Question from homeowner: I want to avoid foreclosure, but my lender won’t let me

The Stop Foreclosure Institute recently received a question from Arman. Here is his question.

I am a Seller trying to avoid foreclosure. My agent has a buyer and his offer is with the lender from last seven months. Now the lender told us that Fannie Mae investor refused the short sale offer and the house is going to foreclosure early next week.

Discover how other sellers successfully did a short sale to avoid foreclosure by clicking here.

The lender’s own appraisal shows the house is worth $120K. The offer we have is for $150K. I told the lender that it is unlikely they will receive and offer for 150k after the foreclosure. She replied and said, "We or some of our investors will buy it"!!!

I don't want a foreclose on my record. Is there anything I can do to stop the foreclosure? Thanks a lot for your help. Arman.

Arman gave me a bunch more details. I will relate them here and then tell you what I recommend that he do. He told me the loan is owned by Fannie Mae, and a third party lender is “servicing” the loan for them.

Here was my recommendation to him. I have negotiated lots of short sales. The only reason a lender should turn down a short sale is when their numbers (from an actuarial viewpoint) show that they will reduce their losses with a foreclosure.

That has always been the case on any short sale I have ever negotiated. (Or I should say most of them. Some have been rejected for other reasons, but they are almost always monetary reasons.)

Here is what I would do if I was you.

Step #1: Call up IBM and demand a written letter explaining why they are declining the short sale offer.

Step #2: Write down what you project your damages are going to be if the property is foreclosed upon instead of sold as a short sale.

Step #3: Call up the company handling the loan for Fannie Mae. (Remember, they are not your lender. They are paid by Fannie Mae to do their job in a competent manner.) Tell them if they reject the short sale for no reason and the house is foreclosed, then you will be suing them for those specific damages you drew up in Step #2.

I will go into more details about potential damages and the basis for a lawsuit in my next couple of blog posts.

Thinking about a short sale? I can help you short sale your property and never pay the bank another penny. Send me an e-mail at Ashish@CalCapHomes.com. I will contact you for a free consultation.

When we talk, I will explain how the process works in detail. If you prefer, then you can call me at 818 259 3455.

Discover how other sellers successfully completed a short sale and request a free consultation by clicking here.

Thinking about a loan modification? Our Loan Modification Kit has the instructions you will need to get a loan modification approved with your lender. Click here to request a copy.

Thanks for reading this, Ashish Trivedi.

Ashish is a Real Estate Broker at California Capital.
Phone: 818 259 3455. Ashish@CalCapHomes.com.

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Copyright 2010 SFI Marketing Institute, LLC. All Rights Reserved. This is not intended as legal, technical, or tax advice. Please speak with a licensed professional before making any decision. Information is deemed reliable but not guaranteed as of the date of writing. The views expressed here are Ashish Trivedi's personal views and do not reflect the views of California Capital. This information on Question from homeowner: I want to avoid foreclosure, but my lender won’t let me is provided as a courtesy to our viewers to help them make informed decisions.