped or other issues when I do leave??? While I am waiting here until summer to try and find homes for my animals, I also need to find a home for myself, and honestly, it is depressing to wait it out here too. I would appreciate any advice/suggestions/links.

I would not be giving any random agent any information in regards your account. If you are in CA and just stopped making your payments on 11/1 I highly doubt a Notice of Default has been filed. You should receive a Notice of Intent to Accelerate well before an NOD is filed. The foreclosure process in CA can easily take 8+ months, if you read around the forum you will final many members walking away here in CA and you will have a better timeline of how long it will take to process..

[thisishard]

Hi Evan,
Apparently the NOD WAS filed with the County Clerk Recorder's office on the 21st. I guess they are now a well-oiled machine, spitting foreclosures so quickly they don't bother sending information to the homeowner.
I have tried to find out information by looking though the forum without luck, especially regarding the pros and cons of leaving the property before the sheriffs sale without luck. If anyone still has suggestions or links, I would really appreciate it!

Thank you,
this is hard

[Evan Bedard]

Hi Evan,
Apparently the NOD WAS filed with the County Clerk Recorder's office on the 21st. I guess they are now a well-oiled machine, spitting foreclosures so quickly they don't bother sending information to the homeowner.
I have tried to find out information by looking though the forum without luck, especially regarding the pros and cons of leaving the property before the sheriffs sale without luck. If anyone still has suggestions or links, I would really appreciate it!

Thank you,
this is hard

Wow I am extremely surprised an NOD was filed in such a short amount of time, but they are still required to send you a copy of the NOD as well.. I personally do not see any pros leaving the property before the foreclosure occurs.. You will have months to live in the home rent free while you save up to move, and you may also even be able to receive cash for keys at about 2-4k to also help with relocation.. If you have HOA make sure to keep up on those dues until the foreclosure is final because they are very stern when it comes to filing suits against homeowners not paying their HOA dues..

[thisishard]

Thanks for getting back! I am using this time to save $$, but IF I do find a rental that allows my pets, I would leave. I have heard that if the place gets stripped between the time I am gone and the sale, I could be liable??? These are some of my concerns. In any case, I will stay as long as I can.

Luckily, no HOA fees to worry about....(Though still no notice sent to me yet!)


Thanks, again, and good luck to everyone going though foreclosure issues,
this is hard

[Evan Bedard]

Thanks for getting back! I am using this time to save $$, but IF I do find a rental that allows my pets, I would leave. I have heard that if the place gets stripped between the time I am gone and the sale, I could be liable??? These are some of my concerns. In any case, I will stay as long as I can.

Yes that is another major concern because you are still technically responsible for the property until the foreclosure is final and the mortgage is no longer in your name.. You never know how long the foreclosure process will actually take, for some the foreclosure may not be filed for 6+ months after the NOD was issued..

[ytrewq]

Wow I am extremely surprised an NOD was filed in such a short amount of time, but they are still required to send you a copy of the NOD as well.. I personally do not see any pros leaving the property before the foreclosure occurs.. You will have months to live in the home rent free while you save up to move, and you may also even be able to receive cash for keys at about 2-4k to also help with relocation.. If you have HOA make sure to keep up on those dues until the foreclosure is final because they are very stern when it comes to filing suits against homeowners not paying their HOA dues..

My timetable is the same. Quit paying BOA 1st and HELOC 11/1/11 and County Clerk sent me a copy of NOD dated 20 March. Perhaps BOA is speeding the process.

[Evan Bedard]

My timetable is the same. Quit paying BOA 1st and HELOC 11/1/11 and County Clerk sent me a copy of NOD dated 20 March. Perhaps BOA is speeding the process.

I'm very surprised, the foreclosure process in CA is generally taking much longer before an NOD is filed.. But of course every foreclosure is done on a case by case basis so most people will have various timelines..

[ytrewq]

I'm very surprised, the foreclosure process in CA is generally taking much longer before an NOD is filed.. But of course every foreclosure is done on a case by case basis so most people will have various timelines..

So what are the rules on case by case? (rhetorical). What surprises me is that there don't seem to be any people posting from the inside either on this site or in the national press about what the bank's procedures and policies are regarding foreclosures. Basic management theory says you need a script for the peons to play to. Perhaps there is no policy from on high but you would think that one of the big banks or one their regional bosses would have an overall plan and procedures in place to deal with the flood of defaults and some disgruntled employee would have leaked it to the press. Maybe they have been told to use a Quija board. Or maybe they have realized the government is toothless and decided to press forward full steam from now on. Kill them all now and ask for forgiveness later.

