Posted on: 15th Nov, 2009 07:47 pm
Hi all,
Situation: I live in Washington state and purchased a townhome for 300k in march 2007 with 0 down (1st and 2nd mortgage of 75% and 25%). The bank is Suntrust.
I make an okay living but in the next few months, I will have to move to another country, precisely in Africa where my income will drop significantly that I will not be able to cover for mortgage payments. On the top of that, my place is upside down with 90k negative equity. I tried to talk to the bank to modify the loan but they denied my request (because I m still paying)
question: shortselling isn't an option since the neighborhood is flooded with properties everywhere. Should I walkaway or not? Knowing that I ll be able to aford 70% of what I m paying now.
Will the bank start negotiating if I stop paying now b4 leaving or they will start foreclosing.
PS: my stay in Africa will be at least for 5-7 years.
Situation: I live in Washington state and purchased a townhome for 300k in march 2007 with 0 down (1st and 2nd mortgage of 75% and 25%). The bank is Suntrust.
I make an okay living but in the next few months, I will have to move to another country, precisely in Africa where my income will drop significantly that I will not be able to cover for mortgage payments. On the top of that, my place is upside down with 90k negative equity. I tried to talk to the bank to modify the loan but they denied my request (because I m still paying)
question: shortselling isn't an option since the neighborhood is flooded with properties everywhere. Should I walkaway or not? Knowing that I ll be able to aford 70% of what I m paying now.
Will the bank start negotiating if I stop paying now b4 leaving or they will start foreclosing.
PS: my stay in Africa will be at least for 5-7 years.
since your african sojourn will be so lengthy, it almost makes sense to suggest a walk-away. that goes against my better principles, though; so i will stick to my regular script.
a question: can you rent this home out? maybe a solution there. maybe not.
honestly, since you'll be overseas so long, the effects on your credit of a foreclosure, short sale, etc. will be somewhat negated by time. of course, i'm taking it for granted that you will retain a few american credit cards for use and that you'll continue to pay them on time, thereby maintaining good credit in that fashion.
i'd try to negotiate now...why wait until after your credit is burned?
a question: can you rent this home out? maybe a solution there. maybe not.
honestly, since you'll be overseas so long, the effects on your credit of a foreclosure, short sale, etc. will be somewhat negated by time. of course, i'm taking it for granted that you will retain a few american credit cards for use and that you'll continue to pay them on time, thereby maintaining good credit in that fashion.
i'd try to negotiate now...why wait until after your credit is burned?
Thanks for your reply. I tried to talk to the bank but it seems they react only when you stop payments. That's how things work: being honest doesn't pay off! Thanks for you answer.
well, yours is an unusual situation, also. people don't deal well with the offbeat stuff, so they probably were clueless as to how to respond to you. we like to think we have a lot of know-how in this country, but we're severely lacking in many areas. it's a sad commentary, i'm afraid. you'll find africans are far more aware of the need for quality education, based on my dealings with many that i've met.