Washington State recently passed a law that is designed to help homeowners from being scammed by “keep your home” schemes. Many people were being told that they could rent their own home after they signed over the rights, and would be allowed to buy it back once they were back on their feet. Of course, 99% of people could not get back on their feet and the investor took the home and the equity. I think that is great that the investors that scammed many homeowners will be less likely to do so and could be held liable if found misleading people into giving away their properties. The less shady Real Estate investors out there, the better. However, the new law also makes many good Real Estate investors have to think twice before they do any deal.

The law can actually end up handcuffing honest Real Estate investors and many people who could have avoided foreclosure in the past will end up losing their home because less investors are willing to risk being classified as “distressed home consultants”.

I guess with the new law, I have to say: I am not a distressed home consultant. I have bought homes from people that were at risk of losing their homes. I do try to buy houses for less than I think I could sell them for at a later date because I am in business to make a profit. I recommend you contact a lawyer and/or a distressed home consultant if you think you may lose your home. I am acting in my best interest, and hopefully a solution that I come up with can be considered win-win. However, I cannot guarantee that. I am not a lawyer, and I am not authorized to give legal advice. I am not an accountant, and am not authorized to give tax advice. I am not a plumber, so do not ask me to fix your sink.

I like helping people, but now I have to worry about how the new law may affect me even though I have never done anything wrong. Now people that are like me are being penalized because some people were taking advantage of homeowners. Perhaps the law needs to be re-worded.

If you are in a situation where you think you may lose your home, there is a very good chance that you will lose your home to foreclosure. I am sorry, but it is true. Do not believe what some people may send you in the mail saying they will rent the house out to you and allow you to buy it back when things get better. If you cannot afford the mortgage, you will not be able to afford the rent either. The person that buys the house from you will want you to at least pay a rent amount high enough to cover their mortgage payment, and it will probably be a higher dollar amount than the mortgage you could not pay. Think about it…

However, a foreclosure does look bad on your credit. If you have equity, and can afford to get out of the house, and pocket some cash, DO IT! Unfortunately, many people bought at the wrong time, refinanced too many times, or got into a mortgage they did not understand and now they owe more than they did when they first got the loan. Many of those people cannot sell the house through a normal process because if the house were sold on the open market, they would not be able to pay off the loan and Real Estate agent commissions. In a situation like that, a short sale will probably be necessary to free the title and allow you to get out of the house without a foreclosure. I am not being a “distressed home consultant”, I am just stating a fact. I have worked with credit for several years, and I have a good idea of how bad a foreclosure looks on your credit. If you want to see about selling your Western Washington home, even if it is a fixer, even if you owe too much, even if you just are tired of making payments, call me and I will try to give you the honest answers you deserve, based on my experience. Again, I am not a lawyer, and I did not play one on television. However, I may be able to help. OlympiaHomeBuyer.com

I see it all the time, especially now that the economy is slowing down. People, for one reason or another, are falling behind on their mortgage payments. It happens for several reasons. Some common ones are: loss of job, injured/ill and cannot work, divorce/separation, death/illness in the family, or maybe the mortgage rate reset and the new payment is too high.

For whatever the reason, the end result is almost always one of two alternatives.

1. Sell your home.

2. Lose your home to the bank.

I believe in #1 and it is not just because I earn an income from people selling their homes to me. I believe in it because when I help someone sell the house they can no longer afford to keep, I honestly feel I am helping them. It is a true Win-Win situation. Sure, I buy a property for what I believe is a good price, but I am also relieving my client of a very heavy burden. I offer quick closing, valuable experience, and flexable terms. I can make the pressure of creditors and debt seem to dissapear.

Many people will be able to go through life without having to know the pressures of facing insurmountable debt. They will never know the fear of being kicked out of their house. The will never know the embarrassment as the sheriff orders you out of the house while movers place your belongings in the street with neighbors watching. No matter what, though, there will be many people who do have first hand knowledge of what it is like having creditors calling at all hours of the day. They know what it is like when the power bill is three months behind, the mortgage is two months behind, and the water bill is 4 months behind.

The pressure can make people want to give up, stop caring, and become dilusional by hoping simply praying will make the problems go away.

I help people in that position. I prefer to help people before it gets to the late stages of the foreclosure process, but I do not always get to choose. Often people call or email me when it is already too late. I have even had people call me when their former home had already sold at auction, asking me if there was anything i could do. By the time it gets to that, it is too late.

If you are already worried about how you are going to make your next mortgage payment, and the one after that, now is the time to call me. The more time we have, the better price I can get you for your home, the more flexible we can be with move out date, and the less stress you need to feel.

Forclosures = Bad

Piece of Mind = Good

There is no oblication in calling me. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain. If you think you could be in a situation like one I talk about in this post. Do not risk losing everything. At the very least, you could save a foreclosure on your credit.

If I do end up helping you, I may be able to help you cover your moving costs. I have done it before, and I will do anything i can to help make this transition easier for you.