New Chapter Home Relief Solutions
New Chapter
Home Relief Solutions

You may have options, even with little or no equity.

If your Twin Cities home is heading toward a deadline and you owe close to or more than it is worth, you probably have more paths than it feels like. We are New Chapter Home Relief Solutions, a local Minnesota team. No cost, no obligation, and no pressure to sell.

Talk through my options

Or call Donna at (612) 509-0601. No pressure, no fees.

  • Local Minnesota team
  • Twin Cities focused
  • No fees, no commissions
  • We work at your pace

There are realistic paths, even with no equity

Little or no equity does not mean only foreclosure or walking away. We list every realistic path here, including the ones that do not involve us, and the right one depends on your details. Read them all before you decide.

  1. 1

    Talk to your lender about a loan modification.

    If your hardship is temporary (job change, medical), your servicer may agree to modify the loan — adjusting the rate, term, or principal balance to make the payment workable. Modifications are not guaranteed and can take 60-120 days. Start by calling the loss mitigation department directly. This is a keep-the-home path, and it does not depend on having equity.

  2. 2

    Free HUD-approved housing counseling.

    A HUD-approved counselor will review your full financial picture and walk you through every legal option at no cost. We strongly recommend doing this before deciding anything, especially when equity is thin. Find one at hud.gov/findacounselor or call 1-800-569-4287.

  3. 3

    Forbearance, repayment plan, or partial claim.

    If your hardship is short-term, your servicer may agree to pause or restructure your missed payments without modifying the loan. Ask specifically about a partial claim if the loan is FHA-insured. These can fold the arrears back into the loan so you keep the home.

  4. 4

    Short sale (when you owe more than the home is worth).

    If the home is worth less than the loan balance, the lender may approve a sale below what is owed — a short sale. It is lender-controlled, so we cannot promise approval, price, or timeline, but we can help you pursue one. On a primary residence you may qualify for relocation assistance paid at closing, subject to lender approval. A short sale must close before the sheriff's sale to work.

  5. 5

    Creative-finance exit (subject-to, novation, lease-option).

    When equity is thin or negative, there are structures that can let you move on without bringing money to closing, sometimes reinstating the mortgage in the process. Each one has tradeoffs and disclosures that matter — for example, in a subject-to the existing loan stays in your name unless it is paid off or refinanced, so the structure has to be the right fit and fully explained in writing. We walk through all of it before anything is signed.

  6. 6

    Sell to a cash buyer (us, or another buyer).

    If there is enough spread, a straight cash sale can still work and put a small check in your hand. We are one of several Minnesota cash buyers. We close on your timeline, as-is, no repairs, no agent commission. The tradeoff is that cash offers are typically below retail market value, because we take the property as it is and resolve any title or condition issues ourselves.

  7. 7

    File for Chapter 13 bankruptcy.

    A Chapter 13 filing immediately stops a foreclosure sale and gives you 3-5 years to catch up on missed payments while keeping the home. It requires a bankruptcy attorney. This is a big legal step, not a marketing pitch — we mention it because for some families it is the right answer, and most landing pages omit it.

Falling behind on a mortgage is hard enough. Owing close to, or more than, the home is worth adds a second weight on top of it — the quiet assumption that there is nothing left to sell and no way out but foreclosure or walking away. Most of the homeowners we talk with in this spot believe that. In our experience it is usually not true.

That is the one thing we most want you to know: little or no equity does not mean no options. It rarely feels that way, but there are several paths that can fit a situation like this, and the right one depends entirely on your details. The choices also tend to be better the earlier you look at them.

We are local Minnesota buyers, not realtors, and we are not here to pressure you. We will help you understand every option, including the ones that do not involve us, and we will tell you honestly when selling is not your best move. Your decision, your timeline, your terms.

How working with us works

  1. 01

    Tell us about the home.

    Address, what is owed, where you are in the foreclosure timeline if you know it. Form on this page or call Donna. Takes a minute, and you do not need to have anything figured out first.

  2. 02

    We do our work.

    We pull comps, estimate repairs, pull title, and look at the loan balance and any liens or judgments. That picture tells us which paths are actually open to you. You do not need to clean, repair, or schedule anything.

  3. 03

    We walk the options with you.

    We lay out the realistic paths in plain language — keep-the-home options, a short sale, a creative-finance exit, or a cash sale — and what each would mean for you, your credit, and your timeline. If a professional should be involved, we tell you.

  4. 04

    Your decision.

    Take a path, take an offer to a counselor or attorney for review, or take more time. We will wait. We close on the date you choose, and any agreement you sign with us includes a 5-business-day cancellation window so you can think it over.

What sets us apart

Options first, even with no equity.

