Selling a Home in Pre-Foreclosure in St. Louis, Missouri
Selling a home in pre-foreclosure in St. Louis, MO. Tough times can fall on the best of us, but foreclosure is not the end of the road for homeowners. While losing your home and facing an enormous hit on your credit score is not a situation anyone wants to be in, you do have options if you find yourself there. Evervest Home Buyers is a cash home-buying company that buys St. Louis, MO homes in foreclosure. Our buyers are friendly, discreet, and nonjudgmental. We can have an estimate ready for you in as little as an hour, have a full offer for you in as little as 48 hours, and close in as little as 30 days – before the bank auctions off your home. Call us at (314) 730-0366 or contact us online to start the process of getting out from under the bank’s thumb today. Depending on how much you owe, we may even be able to put enough cash in your pocket to fund your next move.
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The Pre-Foreclosure Process in St. Louis, Missouri
Pre-foreclosure is the time between when you fall behind on your mortgage payments and when your bank or lender sells your St. Louis, MO house. It typically happens in five stages:
- Payment default — Payment default begins when you’ve missed at least one mortgage payment. After each of the first two missed payments, your bank will likely reach out via letter or telephone. At this point, you may be able to work something out with the lender to catch up on payments. Federal law requires lenders to discuss loss mitigation options with you.
- Notice of default — After the third month of missed payments, you’ll receive a demand letter or notice of default, detailing how much you owe and informing you that you have 30 days to bring the mortgage current. Federal law states that lenders must wait 120 days from the first missed payment to begin the process of taking your home.
- The lender officially begins foreclosure — If, after 120 days you haven’t caught up or made an agreement with your lender, they will begin either a judicial foreclosure or a nonjudicial foreclosure. In a judicial foreclosure, the lender will file a lawsuit in court. In a nonjudicial foreclosure, they’ll proceed out of court, but must follow rules set by Missouri law.
- Sale of the home — In either case, the home will then be auctioned off to the public. The lender will set a minimum bid taking into account the value of the house, the amount owed, and any fees or unpaid taxes.
- Eviction — Once the home is sold, you’ll have between three and 30 days to leave. If you don’t, the new owner can file an eviction lawsuit against you.
While the foreclosure process may seem harsh, you do have options before the bank takes your home from you.
How to Stop Foreclosure in St. Louis, Missouri
You have a few options whenever you’re home is in pre-foreclosure or foreclosure in St. Louis, MO:
Reinstate the Loan
Reinstating a loan typically includes paying off the past due payments, late fees, and any other charges associated with the delinquency. Once you have paid off all the past due amounts, the loan is considered to be current again and you can continue making regular payments as outlined in the loan agreement.
It’s important to note that reinstating a loan does not forgive or erase the past-due payments and penalties that were incurred, it simply brings the loan current. It’s also important to remember that reinstating a loan is not a permanent solution. If you are unable to maintain the payments, you may fall behind again and the home may go into foreclosure again. You could consider taking out a loan with a different lender, but the interest rates will likely be high, and you’ll have to keep up with the payments in addition to your mortgage.
Deed in Lieu of Foreclosure
In a “deed in lieu,” you can agree with the lender to voluntarily transfer ownership of the property to them in exchange for the release of your obligation to pay the mortgage. This reduces some of the negative consequences of a foreclosure, such as a damaged credit score, and it allows the lender to avoid the time and expense of the foreclosure process. The lender can then sell the house, or keep it as a rental property, but you would still likely have to move out.
Bankruptcy
Filing for bankruptcy is a way to get relief from overwhelming debt. If you file for bankruptcy, you’ll still be responsible for paying off the mortgage, but you’ll have more time to and will have a different payment plan. There are two types of bankruptcy you can file:
Chapter 7 Bankruptcy
If you file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy, you will not have to pay off your remaining debt if your home completes foreclosure, and you can remain in the home during the process without having to pay the mortgage. This is usually a way to simply stall foreclosure for several months while you figure out what to do.
