text: Money Talk :: - I desperately need sound advice! Please help
  I desperately need sound advice! Please help
  prob0420
  I would really appreciate any "true sound " advice to my situation Please dont scold .. I punish myself every night hence getting no sleep already!
  I will condense this so know it hasnt happened overnight
  Im married for 13yrs together 19. Bought a nice home 3200sgft 5/3 2 story on 1.9 acre culdesac , 9 yrs ago for 190K. 1yr ago. husband left me for another woman, and stopped paying his part of bills.. I got badly behind. Mortgage is 1600 mo. I nearly had breakdown, lost my job. took out 401 k to keep paying house. Now is depleted. Im broke. Bank offered me loan mod ( Obama joke) and it only reduced pymt by $100 ( doesnt help me)so I turned it down. ( also wanted 3400 up front) Im working again now but income is only $1800 mo and I have $337 car payment ( 1 cc w bal of 600) thats it. I put house on mkt for 235K ,, no bites feedback is it needs new carpet, kitchen upgrades and plumbing ( a few leaks not bad) new garage door , and will soon need roof ( no leaks but few shingles off) House is beautiful , and kept immaculate. Woods behind no one can build behind.
  NOW ,, Realtor ( whom I do not like ) she has not put much effort she got me to drop price to $219,900 . Now she wants me to drop to payoff , which is now 214K,, or to short sale. This leaves me with nothing out of the house and bad credit probably Im scared of where I will go.
  Secondly ,, husband has resurfaced. hes still with mistress but says he still loves me and will help . He is currently paying utilites for me . The bank says I can reapply for loan mod but have to take off mkt.
  SO , hubby wants to file for loan mod. and keep for a while to make repairs and relist later for enough to make something.
  Realtor says I would have to keep it 3-5 yrs in order to make anything
  Im such a mess I cant think , everyone is pulling me different direction,
  and with a motive I think. She wants commission doesnt care about me,
  he doesnt want to lose me if I move on, but cant be trusted to commit.
  What to do . Loan mod if possible for a while & get him to help fix up?
  Or cut my losses and run? Bankruptcy? I dont know Please someone with a little knowledge advise me!
  Have you considered credit counseling?
  Well that would certainly come after I do something about the house now.. I have to make choices now about the home , I am looking for someone that can give me some sound advice on rather to try and hold on to the house through a modification or short sell , rather than waiting untill it is foreclosed on.
  credit counselling oops wrong spelling credit counseling
  You really need some credit counseling my friend. Please consider it
  Fri Sep 17, 2010 5:31 am
  I have heard that alot of so called credit counselors are just scams and charge you money.how do I know which ones to talk to ? and arent they expensive, I have no money to spare? Is anyone on here a counselor that could at least give me one piece of advice on whether to apply for loan mod and not do short sale yet?
  Look back upon your decisions - almost all or them are related to the McMansion. How many people in your family - ask yourself, is the 3200' house a 'need', or a trophy house?
  How big was the house that you grew up in? 1500'?
  I would start by selling the house - don't put any money into it, sell it 'as is'. Here is why - when you pay $5000 for a carpet the color/style/grade will appeal to only 10% or 20% of the lookers so your group of potential buyers is much smaller. And the $5000 expense will get you almost no return - no buyer will say "nice carpet, I'll offer $5000 extra".
  Price the house realistically for the 2010 market, if you try to get the 2006 price it will sit empty for years. And the buyer doesn't care about your loan, your payoff amount, etc - s/he only cares about getting a good deal.
  That is how I started .. with the realtor she went through and told me the things that needed to be done. ,I said AS IS , I cannot afford to do these upgrades. We listed it at 235K to start, then we had quite a few showings and no contracts. so she suggested dropping price. It is now 219,900. I owe 214K so thats upside down already w/her fees.
  Now she wants me to drop to 214? She also suggested short sale to get me out of the house that is Yes too large for me. I dont want to keep the house as trophy , at all. I do not care about looking good to anyone. I would be happy with a small house. But Im afraid that my credit would not allow me to get anything.? and I dont have husband to help me anymore.
  Bank has offered me a loan modification based on hardship. I have to submit financials next wk to get exact numbers I just feel like I am so confused and needed someone with a little real estate knowledge to help. Not someone that stands to gain from my loss. I can see your point on carpet ,, I could just get it cleaned and be done . But what about kitchen floor ( mine has tear in it and looks bad ) and stove upgrade to flat top . Would that and of course plumbing repair be warranted>? What do you think I should do?
  Sat Sep 18, 2010 3:41 am
  Go & get money from market with low interest rates with proper credit consulting.
  What do you mean by Go
  BY Go do you mean short sale this house ? and then with my credit damaged do you think someone will rent to me? Also I am limited on income right now and he is paying all utilites. But I would be on my own , with money , AND applying for new place. Im just trying to step carefully.
  I could just get it cleaned and be done . But what about kitchen floor ( mine has tear in it and looks bad ) and stove upgrade to flat top . Would that and of course plumbing repair be warranted>? What do you think I should do?
  Don't do any of that, the new owner will either clean the carpet or replace it before moving in - same with the kitchen floor, interior paint, yada. Like you told the realtor, 'AS IS' means 'AS IS'.
  You didn't say how many people - but if it is one or two, I would rent an apartment, no need to live with the worries of houses for now. To sell it you have to lower the price to match the current buyers, they don't care about the $214k loan, the just want to a good buy. You don't necessarily have to do a short sale - you avoid it by borrowing the shortfall. Eg, you could borrow $14,000 and sell the house for about $200,000. That gets you free of a giant house, and you are left with only the apt rent and the payment on the $14,000 note (maybe $250/m) - that would be less that the $1600/m to stay in the house - plus all of the home ownership costs.
  And to better improve your finances, maybe you could do something about the car? The $300/m car payment can drag you down - if you can sell that ar and get a relaible 8 yr old car for about $5000, tat might be a way to go.
  Sat Sep 18, 2010 11:10 pm
  Get help with financial advisor to help you guide your financies.
  I do agree; get some financial advice. You will be glad you did!
  I agree about the financial advisor, it may cost a little more, but you need someone who knows your entire story and has the know how to give you sound advice
  Mon Sep 20, 2010 6:01 pm
  Yes credit counseling does cost some money, but in the long run they are saving you time and money. By decreasing your interest rates, more money is going straight to your payments.