In recession, more and more people in America are finding it hard to pay the home loan notes they signed several years before, or even more recently.  A few years back, as people watched the price of houses skyrocket, buyers had an ever-increasing confidence in buying real estate as an investment.  They thought their home’s value would never fall and would only increase.  Now, many of those same people are looking for advice about how to avoid home foreclosure.

Not only did the homeowners pay exorbitant prices for their houses during the real estate boom which the nation had gone through about 5 years ago or so, the “market value” of their homes was pretty exorbitant also.  Many of the  homeowners cashed in on the value of their homes by taking out second mortgages or lines of equity based on the high values associated with real estate at the time.  Now they have a hard time repaying it and are looking for advice about how to avoid home foreclosure.

So, how do you avoid home foreclosure?

• Even if it means doing without other things, make your mortgage payments every month. If necessary, eat rice and beans.
• Do not avoid the lender’s calls or letters, if you begin to fall behind in your loan payments.  Banks will more likely to begin foreclosure because they think you will absolutely never be able to repay your loan and don’t even want to try.
• Put your house up for sale.  Getting out from under may be the best way to avoid foreclosure if you are able to sell.  Some houses are still selling, even though the selling market is quite slow.
• There are companies and other groups, either for profit or non-profit, who can help you evaluate your situation and maybe even represent you. You might want to seek their professional advice of a professional.
• Many mortgages have helpful information about how to avoid home foreclosure attached to, or included in, the mortgage. If you try and understand the language of your original home loan and any subsequent loans you took out on your home you will be able to know how to avoid foreclosure by your lender.
• Contact a housing counselor at Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
• Make your mortgage payment a top priority.  Any unsecured debt such as credit cards, is better paid only after you have paid your mortgage.
• Find a second job or increase your income or find some other way to create an extra income stream.  And start saving more money. Get your son a job like flipping burgers or stock shelves, so he doesn’t have to turn to you for every expense.
• Look into loss mitigation.  HUD can help you with this, as can other experienced professionals.
• Re-negotiate your loan with your lenders.  Most lenders want nothing to do with foreclosing on a property and are likely to prefer re-negotiating rather than being forced to foreclose.

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