Distressed Homeowner Decision Room · Las Vegas
Behind on your mortgage? Start with the facts, not a foreclosure pitch.
A calm, fact-first room for where you are, what you owe, what the house may be worth, and which questions deserve answers before you decide anything.
Start Here · Diagnose before prescribing
Figure out what is happening before you decide what to do
Mortgage trouble is heavy, and most of the weight comes from not knowing where you stand. This page works in order: where you are, who can help, what keeping the home requires you to investigate, what your house is worth and what you owe, the selling options compared fairly, your credit and your next housing, how to protect yourself, and what to decide next.
The Lockhart Method™ begins with diagnosis, not a transaction. Steve helps homeowners understand the property decision first, then, only if selling becomes the strategy, he executes the real estate plan. Being behind on payments does not make your house a bad property, and it does not make selling the automatic answer.
The first message
Not sure what to do or who to call? Call Steve first. You do not need to understand foreclosure terminology, know which option you need, or have all your paperwork figured out. Steve helps you understand the property side of the situation, identify the facts and questions that matter, explain the real estate options, and identify when your mortgage servicer, a HUD-approved housing counselor, attorney, tax professional, mortgage professional, or another qualified professional should be involved.
The first conversation is about understanding your situation. It does not obligate you to sell your house.
Jump to a section
How this page works
- Facts first. You enter what you know; where you do not know, the page says needs verification, never guesses.
- Both directions get a fair look. Keeping the home gets a full path, and selling gets a full path. Nothing is pre-ranked.
- Every tool shows its logic. What you entered, the formula, the assumptions, and what the result does and does not mean.
- Who handles what is your map. The servicer, HUD-approved counselors, Steve for the property side, and attorneys, tax and mortgage professionals each have their own lane.
Everything here is general real estate education and decision support, not legal, tax, bankruptcy, credit, lending, or financial advice. Steve Lockhart, First Mutual Realty Group, Nevada License S.0194053.
Where Am I · The distress check
Take stock: where you are right now
Answer the questions you can. "Not sure" is always a valid answer, and it tells you what needs verification rather than turning an unknown into a zero. When you finish, you get a snapshot you can take to a phone call with your servicer, a HUD-approved counselor, or Steve.
This check is a planning tool for your own use. It does not calculate deadlines, does not give legal or financial advice, and anything you leave unknown stays unknown until it is verified with the actual source.
Who Can Help
One situation, and a team of professionals with different lanes
No single person replaces the others. Start with the servicer and a HUD-approved counselor for the loan, Steve for the property side, and the appropriate professionals for legal, tax, credit, and bankruptcy questions. Below is who handles what.
Your mortgage servicer
Approves catch-up arrangements, forbearance, loan modification, and other loss mitigation under the loan program rules. The servicer determines loan-specific eligibility and approval; no outside person can approve your options. Ask for everything in writing.
Keep-home sectionHUD-approved housing counselor
Helps you understand your mortgage options, prepare loss mitigation paperwork, and navigate the process, often at no or low cost. Find one through the HUD housing counseling locator or the consumer hotline at (800) 569-4287.
Professional teamSteve, for the property side
Steve is the real estate strategist: value, equity, net proceeds, selling options, market and cash offer comparisons, and timing a sale if that becomes the strategy. He is not a foreclosure rescue company, a lender, or part of any government program, and he does not replace the servicer or the other professionals.
Call SteveAttorneys
Legal interpretation, defense against a lawsuit, bankruptcy decisions, deed and title questions, and review of documents you do not fully understand belong with a qualified Nevada attorney. Steve does not practice law and does not determine legal rights.
Tax and financial professionals
Tax consequences of a short sale, deed in lieu, foreclosure, or canceled debt, and the long-term financial plan, belong with a CPA or tax professional and a financial adviser. No one can promise you will not owe taxes on any outcome.
Mortgage and credit professionals
Future qualification, current loan program rules, and reading your credit reports belong with a licensed mortgage professional and, where helpful, a credit professional. No tool can predict a score or a when-can-I-buy date.
