Title: What Happens if I Abandon My Home and Let It Foreclose? | Sapling
Headings: What Happens if I Abandon My Home and Let It Foreclose?
What Happens if I Abandon My Home and Let It Foreclose?
The Foreclosure Process
You Still Have Financial Responsibilities
Other Problems
Extended Wait
Abandonment Approaches

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In some states, you can take advantage of a redemption period, sometimes as long as a year, after your property is foreclosed. You can try to sell the property during this time, refinance it, or otherwise figure out a way to pay off the mortgage. In most states, you're not legally obligated to leave the premises until this redemption period has expired and the foreclosure is complete. You Still Have Financial Responsibilities
Title to the property remains in your name until the foreclosure process is done. This means you're still responsible for property taxes and homeowners association fees. You'll probably want to keep up with insurance premiums as well, because if anyone should get hurt on the property, you're legally liable even though you're no longer living there. The potential for injury becomes greater if you're not maintaining the house, such as by clearing ice off the sidewalks and cutting back overhanging tree limbs. Advertisement
Other Problems
Abandoning your house means you also run the risk of vandalism or squatters moving in and tearing the place apart, particularly if you don't remain nearby to keep an eye on the property. If the house loses significant value due to neglect, you probably can forget any hope that it will eventually sell for enough to cover the mortgage balance you owe. You can be sued for this deficiency balance in many states – the difference between what you owe on the mortgage and the ultimate sales price.