Behind on Your Mortgage in Cincinnati? Here’s What to Do First
Falling behind on your mortgage can happen faster than most people expect.
A job loss, divorce, medical bills, unexpected home repairs, reduced income, or simply a few difficult months can turn one missed payment into two or three. Before long, letters start arriving and phone calls from the mortgage company become more frequent.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Cincinnati, the most important thing to understand is this:
Being behind does not necessarily mean you're going to lose your home.
You may have several options, but the sooner you understand them, the more flexibility you may have.
First: Don't Ignore Your Mortgage Company
It can be tempting to stop answering calls from your mortgage company when you don't have the money they're requesting.
Ignoring the situation generally doesn't make it go away.
Contact your mortgage servicer and ask specifically about your available loss mitigation options.
Depending on your mortgage, financial circumstances and servicer, possible solutions may include:
A repayment plan
Forbearance
A loan modification
Refinancing in some circumstances
Selling the property
A short sale
A deed in lieu of foreclosure
You don't have to know which option is right before calling. The goal is to find out what's actually available.
How Far Behind Are You?
Your options can look very different depending on whether you've missed one payment or foreclosure proceedings have already started.
Federal mortgage servicing rules generally prevent a servicer from making the first foreclosure filing until a borrower is more than 120 days delinquent, although exceptions can apply.
That does not mean you should wait 120 days to do something.
If you've only recently missed a payment, now is a great time to contact your servicer and determine whether the financial problem is temporary or permanent.
If you're several months behind, the situation becomes more urgent.
And if you've received court paperwork, a foreclosure case number or a sheriff sale date, you should act immediately.
Determine Whether You Can Realistically Keep the House
This can be one of the hardest questions to answer.
Ask yourself:
If my mortgage company helped me catch up, could I afford the regular payment going forward?
If the answer is yes, keeping the home may be your priority. A loan modification, repayment plan, forbearance or another loss-mitigation option may be worth exploring.
If the answer is no, that's important information too.
Sometimes the best financial decision isn't figuring out how to delay foreclosure. It's figuring out how to exit the property while protecting as much equity and control as possible.
Find Out How Much Equity You Have
This is a step homeowners frequently skip.
Being behind on your mortgage does not automatically mean you're underwater.
For example, imagine that you owe $180,000 on your mortgage but your Cincinnati home could reasonably sell for $260,000.
You may have significant equity.
In that situation, selling the property on the open market could potentially allow you to:
Pay the mortgage balance
Pay delinquent amounts and allowable closing expenses
Avoid the property reaching foreclosure sale
Potentially walk away with remaining proceeds
The numbers have to be calculated for your individual situation, but you shouldn't assume you have nothing simply because you're behind.
What If You Owe More Than the House Is Worth?
That's a different situation, but it doesn't necessarily mean foreclosure is your only option.
A short sale may be possible.
A short sale occurs when the mortgage lender or servicer approves a sale in which the proceeds are insufficient to satisfy the amount owed.
This is not something the homeowner or real estate agent can approve independently. The appropriate mortgage parties have to agree to the transaction.
Short sales can involve significant paperwork and lender communication, which is why experience with the process matters.
Don't Wait for the Sheriff Sale Date
One of the biggest mistakes we see is waiting because homeowners believe they still have plenty of time.
Every additional stage of foreclosure can make the situation more complicated.
If you ultimately need to sell, you'll want enough time to properly market the property, receive an offer, work through title issues and, if necessary, obtain short-sale approval.
Trying to accomplish all of that immediately before a scheduled sheriff sale can be significantly harder.
Get Independent Help When You Need It
Your real estate agent can help you understand the potential value and sale of your property, but foreclosure also involves legal and financial issues.
Depending on your circumstances, you may want to speak with:
Your mortgage servicer
A HUD-approved housing counselor
A foreclosure attorney
A bankruptcy attorney
A tax professional
An experienced real estate professional
You don't have to navigate every part of this alone.
Behind on Your Mortgage in Cincinnati? Start With the Facts.
At Foreclosure Cincinnati, our goal isn't to pressure you into selling your house.
We want to help you understand what you're dealing with.
If keeping the house makes sense and you're able to work something out with your mortgage company, that's great.
If selling is the better option, we can help determine what your property may be worth, what you owe, whether there appears to be equity and whether a traditional sale or short sale may be appropriate.
The earlier you understand your numbers and timeline, the more choices you may have.
Contact Foreclosure Cincinnati for a confidential conversation about your situation. There is no judgment and no obligation to list your home.