Calling Steve is a conversation, not a commitment
If you call Steve, the first conversation is about understanding your situation: the facts, the questions, and who should help with each one. You do not need to know the terminology or have paperwork ready. Calling Steve does not obligate you to sell your house, and no conversation here is a substitute for the servicer, a HUD-approved counselor, an attorney, or a tax professional where their expertise applies.
Keep My Home · A full path, not a footnote
Keeping your home deserves real investigation
If you want to stay in the house, that goal gets a full path here: catching up, forbearance, loan modification, payment deferral, affordability, servicer questions, and HUD-approved counseling. None of these are guaranteed, and your servicer makes the loan decisions, but they are options worth understanding before any conversation about selling. Financial distress does not mean the house is a bad property.
Catching up
Reinstatement, repayment plans, payment deferral, and what to ask your servicer when the goal is to get current and stay.
Catch-up question builderForbearance
A temporary break or reduction in payments for a short-term hardship, with the deferred amount still owed under the plan's terms.
How forbearance worksLoan modification
A change to the loan terms to make the payment sustainable when the hardship is longer term. Approval is a servicer decision, never guaranteed.
What modification involvesAffordability
A reflection tool that turns "can I afford this?" into a list of questions to resolve, never a verdict that you can or cannot afford.
Affordability reflectionCatch Up · Getting current
Catching up on missed payments
Reinstatement usually means paying the full amount needed to bring the loan current in one payment, including missed payments and allowed fees. A repayment plan adds a portion of the missed payments to your regular payments over a set period. Payment deferral, where available, moves missed payments to the end of the loan. All of these are servicer decisions under the rules of your loan program, and none can be promised in advance.
The Catch-Up Question Builder below turns what you need to understand into a ready-to-use list for your next call to the servicer. Take it with you, write down the answers, and ask for everything in writing.
Build your servicer question list
Check every topic that applies to your situation. Your list is built below as you go.
These are questions to ask the servicer, the only party that can approve or deny the options. The list is a planning aid, not legal or financial advice.
Forbearance
A temporary break, with a repayment path
Forbearance is a temporary break or reduction in mortgage payments approved by the servicer for a defined period, usually tied to a short-term hardship such as lost income or illness. During it, you stop paying or pay less; the deferred amount is still owed and is handled through whatever arrangement the servicer approves when the period ends.
Forbearance does not forgive the missed amounts. The important questions are how the deferral is repaid, when it begins, and whether the loan has any foreclosure activity during the review. Federal rules require servicers to evaluate loss mitigation applications in many situations, so contact the servicer and ask, in writing, about forbearance and what happens when it ends.
Loan Modification
Changing the terms to fit the new reality
A loan modification changes the terms of the mortgage, such as the interest rate, the term, or the balance treatment, with the goal of a sustainable payment. It is an option for situations where the hardship is longer term and a temporary pause is not the answer. Approval is a servicer decision under the loan program rules, and the outcome depends on the review of your income, hardship, and the program's standards.
The servicer is the only party that decides eligibility and approval. Be complete, be on time with documents, and keep every confirmation in writing. A HUD-approved housing counselor can help you assemble the package.
Affordability · Reflection, not a verdict
Asking "can I afford this?" the honest way
This tool does not decide whether you can afford to keep the house, and it never will. It turns that question into the specific things you need to resolve with the servicer and a HUD-approved counselor. Enter what you know; leave the rest as not sure.
This is a reflection aid, not a budget, credit analysis, or lender decision. The servicer and a HUD-approved counselor establish the actual numbers.
My Timeline · Foreclosure in Nevada, factually
How much time may matter, and what each notice means
Every foreclosure is its own timeline, and Nevada law sets requirements, not universal deadlines. The honest way to read this section: understand the steps, then verify your specific dates from your actual notice and your servicer. Nothing here is legal advice and nothing here predicts your outcome.
Notice of Default
In Nevada, a Notice of Default and Election to Sell is the recorded document that formally begins a foreclosure for a mortgage or deed of trust under NRS Chapter 107. It states the loan is in default and the property may be sold to satisfy it. Before it can be recorded, Nevada generally requires the beneficiary to mail a notice of the right to foreclose and of alternatives at least 30 days earlier (NRS 107.500). Receiving an NOD does not mean the sale is scheduled; it means the process has a start, and rights and options may still be available.
