It’s no doubt that if you are behind on your mortgage payments, you are under financial stress. You may have even considered selling your home at a heavy loss just to get rid of the property, hoping to move on to better times with a fresh slate. But still, the question arises can you sell your house if you are behind on mortgage payments?

I bet you thought this question would be more complex, right? Well, it’s not. It doesn’t matter where you live; the answer to this question is pretty much the same everywhere: Yes, you can sell your house if you’re behind on mortgage payments. You just have to be smart about it and understand what will happen when you do. Let’s look at all the possibilities.

Can You Sell a Home if You’re Behind on Your Mortgage?

If you are behind on your mortgage payments, it is possible to sell your home. You should act quickly, however, because time is of the essence. The sooner you decide to sell—the sooner you begin working with a real estate agent, contacting potential buyers, and other necessary steps—the easier it will be for you to get out from under the mountain of debt represented by your mortgage.

The options you have are largely determined by how much money is owed on your home and what its current market value would be if sold.

Above Water

If you are above water, meaning that the value of your home is greater than the amount owed on it, then you have several options. You can sell the property in its current condition to a buyer who will pay off your mortgage and take over ownership.

This is a normal home sale but remember that the sales price must cover the missed payments also.  The seller will need to request a payoff quote from their lender so they will know how much they owe to the bank.

Another way is to sell your home to a buyer who will agree to take over your mortgage payments. This is called a “subject to mortgage” and allows you to avoid the costs associated with foreclosure. The seller is still responsible for the debt but the buyer agrees to take over the mortgage on behalf of the seller in exchange for the deed. This is a good option for those who still have some equity in their home but can’t afford the mortgage payments anymore. 

You can also sell your home to a real estate investor. You won’t get the full market value for your house since you’re behind on mortgage payments, but the investor may be able to come up with a plan to relieve you the burden of the mortgage payments and possibly some cash in your pocket.

However, selling a home takes time, and the longer you wait or let the process drag on – the more you will owe. So be proactive!

If your finances are likely to remain the same or worsen, consider selling as soon after you first fall behind on payments as possible.

Under Water

Underwater is a term that relates to the value of your home being under the amount of money owed on it. In other words, you are “underwater” when your house is worth less than what you owe.

When you’re underwater on your mortgage, it can feel like there’s no way out. You might have already stopped making payments, hoping that the bank will soon foreclose and you’ll no longer owe them money. There are a couple of ways to sell a home that is underwater, but neither of them is easy and involves having a lender who is willing to work with you.

A deed-in-lieu of foreclosure is an arrangement where you voluntarily turn over ownership of your home to the lender to avoid the foreclosure process. The lender prefers this over foreclosure since the foreclosure process is more expensive for the lender.  This is better than foreclosure, especially if you can’t find a buyer for your house.

A short sale is a process where the lender allows you to sell the house for less than you owe, the lender must approve the sale price, but this helps the seller when property values have dropped since the borrower took out the mortgage.

You can also sell your home to a real estate investor. You won’t get the full market value for your house since it’s underwater, you may not even receive any cash, but you will be relieved of the burden of paying the mortgage payments which will give you piece of mind and a clean slate to start over again.

We Buy Houses Fast  

As a homeowner behind on mortgage payments, you have options. And although selling your home fast might seem easier, there is often another option — you can sell your home to an investor, An investor can assist in helping sell/buy your home through the use of flexible purchase arrangements that many realtors aren’t familiar with.

As an investor in Oklahoma, we understand the stress and pressure that can come with needing to sell a house fast. No worries! We’re here to help you solve all of your problems. We buy houses in any condition – as is, fast, and with no money down on your part. So, why waste more time? Give us a call right now or email us!

Final Words

Hopefully, we have provided you with enough insight and information that you can begin pursuing your next steps towards a solution to this problem. If you have any other questions that we didn’t answer or didn’t cover, please let us know as we are always willing to provide as much insight and detail to people who are trying to sell their house that is behind on mortgage payments. Good luck!

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