Getting A Redemption Statement
When you sell your home, you will need to appoint a conveyancer to handle the legal side of the transaction for you. One of their tasks will be to contact your mortgage lender to get a redemption statement for the date you expect to sell your home. This sets out just how much is outstanding on the mortgage. It will be paid from the proceeds of the sale.
If Porting Is Not Right For Me What Are The Alternatives
- If you decide not to port, you will need to find another mortgage.
- Your existing lender will probably be keen to keep your business, so its worth speaking to them to see what kind of new deal they can offer you.
- At the same time, speak to an independent broker or financial adviser who can access every product in the mortgage marketplace.
- They can then help you compare what your current lender is offering with the best of whats available elsewhere, to make sure you end up with the right deal for you.
Repay Your Reverse Mortgage
Start the selling process once a buyer makes an offer on your listed home. Once you accept the offer, your reverse mortgage lender and realtor will start with the closing process. It takes about one month or so. Revisit all the terms that your mortgage lender laid out initially.
When the sale goes through, your proceeds will have to be put towards the earnings on your reverse mortgage. From there, the equity and sale money are combined to cover the total selling price of your house.
If it covers the assessed market value of your home, the estate can be sold. Otherwise, the lender might suggest some other ways of selling a house with a reverse mortgage.
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What If Your House Is Underwater
Selling a house with a mortgage is extremely common. And in most cases, putting your house on the open market, finding a buyer, and satisfying your mortgage debt when the deal closes is all youll need to do to pay off that loan. However, if youre underwater on your mortgage, youll need to work out a different solution of some kind.
Normally someone thats underwater is not going to sell. But if theyre in a spot where they dont have a choice if they can afford to pay the difference and sell the property some people will do that, Helali shares.
For most folks, thats not an option, he adds. At that point, theyll need to contact the lender to request a short sale, which is when you sell for less than what you owe.
The lender will have to agree to the short sale and approve an offer before you can move forward with the transaction.
Our guide to selling a house thats underwater goes over these options in further detail. As a first step, wed always recommend reaching out and starting a conversation with your lender. Depending on the situation, it may be possible to work out an arrangement or modified payment plan.
Once I Sell My House How Does My Mortgage Lender Get Paid
When you sign the purchase contract, your closing manager will open up an escrow account. An escrow account is essentially a holding tank for the documents and money youâll exchange in a house sale. On your closing date, the buyer will send their payment to the escrow account. Your title company knows that youâre selling a house with a mortgage, so theyâll make your final payment directly to your lender. Now, there are officially no liens on the home and ownership can be transferred over to your buyer.
Have a question about selling a house with a mortgage that I didnât cover? The Orchard team is always here to help. Send us a message at .
Colin King
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How To Choose An Offer
Your agent should be able to weed out buyers who can’t afford your home by looking at a prospective buyer’s credit and debit history, income, employment status, the amount he or she has available for a down payment and the time needed before closing on the house .
While your agent is required by law to disclose all offers to you, insist once again that he or she does so. There should also be a clause in your contract requiring all offers to be reported to you.
Think about your own finances. You probably have an ideal price in mind, but, ultimately, at what price are you willing to settle? Do you require a specific amount of money in order to make a down payment on a new home or for car payments? Also keep in mind the fees incurred by the sale process — agent’s commission , closing costs, attorney’s fees and so forth. Factor these numbers into your accounting so that you can have a good idea where you will stand when this process is complete.
Strategies In A Buyer’s Real Estate Market
When the market is cold, you’re in a stronger position as a buyer than as a seller. You’ve got your pick of lots of houses for sale, at reasonable prices. But you might have trouble selling yours. To protect yourself, you might start by buying a second house, but then asking the seller to make your purchase contract contingent upon your selling your current home. A seller having a hard time finding a buyer is likely to accept this contingency, even though it means waiting for you to find a buyer. Be ready to give the seller plausible reasons why your home will likely sell quickly.
In case no seller is willing to accept this contingency, however, at least make sure you can arrange financing. Talk to a mortgage broker about what you’ll qualify for. Then be ready to act quickly to put your first home on the market after going ahead with buying a second one. There’s a lot you can do ahead of time — taking care of maintenance issues, going through files for the appliance manuals and other documents you’ll give the buyer, choosing a real estate agent and possibly a home stager, and so forth.