Notice of Sale
A Notice of Sale announces the date, time, and place a trustee's sale is scheduled. Under NRS 107.080, the notice is published once a week for three consecutive weeks and posted on the property, and under Nevada law a sale generally cannot be held until at least three months after the Notice of Default is recorded. Sale dates can be postponed, so the date on today's notice is the schedule as of today, not a promise of the final date.
The sale date
If you have a sale date, the priority is verification: read the notice itself, confirm the date has not been postponed, and check with the trustee and your servicer. Federal rules generally prohibit a servicer from starting foreclosure until a loan is more than 120 days delinquent, and a servicer with a complete pending loss mitigation application is generally restricted from moving forward with a sale while it reviews. A sale date is when the process could conclude, never a reason to panic, and never something to ignore.
Nevada foreclosure · verified, qualified
Nevada's process at a glance
- Before recording a Notice of Default, the beneficiary generally must mail the borrower a notice of the right to foreclose and of alternatives at least 30 calendar days earlier (NRS 107.500).
- The trustee records the Notice of Default and mails a copy to the borrower (NRS 107.080 and related notice provisions).
- The Notice of Sale is published once a week for three consecutive weeks and posted on the property (NRS 107.080).
- A mortgage foreclosure sale generally cannot be held until at least three months after the Notice of Default is recorded (NRS 107.080).
- An HOA foreclosure is a separate process under NRS Chapter 116, with its own notices, a cure period, and sale requirements, and it can run alongside a mortgage foreclosure.
This summary is general education based on Nevada statutes and is qualified in every direction: your loan, your notice, and your documents control. Verify with the sources listed below and with a Nevada attorney or HUD-approved counselor.
Nevada Foreclosure Mediation
A program designed for owner-occupied homes
Nevada has a court-administered Foreclosure Mediation Program under NRS 107.086, run through the Nevada Supreme Court and administered with the nonprofit Home Means Nevada. Eligible homeowners facing foreclosure of their primary, owner-occupied residence can work with a state-approved mediator to try to negotiate an alternative to foreclosure.
- Eligibility is specific: generally the property must be your primary residence in Nevada and you must own and occupy it. Whether you qualify needs verification for your exact case.
- Participation is not automatic: the homeowner must actively opt in and file a petition within the program's deadlines after the notice that triggers the right, and fees apply. A missed deadline can end participation.
- The program does not stop a foreclosure by itself, and no one can promise a mediation outcome. It is a structured opportunity to seek an alternative.
Deadlines and fees change and are case-specific. Confirm current program requirements with Home Means Nevada, the Nevada courts, or a HUD-approved counselor. Steve does not determine eligibility or file petitions.
Verify these current sources before acting on any deadline
Organize what you know and what to verify
This organizer builds a chronological view of your known timeline and a separate list of dates and facts still to verify. It never calculates legal deadlines.
This organizer shows only what you enter plus the facts that still need verification. It does not calculate deadlines, and it is not legal advice.
After a notice or a sale date
A notice is information, not a verdict. Verify the dates, check the options, and get the property and loan facts organized. If a sale date is on the table, timeline matters and so does knowing your value, payoff, and equity. Calling Steve does not obligate you to sell; it gets the property facts straight.
My House & Equity · Home Value
What your house may be worth, honestly
Value is an estimate of what your property would likely sell for in today's market, built from recent comparable sales, condition, location, and market conditions. It is a range, not a single precise number, and it feeds every meaningful comparison on this page: equity, net proceeds, cash offers, and whether selling deserves investigation.
An online estimate is a starting ballpark. Steve prepares a comparative market analysis on your actual property; it is an educated estimate, and it is not a licensed appraisal. A licensed appraiser provides the formal opinion used for lending. Asking for a market analysis is not a commitment to sell anything.
Read the Las Vegas home value guideRequest a market analysis from Steve
What do you want this number for?
