I have to do this today, have to....

[HvnBound]

Hey all,

 

Sorry, it has been a long time since I have posted, I mostly just read nowadays but sometimes, things are just too hard. I have a wonderful man in my life, have a decent paying job that is permanent, am eating 3 meals a day, still in shape, living with my guy but -

 

In August I went to check on the house and found two notices taped to the door, one stated to move or license the derelict vehicle, get a trash service and cut the grass or by the following week, get fined $500. I mowed the grass and got a neighbor kid to finish the back yard, had the village tow the vehicle since the state voided the title back in 2008 and the official owner never got it from my driveway in 4 years, and advised the village that I no longer live there so no trash service is needed, so that stuff is taken care of.

 

The problem is the second notice - it shows I have until 11/11 to pay $4500 or I can lose my home. I did not know this since I failed to open multiple mailings over the past 4 years since I did not have a decent paying job til now, it was either pay property taxes or have food, electricity, water, gas, I chose the latter. If not for this company 'buying' my taxes, the total amount owed would be $6500 but due to charges, fees, taxes, etc., I will owe about $4500 by 11/11/16. The second due date is 5/10/17 - that is when I will owe another amount, $3,300, then 05/9/18 I will owe $2600.

 

I am scared I may lose my home. It is the only thing that I have left that is worth anything, there was no life insurance and my BIL paid for the funeral. I sold DH's shotgun, my MIL's coins and furniture in auctions just to survive after unemployment ran out, found I can live quite cheaply when I need to do so.

 

I had to vent, because when I struggle with something, if I vent on here I tend to follow thru, lol, and get things done. I ask for your prayers or good thoughts. I have got to get ready and go to the bank to find out if I will qualify for a loan. I am scared I will be turned down.

 

When I was widowed in May 2012, I went to bagos and minibagos in multiple states for the next year or so, until the credit card companies stopped my credit, I was optimistic and thought I would actually get a job back in my field as a work comp adjuster but that still has not happened. I now am doing the same job I did at the age of 27. I am now also getting paid $11 less per hour than what I earned in 2011, thankfully I received $320 in unemployment from October 2011 to October 2012. My parents are amazed at how I survived. I am too. I just have to get moving on this, if I get turned down then I will figure something else out. DH paid $35K for the home in 1984. I hope to at least sell it for that amount, but hope for $55K, it is a nice home, 4 beds, 2 baths, bi-level with a view of a cool airport that has a fireworks display every July 4th.

 

This journey has truly sucked but thanks to the wisdom of the wids before me, I continue to strive to move forward with my life, I continue to try to be stronger, I continue to try new things, I will not f***ing give up. I will survive this too. I just hope that I can survive it, with a loan getting approved, so I can then sell this house, I hope to have some money left over for savings, after selling the home and paying off the loan.

 

So if you read all the way to the end, thank you. I always am long winded on here. If anyone has any advice please share your advice. Please pray or think positive thoughts for me because now I am getting up, going to get dressed and go to the bank.

 

 

 

 

[cathyr]

No advice, just sending positive thoughts and prayers your way.  It sounds like a nice home and I would do whatever it takes to keep it.  I think you might have regrets if you don't.  Good luck!

[canadiangirl]

Just wanted to say that I have read this, I hear your anxiety and pain, and wish you good luck with the loan and (hopefully, if this is what you want), the sale.  Hopefully you were successful and if not, find another good option. 

[klim]

Just a thought..not knowing the area you live in or it's economics. Could you rent the house out??. That way you could use the rent to pay the bills and still own an asset that may appreciate.

 

It really depends on local economics whether that is viable.

 

Are you trying to get a home equity loan...where you borrow against the house value? I did that.

 

Anyways good luck.

[Bluebird]

Hi there HvnBound,

 

I'm glad you came back to post and share this big stress in your life.

 

First, aside from this issue, I'm really happy to hear that while life isn't what it used to be, you seem to be quite happy and making the most of the gifts in your life. Yay! That's half the battle!

 

Regarding the house - I like the suggestion of renting it out if possible, and at worst putting it on the market. I think a lot of us turned a blind eye to the very difficult decision of what to do with property or things we shared with our partner. I certainly did. We had a property that my hubby literally put blood, sweat and tears into renovating, that we tried to sell when he was alive. After he died, I knew I couldn't deal with it and rented it out. Unfortunately the renters caused a lot of damage which was both psychologically and financially troubling. That was really my wake-up call to push through my feelings and get it sorted out. I knew it was going to continue to bring me pain if I kept things in a holding pattern. In my case, I put it on the market and made far less than I should have. However, after some tears and new feelings of loss, I began to feel freer than I ever have.

