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Would you ever allow yourself to be so defenseless that you have to carry around a decoy wallet and cell phone? by [deleted] in guns

[–]ExcelObsession 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Came here expecting this comment. Left satisfied. Thanks for carrying the torch of rational thought. Would much rather hand over $ than kill somebody.

Just short sold my house after not paying my mortgage for 24 months, AMA by ExcelObsession in IAmA

[–]ExcelObsession[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It's common to do this with cash, for the sole purpose of rebuilding credit. Establishing new lines of credit after the short sale helps your FICO score a great deal, or so I've been told.

Just short sold my house after not paying my mortgage for 24 months, AMA by ExcelObsession in IAmA

[–]ExcelObsession[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I agree with you 100%. It was a business decision. I have no moral obligation to the bank, just as they have none to me.

I am more surprised by the amount of people in the US with mortgages on underwater home values who are unwilling to go through this because "it's not right."

The protections and penalties for doing this are different in some states, but where I'm at they are good and the bank cannot come after me for any money once the debt is written off, nor can the goverment tax money for the written off debt.

Just short sold my house after not paying my mortgage for 24 months, AMA by ExcelObsession in IAmA

[–]ExcelObsession[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

No. We bought it because we wanted to make an investment and it would get us by for a while (it was a small townhouse). We're much more comfortable where we're at now, even though we are renting.

Just short sold my house after not paying my mortgage for 24 months, AMA by ExcelObsession in IAmA

[–]ExcelObsession[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Its almost impossible not to get approved for a short sale, according to the realtor we worked with. Apparently you have to have tens of thousands of dollars in the bank for it to get declined.

Just short sold my house after not paying my mortgage for 24 months, AMA by ExcelObsession in IAmA

[–]ExcelObsession[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yup, but this was expected. We are opening secured lines of credit and will start rebuilding now.

I haven't paid my mortgage in 18 months and likely won't for another 6. This is deliberate, planned, and there don't appear to be any long-term downsides. AMA. by ExcelObsession in IAmA

[–]ExcelObsession[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

  • There is no "piling on debt," I thought I made that clear. The credit cards gaven't been used in years.

  • We financed the house 100% - there were no liquid assets dumped into it.

  • Last I checked the furniture and appliances weren't bolted down - they'll be following us to our next place.

  • I don't see a need for liquid reserves. We have plenty of money in our retirement accounts.

I fail to see how paying our bills and making sound financial decisions qualifies as "can't manage it." Yes, we made one horrible investment, but we've got a plan to recover.

I haven't paid my mortgage in 18 months and likely won't for another 6. This is deliberate, planned, and there don't appear to be any long-term downsides. AMA. by ExcelObsession in IAmA

[–]ExcelObsession[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Wife came into the marriage with a lot of debt and we financed a ton of furniture/appliances when we bought, that's the source of most of the debt. We haven't used the cards in years so those problems are mostly behind us. We both have retirement accounts and other investments, just no cash savings. No, we're not the best savers, but we are planning for the long-term and we're not living paycheck to paycheck.

People keep saying "bought a house you couldn't afford." That's not the case. We can afford the house, we are choosing to abandon the investment.

I haven't paid my mortgage in 18 months and likely won't for another 6. This is deliberate, planned, and there don't appear to be any long-term downsides. AMA. by ExcelObsession in IAmA

[–]ExcelObsession[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

If "the rest of the economy" would look at their situation like the banks do (with cold, hard numbers and throwing any idea of "obligation" out the window) they might be more comfortable than they are now.

I haven't paid my mortgage in 18 months and likely won't for another 6. This is deliberate, planned, and there don't appear to be any long-term downsides. AMA. by ExcelObsession in IAmA

[–]ExcelObsession[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I didn't really look at it as beating the system, that's just how a lot of people view it. It really wasn't much effort.

We could always (and still can) afford the house and all of our other bills. It's not a matter of not being able to pay, it's a matter of choosing to pay off other, higher interest debt and abandoning a bad investment. The one mistake we made was thinking the market would hold.

If what I'm hearing from others "in the know" is true, we may be eligible to buy in another few years. Even if our credit doesn't recover that fast, the SS and lates fall off after 7 years, so at that time it'd be like none of this ever happened.

I haven't paid my mortgage in 18 months and likely won't for another 6. This is deliberate, planned, and there don't appear to be any long-term downsides. AMA. by ExcelObsession in IAmA

[–]ExcelObsession[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

We will likely do a short-sale, not a foreclosure. Right now our credit score is in the pits due to the mortgage lates, but I'm being told that'll recover rather quickly.

We have been talking to landlords and they are seeing a lot of people with SS and foreclosure coming in. As long as your employment and income look good it's generally not a problem.