Start With Your Home's Estimated Value
Enter your address to receive an estimated value, compare your selling options, and explore an immediate cash offer.
What You Owe
Mortgage payoff, liens, and the numbers you cannot guess
The payoff is the amount needed to fully satisfy the loan on a specific date, including principal, interest, and fees; it is different from the balance on a statement and it changes every day. Only your servicer can issue an accurate payoff figure, so treat every other number as an estimate to be verified.
Liens are other recorded claims against the property: a second mortgage, a home equity line of credit, a judgment, a tax lien, or an HOA assessment lien. Unknown liens do not mean no liens. They mean the title and escrow professionals and a title search verify what is recorded before anyone relies on a number.
What You May Not Know to Ask
- "Ballance" on a statement is not the payoff. Ask the servicer for a payoff statement good through a specific date.
- A second mortgage, HELOC, judgment, tax lien, or HOA lien can change what a sale nets. Ask title and escrow to identify recorded liens before comparing offers.
- HOA superpriority liens have special status in Nevada (NRS 116) and can survive a foreclosure sale in some situations. An attorney or title professional should review when an HOA is involved.
Questions to Ask Before You Decide
- What is my payoff amount, and through what date is it good?
- What is the payoff breakdown: principal, interest, fees, escrow?
- Are there any other recorded liens against the property?
- Is there an HOA lien or superpriority lien involved?
- Who will run the title search, and when?
Payoff and lien amounts are facts to gather, not things anyone can guess for you. Until they are verified, every equity and net figure on this page shows needs verification.
Home Equity · Estimate, with clear limits
Estimate your equity, without treating it as cash
Estimated equity is estimated value minus the mortgage payoff and other secured debt and known liens. The tool below shows exactly what you entered, the formula it used, and what the result does and does not mean. Unknown inputs stay unknown and never silently become zero.
This is a planning estimate only. Equity is not the cash you receive at closing: the actual payoff, liens, selling expenses, and prorations come out of the sale proceeds separately. Verify payoff and liens with the servicer and title and escrow before relying on any number.
Net Proceeds · Planning estimate
What a sale could leave, line by line
Estimated net proceeds equal the sale price minus the payoff, known liens, and estimated selling expenses. No commission percentage is assumed here; you enter your own estimate of expenses or ask a professional for a realistic figure. The result is a planning estimate, not a closing statement.
Typical items to include: escrow and title fees, transfer and recordation tax, broker fees if any, credits, and other closing costs. Enter your own total or leave it not sure.
Planning estimate only, not a settlement statement, not a guarantee of proceeds, and not tax or legal advice. Actual closing figures come from the escrow statement and the payoff providers.
Carrying Costs · What holding costs monthly
The monthly cost of the house, over 3, 6, and 12 months
Carrying costs are what it takes to hold the property each month: payment, taxes, insurance, HOA, utilities, and other costs. Knowing the monthly number helps you compare options on the same footing. There is no manufactured urgency here; the number is just a number to plan with.
The calculation sums the lines you entered and multiplies the monthly total by 3, 6, and 12. Lines marked not sure or not applicable are excluded and shown as needs verification rather than assumed zero.
Property Condition · Distress is financial, not physical
A homeowner behind on payments can own a desirable home
Being behind on the mortgage does not mean the house is run down, unsellable, or worth a fire-sale price. Condition is its own fact: some homes in mortgage trouble are beautifully maintained, and some distressed properties are in strong shape. This page never assumes financial distress equals a bad property, and no option here is pre-ranked because of it.
This is a planning comparison of estimates, not a guarantee of return on any repair, and it does not recommend borrowing money for improvements. Repair estimates come from qualified contractors, values from a market analysis and appraisals, and buying decisions from a licensed mortgage professional.
Selling Options · Market sale
An orderly market sale, priced and timed honestly
Selling on the open market is one legitimate option when it is the right strategy. In a mortgage-trouble situation it adds two real steps: a payoff statement from the servicer, and careful timing against any pending notice or sale date. A listing does not stop foreclosure by itself, and no one can promise a sale will complete by a specific date.
