Do you own a home in Colorado Springs?
Ask for help before foreclosure starts — don’t stick your heard in the sand!

Short Sales — Part II of Short Sale Series 

When many homeowners are in financial trouble and not making their house payments, they go into denial.  They are embarrassed, and they hope that the situation will go away.   The problems usually won’t solve themselves.   The fact is that the sooner a home owner faces up to the situation the better.  There are option out there!

I typically meet pre-foreclosure homeowners after they’ve already missed several payments and they’ve heard something about short-sales.  Maybe it’s been from a friend, maybe from the news, or maybe from their lender.   

One of the first steps I do is to refer them to some of the local and national hot-lines that are now available to help home owners.  I want to make sure they are as educated as possible about their options before they decide to list their home as a short-sale.   I also encourage them to talk to a lawyer and/or a tax accountant.   A short-sale may not be the right step for them;  I want them to understand all of their options and pick the one that’s best for their situation.

Resources 

One of the best resources around is the Foreclosure Hot-Line at 877-601-HOPE.   There is also a local organization called The Pikes Peak Foreclosure Partnership at 719-444-8833.  The goal of both of these organizations is to reduce the number of foreclosures and to serve as a consumer referral source for borrowers experiencing some form of delinquency or foreclosures.   They are completely objective in their advise and can provide financial options. 

There are also legitimate credit counseling services that can provide a wealth of information.  Both the National Foundation for Credit Counseling or the Association of Independent Consumer Credit Counseling Agencies have housing counselors that can help evaluate options.   Another great resource is the Housing and Urban Development Department at 800-569-287.  For home owners who have a VA loan, they can call 800-827-1000 to get a referral to a financial counselor.

I also strongly suggest that a home owner has conversations with their lender to explore their options.  Lenders are more willing than ever to explore alternative solutions.    The sooner they are in contact with their lender the better and the faster they move the more options available.  Some of the options available from lenders may include:

  • Can the home owner qualify to refinance? 
  • Can the payments be temporary waived or reduced? (Also called a Forbearance)
  • Can the unpaid balance be added to the principal of the loan, and increasing the payments slightly to cover the extra amount?
  • Will the lender consider a short sale?  
  • Will the lender consider a deed in lieu of foreclosure?  
  • Will the lender consider some type of payment plan until the home owner gets caught up? 
  • Does the lender have any other options available?   

Home owners are typically routed to the Collection Department, but they may also ask to speak to the Loss Mitigation Department.

The home owner may have a chance of saving their home,

but if they continue to ignore the situation it won’t go away.

Also, here’s a list of phone numbers at some of the major lenders.

  • Acqura Loan Services  866-660-5804
  • Aurora Loan Services  800-550-0509
  • Bank of America  800-846-2222
  • Carrington Mortgage Services  800-790-9502
  • Citi Mortgage/ Citi Residentail   866-915-9417
  • Countrywide Home Loans  800-669-6650
  • EMC Mortgage, Inc. 877-362-6631
  • First Horizon Home Loans  800-364-7662
  • GMAC/Homecomings/ResCap  800-799-9250
  • Home Loan Services, Inc.  800-500-5022
  • HomEq Servicing  800-867-7378
  • HSBC Consumer Lending  800-333-5848
  • HSBC Mortgage Services  800-365-6730
  • HSBC Mortgage Corporation 888-648-3124
  • IndyMac Bank  866-355-7323
  • JPMorgan Chase Prime Loans  800-446-8939
  • JPMorgan Chase Non-Prime  877-838-1882
  • JPMorgan Chase Home Equity  866-582-5208
  • LandAmerica  800-909-9525
  • Litton Loan Servicing  800-999-8501
  • National City Mortgage Corporation  800-523-8654
  • Nationstar Mortgage, LLC.  888-480-2432
  • Ocwen Loan Servicing, LLC.  877-596-8580
  • American Home Mortgage Servicing, Inc.  888-275-2648
  • Saxon Mortgage Services  888-325-3502
  • Select Portfolio Servicing  800-258-8602
  • SunTrust Mortgage, Inc.  800-443-1032
  • Washington Mutual, Inc.  866-926-8937
  • Wells Fargo Home Mortgage  877-216-8448
  • Wells Fargo Financial  800-275-9254
  • Wilshire Credit Corporation  888-917-1050

 Previous Posts:

Some of the subjects on future posts will cover topics such as, Pricing the Property Correctly, What Happens When you get an Offer, Completing the Short Sale Package for the Lender, What is included in The Hardship Letter, Pitfalls and Myths of Short Sales, Tax and Credit Ramifications of Short Sales, What Happens When you Get An Offer from a Buyer on a Short Sale, How to Buy a Short-Sale, steps and timeline involved in a Foreclosure.

Related Previous Posts:

It’s important to  utilize a Colorado Springs Real Estate Agent that specializes in Short Sales; and has a successful track record.  Call Kathy Torline - Nordstrom at 719-287-1049 or Nancy Shakeshaft-Slack at 719-659-4380.   The All Star Team, your real estate experts!

Email:  KTorline@msn.com or Nancy,shakeshaftslack@gmail.com

 

Disclaimer: This post is not intended to be or to provide legal advice. I recommend that you speak to your attorney and your tax accountant regarding specifics.