JUMP TO GUIDE: Can I Sell My House If I’m Behind on Payments in Colorado?

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get-your-cash-offer-to-sell-your-foreclosure-house-in-Colorado-hereBehind on your mortgage payments and need a fast sale? We buy houses fast, no matter what your financial situation is. We’re a Colorado home buyer ready to buy your house today. 

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Can I Sell My House If I'm Behind on Payments in Colorado?

Can-I-Sell-My-House-If-Im-Behind-on-Payments

You can sell your house if you are behind on payments in Colorado. You still have options as long as the property hasn’t been sold at auction. 

This article has everything you want to know about if you can sell a house when behind on payments.

Last year over 5.5 million homeowners were behind on payments at some time. Because they were behind on their mortgage, they were thinking about refinancing, forbearance, and even selling their homes. This, of course, led home-owners to ask themselves:

“Can I sell my house if I’m behind on payments?”

“How do I sell my house when I’ve missed some mortgage payments?”

Because of this, you are not alone if you have missed some loan payments and are thinking about selling your house. You are also not alone in your search to get an expert answer. I thought a quick search would get me some decent info on this topic.

Boy, was I wrong!

Because of this, I have put together this complete guide to help you sell your home if you’ve missed a few payments. By this end, you will know exactly what to do.

Shall we continue?

Have you missed lots of house payments? 

Are now facing foreclosure? 

You can get a no-obligation cash offer to sell your house in foreclosure today. Fill out a form or call us. 

As the best Colorado Cash Buyer, you can sell your house fast if it’s in Colorado Springs, Denver, Fort Collins, Aurora, and Lakewood. In fact, anywhere in Colorado!

One of our specialists will contact you, listen to what is happening, and discuss possible options.

Follow this link if you are ready to talk to a foreclosure specialist about selling your house fast for cash. 

Can I Sell My House If Im Behind on Mortgage Payments in Colorado?

how-to-sell-my-house-when-behind-on-mortgage-payments

Finding good information about selling your house when you have missed a payment or two is challenging because many “experts” have hidden agendas. 

  • The lawyers want you to file for bankruptcy.
  • The lenders want you to fix into another mortgage.
  • Cash home buyers and real estate investors want to buy your house but at what cost?

These companies can provide a solution if you are late on your mortgage. But what if you are behind on your payments and want to sell your house?  What do you do then?

HOW TO SELL YOUR HOUSE WHEN BEHIND ON PAYMENTS

You can sell your house when you are behind on payments. In-fact selling when you’ve missed a few loan payments can be a great idea. If you miss a few more you might be facing foreclosure! 

Today I am going to cut through all the real estate jargon and answer the question:

Can I sell my house if I’m behind on payments?

I’ll cover everything there is to know about selling a house when you’re behind on the mortgage, including:

  1.       The basics of selling a house with a mortgage (let’s review how it works when you’re not behind and then…)
  2.       Selling when you are behind on payments (Is selling a house when you missed payments any different?) I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised.
  3.       Options to sell your home when you are behind. You do have options! And time to pick the best one, trust me. 
  4.       How to prevent late fees and mortgage penalties from piling up
  5.       Tips to prep the house to sell when you are behind on payments
  6.       Short Sale or Underwater (Is your house worth less than your loan?)
  7.       Options other than selling (forbearance, refinancing but still avoiding foreclosure)
  8.       Reviews of some top local home buyers if you choose to sell your house

There is a lot to talk about when selling a house when behind on payments. And being behind on your mortgage or any loan can be very stressful. Trust me, I know.

I was behind on payments and needed to sell my house

Several years ago, I was under immense financial pressure. I thought I was going to lose it all. What helped me was finding good information from industry experts.

Thankfully, I could lean on some trusted real estate authorities who guided me through all my money troubles. Today I want to pass that forward to you.

If you are ready, I will dive deep into the question: Can I sell my house if I am behind on payments?

Sound like a plan?

Table of Contents

Have you missed lots of payments and are now facing foreclosure? 

By filling out our form, you can get a no-obligation cash offer to sell your house in foreclosure today. One of our specialists will reach out to you, listen to what is happening, and talk about possible options.

Follow this link if you are ready to talk to a foreclosure specialist about selling your house fast for cash. 

