BILL'S ANSWER
Generally speaking, the fact that a home is sold subject to a lien (which is what it sounds like happened in your case—HUD had a lien based on the loan it had provided), does not absolve the original debtor (your husband) from his personal liability for the debt, nor does it make the current owner personally liable. If the new owner sold the home, the new owner would likely be required to pay HUD from the sale proceeds in order to remove the lien so the home can be sold with a clear title. HUD has no ability to pursue the new owner through garnishment, intercepting tax refunds, etc., because the new owner is not personally liable for the debt; this fact is likely what the collection agency means when they state that HUD has no “contract” with the new owner. Your husband, on the other hand, is almost certainly still personally liable for the obligation, so HUD has the right to garnish his wages, intercept tax refunds, levy his bank accounts, etc. If you would like to read more about HUD/FHA loans, you can visit www.hud.gov.
In order to prevent further collection activity against your husband, you may want to contact the collection agency which is handling the account to try to work out amicable repayment terms. I encourage you to review your budget carefully, determine what you can afford to pay each month, and make an offer to set up a payment plan. If the loan servicer is willing to agree to an extended loan repayment plan, I would encourage you to ask for a written agreement outlining the balance, interest rate, payment amounts and due dates, and stating that as long as payments are made as required, that the creditor will take no further action to try to enforce the outstanding debt.
Again, I strongly encourage you and your husband to consult with an attorney in your area to explain your situation, to confirm whether or not your husband is still liable for the debt, and to help you find the best solution to assist you in resolving the account. I wish you the best of luck in finding a workable solution to this debt, and hope that the information I have provided helps you Find. Learn. Save.
Best,
Bill
www.bills.com/
September 15, 2009
September 15, 2009
July 29, 2009
July 28, 2009
May 11, 2009
May 11, 2009
Since you don't have facebook, please provide us with your location and a valid email address so we can answer it. Without a valid email address,we can't reply. (Go back to login with Facebook)
Due to the high volume of comments received, we cannot publish and/or respond to every comment received. If you have a specific question, we recommend you search our site for an answer before commenting.
* Bills.com will not share, sell, lend, or make public your e-mail address. We reserve the right to delete any questions or comments that violate the Bills.com terms of service.
We get a lot of comments! To help us show our boss that this is a valuable service, so we can keep providing it, we ask you to do 2 things before commmenting:
Log in
Like us
Submit your comment!
Due to the high volume of comments received, we cannot publish and/or respond to every comment received. If you have a specific question, we recommend you search our site for an answer before commenting.
* Bills.com will not share, sell, lend, or make public your e-mail address. We reserve the right to delete any questions or comments that violate the Bills.com terms of service.
Thank you for your comment. Your comment will be posted shortly.
Comments (6)