Sell And Rent Back: An Alternative To Repossession

One scenario today is a great worry for every home owner; regardless of how healthy that home owner was, personally and financially, when buying their home. That worry is this: “Over the next thirty years, will I be able to keep my home if I become sick? What if I have an accident, or lose my job? What if my mortgage goes into arrears? Will my home be subject to repossession?”

Unfortunately, for too many people, that worry becomes a reality, and the end result is that a family loses a home they love. The good news is that there is an alternative, and it is an alternative which allows the family to stay put.

Circumstances like these can happen to anyone, and when a home has no income coming in, it’s easy to fall behind on mortgage. Once one falls behind in mortgage payments, it can become difficult or even impossible to catch up. At that point repossession is a strong possibility, and the home can be lost forever.

The first reaction of many people is to deny there’s any trouble. It’s very tempting to “bury one’s head in the sand.” The problem with this approach is that when one looks up, the problems of mortgage arrears not only haven’t gone away, they’ve gotten worse! At this point the next knock on the door could possibly be bailiffs with an eviction order.

While the homeowner’s options may be limited, there are options, and some of these options will allow the home owner to stay in the home, with a goal of getting ownership back. For example, there are specialist companies which can pay cash for the home, then rent the home back to the homeowner for a monthly payment which is less than the current mortgage.

The best aspect of the sell and buy back option is that when the homeowner’s situation improves, there is the opportunity to buy back the property. The price at which the home owner would be able to buy back the house is set at the time the home owner sells, and that price won’t change regardless as to what happens in the economy. The rent and buy back company will usually be able to offer a verbal quote on a purchase price for the house in as little as 24 hours. If the homeowner is interested at this point the next step would be a valuation of the home and the extension of a written quotation on the purchase price. The rent and buy back company will be able to give the homeowner directions on how to proceed with the sale, as well as how to stop any court proceedings that have already begun.

Mortgage arrears can be devastating, but they can be avoided. It costs nothing to apply for a sell and rent back program, and such a program can make the difference between staying in a home or being forced out, between continuing to work toward owning the home outright or being forced to start over.



Repossession