[Evan Bedard]

The foreclosure process is basically the same for every servicer, they must all abide by the state's specific foreclosure laws to move forward with a trustees sale.. It is really unknown why some foreclosures may take only 6 months to complete while others can last 1-2 years, same servicer/state..

[thisishard]

Obviously they are moving quickly! I am trying to find threads/info about what is the minimum time I have left in my house from the date of the NOD (in my case 3/21/12.) Can anyone tell me this? I thought I had 90 days but I am reading it could be as soon as 30 days??
Ytrewg, I really hope things go smoothly (as they possibly can with stressful stuff like this!) for you.

thanks so much,
this is hard

[ytrewq]

Obviously they are moving quickly! I am trying to find threads/info about what is the minimum time I have left in my house from the date of the NOD (in my case 3/21/12.) Can anyone tell me this? I thought I had 90 days but I am reading it could be as soon as 30 days??
Ytrewg, I really hope things go smoothly (as they possibly can with stressful stuff like this!) for you.

thanks so much,
this is hard

California law says you get 90 days from the NOD and then they can set a sale date 25 days after that time expires. My NOD (I have received 16 copies so far:-) says; "No sale date may be set until approximately 90 days from the date this NOD may be recorded" They can of course take longer and the sale may be cancelled at the last minute because they would rather have you in the house than empty or for some other reason.
So you still own the house for a minimum of 115 days after the NOD is recorded (3/12/12)
After the sale you of course no longer own the house so you move out voluntarily or the new owner can file a 30 day eviction or cut a deal with you like "cash for keys" or even ignore you for a while for various reasons.
Foreclosure Statutes: Cal. Civ. Code 2924

[ytrewq]

oops make that 21 days not 25.

[thisishard]

Thank you soo much for that info! I have critters who I am trying to re-home (all rescues, and now I need a bit of rescuing!) and when I read somewhere is was 30 days, I nearly lost it! That time will help me out quite a bit.

I got repetitive paperwork (finally) as well today. However, this morning I found out something else, that kind of creeped me out!
I typed in my address on my computer, and sure enough, Zillow has my property listed with an MLS#. It also has info that says "The house is move in condition and this owner has put in new hardwood floors through out...." How did the realtor or whomever know this??? I do have many windows without shades, but really to see and know this, they would have to come inside!?! For once I wish my dogs were biters if they are really snooping like this!!!

ytrewq,I hope you post as you find out information, as we share the same "Birthday" and State for our foreclosures.
I truly hope this goes as smoothly as possible for both of us, as well as everyone on this forum. I would be so much more lost and stressed out without the help and support I have found here, and I am truly grateful.

Best of luck,
this is hard

[Evan Bedard]

Yes ytrewq is definitely correct that you should have at least 90 days from the time the NOD was filed before they can move forward with setting up a Trustees sale.. But remember that is the minimum timeframe and it could very well be 3-6 months before a foreclosure date is set..

[At_Peace_in_NorCal]

thisishard-
We are also in NorCal (San Ramon) and our last payment was 11/1/11. We received the NOD last week (filed on the 20th). We are not going to start looking until we received the NOS or auction date. Then we know even that may move per Evan's comments above. It really stinks not knowing for sure when you will need to be out. We have 3 cats (also rescues) and we are not going anywhere without them. We certainly feel your pain and panic.

We know it will be harder to find something we love that also accepts pets so we are willing to 'jump ship' earlier than necessary. It is indeed challenging however when you want to stay rent free as long as possible and save that money.

Where we are (and want to stay) the homes are renting for $2800-$3300 for the type of home we want. And that would/could be smaller than what we have now. We are even willing to throw money at a landlord to get them to take the cats. I'm from the school of 'money talks'. If you offer someone what it would cost to replace the carpets god forbid they needed to they would be idiots to refuse in my opinion. Keep in mind I have not tried this yet! It never hurts to ask and negotiate though.

Good luck with everything and please keep us all posted. We are all in this together. I really wish we could all meet for coffee, lol.