 

I hope that you will be able to find a solution that is tolerable and is freeing HvnBound - it may not be painless, but I believe it will be worth it.

 

Big hugs, Bluebird.

[Mrskro]

I'm sorry you have to deal with this. 

 

I agree renting it out may be a good idea.

 

As for the amount owing.  Most companies don't want to foreclose on property, in my experience they just want cash.  I would suggest calling and keep asking for someone that can help (I wouldn't accept the first person that says no) and seeing if you can come up with a reasonable payment plan vs paying a lump sum. 

 

Good luck.

[Bunny]

As a fellow widow who struggles financially, I totally feel for you and hope your bank meeting is successful. Money worries can add a whole other level of suck to one's life, can't they?

 

I own a tiny house that we bought for a future rental property that I'm now (finally) trying to scrape some money together to finish fixing up (it needs ALot) so I can list it on Air BnB. I know a couple people around here who make pretty good money that way and I live in the Midwest, not anywhere special. I don't know where you are,  but that might also be something to look into and consider.

 

I am sending you all the good vibes I can...

[Guest nonesuch]

Sending good thoughts.

 

What are the chances you and your man will move back into the home?  Your taxes (once you get the arrears paid) sound low, to me. Are there jobs for the two of you? Can the two of you retire there?

 

Renting can be dicey.  The people I know who were happiest with renting hired an agency to check the references of the prospective tenants. 

 

Somebody already mentioned Air BnB. 

 

My man-friend wanted me to move into his house an rent mine, as he was about to lose it to foreclosure.  I already commute 42 miles a day, though, and moving to his house would have increased that to nearly 80 miles a day.  I just couldn't. My job doesn't pay well enough to justify moving further away. There was the option of buying his house, since I don't have a mortgage on mine.  I frankly don't know enough about real estate to be a real estate mogul! He wasn't able to sell to anyone else before the foreclosure, but truthfully, he hadn't paid the mortgage for years. He didn't really try to sell until the last four months of the proceedings. 

 

You may have enough equity for a HELOC though.  Good luck.

[JustLola]

So sorry you have to deal with this.

 

I was thinking along the same lines as Nonesuch. Interest rates are still low and you may be able to get a HELOC. You wouldn't need much, if that's a concern, just enough to cover the taxes. That said, it could put you past the deadline but call whichever governmental entity you pay taxes to and find out what the options are. If they know you're working it out, they may give you an extension. It's cheaper for them to give you another couple of weeks than to initiate a sale.

 

If you still have a mortgage, talk to the lender. They may advance you the amount or amortize it into your payment. Again, it's in their best interest. If there's a tax sale, they stand to lose whatever balance is left. Best of luck.

[HvnBound]

Thank you everyone!!! I went to the bank and was told my credit score - I was surprised because I did not pay a few credit card bills yet and thought my credit was horrible, but she said since I paid every month for 6 years on my minivan, now 11 yrs old and 219K miles, I qualified for a loan so I can pay off the entire debt to date!!!! I get to keep the home.

 

If my house was 10 miles south or east, it would be in a safe area and the property value would be good. My home is in a declining village, there is a house fire once a month, a few home invasions per year, and in the past 2 years, I have heard gunfire. Time to move and time to sell. DH paid $35K in 1984, in 2006 the home was worth $115K, now it is hopefully $55K.

 

I want to move farther west 30 more minutes because the area is growing. It is a safe area and I never hear of home invasions and shootings like in my old village. I have been working for an insurance company and have taken quite a few claims from landlords who have to repair the damages left behind by a tenant when they didn't pay their rent, no thank you, that changed my mind, lol.

 

Next steps are to empty the home, put it on the market as is, sell it, pay the loan off and then put the rest in savings, save for a 'new to me' vehicle, rent an apt and keep moving. I love this community!!!

[Julester3]

I am glad you had a positive resolution. I think your plan is sound. It's hard working with home values because of the fluctuations of real estate and areas where one chooses to live. I know right now my home is worth a lot less than what we paid for it so I am going to stick with it and see what happens.

[donnak]

im glad things worked out

[beth_krkswidow]

Glad to hear it worked out