Posted on: 03rd Mar, 2009 08:54 am
my husband and i purchased our townhouse in feb. 2007 for $200k. at the time we paid $15k less than it was appraised for, put 10% down and took out 2 mortgages (20% in coldwell banker, 80% in citimortgage). right now, it is worth roughly $100k-$115k.
in the last 3 months, my husband has lost his job due to the economic slow down (his company cut 25% of their staff). also, his father has fallen ill and has become too much for his mom to take care of on her own. they live in sc, we are currently in fl. beyond the family reasons, my husband has a better chance of finding work in sc. i can also find a job fairly easily in sc. so we know that we will need to move within the next 6 months.
we are current on our mortgage payments, but have now used all our "emergency savings" and can no longer make the full payments. we contacted our 80% lender who told us to take a 6 month forebearance, paying half the mortgage ($600) for 6 months, and then taking a loan out at 5% to cover the missed mortgage amount. this is totally unrealistic for us, there is no way of knowing if we will be in a better financial situation in 6 months and i don't want to take out yet another loan. that would put us in the whole for more, and the property has already lost so much value, it would be throwing good money away after bad at this point.
i have reviewed the latest housing assistance package and it looks like we won't qualify b/c we owe more (way more) than 105% of the current home value.
a friend told me to write the lenders (both) letters of hardship asking that they take a short sell, deed in lieu or loan modification to decrease the loan amount to the current value at 4% interest for 30 years (fixed). he said to include that letter with the mortgage payment at that reduced amount (calculate the amount for a $115 loan at 4%/30 years) and keep sending it every month until the lenders respond.
so what should we do? should i give the lenders a choice or just ask for a deed in lieu of foreclosure (which would be our best plan so far i think)? no one has given us any straight answers. we don't want to stay in the house, we can't afford to sell, and we can't afford to stay in it.
i am not worried about our credit right now, it's low on the priority list under place to live, family, and put food on the table.
in the last 3 months, my husband has lost his job due to the economic slow down (his company cut 25% of their staff). also, his father has fallen ill and has become too much for his mom to take care of on her own. they live in sc, we are currently in fl. beyond the family reasons, my husband has a better chance of finding work in sc. i can also find a job fairly easily in sc. so we know that we will need to move within the next 6 months.
we are current on our mortgage payments, but have now used all our "emergency savings" and can no longer make the full payments. we contacted our 80% lender who told us to take a 6 month forebearance, paying half the mortgage ($600) for 6 months, and then taking a loan out at 5% to cover the missed mortgage amount. this is totally unrealistic for us, there is no way of knowing if we will be in a better financial situation in 6 months and i don't want to take out yet another loan. that would put us in the whole for more, and the property has already lost so much value, it would be throwing good money away after bad at this point.
i have reviewed the latest housing assistance package and it looks like we won't qualify b/c we owe more (way more) than 105% of the current home value.
a friend told me to write the lenders (both) letters of hardship asking that they take a short sell, deed in lieu or loan modification to decrease the loan amount to the current value at 4% interest for 30 years (fixed). he said to include that letter with the mortgage payment at that reduced amount (calculate the amount for a $115 loan at 4%/30 years) and keep sending it every month until the lenders respond.
so what should we do? should i give the lenders a choice or just ask for a deed in lieu of foreclosure (which would be our best plan so far i think)? no one has given us any straight answers. we don't want to stay in the house, we can't afford to sell, and we can't afford to stay in it.
i am not worried about our credit right now, it's low on the priority list under place to live, family, and put food on the table.
Hi abeasley!
Welcome to forums!
I would suggest you to write a hardship letter to the lender and explain your financial situation to him. You can also inform him about the fact that you want to move out of the state. If the lender is convinced, he can accept a short sale or a deed in lieu request. However, you should always keep in mind that it is the lender's discretion to accept or reject your request.
Feel free to ask if you have further queries.
Sussane
Welcome to forums!
I would suggest you to write a hardship letter to the lender and explain your financial situation to him. You can also inform him about the fact that you want to move out of the state. If the lender is convinced, he can accept a short sale or a deed in lieu request. However, you should always keep in mind that it is the lender's discretion to accept or reject your request.
Feel free to ask if you have further queries.
Sussane