When selling becomes the strategy, Steve applies The Lockhart Method™ to execute it: diagnose the position, reposition the property's market story, activate demand, control the experience, and negotiate and close. The price is built from a current market analysis, and the plan is presented without pressure.
Sell As-Is
Selling in current condition is a legitimate strategy
As-is means selling the property in its current condition, with the buyer accepting the condition under the actual contract. It does not mean distressed, wholesale, deeply discounted, or free of seller disclosures, and Nevada disclosure requirements still apply. Some homes sell effectively as-is; some benefit from selective preparation. The Repair vs As-Is comparison above frames the economics; the condition, timeline, and family capacity frame the rest.
Cash Offers · Compared, never promoted or attacked
A cash offer is one option. Here is how to compare it fairly.
A cash offer can close faster and with fewer contingencies, often at a lower price. A market sale can bring the full buyer pool, with more days of showings and disruption. Neither is automatically better. The comparison below runs both scenarios side by side and never declares a winner.
Qualitative factors
This comparison shows the math and the tradeoffs; it never chooses for you. Cash offers are compared fairly, and any offer's fine print, buyer, and closing terms still need verification by you and your professionals.
Start With Your Home's Estimated Value
Enter your address to receive an estimated value, compare your selling options, and explore an immediate cash offer.
Deciding on an offer?
Steve runs the full comparison with your numbers, including the market alternative, before any recommendation. He does not promote cash offers, and he does not push you toward selling at all. Calling him does not obligate you to sell.
Short Sale
Selling for less than the debt, with lender approval
A short sale is a sale of the property for less than the total amount owed, with the servicer approving the short payoff. It is a negotiated process with significant paperwork, and approval is a servicer decision under the loan program and investor rules. It is one option in specific situations, not an automatic answer when a home is underwater.
The difference between the sale price and the total debt is called a deficiency, and how it is handled is governed by the note, the loan type, Nevada law, and the agreement. Deficiency and tax consequences must be reviewed with an attorney and a tax professional; nobody can promise you will not owe money or taxes.
Deed in Lieu
Voluntarily transferring the property to the lender
A deed in lieu of foreclosure is a voluntary transfer of the property to the lender to satisfy the loan, agreed to in writing. It typically requires the lender's agreement and clean or cleared title, meaning other liens usually need to be addressed first. It can be less disruptive than a foreclosure in some cases, but it is not automatically better and it is never something to arrange by signing a deed informally.
Never sign a deed over to an investor, a company, or anyone else outside a formal closing with title and escrow and attorney review. Deed and title transfer proposals outside a real estate closing are a leading foreclosure fraud pattern. Deficiency, tax, credit, and eligibility questions all belong with the appropriate professionals.
Credit & Buying Again
Credit consequences, honestly, and a path back
Late payments, a short sale, or a foreclosure can be reported to credit bureaus, and how long an item is reported and how lenders weigh it varies by item and by program. No tool can predict your score, your credit drop, or when you can buy again. What this page can do is give you the right questions to take to a licensed mortgage professional and, where helpful, a credit professional.
Build your question list for the professionals
For a licensed mortgage professional
For a credit professional or report review
No prediction tool exists here: no credit score calculator, no credit drop estimator, no foreclosure waiting-period calculator, and no when-can-I-buy guarantee. The answers come from your actual reports and a licensed professional reviewing your situation.
Where Will I Live · A core decision, not an afterthought
Plan your next housing before you need it
If the house may not be your home much longer, where you will live is a first-class decision on this page, not a footnote. Options may include staying with family, renting, temporary housing, or another arrangement. Rental approval, leaseback, availability, and move-in dates are never guaranteed, so this planner builds the questions and the budget to verify.
Housing directions you want to explore
Priorities for the next home
A housing plan is not an approval. Rental approval, leaseback, availability, and move-in dates are verified with landlords, property managers, and where relevant a licensed mortgage professional.
