Posted on: 03rd Dec, 2011 07:22 am
My husband passed away this year very unexpectedly after a brief illness. He was let go from his job in November of last year so with that, he lost his life insurance and was unable to leave me anything. We refinanced our house in 2009 with Bank of America when they bought out Countrywide (who was our lender at the time) and I have been trying desperately to keep up with the mortgage payments but I found out that I am not on the note. I am on the deed but not on the mortgage, so the bank refuses to work with me. They keep telling me that if I want to keep our house, I have to reapply and qualify for a mortgage under my name. It's crazy! My husband and I built this house over 10 years ago, and now I find out that I was never put on the loan when we refinanced. I don't understand it, but maybe it's a blessing. We owe about $100,000 more than it's worth now because of the market so I'll never catch up! I stopped making my mortgage payments because I simply can no longer afford them. I am now 3 months behind so I have found a rental and I am packing up to move because I know the bank is going to take the house anyway. Am I doing the right thing? I don't know where to turn.
Hello Katheyo,
If he didn't leave a will, it will pass to you intestate. But you should check your state's consanguinuity laws nevertheless.
:idea:
If he didn't leave a will, it will pass to you intestate. But you should check your state's consanguinuity laws nevertheless.
:idea:
if you truly cannot make the mortgage payments, you are not doing anything wrong. your husband was probably making the majority of the money, and therefore him passing, made it impossible for the loan to be repaid. if you cant make the payment, then you can rent the home and cover the note, then your next step is to work with the lender to protect your credit, but since you are not on the loan, you will not be affected by the foreclosure. if you want to make it easy, once you have moved out, call the bank and tell them to take back the keys. they probably will not give you the deed in lieu of foreclosure, because you do not have a valid title. so i would make sure you are on title to the property and see if the lender will take your request along with the death cert. good luck!
Why are you in such a hurry to pay rent? Why not "ride out" the foreclosure "rent free"? B of A would likely prefer the home occupied during the lengthy foreclosure process. DIL is "ify" unless the estate has been cleared. You could deed your portion but not that of your spouse.
