Selling Before Foreclosure
If you are behind on payments and a sale can close before the trustee's sale date, selling on your own terms protects whatever equity is left.
Quick answer
Garner Group buys San Diego houses from owners in default and can close in 7 to 10 days, which is often fast enough to complete a sale before a scheduled trustee's sale. Selling before foreclosure lets you keep any equity above what is owed rather than losing the house at auction. Talk to your lender and a HUD-approved housing counsellor as well — a sale is not always your best option.
7–10Days to closeEvery house.
Same terms.
We buy in our own name with our own funds. Your contract is not assigned to another buyer, and the number you accept is the number on the settlement statement.
- 1Fast enough to beat most trustee's sale dates
- 2Any equity above the payoff goes to you
- 3We deal with the lender's payoff demand and the title work
The thing worth understanding early is the difference between selling and being foreclosed on. If the house sells for more than the total owed, the surplus is yours. If it goes to a trustee's sale, that equity is usually gone. Time is what decides which of those happens, which is why a 7 to 10 day close matters more here than anywhere else on this site.
We handle the payoff demand from the lender and the title work, including liens you may not know about — unpaid property taxes, HOA liens, contractor's liens, and judgments all surface in the title search and all have to be cleared at closing. None of that requires money from you up front; it comes out of the proceeds.
Before you decide to sell, talk to your lender. Loan modification, forbearance, and repayment plans exist and sometimes work, and a HUD-approved housing counsellor will go through them with you for free. We would rather you exhaust those first. Selling the house is the right answer when the arrears are beyond catching up and there is equity worth protecting — not automatically.
Be careful who you talk to in this period. Default notices are public record, which means anyone in financial distress gets contacted by a lot of people, some of whom are not buyers at all. Nobody legitimate needs you to sign over your deed, pay an upfront fee, or make your mortgage payments to them instead of your lender.
Selling Before Foreclosure — FAQ
Is it too late if a sale date is already set?
Not necessarily. A sale can sometimes be completed or a trustee's sale postponed if a legitimate purchase is in escrow, but that is the lender's decision and it depends on how much time is left. Call us with the date and we will tell you honestly whether it is realistic.
What if I owe more than the house is worth?
Then the sale needs the lender's approval as a short sale, which takes considerably longer than 7 to 10 days and is not guaranteed. We will tell you if that is your situation rather than tying the house up while you find out the hard way.
Do I keep any money?
Yes, if the price is above the total payoff including arrears, fees, and any liens. That surplus is yours at closing. This is the main reason to sell rather than let it go to auction.
What about the liens and back taxes?
They come out of the proceeds at closing rather than out of your pocket. The title search finds them, escrow pays them, and you get what is left.
Should I be talking to anyone else first?
Yes. Your lender's loss mitigation department, and a HUD-approved housing counsellor, whose help is free. If keeping the house is possible, that is a better outcome than any sale, including one to us.
Find out what we'd pay.
Tell us about the house. We'll come and look at it, explain how we got to the number, and tell you plainly if you would do better listing it instead.