Mtg Ride Thru aka Stay&Pay

[InOverHead]

My lovely attorney nor paralegal are familiar with these terms...

The surrender Box is checked for my Mtg. 1O Days until My 341 and my ammendment is not Filed! I call/email every day and each time i am promised tomorrow will be the day.

I am really freaking out. Between this and my stupid other legal issue i have coming up there are two really odd pains in my stomach. I think they are ulcers. My head space is a total mess and i am definitely losing it alltogether...

I have been told to contact the MTG company and let them know i will continue to pay -However, becuase i have retained an attorney they will not talk to me.

My attorney and paralegal have both said i can probably live there 18 months or so without paying and stockpile the money. When i tell them i do not want to be abruptly thrown out so plan on continuing paying - but do not want to waste the money - they say they can not advise any client to stop paying the MTG.

It's my call. The 2nd is desparatley trying to get me to reaffirm. I have not payed them anything since January. I am current on the 1st and wonder if i should continue making the payments.

[ValleYum]

My attorney listed it like this on the STATEMENT OF INTENTION on our petition:

Property will be (check one):
___ Surrendered _X_ Retained

If retaining the property, I intend to (check at least one):
___ Redeem the property
___ Reaffirm the debt
_X_ Other. Explain: Retain and pay (for example, avoid lien using 11 U.S.C. § 522(f)).

Property is (check one):
_X_ Claimed as Exempt ___ Not claimed as exempt

Hope this helps!

[ValleYum]

A huge 'CAVEAT EMPTOR' to my answer above: My case was filed in the Western District of Washington - your mileage and district practices may vary.

[justbroke]

There is really no "Stay and Pay" in Florida every since the decision In Re Taylor (Taylor v. AGE Federal Credit Union (In re Taylor), 3F.3d 1512, 1517 (11th Cir. 1993)) decided in this circuit. Florida is in the 11th Circuit. So, technically there is no "stay and pay" even for real property and this has been upheld many times post BAPCPA of 2005. (In re Waller, 394 B.R.
111 (Bankr. S.C. 2008); In re Caraballo, 386 B.R. 398 (Bankr. Conn. 2008); In re Wilson, 372 B.R. 816 (Bankr. S. C. 2007); In re Bennet, No. 06-80241, 2006 WL 1540842 (Bankr. M.D. N.C. May 26, 2006)... to name a few.)

So, I would just speak to my attorney about how to list it if you're going to "retain" the property without reaffirming.

So, since you mention a 2nd and reaffirmation, I'm going to assume that you are underwater on your property anyhow -- especially since you're in Florida. I would not reaffirm in any situation where I'm underwater by 10% or more for all encumbrances, not just the first.

It is true, that you can list surrender on the property, discharge the debt, and continue to "pay and stay". It is up to the lender to enforce that. They can't throw you out in Florida if you are current and have hazard insurance (period). You attorney is trying to counsel you and say... look... the house isn't worth it so just pocket the money for the next 600+ days (average time to foreclose in Florida these days) and save it!

It absolutely IS your call. The attorney can't make the decision for you, but it's a financial decision. I can't make that decision for you either. I can tell you that trying to preserve an underwater property is not worth it.

What is your game plan? Where do you see yourself living in the next 12-24 months? How about 24-48 months?

[LadyInTheRed]

When i tell them i do not want to be abruptly thrown out so plan on continuing paying

You won't be abruptly thrown out. According to my quick google search, you have 20 days to respond to a lis pendens in Florida. I don't know what the timeline is after that, but you will have no fewer than 20 days to move. Still not a lot of time, but I bet you get even longer than that. For one thing, you can file an answer to buy more time.

[btbeme]

The mortgage company will cash the checks you send them. As long as they are on time and you maintain insurance, you should be fine. If you stop paying the mortgage, make sure you bank the cash for when the mortgage company finally does get off their butt to do something about it.

In AZ, I have been here 15 months rent free with not even a phone call from my lender. No kidding.

Check with your attorney regarding your rights and the timelines for legal action in Florida. I know you have less time to respond to legal action than in most states, but that does not mean that the system moves quickly. Just be sure to be "visible" and respond immediately to all legal notices should you decide not to pay. That will give you the most time.

Oh, and bank the cash. In a bank. Or buy gold.