Looking for a Real Estate Attorney in Michigan and question regarding a loan mod

[Jason Kohler]

I am trying to help a friend figure out some home buyout options. She has asked me to help her find a real estate lawyer in Michigan, preferably near Traverse City and to come up with options for her to keep her home. I would appreciate any recommendations.

She currently owns the home jointly with her former partner, both are listed on the deed (joint tenancy) and on the mortgage as co-borrowers. As part of a settlement agreement they agreed to have the house listed on the market within 60 days. The proceeds from the sale will be split 50/50

She is hoping to find a way of buying him out and somehow keep the current mortgage, which cannot be modified. All options must result in an immediate quit claim deed.

I have come up with the following possible scenarios.

Option 1: Somehow convince the bank to do a loan modification to remove her former partner from the mortgage (with his permission) by agreeing to a 1% interest rate increase. The current loan is at 2.5% and is for 30 years. Alternatively, she could pay down the principal by another 10%. She is open to having a co-signer added to the loan to make this more attractive for the bank. She would need to come up with the cash to buy out her former partner or arrange for payments to him over time.

Would a bank consider this type of deal? Maybe this is not technically a loan modification but some kind of refinance.

She will not consider refinancing at today’s rates. It would no longer pencil out as a good investment.

Option 2: Convince her former partner to agree to having his name removed from the deed but keeping the mortgage as it currently is. She would still need to buy him out for his half either through a lump sum payment, or payments over time. In addition, she could pay him the equivalent of 1% interest on the loan for as long as the mortgage is in place for keeping his name on the mortgage.

Are there other options we are not considering?

Does it make sense to engage a lawyer for working through the options or to work with the bank on option 1? Or does it make more sense to have a rough agreement in place prior to engaging a real estate attorney?

Thank you for any advice