Selling With a Mortgage (Late on Payments or Not)

selling-house-late-on-payments

Before I get into the details of if you can sell a house when behind on mortgage payments I think it’s a good idea to talk about selling a house when you are not behind on payments. This is a good idea because once you understand selling a house when not behind on payments it will be easier to understand how to sell when you are behind on payments.

Selling a house with a mortgage is “The Norm”

People sell houses with mortgages all the time. In-fact, more homes have mortgages when they are sold than do not. Because of this it is very easy to sell a house with an outstanding loan on it. It is called “The Norm”.

Process of selling a house with a mortgage is very straightforward.

To sell a house that has a mortgage balance is very straight forward. First you need to choose which option to sell is the best for you (link down to options). Once you know how you are going to sell your home you must make the necessary preparations like:

  1.       Repairs and renovations
  2.       Run comps and determine value
  3.       List it and find a buyer

Once you have a buyer lined up you will sign a contract that will include a closing day. On the closing day the funds are transferred from the buyer to the seller. In return the ownership of the house is changed from the seller to the buyer. 

Simple, right?

The transfer is normally made at a title company. The title company will make sure everything is done properly. One of the tasks the title company does is pay off any mortgages and loans. After these are paid off the rest of the cash is given to the seller. The cash is transferred into a bank account of your choosing. 

SUMMARY:

Selling a house with a mortgage is common. To sell a house when there is a loan and the seller is not behind on payments is very straight forward. There are 3 main parties involved when selling a house in this situation. These are:

  1.       Seller
  2.       Buyer
  3.       Title company

The buyer gives money to the title company. The seller gives the deed to the title company. The title company pays off any loans on the house and gives the remaining money to the seller. Finally the title transfers the deed to the buyer. 

Straightforward and easy. 

I know because I have been involved in the buying of many homes. My friend considers me a real estate expert. Because I am full time researching, analyzing and delving into the housing market it does make sense that I am an information authority. I better be because it’s how I pay my bills!

Selling a house with a mortgage is "The Norm"

People sell houses with mortgages all the time. In-fact, more homes have mortgages when they are sold than do not. Because of this it is very easy to sell a house with an outstanding loan on it. It is called “The Norm”.

Process of selling a house with a mortgage is very straightforward.

To sell a house that has a mortgage balance is very straight forward. First you need to choose which option to sell is the best for you (link down to options). Once you know how you are going to sell your home you must make the necessary preparations like:

  1.       Repairs and renovations
  2.       Run comps and determine value
  3.       List it and find a buyer

Once you have a buyer lined up you will sign a contract that will include a closing day. On the closing day the funds are transferred from the buyer to the seller. In return the ownership of the house is changed from the seller to the buyer. 

Simple, right?

The transfer is normally made at a title company. The title company will make sure everything is done properly. One of the tasks the title company does is pay off any mortgages and loans. After these are paid off the rest of the cash is given to the seller. The cash is transferred into a bank account of your choosing. 

Selling with a mortgage is easy [And I promise selling when you are behind is too]

Selling a house with a mortgage is common. To sell a house when there is a loan and the seller is not behind on payments is very straightforward. There are 3 main parties involved when selling a house in this situation. These are:

  1.       Seller
  2.       Buyer
  3.       Title company

The buyer gives money to the title company. The seller gives the deed to the title company. The title company pays off any loans on the house and gives the remaining money to the seller. Finally the title transfers the deed to the buyer. 

Straightforward and easy. 

I know because I have been involved in the buying of many homes. My friend considers me a real estate expert. Because I am full-time researching, analyzing, and delving into the housing market it does make sense that I am an information authority. I better be because it’s how I pay my bills!

That’s selling when not behind and I think you will be pleasantly surprised that it’s not much different when you are behind on payments. 

Can-I-Sell-My-House-If-Im-Behind-on-mortgage-Payments

Above we talked about how to sell a house with a mortgage. It is very common. Don’t you think it’s pretty easy sounding?

Of course if you are not a real estate professional it may be a little confusing. But when you sell your house in this situation the pieces of the puzzle will fall into place. 

Now guess what happens whe. you sell a house and you are behind on mortgage payments?

Do you think it will be much different?