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To Hire Or Not To Hire An Agent
Although real estate agents command a hefty commissionusually 5% to 6% of the sale price of your homeits probably not a great idea to try to sell your home on your own, especially if you havent done it before. It can be tempting, especially if youve seen all those for sale by owner signs on peoples front lawns or on the Internet. So does it pay to hire an agent?
A good agent generally has your best interests at heart. They will help you set a fair and competitive selling price for your home, increasing your odds of a quick sale. An agent can also help tone down the emotion of the process by interacting with potential buyers and eliminating tire kickers who only want to look at your property but have no intention of making an offer.
Your agent will also have more experience negotiating home sales, helping you get more money than you could on your own. And if any problems crop up during the processand they commonly doan experienced professional will be there to handle them for you. Finally, agents are familiar with all the paperwork and pitfalls involved in real estate transactions and can help make sure the process goes smoothly. This means there wont be any delays or glitches in the deal.
After reading all this, should you really hire an agent? Only you can decide.
Money: Consider Your Financial Position
Ideally, youd be able to have concurrent closings, selling your home in the morning and closing on your next place that afternoon or at least within a few days. But what if things dont go according to plan? You could suddenly find yourself without the necessary funds to close on your new home, or wind up paying two mortgages for an extended period of time. Worst-case scenario, you may be unable to get final approval for a mortgage and potentially lose your next home.
If you dont have the means to handle two mortgages simultaneously, you might want to include a contingency in your offer that gives you an escape route should the sale of your current home fall through. You may also consider adding a financing contingency, in case your new loan approval hinges on selling your current home. A good Realtor will be able to help you make the right decisions for your needs.
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Which Is The Right Move For You
The best option for you depends on a lot of factors. Youll want to think about your timeline, your financial situation, your local housing market, and more.
To help gauge the right route for your home sale, ask yourself these questions:
- What can I afford? Can you afford to manage two mortgage payments at the same time? Can you handle maintaining multiple properties, as well as the taxes and expenses that come with them? Know your budget, as well as what your expected costs might be in all three scenarios.
- How competitive is the market? If youre in a hot, in-demand market, it might be harder to find a home quickly. You may want to sell first to maximize your profits, and then delay your purchase until the market cools.
- Are there iBuyers available in my area? iBuyers are quickly expanding to markets across the country, but theyre not present everywhere just yet. See if were in your neighborhood.
- How quickly do I need to move? Are you working on a set timeline, or do you have more flexibility? If youve got a deadline, you may need to buy first in order to ensure you meet it.
- What condition is my home in? Is it move-in ready, or does it need lots of repairs and work? If its the latter, that will mean more expenses, a lower sales price and, most likely, a longer time on the market. You might consider selling to an iBuyer who will handle the dirty work on your behalf.
Do You Have A Reverse Mortgage And Want To Sell Your House Here Are Some Additional Pitfalls To Watch Out For
While the process of selling your home with a reverse mortgage may seem complicated, it is actually fairly straightforward provided you follow the instructions accordingly.
Its important to communicate your questions about the reverse mortgage. Make sure that you always have access to the loan servicers telephone number and email address. They will support you during the entire loan process. In addition, you can contact your reverse mortgage specialist at any time with questions or concerns.
Inheriting heirs could also make a mistake if they pay too much to keep their property.
The reverse mortgage debt will be reduced to 95% of the appraised value if it exceeds the appraisal amount. An inheriting heir can pay off 95% of the value of the home if he or she wishes to keep it.
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Begin The Process Of Applying For Financing
Most homeowners cant afford to buy a house without selling their original home first or at the same time. If you buy a house before you sold your current one, then you may struggle to come up with the down payment. Make sure you know what your financial options are before you start the financing process.
HELOC
A home equity line of credit is one way to get the cash. A HELOC uses the value of your home as collateral for the loan. When you take out a HELOC, you can use the funds as the down payment on your next home. Then, when you sell your house, youll repay the HELOC with the proceeds.
Bridge Loan
A bridge loan, like it sounds, can help bridge the gap between now and when your home is sold. A bridge loan is a type of personal loan that will be repaid whenever you close on your old house.
