Facing foreclosure.. HELP!!

[Tango4all]

Originally Posted by usafracer

Move out lick your wounds and learn a lesson DONT SPEND MORE THAN YOU CAN AFFORD !!!!!!!

I am not sure why I picked you, maybe to just say, that you need not be judgmental, especially since you do not know any thing about other peoples circumstances and predicaments.

You will live a much more fulfilling life, if you stopped judging, if you have more compassion and try to help someone that is in need rather then be negative towards them. We are only put on this earth to help, offer service and compassion to others.

For the Professionals!

Stop bickering and going back and fourth that is counter productive especially for the person you all are trying to help! I bet they are more confused then ever!
Here are my thoughts.

If you are scared of losing your home, relax breath and most importantly stop stressing. Yes it is a bad thing to happen and yes it is sad but you will make it through this difficult time and you will only be stronger and wiser for it. You have to keep the faith. Let it go in your mind and your heart, maybe it is not meant for you to be in that home!

Maybe there is a better place some where else for you. Let the Universe take over and work for you. There are some things we just can not control.
Every one’s experience is different. What works for some might not work for others. We all have different paths. As soon as I didn’t care weather we would lose our home or not, every thing fell in place. In the City we live in there are over 25,000 homes in foreclosure.

This happened because most of us were victims of Predator Lending, and every one’s circumstances are different. In our case we simply were not aware that the loan officer was shady and took it upon themselves to wheel and deal with the Bank. We did NOT know what they were up to. We live in a City where there are a lot of shady things going on always, and we were not aware of many things. It is difficult to find reliable trust worthy people in any service oriented industry. We were first time buyers and did not know enough, the Realtor was a family member new to the industry and it happened. I blame the loan officer because they did not disclose to us valuable information.

We ended up at closing with the surprise that our taxes were not included in the loan amount. Many bad things happened along the way, but to be the devils advocate, I know that this started happening a long time ago with the creative lending practices that have started from Sally Mae, and Freddy Mac, which had a trickle down effect to Private Banks etc.

If you are going to tell someone that you can make their dreams come true, that they can have the American Dream a home of their own, with no money down, that you can put them in a home and that in two years they can refinance the home for a lower rate!? No one in their right mind would say no to that! Predators took advantage of people invested emotionally, and that is that!

So all of you judgmental people out there, be very careful and tread softly, because one day you might be faced with some tough times as punishment for being so righteous and hurtful to others. Karma! I am sure you have heard the old saying, “What goes around comes around!”

In our situation we have had a Realtor friend for three years, who is working with a Negotiator! These are third party negotiators who work with the Realtor, as well as with the bank. I am not sure if these services exist in the state you live in. They set up the short sale, with the Realtor and the Bank. In our case we do not have a Bank per say but a loan servicing Co. (They do nothing to help you!) Banks such as Wells Fargo, Citi, etc, might be more willing to modify your loan.

Due to other unexpected financial issues arising we could no longer pay for our home. Then the economy took a dive. My position at work was eliminated due to the economic crisis and my husbands work slowed down. We stopped paying in May it is now Nov. we are still in the Short Sale process.

Included in the package offered by the third party negotiator is the clean up process of the Credit Report. I am confident that we are in capable hands and that every one involved is working hard for us and is on our side. Keeping positive is the only way to go, because when we think positive, positive things happen.

I have realized that if you think that you have nothing to lose you will not lose any thing.

Regardless of what happens we will be fine. Good luck to you all.

[bigtrees]

Here's the part that I don't get:

Whether you allow the bank to seize your home or whether you sell your house as a short sale, you are defaulting on the loan (not repaying the bank according to the terms of the note).

I understand that a lot of people have various hardships and didn't forsee not being able to sell their home. I certainly understand that to many, getting the bank to settle the amount of a loan is preferable than mailling the keys back to the bank. But in either case, the person holding the loan has not repayed the bank the amount that they said they would in the beginning. I don't mean to sound cold, but that's the fact of the matter.

Many people are upside down in other loans. For example, almost everyone who buys a car is upside down for the first couple years because the car devalues faster than the loan. So if they are forced to sell the car, they have to bring money to closing in order to pay off the bank. If they don't and only bring a partial payment, they haven't paid the bank the amount owed on the vehicle. Just because the car lost value faster than the loan got paid off doesn't mean that the bank doesn't deserve to get paid - they do and they should get paid.

[bigtrees]

Originally Posted by Tango4all

I blame the loan officer because they did not disclose to us valuable information.

We ended up at closing with the surprise that our taxes were not included in the loan amount.

It was all in the paperwork that you signed.

Sure the loan officer and escrow agent probably told you not to read them. That's bad. They told me the same thing at closing and gave me hard time when I did want to read it.

I think the #1 thing that they should change is force banks to mail you a copy of all closing paperwork well in advance along with a telephone number or e-mail address where you can send questions you may have about the loan. Forcing people to read over detailed and complicated legal document while several people are figeting waiting for a signature is unreasonable.

[bentlebee]

I agree with bigtrees....you know what you signed and have to negotiate the best way you can. Walking away is IMO for losers and if you can negotiate a deal with the mortgage company (short sale or refi) that would be the best option. You signed and you are responsible....for the people who want to walk away due to the value going down...that is b.s. to me since market values always go up and down and if you don't sell it is only worth less on paper.

The lesson to be learned should be, don't buy or sign papers if you can't afford it!

[shellytc]

Except Bigtrees, there were (and are) some predatory lenders out there. Yes, there is personal responsibility... but if your grandmother gets swindled by a scam artist, do you blame the mother and say.... too bad, pay the piper????????

I know a real estate agent that refinanced with a predatory lender. She is experienced, been in the business over 25 years. And she got fooled. Luckily, she had the equity and relationship with her credit union to refinance again as the resetting started happening. She has been contacted to be part of a class action suit against this lender. If she can get caught, don't you think normal, every day folks can get caught??????

when I want to judge someone, I think to myself:

There but for the grace of GOD go I.

Peace.

Shelly

[bigtrees]

The person signing the loans has to take personal responsibility for what was in the loans.

But the government can (and should) create laws to make it easier to review what is in the loan. Years ago, the goverment mandated that credit card companies provide a simple, easy to read table of the important features of the credit card: annual fee, percent interest rate, and some other information. They did this because they felt consumers wanted that information but found it hard to find in the pages of legal information.

Why don't they do that with the loan? Have a box with payment, rate, how long the rate is fixed for, and whether taxes are included. Perhaps some additional details as well.

The goverment should require paperwork be made available early so the person has time to review every document to make sure they are comfortable. The lender should have someone available to answer questions, and to provide the response in writing (via e-mail).

The goverment should force lenders to reduce the amount of paperwork you have to sign to buy a home. My packages were thick and huge, and while I read everything I signed, I frankly didn't know what half of the pages meant.

The goverment should require that, if at closing you have questions on the closing paperwork, you can place a 7 day hold on your purchase while you try to get your questions answered. There would have to be provisions to make sure this doesn't get abused, but it's ridiculous that you don't have time to get your questions answered at closing.

Most of all, the goverment should force lenders to make the closing process understandable by average folks. It's not right now and average folks don't have means of getting the questions answered by knowledgable people with no financial interest in the situation.

[London Girl]

Where IS the OP???