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How Voluntary Foreclosure Affects You
If you are upside down on your home, that is you owe more on your home than it is worth, you may want to just walk away from the bad debt. You may have even seen this on the news as many homeowners in this situation are choosing to enter into the voluntary foreclosure, where you give the keys up to the lender and walk away. You may think that it solves all of your problems because it does stop foreclosure. But before you do this, you need to understand the recourse the lender may have as well as the impact this has on your credit.
If you are upside down on your home, that is you owe more on your home than it is worth, you may want to just walk away from the bad debt. You may have even seen this on the news as many homeowners in this situation are choosing to enter into the voluntary foreclosure, where you give the keys up to the lender and walk away. You may think that it solves all of your problems because it does stop foreclosure. But before you do this, you need to understand the recourse the lender may have as well as the impact this has on your credit.
- This is still considered to be a foreclosure and will reflect so on your credit report
- It will negatively affect your credit score for 7 years
- In some states, the lender may still be able to pursue you for monies owed
- Many lenders will refuse to accept a voluntary foreclosure
- If you have a second mortgage, you can get sued even in a state that does not allow deficiency judgments.
A Voluntary Foreclosure Is Still A Foreclosure
A foreclosure negatively impacts your credit for at least 7 years. It can prevent you from getting credit, a mortgage, a car loan or even a job. While it is tempting to want to walk away from the bad debt, the voluntary foreclosure still is a foreclosure. You are better off to stay in the house rent free and wait for an eviction in most cases, which is another bad idea. You should do what you can to stop foreclosure.
Some States Have Recourse After Foreclosure
In some states, the lender has recourse for any deficiencies in the mortgage. In some states, the lender has direct recourse if you do not pay off the debt and return the keys and can initiate a lawsuit or obtain a deficiency judgment. If the house is worth less than what you owe, in some states the lender can obtain a judgment for the deficiency and then attach it to your wages or even your other assets.
Many Lenders Refuse To Accept A Voluntary Foreclosure
Because lenders are deluged with foreclosures on their books, many will refuse to accept a voluntary foreclosure. They will still continue to pursue you through the court system in states that allow a judicial foreclosure. And if they can get a deficiency judgment against you for court costs and legal fees, they will.
If You Have A Second Mortgage, You Can Get Sued
Even if you live in a state that does not allow deficiency judgments to be entered against a borrower, if you have a second mortgage on your property and decide to go through a voluntary foreclosure, you may be liable for the amount owed to your second mortgage company.
Because of the negative impact that a voluntary foreclosure has on your credit and can have on you financial, it is not the wise route to go when you are facing the foreclosure process. You should do what you can do to stop foreclosure from happening to you.
Talk to loss mitigation specialists for foreclosure help if you are considering a voluntary foreclosure. They can give you options that you may not have thought about. Some of the options that they can offer include:
Loan modification To Stop Foreclosure
This is the loss mitigation company negotiates with the lender to modify your loan so that you can have less of a monthly payment. This may work in some cases, of you are behind a few months and can catch up.
Deed-In-Lieu of Foreclosure
The is where the lender accepts a deed for the property, only it does not reflect as a foreclosure on your credit. This may work as a way to stop foreclosure if you have equity in your property.
Short Sale
This is one way that you can walk away from your bad situation but still maintain your credit. The property is sold, usually to an investor, and the debt reflects as satisfied on your credit report. This is a better option to stop foreclosure if you are just looking to walk away from the property.
In order to decide if you are eligible for a short sale or other stop foreclosure options, talk to your loss mitigation specialists and get a free foreclosure evaluation. Your free foreclosure consultation will reveal which options are right for you to stop foreclosure. Remember, a voluntary foreclosure is still a foreclosure and has a negative impact for years to come. Do what you can do to get foreclosure help and stop foreclosure.
To find out how we can help you stop foreclosure, get a free foreclosure evaluation by contacting us at 866-477-7050 or click here to get started now.






"We were really in a jam. I was on disability because of my back and it wasn't enough to cover the mortgage payments. My wife lost her job and got another one, but it didn't pay as good as the first job. Our house was heading for the foreclosure process and fast. But we didn't know what to do. It seemed everything was spinning out of control for us. Luckily, my wife found 1st Foreclosure Prevention online. We filled out the form for the free foreclosure consultation and got a call the next day. We talked it over with them and gave them more information. Then they gave us a case study of our situation that was really detailed. They seemed to really know what they were doing and they did because the stopped foreclosure for us. They got us out of a bad situation - we can never thank them enough."
"We were like most other folks, I guess. Facing the foreclosure process and losing our home because we were out of work and owed too much on the property. You always hear about this happening to other people but never think it would happen to you. We were just going along with everything, trying not to think about it, but then my husband got an idea to call 1st Foreclosure Prevention - a company he had heard about that could stop foreclosure from happening. I figured it was a scam of some sort, but after we both got their free foreclosure consultation and found out about their company, we were impressed. We weren't like most other folks, at that point. We had foreclosure help and were able to stop foreclosure from happening to us."
"When we found out that our house was worth a lot less than what we paid for it, we were pretty upset. We thought we had made an investment when we purchased our property, but as it turns out, it was a poor investment. We wanted to get out of the house but couldn't even sell it. We thought about just giving it to the bank, but they didn't want it. We had no idea what to do, but then I found out about 1st Foreclosure Prevention. They were able to give us the foreclosure help that we needed and even helped us with the short sale process. We were able to walk away from a bad investment with hardly any damage to our credit thanks to them."
"We called 1st Foreclosure Prevention right away because a friend of ours who went through foreclosure in Florida told us about them. We knew that the sooner we acted to stop foreclosure, the better our chances. They gave us a lot of help and we were able to prevent foreclosure. Their loss mitigation specialists were great, too. They knew the laws in our state better than we did and they also had a lot of options for us that we never would have considered. Thanks to them, we are much better off. We're glad our friend recommended them and now we will do the same for others."
"I couldn't sleep at night because I was so worried about my mortgage and what was going to happen to me and my kids. I had been working two jobs to try to keep up on the mortgage payments since my divorce and there just didn't seem to be an end in sight. Then I lost one of the jobs when the place closed down. A friend of mine told me I was better off to do what I could to stop foreclosure before it started, so I contacted this place that I found online, 1st Foreclosure Prevention, and they gave me so much foreclosure help! I couldn't believe that they could be so nice and caring. They took it all off my shoulders and I was finally able to sleep. They saved my home from foreclosure."
"We figured that we'd be going through foreclosure no matter what. But we didn't know there were things that you could do to stop foreclosure from happening to us. We heard about foreclosure scams and were hesitant to even contact anyone for foreclosure help, for fear of getting scammed. But 1st Foreclosure Prevention seemed pretty legitimate. They helped us out and were actually able to stop foreclosure from happening to us. We got a free foreclosure evaluation and they were very informative as well as professional. We were pretty impressed with their experience and their knowledge of the laws in our state. We're glad that we contacted them as they really gave us the foreclosure help we needed."