Believe me. It’s not.

If you want to sell a house when you are behind on payments it can be just as simple. 

Here’s what you must do.

How to sell a house when behind on the mortgage

  1.       Choose how you want to sell (more on this shortly as some options may save you a ton of money compared to others).
  2.       Prepare your home to sell (recoup your cash with these real estate pro tips).
  3.       List it MLS or find a cash home buyer
  4.       Accept an offer to sell your house
  5. Let the title company do its job
  6. Close and get paid.

At this point, you may be thinking…

“But nothing has changed. To sell my house when I am behind on payments is the same as selling my house normally.”

If that is your genius conclusion then you are a genius. 

You Can Sell Your House When Your Are Behind on Mortgage Payments

To sell your house when you are behind on payments uses exactly the same process. 

Once again you have to believe my expert knowledge. I have sat down at many closings (a closing is when the money and deed changes hand at the title company). Many of these have been for houses that the owner was behind on payments. It worked exactly the same.

You can sell your house when you are behind on payments. 

You can sell your house if you are late on the mortgage  and in the same fashion as you would normally sell a house. 

The only difference is that on the day you sell your home (closing day) the title company will also have to pay the lender for any late fees or penalties. These late fees are the result of you being behind on your mortgage.

Because there are late fees you will get less cash but you won’t pay anything out of pocket. Just like a typical sale.

Typical late fees

Late fees and penalties vary from loan to loan. Your mortgage document will have a section that says how much they are. Remember all those documents you signed when you bought your house? It is in those loan docs that the penalties for getting behind will be spelled out. 

Selling When Your Behind Is Easy

Now you know. You can sell your house when you are behind on your loan payments.

Selling when late on the mortgage is the same as selling if you are currently on your mortgage. The only difference when you sell a house when behind on the mortgage is some of the money from the buyer will be used to pay any late fees or penalties for missing mortgage payments.

Options to Sell When Behind on Payments

A monthly payment or two (or more) has been missed on your mortgage. Forbearance and refinancing aren’t for you. In-fact you have decided to give home-ownership a rest for a minute. Selling and moving on is the best choice for you. There are 3 common ways to sell your house:

  1.       Find a realtor (link) and sell on the MLS
  2.       Sell your house on your own AKA For Sale By Owner – FSBO
  3.       Sell to a cash home buyer or real estate investor

Each way has PROS and CONS. TO make sure you choose the best option to sell your house I would like to analyze them with you.

Shall we?

Sell a house with a realtor

The benefits of selling with a real estate agent is:

  1.       A great realtor will tell you what to fix and what not to fix to get top dollar
  2.       Agents will list your house on the MLS
  3.       Schedule showings
  4.       As your representative they will receive offers from buyers
  5.       Provide expert advice on how to respond to offers
  6.       Hold your hand through the selling process.

Having a great realtor with expert local knowledge can make selling your house easier. If you get a bad realtor it could be a nightmare (link). Other cons to using a real estate agent are:

  1.       Repairs and renovations cost a lot of money
  2.       Repairs and renovations take a long time (late fees and penalties pile up
  3.       Selling on the MLS is not the fastest option to sell your house
  4.       If they are not local experts their advice may cost you time and money

There are good and bad things about selling a house using a realtor. A key point I want to highlight is selling a house with an agent is not the fastest way to sell a house. Because it is not the fastest you will get hit with more late fees and mortgage penalties.

Late fees and penalties are the results of missing payments on your loan. The longer it takes to sell your house the more you will get behind. The more you get behind the higher the fines will be. Because of these reasons, if you have decided to sell your house and you are behind on payments shouldn’t you try to sell it quickly?

Sell your house faster and pay less late fees, right?

Sell Your House FSBO

A warning to home-owners who plan to sell their house using FSBO (especially if you are behind on your payments)

For sale by owner is often picked by homeowners who are trying to save money when they sell their house. Obviously, when you sell FSBO you do not have to pay a realtor to sell your house. This will save you 3% of the sales price. In Denver, CO where my real estate company is based, this savings is approximately $20,000 based on current data for single-family homes.

$20,000 is a lot of cheddar. $20,000 is a lot of cash and absolutely worth thinking about.