Moving · Costs and coordination
What the move will actually take
Moving costs are predictable when they are itemized: movers or truck rental, supplies, deposits and first month's rent, utility setup, storage, cleaning, and time off work. The planner below builds a one-time estimate from the lines you enter, and it never assumes an unknown line is zero. A dated checklist keeps the small tasks from piling up onto an already stressful period.
Transition cost estimate
Protect Myself · Scam prevention
Mortgage trouble attracts predators. Know the pattern.
People in mortgage trouble are targeted by scammers who promise rescue and take money, deeds, or both. The good news is the pattern is recognizable: upfront fees, guaranteed results, pressure to act fast, requests to sign your deed, or demands to pay before any service is delivered. Nevada law restricts who may charge for foreclosure assistance, and legitimate help, like HUD-approved counseling, is generally free or low cost.
Red flags to act on
- Upfront fees to "save your home" or "guarantee a modification"
- Any promise that foreclosure will be stopped or a loan changed, guaranteed
- Asking you to sign over your deed, transfer title, or stop paying your mortgage
- Pressure to act immediately, or refusal to put anything in writing
- Asking for full loan numbers, bank account access, or personal data up front
What is safe to rely on
- Your servicer, contacted at the number on your statement, for loan questions
- HUD-approved housing counselors, free or low cost, through the HUD locator or (800) 569-4287
- Licensed Nevada professionals: Steve for the property side, attorneys for legal questions, CPAs for tax
- Anything verified: identities, licenses, written documents, and closing through escrow and title
If you are worried you have been targeted
Stop the interaction, keep every document and message, and report it: the Nevada Attorney General's office has consumer-protection resources, and your servicer and a HUD-approved counselor can confirm your true mortgage status. Never sign a deed to anyone as part of a deal, and never pay for promises. Attorney review is appropriate the moment a document you do not understand is in front of you.
Bankruptcy · A decision for a bankruptcy attorney
Where this page stops and the attorney begins
A bankruptcy filing can change how debts and a foreclosure are treated, and it can provide an automatic stay that pauses collection activity while a case proceeds. Whether bankruptcy fits your situation, which chapter, when to file, and what it protects and costs are decisions for a qualified Nevada bankruptcy attorney. Steve does not advise bankruptcy, and nothing on this page recommends filing or not filing.
What this page can do is tell you the questions to bring: how your mortgage, your home equity, your other debts, and a pending sale date are treated under a bankruptcy filing, and what happens after the case closes. Bring your property facts, including value, payoff, and equity, so the attorney review starts from real numbers.
Family Situations · When the house decision is not just yours
Divorce, inheritance, and a parent's home
Mortgage trouble sometimes arrives inside another big life event. These three situations have their own decision centers on this site, and this page links to them contextually rather than duplicating them. If one of these is your situation, start at the right door:
Mortgage trouble after divorce
The house, the mortgage, the equity, and the buyout are divorce decisions handled with both attorneys; Steve coordinates the real estate side.
Divorce Real EstateInherited a house with payments behind
Confirm the legal path through probate or trust first, then gather value, debt, and what the estate can carry.
Probate & Inherited PropertyHelping an aging parent with a home
Start with the parent: what they want, who decides, and what help they need, then the house, the numbers, and the options.
Senior Home TransitionProfessional Team · Who handles each question
Build your team, one professional at a time
Most homeowners in this situation need a small team, not a crowd: the servicer, a HUD-approved housing counselor, and Steve for the property side. Attorneys, tax professionals, and mortgage professionals join when their questions come up. Referrals matter, and every professional should be verified: licenses, identities, and expectations in writing.
Steve works cooperatively with family attorneys, estate professionals, senior-living teams, lenders, and other advisers when a client is already working with them. A referral to Steve does not obligate anyone to sell; the first work is understanding the property decision.
Professionals to verify today
- Servicer: the number on your statement, then verify the current status of your account.
- HUD-approved counselor: via the HUD locator or (800) 569-4287.
- Steve: Nevada License S.0194053, First Mutual Realty Group.
- Attorney: verified with the Nevada State Bar license lookup.
Professional referral
Refer a client, a family, or yourself to Steve
Professionals introduce clients to Steve every day when a real estate decision needs a strategist. A referral is the start of understanding, never a commitment to sell.