Additional Loans And Liens Are Paid Off
After the mortgage is paid, any other loans and liens that are on the house get paid off out of the proceeds of the sale. These include other lending products like home equity loans and home equity lines of credit .
Also paid off at this point are any other liens on the property . Tax liens are also paid off in sales.
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How Short Sales Work
Short sales are a process in which you sell a home for less than you owe on the mortgage. A lender has to approve a short sale because theyre not being made whole on the loan. Theyre likely only to do this if youre in imminent danger of default. You have to be facing some sort of financial hardship.
A short sale should be considered a measure of last resort. Itll hurt your credit just as much as a foreclosure or deed in lieu . The advantage here is that youre in control of the process rather than having your house foreclosed on. If you have a short sale, it can cause a ton of trouble if youre trying to get a mortgage in the future.
If youre applying for an FHA loan, you can get a mortgage after having completed a short sale without a waiting period as long as the following applies:
- You cant have a mortgage or installment payment thats 30 or more days late in the year leading up to the short sale.
- No mortgage or installment payments can be 30 or more days late in the year prior to your new mortgage application.
If you cant meet these requirements, the waiting period is 3 years. Meanwhile, VA loans require a 2-year gap between the short sale and the purchase of a new property. You cant get a conventional loan from Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac until youve waited at least 4 years. Finally, a Jumbo Smart loan from Rocket Mortgage® has at least a 7-year waiting period.
Selling And Buying A Home
You own a home but youâre looking to sell it and buy a new home. Maybe you want more living space, a yard for the kids to play in or a quieter neighbourhood? If youâre like many home owners, youâd prefer to time your sale and purchase to occur around the same time. While this approach isnât always feasible, there are strategies available to help you.
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Avoid Getting Stuck Paying Two Mortgages When Buying Your Next House
By Ilona Bray, J.D.
If you plan to sell your home and buy another, which should you do first? If you sell first, you’ll be under time pressure to find another house quicklyand could end up settling for less than you wanted, overpaying, or stuffing yourself and all your possessions into a hotel room until you can buy a new place. But, if you buy first, you’ll have to scramble to sell your old housea particular problem if you need to get top dollar on your old house in order to make the down payment on the new one. And owning two houses at once is no treat, even if it’s for a short time. You’ll have to worry about two mortgagesin the unlikely event that a lender is even willing to offer you a mortgage for a second house before you’ve sold the firstas well as twice the maintenance, and the security issues that come with leaving one house empty.
Here are ways to minimize the financial and psychological downsides of selling one house while trying to buy another.
Set A Fair Listing Price
Everyone wants to get as much money for the home as they possibly can. However, there are advantages to setting a fair asking price. Here are couple of them:
- You have a better chance of getting multiple bids. If people think theres good value at the price point youve listed, youre more likely to get several bidders on your home. In this way, you may actually end up generating a higher sale because it creates more competition between the bidders.
- Theres less chance of fallout. Most people dont have the ability to make an all-cash offer for a home. Getting a mortgage requires an appraisal, which places a value on your home in relation to comparable properties in your area. If youre listing price is fair and based on reasonable values, the likelihood of the appraisal coming in low and scuttling the transaction isnt as high.
A real estate agent doing a comparative market analysis should help you decide on a fair listing price.
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Selling After One Year
If you own your house for at least one year before selling it, your profits will be taxed as long-term capital gains, which have lower tax rates than short-term capital gains.
Long-term capital gains tax rates range from 0-20%, so delaying your sale by a few extra months could save you thousands on any taxes!
For example, say you sell a house after six months and make a $50,000 profit. If you fall into the 32% income tax bracket, you could owe Uncle Sam $16,000 in short-term capital gains tax, plus any state taxes.
Waiting until the one-year mark instead could save you $8,500 because youd likely qualify for a lower long-term capital gains tax rate of 15%. Paying 15% instead of 32% would reduce your federal liability to $7,500.
Want to save even more when you sell after a year? Selling with a low commission real estate company like Clever can slash your listing fees by thousands of dollars.
Clever pre-negotiates steep discounts with traditional realtors, so youll get all the services and support you expect but pay a fraction of the price.