For the record, I sell my house’s FSBO all the time. I am selling my house at FSBO because I am a real estate professional. As a real estate pro, I spend hours researching the local housing market. I pour real estate over data analyzing market trends and what houses are worth. I do this for a living and spend all my working days doing this. Do you?

The reason I bring this up is because many homeowners think they will save money. However, they do not because they list their house too low. When you sell your house and list it too low you leave money on the table. On the other hand, if you list your house too high you will not sell. If you don’t sell you will miss more payments on your mortgage. The more behind you get on your payments you rack up more fees. All of a sudden you are not saving money at all.

WARNING OVER…

PROS of FSBO:

  1.       You decide the list price
  2.       Showings are on your schedule (not the realtors)
  3.       Save tens of thousands on the seller’s real estate commission (you still have to pay the buyer’s realtor 3%)

CONS of FSBO:

  1.        No one to help guide you
  2.       Paperwork, scheduling, and legal documents are all your responsibility.
  3.       Sellers without experience may not sell the house timely
  4.       You still have to fix it up to get someone to buy it
  5.       Increased mortgage penalties and loan fees if you are behind on your mortgage payments

If you need to sell your house quickly because you are behind on payments FSBO might not be the best choice. Especially if you are not an authority in your local real estate market. Using a realtor or choosing option 3 (selling online to a local cash home buyer) might be the best choice.

Selling House to a Cash Home Buyer AKA Real estate Investor

“Can I sell my house for cash now?”

If you need to sell your house because you are behind on your mortgage or missed some payments you can sell your house for cash. If you sell your house for cash you will most likely sell it to a cash home buyer. Cash home buyers also go by:

  1.       Real estate investors
  2.       We Buy Houses Companies
  3.       Equity Buyers
  4.       Fix and Flippers
  5.       Buy and Hold Investors
  6.       I-Buyers

While there are many names, all of these companies can buy your house for cash. The key difference is what they do after they sign the deal. Not important right now. What is important is the PROS and CONS of selling your house for cash when you are behind on your mortgage payments.

PROS:

Like selling a house FSBO or with an agent there are some great benefits of selling your house to a cash buyer like;

  1.       No real estate commissions at all
  2.       You don’t have to make any repairs or renovate anything
  3.       Reputable cash buyers close 100% of the time
  4.       Legit cash home buyers have verified cash funds so can close faster than any other method

CONS:

  1.       When you sell a house for cash you must know what your house is worth (run comps on your own)
  2.       Cash home buyers have to make a profit so you will need to discount the price

When you sell your house for cash the last item is critical. When you sell for cash you are not going to get top dollar. However, selling a house is a balancing act. You need to weigh up what you are trying to achieve.

If you are trying to sell your house because you are behind on your mortgage payments then needing to sell fast might be a priority. Needing to sell a house fast might be the priority because the longer it takes the more you have to pay in late fees. As I said, it’s all about balance.

How to Prevent Late Fees and Mortgage Penalties Piling Up

If you want to avoid more fees and penalties piling up because you are behind on your payments then you need to sell your house quickly. This is because the longer it takes for you to sell the more behind you get and therefore more late fees are applied to your mortgage.

If you are behind on your mortgage and are looking to sell you need to weigh your options. You can fix up your house and list with an agent to try and get top dollar or you could sell your house as-is, make no repairs and sell for cash.

There are 3 important things to remember:

  1. You can sell your house is you are behind on payments
  2. The longer you take to sell your house the higher the penalties will be
  3. Balance between paying for repairs and getting a high price VS selling fast for cash to sell house as-is not getting more penalties and fees.

Tips to prepare your house to sell when you are behind on payments

As a fix and flipper, I have made many costly mistakes renovating a house. I have fixed many things that did not add value to the house and I did not recoup my money. When getting your house ready to sell you must avoid large renovations and only fix things that make your house worth more. Some definite items to put on your do not repair list include:

  1.       Full kitchen or bathroom renovation
  2.       Driveway or path repairs
  3.       Window replacement

A couple of items you might consider when getting your house prepped for a fast sale include:

  1.       Getting rid of all clutter (not necessary if selling as-is)
  2.       Mow the lawn for first impressions
  3.       If selling on the MLS a fresh coat of paint can do wonders. Alabaster white (SW 7008) is my go-to color.

