Northern Indiana homeowners and families
Foreclosure is confusing. Here are all your options.
Most people get one letter from a lawyer and a lot of calls from strangers. Nobody lays out the whole picture. This page does, including the options that have nothing to do with us. If none of them work for you, we buy the house. That's what a backstop is.
We buy houses with a problem on them
Straight up, before anything else
We are not a law firm, a lender or a housing counselor, and we don't stop foreclosures or tax sales. We buy houses in northern Indiana for cash, as is. If keeping your home is possible, that's usually the better outcome, and the free resources below are where to start.
We'd rather you keep your house
It's hard to watch a family lose a home. There's almost always a reason behind it: a death, an illness, a lost job, a divorce. Everybody is going through something, and we get that.
So if you can keep your house, we hope you do. The houses we're happiest to buy are the empty ones: a parent's house nobody lives in anymore, or a place that has become a burden to keep up.
If selling turns out to be your best option, and better than waiting for a sheriff's sale or a tax sale, we're glad to buy it and we'll treat you fairly. We don't chase people who are behind on their mortgage, and we never pressure anyone. Free help for keeping your house is on our resources page.
How it works in Indiana
A foreclosure here goes through a courtroom
Indiana is a judicial foreclosure state. The lender has to sue, a judge has to rule, and the county sheriff runs the sale. That takes time, and time is the thing you can use. Every case moves at its own pace; these are the usual steps.
Missed payments
Late fees and calls from the loan servicer, then a letter saying the loan is in default.
Best time to call your lender or a housing counselor. Every option is still open.
The lender files a foreclosure case
You get served court papers. Your case number has "MF" in it, and you can look it up yourself on MyCase, Indiana's public court site.
If you live in the house, Indiana law lets you ask for a settlement conference with the lender. The notice you were served explains how.
Judgment
If nobody answers the case, the court usually enters a default judgment for what's owed, plus interest, fees and the lender's lawyer costs.
You can still sell or catch up after a judgment, right up until the sale.
Sheriff's sale is set
The lender asks for a sale, and a notice runs in the local paper.
The sheriff sells the house
Usually the lender bids what it's owed and takes the house. If someone bids more than what's owed, the extra money belongs to you or your family, and you have to claim it from the court.
Waiting costs money, whatever you decide
While a foreclosure runs, the amount owed keeps growing: interest on the full balance, late fees, the lender's attorney and court costs, and inspections the lender adds to the bill. All of it comes out of the house's value, so the equity you have gets smaller every month.
That's true for every option. Catching up, a loan modification, listing with an agent or selling to us all cost less the earlier you start. This isn't a reason to rush into anything. It's a reason not to wait to find out where you stand.
Buying time only helps if the money will be there when the time runs out.
What a foreclosure leaves behind
The late payments are already on your credit report. A finished foreclosure adds a bigger mark that stays for seven years, and it usually means waiting years before you can get another mortgage. If the house sells before the sheriff's sale and the loan is paid off, there's no foreclosure on your record. The late payments stay, but the foreclosure doesn't.
Rough example, one year of foreclosure
| Loan balance | $150,000 |
| Interest at 6% | + about $9,000 |
| Late fees | + about $500 |
| Lender's attorney, court and sale costs | + $2,000 to $5,000 |
| Owed a year later | about $162,000 to $165,000 |
An illustration, not your numbers. Your payoff statement shows the real ones; our resources page has a letter to request it.
Your options, side by side
Eight ways this can go
The right one depends on how far behind you are, how much equity you have, and whether you want to stay. Equity is what the house is worth minus everything owed on it.
| Option | What it takes | Time it needs | Your equity | Good fit if |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Catch up on the loan | Pay the missed payments plus fees in one lump sum | Days | You keep it | You had a short setback and the money is back |
| Loan modification or forbearance | Apply with your servicer and prove your income | 1 to 3 months | You keep it | You want to stay and can afford a new payment |
| Settlement conference | Ask the court for one after you're served | Weeks | You keep it | You live there and want a sit-down with the lender |
| Refinance | Decent credit and enough equity | 30 to 60 days | You keep it | Your credit held up better than your cash |
| List with a real estate agent | Repairs, showings, a buyer's financing | 2 to 4 months | Most of it, minus commission | The house shows well, you can pay for any repairs yourself, and the sale is far enough away |
| Sell to Backstop | A walk through and a signature | Often 2 to 4 weeks, or the date you pick | Some of it, as is, no repairs or fees | Time is short, the house needs work, or it's an estate |
| Bankruptcy | A bankruptcy attorney and a filing. Filing pauses the sale. | Chapter 13 runs 3 to 5 years | Depends on the chapter and the plan | You have steady income and can catch up over time. Chapter 7 usually just delays the sale, and the debt keeps growing while it's paused. Talk to a bankruptcy attorney. |
| Let it go to sheriff's sale | Nothing | Whenever the sale lands | Usually little, unless it sells for more than owed. If it sells for less than you owe, the lender can ask the court for a judgment against you for the rest. | You owe more than it's worth and have nowhere better to land |
When we're the right call
- The sale date is close and a listing won't finish in time
- The house needs work you can't pay for
- It's an inherited house and nobody wants to manage it
- You want it done, with one closing date you pick
When we're not
- You can catch up or get a modification and want to stay
- The house is in great shape and you have months of runway
- You owe more than it's worth, so a sale wouldn't pay off the loan
For families
Inherited a house?
This is most of what we do. A parent passes, the payments stop, and months later the family finds out the house is in a court case, or that the taxes went unpaid and it's on the county's tax sale list. It's fixable, but there are a few steps nobody tells you about.
Is the debt mine now?
Usually not personally. The mortgage is tied to the house, so the house pays it. Check with a probate attorney about your own situation.
Who can sell the house?
Whoever the court gives authority to, usually a personal representative of the estate. If no estate is open yet, opening one is often the first step.
Why does the case say "unknown heirs"?
When the owner has died, the lender has to name the family even if it doesn't know who they are. Many families never see those notices.
How do we split it between siblings?
A sale turns one house into money that divides cleanly. We work with every heir and the estate's attorney, and close at a title company.
Several heirs, siblings who don't talk, a house you didn't know you owned: more answers for families
If you sell to us
What happens, start to finish
Call or text
Tell us the address and what's going on. A real person answers.
We walk the house
One visit. No cleaning, no repairs, take what you want and leave the rest.
Written offer
We show you how we got to the number.
Close at a title company
On the date you pick. The lender and any back taxes are paid from the sale, and anything left over is yours.
Talk to us
Tell us what's going on
No pressure and no obligation. We'll tell you whether we can make you an offer. Call or text (219) 419-4114, fill this in, or tap the chat button. It all comes straight to James.