Help John Henry's Family Save Their Home

Hello. I'm John Henry. My story will be familiar to some of you who have helped me in the past. You've helped Lily, Lucian, and me stay in our house for years beyond what I had hoped. I can't thank you enough for your help.

Sadly, I'm back. My lender, Rocket Mortgage, has filed another foreclosure suit. I hired an attorney for about $2000 last time. He was able to find a flaw in the case and it was dismissed. He warned me that I would not be so lucky if it happened again.

Well, it's happening again. Despite my applying for 5-7 jobs per day, I have not been able to land a full-time employment for more than a year. I've done my best to keep my family afloat -- from selling blood plasma to selling family heirlooms to cycling everywhere to save gas to asking EVERYONE for work -- but I continue to find myself in an increasingly difficult situation.

I have a few weeks to respond to my lender's suit. If I still don't have the resources to hire an attorney, I'll have to figure out these legal matters on my own. I've done it before, but I had more time. It would be best if I hired an attorney -- soon. It looks like I'll need to pay a $2000 retainer to start someone working on my case.

An attorney can delay the case and give me some more time to figure out how to respond. It would be best if we could stay in the house. I say that in part because I doubt I'll be able to purchase another home. My credit may be too poor now even to rent. Plus, I want to stay near my kids -- who will be staying with their mom if all this ugliness comes to pass. It's unlikely that I'll be able to stay close to them without some charity. It's expensive here. Separation would be a nightmare for all of us. So, we're in a bind.

It looks like we've got three options:

1) Repair our mortgage;

2) Declare Chapter 13 bankruptcy; or

3) Sell our house.

All three of the above options will require at least $25,000 to execute, maybe more. A one-time payment of $19000 would bring me current on my loan. This would be the least painful, least costly, most rapid fix.

Alternatively, declaring Chapter 13 can be expensive. The court costs, the attorney fees, and repayment schedule are unforgiving. This would be nearly as expensive as selling. It would be another struggle, until I can find full-time work.

We could sell the house. None of us want that, but it would solve the foreclosure problem. It would also require some paint and polish. I can do the work, but I'll need the supplies -- paint, lumber, masonry, brick, cement, etc. -- and the time to do the work and still be able to buy gas and groceries. Then we'll need to hire movers. Selling would likely be the most costly and damaging option.

No matter which choice me make, no matter how much of the work I do myself, these transactions are expensive.

Frankly, I'm ashamed to be asking my friends to help me pay my mortgage, utilities, and gas. (I maintain the car myself.) I would MUCH rather be working 60 hours a week than ever asking for money but, frankly, when your kids are looking at housing instability, desperation sets in. It's been set upon me for years now. I worry every day that I'll get another notice of a shut off, or disconnect, or foreclosure.

I have found that complaining does not help at all -- no matter to whom one complains. I'll stop.

This is our uncomfortable situation. Any help you could offer to relieve the worry -- and stabilize our housing -- would be deeply appreciated.

Thank you.

John Henry