Legal Question in Real Estate Law in Florida

lease-purchase/foreclosure

we have a lease-purchase agreement on our old home that the buyer is refusing honor, our realtor says its a lost cause because he signed the lease on the wrong side and without a witness. We now have 2 mortgages and we cant afford to pay both. we dont want to ruin our credit. we can make one payment on the old house which will buy us a month, but thats all. the old house is in my husband's name, we both own the new house where we are living and want to stay. we cant lower the price of our old home to attract a new buyer because at this point we are only making enough to pay off our mortgage. a place like homevestors will give us only $60,000 short of what we need to be free, clear done with the house.

what do we do next that will be least damaging to my husband's credit score? We are very scared, we have worked long and hard for unblemished credit. Taking legal action against the buyer doesnt make sense because we need the $ ASAP and we cant afford an attorney. also i dont believe we can force him to buy our house. so it looks like we arent going to be able to make payments on the old house and it will be foreclosed. what is the best way for us to go about this that will be least damaging to us?


Asked on 11/15/07, 11:28 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Scott R. Jay Law Offices of Scott R. Jay

Re: lease-purchase/foreclosure

NOTE: This communication is not intended as and should not be interpreted as legal advice. Rather, it is intended solely as a general discussion of legal principles. You should not rely on or take action based on this communication without first presenting ALL relevant details to a competent attorney in your jurisdiction and then receiving the attorney's individualized advice for you. By reading the "Response" to your question or comment, you agree that the opinion expressed is not intended to, nor does it, create any attorney-client relationship, nor does it constitute legal advice to any person reviewing such information, nor will it be considered an attorney-client privileged communication. If you do not agree, then stop right here, and do not read any further.

At this point, your options are few. You can try to lower the price so that you break even and hope for a quick sale on the property and thus avoid the foreclosure. Alternatively, you should try to call the lender and ask them to work with you in allowing a forebearance and give you additional time in which to make your payments. You should be able to get at least a month or two which will give some time to try and find a buyer.

Another possibility would be to try and convince the lender to take a deed in lieu of foreclosure. If there is enough equity in the home to cover the value of the mortgage, it may be "doable". There are other options too, but you would be well served by retaining an attorney to work with you on this matter.

Scott R. Jay, Esq.

Read more
Answered on 11/15/07, 11:20 pm


Related Questions & Answers

More Real Estate and Real Property questions and answers in Florida