I took a class on Short Sales yesterday afternoon. I am working with a first-time home buyer who is interested in purchasing a property that is a short sale now in foreclosure. He wants to close by the end of January, and with all the stories I’ve been hearing about short sales taking weeks and months to close, I decided I needed some more education before we wrote the offer.
The class instructor was Patrick Ritchie, author of The Credit Road Map. This is the first class that I’ve taken in awhile where we could have gone on for a couple more hours with content and questions. It’s a timely topic.
A couple of the resources that I learned about and are important to share are:
NeighborWorks – 888-995-HOPE
This organization is experienced with helping home owner review options for preserving home ownership in the face of rising foreclosure rates. They work with nation nonprofit, mortgage and insurance partners to find solutions for struggling homeowners.
Based on what I learned yesterday, this should be one of the first calls a homeowner who is having trouble making payments should make. Patrick shared that NeighborhoodWorks work in this end of the business every day and have the back end contacts in the banks and mortgage companies that the rest of us don’t have access too. They know what banks will and might do, based their day to day contact.
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) offers even more information on their web site too. Their Tips for Avoiding Foreclosure include:
- Don’t ignore the problem.
- Contact your lender as soon as you realize that you have a problem.
- Open and respond to all mail from your lender.
- Know your mortgage rights.
- Understand foreclosure prevention options.
- Contact a HUD-approved housing counselor.
- Prioritize your spending.
- Use your assets.
- Avoid foreclosure prevention companies. List of Approved HUD approved home counseling agencies in Arizona.
- Don’t lose your house to foreclosure recovery scams!
And then another resource that Patrick suggested was mymoney.gov which also has some additional information for strapped home owners needing guidance.
Patrick said that many homeowners who are in trouble or on the borderline could really help themselves by contacting one of these resources, sooner rather than later, so they have more options. Ending up in a short sale, or foreclosure situation should be a choice of last resort, but time is needed to see if any other options are available.
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