How can I sell or buy a distressed home in pre-forclosure ?

How can I sell or buy a distressed home in pre-forclosure ?

Member since 2022 · 2 posts · 0 votes

Long story short, I am a newbie Realtor with a desire and strong interest in being an investor. My husband's father passed away a couple years ago, leaving behind a house with a 450K mortgage still unpaid on it. My husband's sister has lived in the home with her 2 kids and boyfriend for about 7 years, just as long as my father in-law had owned it. My father-in-law originally leased the property from the landlord at the time back in 2014 with the intention of buying it a few years later. They signed a rent to own contract, my father-in-law paid extra on his rent every month which went towards his down payment that he was able to use in 2018 when he officially legally purchased the home from his landlord (I was his buyer's agent). Unfortunately he had horrible life threatening health conditions that took his life in 2020, but his biggest wishes he talked about before he passed were that his kids and grandkids be well taken care of and that they always have a place to live and lastly since I was taking my real estate classes required to obtain your realtor license at the time, he said to me "Kelly, I want you to sell my house when you all are ready and only you can be the realtor on it, only you, you're in charge of that, ok?" I nodded my head while holding back tears and gave him a big hug in his hospital bed. My father in-law paid his mortgage payments religiously and on time every single month until the day he died. Well once he passed and my sister-in-law was still living in the home with no intentions of ever moving, the family all expected her to be responsible for continuing to make those mortgage payments on time every month. Well, he passed in 2020 in the midst of covid19 and all its financial headaches and my sister-in-law was laid off and did not make one payment towards that mortgage and still hasn't to this day. My husband did communicate with the bank holding the loan throughout the past 2 years begging for more time on a forbearance since the qualified for it when covid also took my husband's company from him. Now the home is technically in pre-foreclosure but there is no set court dates and they haven't received any letters or notices from the bank about them coning and taking over the property. But they are nervous that could happen at any moment and our intentions have always been to sell the home or keep it and move sister in-law out and rent it out to college students since the home is 3 blocks away from a well-known university. This is an awesome investment opportunity type of property. Its bones are good, it's in a fantastic sought after, no crime, quiet neighborhood. 4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 2100 square feet, just needs cosmetic upgrades but nothing major and college kids don't care about that. So, we are trying to figure out quickly if we should go ahead and have me put it on the MLS price it high enough to pay off the original mortgage and the other liens on the property (we don't know an exact number on this, but we think it might be around 30k) and see what happens. Will the foreclosure take an immediate hault or pause once the home is placed on the market? Should we put it on the market at all or should I try and find an investor or wholesaler and sell to them for the right price off market? Can I myself purchase the home from my husband and his sister (whom are the executers of the estate) using "Subject to" financing or have my husband seller finance it to me? Or maybe a different creative financing way? Ideally, we all would like to make a little money off of this home verses having to give it completely up to the bank at some point probably very soon......My sister in law will have to make enough money to rent a house elsewhere and my husband and I are renting a home nearby but we both are more than ready to purchase our first home, but we don't have very good credit or money for a down payment right now (we also have 5 kids). What can I do? Any advice or info. is incredibly helpful and appreciated!! Thanks!

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  • Hamp Lee IIIPro Member
    Real Estate Agent · San Antonio, TX · Member since 2019 · 1k+ posts · 832 votes
    3y

    Kelly,

    I’m sorry to hear about so much that has happened in your family. You have a unique situation with a lot of moving parts. Some faster than others.

    Though I’ll save some of my comments for other experts, I would like to share a few of my thoughts.

    1. You are a realtor, but not the executor, but the wife of one. One of the executors made a decision that brought the home to its current state. This can be a dangerous “minefield” to travel through because it seems you want to help and fulfill the wishes of your father-in-law. But you’re not one of the executors and have limited options because you can only control what you do, not someone else…and you probably need the agreement of both executors to move forward, which might be a problem. At this point, you’re in more of an advisory role.

    2. Deal with one problem at a time. Being an investor is great, but probably not for this property. Not now at least. And even if you can, I would recommend putting that in the back of your mind to solve these issues in front of you now. You are a problem solver as a realtor, but remember point #1.

    3. Get ALL of the facts. Your family will need to know all of the numbers (liens, etc.) that are owed. This will help you know which options are available to you and which are not. Facts will also eliminate some of the emotions behind the decisions to be made going forward…which emotions can run high in situations like this.

    4. Speak with the rent-to-own company. You want to know what policies are in place for such situations, specifically with your father-in-law and his estate.

    5. Speak with the bank. Outside of a loan modification, workout, refinance, or short sale (there’s a couple other options that might not be what you want), the foreclosure will continue. Based on the numbers you stated, you may be in “short sale” territory, but you need to know all of the numbers to find out. Washington is a non-judicial foreclosure state, meaning they don’t need to go through the court to foreclose, so there is a faster timeline.

    6. Focus on your family. I would recommend becoming a homeowner before purchasing investment property. Some others might disagree here, but this is just my recommendation. Additionally, there will be added pressure on your husband because he is one of the executors and may have limited options himself if he needs the agreement of his sister. Another minefield. Be supportive and know the right “hat” to wear and when.

    I wish you all the best and please keep us posted on your progress. Take care.

  • Real Estate Broker · Jacksonville FL & Middletown CT · Member since 2008 · 1k+ posts · 632 votes
    3y

    The very first thing you need to do is get payoff statements from ALL the lienholders to see what is really owed, and compare that to the market value of the property today. You cant move forward at all until you figure out whether you have equity or not. 

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