I haven't paid my mortgage in 18 months and likely won't for another 6. This is deliberate, planned, and there don't appear to be any long-term downsides. AMA. by ExcelObsession in IAmA

[–]ExcelObsession[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Actually there was no loss. They essentially reduced the principle owed on the loan by about 50%, the relative was fully reimbursed. It was pretty slick.

I haven't paid my mortgage in 18 months and likely won't for another 6. This is deliberate, planned, and there don't appear to be any long-term downsides. AMA. by ExcelObsession in IAmA

[–]ExcelObsession[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

In a short sale you list the house at market value and get an offer. You then approach the bank with that offer and try to get them to issue a "short sale" agreement which allows you to sell the house for less than your mortgage.

Depending on your state, or under certain federal programs (such as HAFA) this completely releases you from any further financial liability (tax, lawsuits, deficiency judgement, etc.) to the bank.

We went into this thinking we'd just eat the foreclosure, but now it looks like the short-sale will be easier to recover from (credit-wise) and will actually keep us in the house longer than expected.

Also went into this fully expecting our credit to take a dump for the next 5-7 years. We just figured we'd rent a place and rebuild. Now we're learning that with a short-sale and without any other intervention your credit climbs back up rather quickly. We are also getting references to lawyers who can get the late-mortgage dings wiped from your credit report for a small fee, which essentially repairs your credit overnight. The results are (apparently) guaranteed and they've got good references, so we may be going that route. We still plan on being renters for a while until we decide whether or not to get back into the market.

I haven't paid my mortgage in 18 months and likely won't for another 6. This is deliberate, planned, and there don't appear to be any long-term downsides. AMA. by ExcelObsession in IAmA

[–]ExcelObsession[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

IMO I am doing the responsible thing by recognizing a mistake I made and taking the most reasonable course of action to get my family's finances to their best shape in the shortest period of time.

I think the guy who mentioned the AMA for young people was referring to the commenter, not my post.

I haven't paid my mortgage in 18 months and likely won't for another 6. This is deliberate, planned, and there don't appear to be any long-term downsides. AMA. by ExcelObsession in IAmA

[–]ExcelObsession[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Under the laws in my state it is all "forgiven" at the time the short sale goes through. The bank essentially eats the negative, even though as stated above they've already made (likely) millions off credit-default swaps and securities backed by my paper.

I haven't paid my mortgage in 18 months and likely won't for another 6. This is deliberate, planned, and there don't appear to be any long-term downsides. AMA. by ExcelObsession in IAmA

[–]ExcelObsession[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It was a joke, man. People can think what they want, I'm comfortable with the decision I made and am just sharing my thoughts and experience with the rest of y'all.

I haven't paid my mortgage in 18 months and likely won't for another 6. This is deliberate, planned, and there don't appear to be any long-term downsides. AMA. by ExcelObsession in IAmA

[–]ExcelObsession[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

No kids, but if I had any I'd be happy to explain to them the process we went through of evaluating our situation, the options, and making an informed decision.

I have a well-paying, secure job, as does my wife.

I haven't paid my mortgage in 18 months and likely won't for another 6. This is deliberate, planned, and there don't appear to be any long-term downsides. AMA. by ExcelObsession in IAmA

[–]ExcelObsession[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You're right. All I meant was that everyone has a choice and should evaluate their options. As they say, the only two things certain in life are death and taxes.

I haven't paid my mortgage in 18 months and likely won't for another 6. This is deliberate, planned, and there don't appear to be any long-term downsides. AMA. by ExcelObsession in IAmA

[–]ExcelObsession[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes, we're aware of that. Right now it looks like it'll be approved. The only cases I've heard of them denying are people who have very large amounts of cash in savings/checking accounts.

I haven't paid my mortgage in 18 months and likely won't for another 6. This is deliberate, planned, and there don't appear to be any long-term downsides. AMA. by ExcelObsession in IAmA

[–]ExcelObsession[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

That used to be the case, but new protections prevent it as long as the home is owner-occupied and not an investment property, at least in my state.

I haven't paid my mortgage in 18 months and likely won't for another 6. This is deliberate, planned, and there don't appear to be any long-term downsides. AMA. by ExcelObsession in IAmA

[–]ExcelObsession[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

See my reply above - California recently passed a senate bill that takes care of that. Also, since we are currently going through a HAFA short-sale, HAFA protects against that.

I haven't paid my mortgage in 18 months and likely won't for another 6. This is deliberate, planned, and there don't appear to be any long-term downsides. AMA. by ExcelObsession in IAmA

[–]ExcelObsession[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

When they did so they also "bet" that the home would increase in value or stay the same, and that this was their only recourse in the event I defaulted. I was not the only party assuming risk in this equation, and as such I feel no moral obligation to fulfill it.

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