Many Americans dream of buying a home they can call their own. However, unexpected events can cause you to take a financial hit that makes it difficult to pay off your mortgage payments on time. When this happens, you could be at risk of foreclosing, which can result in a damaged credit score, financial instability, and even court proceedings on your property’s ownership.

Some behind on their mortgage payments may not be aware of what happens before and after a foreclosure, and what you can do with your home in SC during foreclosure. Here’s what you should know about undergoing foreclosure in SC, what you can do before and after foreclosure, and how Sell My House Fast GSAP can help.

After Foreclosure

Let’s start with what you can do with your property after your home is foreclosed.

When you miss a mortgage payment, your lender may do things like remind you of your late payment, issue a late penalty, or reach out to you and offer a loan renegotiation if you’re experiencing hardship. After 120 days (and around three or four missed payments), your lender can file to foreclose on your home and send you a notice foreclosure. At this point, you are now in pre-foreclosure.

After some time, if your loan isn’t settled or you haven’t approached your lender to discuss your missed payments, the court can go ahead and process your foreclosure. Once the foreclosure is final, your property will be legally owned by the lender, who will then liquidate your property to recoup the losses of your loan.

After the foreclosure is final, you can’t do anything with the property because ownership has legally been transferred to your lender. You will have to vacate the property as your lender can now legally evict you. Aside from this, your credit score will drop as it will reflect the foreclosure. This can make it difficult for you to get better deals for loans, credit cards, insurance, and even jobs that are related to handling money.

Before Foreclosure

Before your home is foreclosed, there are two periods that determines what you can do with your home: before your lender serves you a foreclosure notice, and the period of pre-foreclosure after serving you a foreclosure notice but before the court forecloses your home.

During the second option, you can still try to re-negotiate terms with your lender. However, if your lender has tried to reach out before pre-closure but you didn’t respond, they are less likely to negotiate as they are exercising foreclosure as a last resort to recoup their losses after multiple attempts. What you can do to resolve the loan before foreclosure is to perform a short sale, which involves selling your property with the lender’s approval. All the proceeds of the sale go to the lender, and, if the selling price is lower than the outstanding loan, the lender decides if they’re willing to forgive the rest of your debt or you’ll have to pay the rest of the debt.

The period after your first missed payment and before receiving your foreclosure notice – around 120 days – is where you have the most flexible options. First, you have the option of speaking to your lender to try to get a forbearance, which temporary pause on your loan payments, until your financial situation improves. You may also negotiate repayment terms so that mortgage payments are easier and your bank still gets repaid.

When it comes to your property, you can also choose to sell your property. Before pre-foreclosure, you do not need your lender’s approval and do not have to undergo a short sale. However, this period is only 120 days; given the average time it takes to sell a home in South Carolina is 92 days, the traditional way of selling a home in the real estate market may not be enough time to close a sale and gain the funds to pay off your mortgage loan.

How Sell My House Fast GSAP Can Help

Sell My House Fast GSAP understands the situation many homeowners are facing and the need to sell their homes fast to avoid foreclosure. Rather than waiting three months to sell your home, we can provide a fair cash offer within 24 hours of viewing your property and close the sale in as little as 14 days.

The best situation to sell your property before pre-foreclosure is if the value of your property is equal to or greater than your outstanding loan. By selling, you can pay off your missed mortgage payments as well as the rest of your loan. Aside from providing fair cash offers for homes in South Carolina, we buy homes as-is, do not charge commissions and hidden fees, and shoulder all the closing costs. Thus, you minimize the costs of selling a home.

Conclusion

After missing a mortgage payment, you have the most flexibility with your property before your lender serves you a foreclosure notice. Once you’re in pre-foreclosure, selling your property requires your lender’s approval. If you miss that timeframe and your house is foreclosed, you no longer have any legal options on what to do with your home.

Sell My House Fast offers homeowners in South Carolina a fast, efficient, and convenient experience when selling their home. Contact us today to schedule a home viewing and receive a fair cash offer within 24 hours.