Chapter 13 Bankruptcy
If you file for Chapter 13 bankruptcy, you may be able to keep your home. You will have to agree to a plan to pay off all or some of your debts over a three to five year period. You’ll have to follow the payment plan under the supervision of a court-appointed trustee.
Bankruptcy has severe drawbacks, however. First, you’ll need to show that you are eligible for it, and all your debts, expenses, and income will be analyzed. You’ll also incur significant court costs and fees for bankruptcy lawyers. If you’re already struggling with money, bankruptcy still may be too expensive.
Sell Your Home in Pre-Foreclosure
The last option is to sell your home and pay off your debt with the money you get from the sale. There are a couple different ways to do this:
- Short sale — If an interested buyer makes an offer on your St. Louis, MO home, the lender must consider it. In a short sale, the offer on your St. Louis, MO home in pre-foreclosure is less than the amount you owe. The lender can then decide if getting less than the full amount back is worth not having to deal with the hassle of a foreclosure. A short sale can only happen if the lender agrees. In some cases, the bank may believe the short sale offer is more than they’ll get at auction. A short sale can negatively impact your credit score, but not as much as a foreclosure.
- Standard sale — If your home is worth more than the amount of debt you owe, you can simply sell your home to an interested buyer, pay off your debt with the money from the sale, and pocket the rest.
You can choose to hire a real estate agent to sell your home in pre-foreclosure, but the foreclosure process takes between 45 and 60 days. According to data from the St. Louis Federal Reserve, selling a house on the traditional market takes over three months, and that doesn’t include the time it takes to prepare the house for sale. If you’re in pre-foreclosure, selling to a cash home buyer and home investors may be your best option. We can agree to an offer and close on your house within 30 days of you contacting us.
How Our St. Louis, MO Cash Home Buyers Can Help With Your Home in Pre-Foreclosure
Evervest Home Buyers buys homes with all cash offers, and strive to give St. Louis, MO homeowners a stress-free home sale. We’ve bought everything from properties of people who owe back taxes to homes with extensive fire or water damage.
We buy properties “as-is,” which means that homeowners do not have to make costly repairs or renovations to the property in order to sell it. The condition of the property doesn’t matter to us as it would to a typical homeowner. You also don’t have to do open houses and wait to find a buyer. We can help you in selling your home in pre-foreclosure by:
- Giving you a fair offer quickly — If you send us pictures of your home, we can give you an estimate within an hour. Then, we’ll schedule an inspection, where a member of our team will perform their own inspection. You don’t even have to pick up the socks off the floor before we come over. We always strive to offer the most we can for a property in St. Louis, MO while still seeing it as an investment for ourselves.
- Making the home selling experience stress-free — We understand that your St. Louis, MO home being in pre-foreclosure is stressful, and you may be nostalgic about leaving your home. We’ll make everything as simple as we can so you don’t feel any added stress. Unlike other cash home buying companies, we have no contingences or loopholes in our contract; we always keep our word. We’ll show you proof of funds so you can feel at ease.
- Getting you money fast — While the bank would likely prefer it if you sold your home instead of them having to foreclose on it, they’re not going to wait around to collect their debt. We can help you sell your house fast. You don’t have to deal with or wait around for third parties. As licensed real estate brokers, we can perform the closing ourselves, usually within 30 days if not sooner.
- Saving your credit score — Having a home in pre-foreclosure does not effect your credit score. However, if your house is foreclosed on, it has a huge negative impact on your credit score, that will stay there for 7 years. While selling to us won’t allow you to keep your home, it will save you from the financial pitfalls of it getting foreclosed on.
Selling Your St. Louis, Missouri Home in Pre-Foreclosure | Evervest Home Buyers
Everyone hates foreclosure – even banks. Selling your home in pre-foreclosure is often the best option for everybody involved. Our buyers are personable and nonjudgmental, and can help you get out from under your debt and save your credit score. We’ll make a fair cash offer on the property, close on the sale quickly, and assist with the legal and financial aspects of the sale. If your St. Louis, Missouri home is in pre-foreclosure, call Evervest Home Buyers today at (314) 730-0366 or tell us about your property online.