Attendance at this community assistance event is FREE.  Throughout the day there will be mini sessions on adjustable rate loans, foreclosure/homeowner eviction, short sales, scams, tax implications and second mortgages/credit impact.

Attendees who would like to meet with a counselor from Take Charge America are encouraged to bring copies of their current loan documents, e.g., Note, Truth-in-Lending Statement, etc.

Homeownership Survival Flyer

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Monetary

The quickest example is job lose.  Or in this market, a reduction in pay can also be used.  Explain the circumstances of why the salary was reduced or you lost your job and what you have been doing since that happened.  One of my clients lost his job a year ago, did everything he could to find a new one and was able to locate employment in another state.  He had to relocate to take the job.  We showed the banks the documentation of his job lose, let’s from potential employers with bad news and the employment offer from his other job.  The bank understood the circumstances and granted the short sale.

Medical

People get sick, and sometimes they get sick enough to require lots of medical attention and the resulting bills.  And sometimes this will cause one to lose their job (see Monetary).  Again, provide documentation of the medical situation, including a Doctor’s note and the bills as a result of your medical condition.  I know of one case where a home owner was diagnosed with a terminal brain cancer and only had 6 months to live.  He wanted to liquidate everything so he wouldn’t burden his family with his stuff.  The banks again reviewed and accepted.

Marital

During these trying times, it puts extra burden on relationships.  Sometimes that will lead to a divorce and these cases are harder for the bank to review.  Providing court documents and proof that one or the other person cannot handle the mortgage is the best method with the bank.

Military

Let’s face it, we’re on two fronts right now, and if you are in the military and deployed, your not making the same as you would if you were home doing a civilian job.  It’s much easier to go to the bank with your deployment orders, previous salary and military salary and explain it just doesn’t work.

Transparency

The name of the game is Transparency, give the bank everything so they won’t feel like you are hiding anything.  They won’t spend a lot of time asking for more documents or investigating on their own.  I know one package that exceed 450 pages and the owners said they were apprehensive, they put their entire lives in the 450 pages, every detail of their financial lives and they were scared.  It’s a scary process and one that you shouldn’t come to without lots of thought and consideration.  Contact an attorney, tax advisor, financial advisor and even a credit advisory until you feel like you have all the details to make the right decision.

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At this point you start to realize that you don’t know or understand a short sale as much as you thought.  You may know friends and family that are talking about it, but do they really know what is going on?  You call an agent and if you get me, I’ll tell you what a short sale is, but I’ll stop short of advising you on weather you should do one or not.  I’m a real estate agent, I’ve been trained and licensed to help in the purchase or sale of real estate.  Part of that knowledge is what short sales are.  I’ve also been trained to do short sales, which means that I set expectations with all the parties involved in the short sale.  I’ve never been trained or claim knowledge in credit counseling.

Since you are already in a stressful situation, I highly recommend to those that are interested in doing a short sale or foreclosure to contact a FHA Credit Counselor, a Real Estate Attorney and a Tax Attorney to understand the pros and cons of a short sale.  I’ve had a few customers take my advise and all of them have stated that they feel much better about their situation and the decision that they made.  Everyone of them have stated it was the best money they spent.  The FHA Credit Counselor is often free, the Real Estate Attorney is worth the peace of mind you will get and the Tax Attorney will give you confidence with your future.  All worth the sound sleep you can get after talking to them.

While your emotions about the situation will probably not go away soon, at least you will find some comfort in knowing the whole picture and making a sound decision for the future of your and your family.

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