Compare My Options · Keep vs. sell, investigated fairly
The keep path and the sell path, side by side
This tool never recommends keeping or selling. It organizes the questions for both directions, captures the unresolved facts and the professional questions, and lets you name the single next thing you will find out. The next decision is yours, and it is the next question, not a verdict.
Keep-home questions worth investigating
Sale-investigation questions
This tool organizes questions; it does not pick an outcome. No checkmark here is a recommendation to keep or sell, and no combination of checks chooses for you.
Still sorting the options?
Start with the nine questions that span the whole situation, answered directly, on the Ask Steve mortgage trouble page. Then come back here to run the numbers.
The Lockhart Method™ · The strategy underneath
Five phases, one order: diagnose before prescribing
When real estate execution is the chosen strategy, Steve applies The Lockhart Method™ in exactly this order. For a homeowner in mortgage trouble, each phase has one plain purpose: establish where you really are before anything else, then act only when the facts and your goals support it. The Lockhart Decision Engine™ is the decision-support name for the structured comparison behind it, organizing value, payoff, equity, costs, timeline, and options so you choose with facts, not pressure.
01
Diagnose
Establish where you really are before anything else: your payments, any notice, what you owe, what the house may be worth, and what you want. No transaction talk before the situation is understood.
02
Reposition
Reposition the situation around facts and options, so you can see the real choices, who handles each question, and what each path would require, without fear driving the decision.
03
Activate Demand
When a sale is the chosen strategy, activate demand so the property reaches the right buyers, priced and presented from the diagnosis, not from hope.
04
Control Experience
Control the experience from first conversation to close, so the process stays calm, coordinated, and transparent, with your servicer, counselor, and professionals each in their lane.
05
Negotiate & Close
Negotiate and close while protecting your interests through the final steps: terms, timing, net proceeds, and the payoff, so the finish protects what matters to you.
The five phases above are the complete Lockhart Method™: Diagnose, Reposition, Activate Demand, Control Experience, and Negotiate & Close. There is no hidden sixth phase, and no homeowner is ever asked to commit to a transaction before the diagnosis is done.
Want to talk it through?
A first conversation about your situation is free, private, and never obligates you to sell. Steve is the real estate strategist who helps you understand the property decision before any transaction is considered.
Ask Steve
Ask your question in your own words
Use the mortgage trouble question library for fast answers, or send your question directly. It goes to Steve, is kept private, and never obligates you to sell. Conversational AI answer matching is not configured on this site yet; until it is, questions are answered through the searchable library plus a personal reply from Steve.
Call Steve · No obligation to sell
Not sure what to do or who to call? Call Steve first.
You do not need to understand foreclosure terminology, know which option you need, or have your paperwork figured out. Steve helps you understand the property side of the situation, identify the facts and questions that matter, explain the real estate options, and identify when your servicer, a HUD-approved housing counselor, attorney, tax professional, mortgage professional, or another qualified professional should be involved. The first conversation is about understanding your situation, and calling does not obligate you to sell.
Request a call back (optional)
Next Step · The Distressed Homeowner Assessment
Put it together: your snapshot and your action plan
Eight short sections, one progress bar, and at the end two things you can actually use: your Distressed Homeowner Snapshot and your Homeowner Action Plan. It works entirely on your device, asks only what you know, and never delivers a verdict. "Not sure" is always a valid answer.
Save my action plan
When your snapshot and action plan are on screen, send a copy to yourself and to Steve's team for context. The plan text is included in the message; no sensitive financial figures are collected or stored here.
The next decision is the point
You came in with a question. You leave with a plan.
Wherever this page brought you, the next step is the same: verify the facts, ask the right professionals, and decide one question at a time. Steve is available for the property side, with no obligation to sell and no pressure attached.
Steve Lockhart, First Mutual Realty Group · Nevada License S.0194053 · Member, National Association of REALTORS. Everything on this page is general real estate education and decision support, not legal, tax, bankruptcy, credit, lending, or financial advice. Calling Steve does not obligate you to sell.