I want to share a meeting I had with this wonderful couple a few months back. I visited them at their home after they reached out to me after having read about me on an internet website. We scheduled a meeting, and when I got to their home it was beautiful, cozy and it was the epitomy of "proud homeownership."
The couple was older and had owned the home for a few years. The husband had been laid off of his job of many years and his wife had become very ill so she had to resign from her job. They decided to embark on a new experience and start a business, after all, no one would hire the husband due to his age. Business was booming and doing quite well for a little while, but then the economic downturn and ensuing recession took place, causing their business, as many others to falter.
These factors forced the couple substantial financial difficulty and the inability to make a full mortgage payment in over two years. To make matters worse, they owed roughly $894,000 between two mortgages and the current market value of their home was was roughly $500,000. All they could keep thinking of was the fact that their home was appraised at $1.2mm a few years back. I had to be honest with them and let them know that the values years back were inflated (also known as phantom equity) due to various factors and that figure was no longer an accurate assessment of their home's value in today's marketplace.
They tried numerous times to refinance but were unsuccessful since the home's value had substantially depreciated and was "underwater." The reason they reached out to me was because they were in search of relief and an alternative to the foreclosure their lenders were threatening and they had nowhere to go. At our initial meeting, the couple was understandably very emotional and in a panic, which took me some time to assuage their anxiety and get them to calm down. They tried to modify their loan for two years to no avail, they kept getting the runaround and eventually the lender said NO because they did not have the income to support the modified payments. They were emotionally and psychologically burdened and stressed out with an impending foreclosure and no sight of what to do next so they went online to search for options. They learned of a concept called 'Short Sale' but were terrorized by the horror stories they read online and heard from their friends and neighbors about these very difficult transactions.
During the meeting I shared story after story how we successfully helped families in very similar situations so they decided to give me a shot to list their home. Fast forward a few months, the lender pre-approved the Short Sale and gave the couple a relocation credit up to $20,000. They are planning to use the credit for moving costs and securing a rental which we will help them with as well.
The couple felt relieved to know that they had options and alternatives to foreclosure! They learned that due to situations beyond their control, they did not have to be forced into a more troubling situation. They asked me for a stack of my business cards because they knew of so many friends and family members in very similar situations.
There are an abundance of individuals living in homes that have not been able to meet their mortgage payments in years for a variety of reasons ranging from loss of income, illness, unemployment, adjustable rate notes, toxic subprime mortgages and other financial difficulties. In addition, some of the homes are significantly underwater and the values may never appreciate to what they once were. Eventually homeowners have to accept the reality of the situation and do something about it. After all, who wants to continue to pay on a negative depreciating asset? Learning all the options and alternatives to foreclosure will allow homeowners to be proactive vs. reactive. It feels good to help people regain their lives financially, re-establish themselves and we plan to expand our efforts to assist homeowners to get RELIEF and a fresh start. This email may not pertain to you, but trust me, you very likely know someone facing a similar dilemma.
Thank you for taking the time to hear about my experience and click here to read a testimonial from a client for whom we just completed a Short Sale for.
Please don't hesitate to contact me or forward my email or phone number to anyone you know who could benefit from a free consultation with myself and attorney on how to get out from under a burdensome mortgage so they won't be handcuffed by their home.
Respectfully yours,
|
