Confusing Letter from Mortgage Co...

[Amy26]

I got a letter from my mortgage company today that confused me... it says:

Dear Homeowner:

Your property is vacant. (duh)

It then says, I must contact them within 72 hours or they will protect their interests. The keys will be held by them.

The property preservation expenses will be charged to me.

They are taking these actions to protect their interests bla bla...

What the heck is this letter? I thought I had to get notice of default letters and wait for them to do some other things... And the part that freaks me out is the part about them charging me money ...

Any help is appreciated.

[BassBoy]

The debt was discharged, so you will not be liable for any expenses the lender incurrs to secure the home. And the lender will secure the property if it's vacant, so if you're not living there, this shouldn't be a big deal for you.

[Amy26]

Does this mean they are starting foreclosure? When they say secure the home are they going to change the locks then?

[DeadManCrawling]

They will probably change the locks. They do not have to start foreclosure, EVER, if they do not want to. Legally, it is still your property, though, until foreclosure is complete, and you are legally able to enter the home whenever you want, if you have things there you still need to retrieve and so on.

However, they MAY, as part of "securing the property", hire a cleanout crew to come in and get rid of anything left behind.

It may be in your interest to go there, take photos of the place, and hang onto them, in case any trouble arises later about the condition of the property when you abandoned it. Some cleanout crews in our state, FL, have been known to literally clean out homes. They take every last thing, including AC units, water heaters, even cabinets and counter tops. A few have been caught, most try to blame the homeowner or other criminals. I am sure there is plenty of that going on, too, but this small step may save you a headache down the road.