co-signing a mortage

Guest 0.10 Dollars($)

If I have co-signed for a mortage and am not on the deed, what rights
do I have in the case of a fire in the house. The insurance company has
already cut a check for the loss to the owner. The money is on hold in
the owner's bank until the investigation of the fire is complete. What can
I do to protect myself?

jbarto65 · Joined: 04 Nov 2007 Posts: 626 -0.11 Dollars($)

Being the co signer only comes into play if the home owner does not pay and then you will be responsible for the bill, you need to make sure that the mortgage company knows that the owner was cut a check and that they need to make sure that they recover their money. Was the home a total loss or will the owner fix it and continue to make the payments, please explain more?

Guest 0.10 Dollars($)

The owner plans to fix it and continue making payments. Aother element is that the house just went into foreclosure for non-payment since October 2007. This I just found out. What can and should I do?

Caron · Posted: Mon Mar 17, 2008 12:55 am Post subject: RE: insurance for cosigner

Hi Rabbi,

Welcome back to our forums.

Since you are the cosigner and not the owner oif the property, therefpore the insurance company will offer the money to the owner only. Being a cosigner, it's your responsiblity to pay for the mortgage if the borrower defaults. But if the house is already intoforeclosure, how come the lender hasn't taken any action? Were you not sdtaying in the home?

If the foreclosure sale has already been held, then it will affect your credit too along with the owner's because legally you were responsible to pay in case of default.

Good luck

gmakerley · Posted: Tue Mar 18, 2008 7:08 am Post subject:

if the insurance company cut a check to the borrower only, this would be quite unusual. all checks for losses suffered should be payable to both the borrower and the mortgagee.

another unusual thing - your first post, rabbi, was concerning the fire and the insurance check. only after jbarto responded to that post did you mention the foreclosure. i would have thought that being a cosigner might have made you more vigilant about impending foreclosure action. oh well.

as cosigner, you are 100% liable for payments on this mortgage. if the home goes to sale, your credit will be hampered as a result. if you have the wherewithal to bring the mortgage current, that will be beneficial. you can certainly try to negotiate with the mortgagee to see if you can work out payment arrangements and stop the legal action.

it behooves you to move quickly to stem the tide, so to speak. your credit is in jeopardy.

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