[mare_island_walkaway]

At Peace - We also live in the SF Bay Area and had our first mortgage with Wells Fargo. We stopped payments on 5/1/11, the NOD was received 11/2/11. NOS was received on 4/4/12 and the trustee sale took place as scheduled on 4/24/12. Like you, we had pets to consider and were looking in the same rent range in the East Bay. We started our search in December and ended up in a nice home in Walnut Creek on 2/1/12. We found that many more properties were willing to consider pets than indicated when selecting Dogs or Cats in the search criteria for Craigslist so don't hesitate to contact a prospective landlord and ask if they will consider your pets. We did end up putting down a larger deposit with the dogs, but that was not a problem. In retrospect, we could have stayed almost 2 more months in our house, but it was worth the peace of mind to be relocated with the dogs and get out of the house where the decision to walk away had been over our heads for several years. Ultimately, the home we purchased new in 2005 for $717K went back to the bank at the trustee sale for $275K, a 62% loss and that doesn't include the landscaping, window treatments or other upgrades.....

[mare_island_walkaway]

At Peace - We also live in the SF Bay Area and had our first mortgage with Wells Fargo. We stopped payments on 5/1/11, the NOD was received 11/2/11. NOS was received on 4/4/12 and the trustee sale took place as scheduled on 4/24/12. Like you, we had pets to consider and were looking in the same rent range in the East Bay. We started our search in December and ended up in a nice home in Walnut Creek on 2/1/12. We found that many more properties were willing to consider pets than indicated when selecting Dogs or Cats in the search criteria for Craigslist so don't hesitate to contact a prospective landlord and ask if they will consider your pets. We did end up putting down a larger deposit with the dogs, but that was not a problem. In retrospect, we could have stayed almost 2 more months in our house, but it was worth the peace of mind to be relocated with the dogs and get out of the house where the decision to walk away had been over our heads for several years. Ultimately, the home we purchased new in 2005 for $717K went back to the bank at the trustee sale for $275K, a 62% loss and that doesn't include the landscaping, window treatments or other upgrades.....

[At_Peace_in_NorCal]

mare-
Thanks for sharing. So glad it worked out for you. The numbers make you want to throw up I'm sure. The entire situation is a complete tragedy.

[thisishard]

thisishard-
We are also in NorCal (San Ramon) and our last payment was 11/1/11. We received the NOD last week (filed on the 20th). We are not going to start looking until we received the NOS or auction date. Then we know even that may move per Evan's comments above. It really stinks not knowing for sure when you will need to be out. We have 3 cats (also rescues) and we are not going anywhere without them. We certainly feel your pain and panic.

We know it will be harder to find something we love that also accepts pets so we are willing to 'jump ship' earlier than necessary. It is indeed challenging however when you want to stay rent free as long as possible and save that money.

Where we are (and want to stay) the homes are renting for $2800-$3300 for the type of home we want. And that would/could be smaller than what we have now. We are even willing to throw money at a landlord to get them to take the cats. I'm from the school of 'money talks'. If you offer someone what it would cost to replace the carpets god forbid they needed to they would be idiots to refuse in my opinion. Keep in mind I have not tried this yet! It never hurts to ask and negotiate though.

Good luck with everything and please keep us all posted. We are all in this together. I really wish we could all meet for coffee, lol.

At Peace,
thanks for your kind thoughts....
Yes, this move is made much more difficult by not knowing the timing, but for me, the pets make it that much more difficult. Most of mine are not suited at all for apt./city living (but not finding an adoptive homes yet), and some are too old with too many medical issues to really move at all, so I have to deal with the really difficult decision to euthanize my 14 1/2 year old dog and ancient cat soon;- (

Honestly, I think it would be great for folks like us to meet. I have often thought that a "Twelve step" for foreclosure folk would be awesome! But until there is a Foreclosure Anonymous, Loan Safe has helped me so much, and I am very grateful to everyone who has taken time to tell their stories, and respond to questions that I, and others ask.

I am starting to pack a little bit every day. And that is another overwhelming thing--after years of owning a house, there is soo much "stuff" I just won't be needing for an apt...it's just hard not knowing where I am going to land up!
Somehow in the end, I am hoping all of this will sort out, perhaps for the better(!) but for now, I am just putting one foot in front of the other, and hoping I get someplace!

If I find I cannot find a decent rental (wow-also worried how it will be now that my once almost perfect credit score is down the toilet!) that will take the pets I am trying to keep, I will try yours and Mare's advice too, so thanks ;- )

I hope your move goes smoothly and that you find a good place for your family and cats....and do keep "in touch" here on the forums, and share how it goes!