A reverse mortgage may be the only mortgage solution (if approved) to help owners stop the foreclosure process if they want to stay in their home.
Does it make sense to contact the assigned Trustee (in property radar) with this potential solution or would they consider this a loss of fee income for the transaction?
I realize I can reach out to the owners directly, but was wondering if the trustee would also be an advocate for the owner equal to that of the lender who hired them. I’ve read that the trustee is supposed to be neutral, albeit difficult if the lender is paying them to perform this task.
Feedback, welcome.
Hello MortgageLife,
It is very unlikely that a trustee would engage with you. Not so much because of the loss of fee income, but because it is simply not their role. Despite being called a “trustee,” they have no fiduciary duty to the owner in most states, and they rarely get involved in any negotiations with the borrower - the lender (servicer) themselves typically retains that role.
Auction.com surprised us all years ago when they bypassed trustees and worked directly with servicers to take over many foreclosure auctions. The trustee is still hired as well, but is forced to use Auction.com for the auction itself.
Perhaps there is something to explore there?
Hi Sean,
Thank you for your feedback, it was very useful. I had already placed a call to a trustee for their feedback, but have not heard back yet. I suspect your explanation is accurate. Will update if there is a valuable response.
ML.