WHY A SHORT SALE?

In 2008, my husband and I continued to experience a significant reduction in our joint income so we decided to contact our lender to set up a repayment program. Our lender required us to make a large down payment on the amount in arrears with the balance paid over the next twelve months and that was in addition to our regular monthly mortgage payments. Not what I would call practical but at the time, that’s all we could get them to do for us.

After two more months of frantic scrambling to make the new, higher monthly mortgage payment, it became clear to us that we had to get off of this outrageous financial rollercoaster. The economy, as well as the real estate market was in decline with no improvement in sight. We were under tremendous stress as were our children. We knew that we had to make a change.

We got on the internet and began to research our options.

Here are two which we found to be totally unacceptable:

Options that will have a negative impact on your Credit!

• File Bankruptcy
   
• Go into Foreclosure and hope the auction bid is higher than your mortgage, not likely.

After failing to make the repayment plan work using my salary and my husband’s commission income, we knew that our next best option was the short sale. While a short sale may not be for everyone, it was our best solution for getting out from under a mortgage payment that we could no longer afford and avoiding an emotionally devastating foreclosure.

Additionally, by completing a short sale we would also reduce or eliminate other expenses that were draining our available cash. For instance, we’d no longer have a pool nor would we have to pay for a gardener. That would save us another $400 per month in services and cut our monthly electric bill nearly in half. The other savings would be in our water and gas bills, as well as a big reduction in insurance costs. A renter’s policy is usually much less expensive than a homeowner’s policy. Overall we would cut our basic living expenses nearly in half!

We’re now back on track, repairing our credit and our family as well. It’s like having a huge weight lifted from our shoulders!

If your financial situation is anything like ours was and see little to no chance for improvement in the near future, then you too should consider the short sale. However, be informed as the Short Sale process isn't without pitfalls. "Upside Down" will explain the problems and pitfalls that we faced and what we did to overcome them. Knowing what to expect can really make the difference!