At the end of the day if you need to sell and are missing mortgage payments I highly recommend doing as few repairs as possible and getting it sold quickly. I am not suggesting you sell it for a bargain-basement low price. However, it’s important you sell before the situation becomes dire. Of course, if you miss too many payments you may be facing foreclosure.

If you are really behind on your payments and facing foreclosure you still have options. However, these options start to disappear the longer you take to sell. Vultures start circling. Cash offers will decrease in value. Avoid this by taking control and selling your house sooner than later.

What if My House is Worth Less Than My Mortgage

If your house is worth less than what you owe on the mortgage then the process does change. At this point, you would need to talk to your lender about a short sale. 

Short sale when behind on payments

A short sale in real estate is when a house is sold for less than what is owed on the mortgage. This typically occurs when the homeowner is in some kind of financial distress. If you want to sell your house when you are behind and it is worthless you will need to get permission from your lender. If you short sell your house the lender may still make you pay off what is owed. 

Forbearance or Loan Refi When You Are Behind on Payments

This article is everything you must know about can you sell a house when behind on payments. But I think it is important to talk about a couple of other options when you are behind on your mortgage. Not everyone wants to sell when they are behind on mortgage payments. For these people, forbearance or a refinance of their mortgage is common.

If you do not want to sell and are behind on your payments you must reach out to your lender as soon as possible. Reaching out and talking with them is a scary idea. Many people don’t want to talk to the big bad bank. But ignoring the letters will only make it worse.

Give your lender a call. Explain your situation and ask to talk to a person that can help you. If you are really nervous you can talk to a government agency first. Below is a list of places you can talk to that will explain to you what you should expect. Because talking to someone first can make it less scary.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development
For further information about your FHA-insured mortgage, contact the National Servicing Center at 877-622-8525. For other questions, contact the FHA Resource Center at 800-CALL-FHA (5342). For a list of HUD-approved housing counselors, go to: www.hud.gov or call 800-569-4287. 

The Department of Veteran Affairs
Veterans who have questions regarding their home loans should contact VA’s home loan program toll free number, 877-827-3702, to speak with a Loan Technician.

Veterans whose homes have ever been modified with VA Specially Adapted Housing grant funds, should also contact VA at 877-827-3702 to speak with our staff.

The Consumer Finance Protection Bureau
The Consumer Finance Protection Bureau (CFPB) is committed to providing consumers with up-to-date information and resources to protect and manage their finances during this difficult time as the situation evolves. 

 

FAQ about Selling When Behind on Payments

You do not have to keep paying the mortgage when you list your house. However when you miss payments on your mortgage or get behind on your loan your lender will charge you late fees and penalties. The more payments you miss the higher the penalties. This will eat into your profit.

If you can afford to keep paying your loan while you are selling your house you should because then you will pocket more cash when you close. Remember when you sell your house, at closing, the title company will pay off your lender for any late fees and penalties. (link to higher in article) Then they will pay off any remaining mortgage or loan balances. Once all the loans and fines are paid off you will be given any left over cash.

More late fees and penalties means you walk away with less cash in your pocket.

Agreed?

Yes, you can list your house when you are behind on payments. You can sell your house when you are behind on payments too. You have many options to sell your house when you are behind on payments and you should learn about them all from a real estate expert.

In Conclusion

You can sell your house if you are behind on payments. You have various options to sell. There may even be a chance that you don’t have to sell it either.

At We Buy Houses in Denver, we can be your fast and easy solution to get your home sold. We are home buying professionals. We specialize in buying houses in the Mile High. Also, we buy apartments for cash. There are amazing benefits when you sell your house to us:

  • No commissions or fees
  • No repairs or renovations
  • No money out of pocket

It doesn’t matter what the situation is. And we buy houses all over the front range so location is no problem either. 

If you need a fast and convenient way to sell your house in Denver, CO then we are your best solution

WeBuyHousesInDenver.org is a legitimate cash home buying company and is your solution to selling your house because as Denver’s number 1 cash home buyer we will buy any house in any condition so if you want a cash offer on your property simply give us a call or fill out an online form and our team of experts will get to work, quick smart, to help you get your house SOLD! We offer cash for houses!