The final misconception I commonly hear is that once the lender schedules a sheriff's sale it is too late to do anything. We often will attempt a short sale at the same time your lender is going through the foreclosure process. After the sheriff's sale you have a six month redemption period in most cases. We can use this time to negotiate with the lender. If you think about it, the banks and lenders do not want your house back. If they foreclose they incur huge costs, which they often don't recover and it is a long and expensive process for them. In most cases they would much rather negotiate with you now to get part of what you owe them instead of going through the whole long process and often ending up with much less. For them it is a business decision and that's how they treat it.
The best thing you can do if you are faced with the possibility of late payments or foreclosure is to contact a competent Realtor and review your situation and your options. The earlier you do this, the more options you will have and the more damage you can prevent to your credit scores. Every lender and every situation is different. There are sometimes tax implications and legal implications that require further advice from an attorney or tax advisor. There are many people in today's market that are struggling to keep their homes and make payments. Foreclosure is a long, and often uncertain process. A short sale is often the best available option to stop the collection calls from your lender and salvage your credit, but you need a knowledgeable, experienced professional to guide you through the process. Feel free to post any comments to this blog or contact me with any questions.