Most of our first conversations are about the paths that are open to you, not a buying pitch. When equity is thin or negative, knowing your real choices early is the whole game, and we lay them all out, including the ones that do not involve us.

Local Minnesota team.

We live and work in the Twin Cities. We know the Hennepin, Ramsey, Dakota, Anoka, and Washington County foreclosure timelines, the title quirks, and how the sheriff's-sale clock actually runs here.

We tell you honestly when to look elsewhere.

Many of these conversations end with us pointing you to a HUD counselor, a loan-modification attorney, or a different path entirely. We pass on more deals than we close because the right move is often not selling, or not selling to us.

Plain offers, plain language.

Whatever the path, we explain it in plain English, with the structure, the numbers, and the disclosures written out, and a 5-business-day cancellation window. You take anything we propose to a counselor or attorney before deciding.

No pressure, no fees.

We do not charge you anything to look at your options, to make a proposal, or to walk away. We do not show up at your door. We do not call you twice a day.

We know the clock is real.

A short sale or creative exit has to close before the sheriff's sale, so timing matters. We will tell you honestly whether a path can beat your deadline, and we treat that timeline as yours to manage, never as pressure from us.

Frequently asked questions

I owe more than the home is worth. Is there anything I can even do?
Usually, yes. Owing close to or more than the home is worth is exactly the situation where people assume the only choices are foreclosure or walking away, and it is usually not true. Depending on your details there may be a short sale, a creative-finance exit that lets you move on without bringing money to closing, a keep-the-home option like a loan modification, or in some cases a small-check cash sale. Which one fits depends on your specifics, and we will not know until we talk.
What is a short sale, and can you get mine approved?
A short sale is when the lender agrees to accept a sale for less than what is owed on the loan. It is controlled by the lender, so we cannot promise approval, a price, or a timeline. What we can do is help you pursue one and walk you through what it would involve. On a primary residence, you may qualify for relocation assistance paid at closing, subject to lender approval. A short sale generally has to close before the sheriff's sale to work, so looking early matters.
Why does timing matter so much in Minnesota?
Minnesota forecloses by advertisement. The notice of sale is published for six consecutive weeks, then the property goes to a sheriff's sale. A short sale or creative-finance exit has to close before that sale date — after the sale, you generally hold only redemption rights, and a sale-based path is no longer on the table. This is your timeline and your right to understand, not a deadline we impose. We just see people miss good options because they assumed it was already too late when there was still room to choose.
What does a creative-finance exit actually mean?
It is a set of structures (subject-to, novation, a lease-option, and others) that can help a homeowner with thin or negative equity move on, sometimes by reinstating the mortgage. They are not one-size-fits-all, and they carry real tradeoffs that have to be disclosed in writing. For example, in a subject-to the existing loan stays in your name unless it is later paid off or refinanced, which is a meaningful thing to understand before choosing it. We explain the full picture of any structure we propose, and you can take it to an attorney before deciding.
Should I talk to a HUD-approved counselor or my lender first?
Yes, and counseling is free. A HUD counselor will look at your full picture at no cost and walk you through every option, and your lender's loss mitigation department can offer modifications, forbearance, or repayment plans that keep you in the home. We recommend doing both before signing anything with us. We will not feel snubbed if you find a path that does not involve us.
Will any of this hurt my credit, or forgive the leftover debt?
Credit impact, deficiency forgiveness, and the tax treatment of any forgiven debt are lender- and case-specific, and we cannot promise an outcome on any of them. What we can say is that some of these paths protect your credit and your future better than letting a foreclosure run its course. For the specifics on debt and taxes, a CPA or attorney is the right person, and we will tell you when to bring one in.
Will you knock on my door or send people to my house?
No. We do not door-knock pre-foreclosure addresses. If you want us to come look at the home in person, we will schedule it with you. Otherwise we work entirely by phone, text, and email.
What if I am behind on property taxes too?
We can usually still work with that. Property tax debts, mortgage payoffs, and most liens get handled at closing through the title company and show up on the closing statement before you sign. Tell us up front so we can include them in our diligence and in whatever path we walk through with you.

Talk through your options.

Send the address and a few details on the form, or call Donna at (612) 509-0601. We will respond the same business day, walk through the paths that are actually open to you, and tell you honestly if selling is not your best move.

The form asks for your name, a phone number, the property address, and a short note about the situation. That is it. Email is optional. You can also tell us how you prefer to be contacted, by phone, text, or email, and we will respect that.

Or call (612) 509-0601.
If we miss you, we call back.

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NCHRS is a principal real-estate buyer (we buy homes for our own account at closing). We are not a foreclosure consultant, housing counselor, real-estate broker, financial advisor, or attorney, and nothing here is legal, tax, or financial advice. Short sales, deficiency forgiveness, credit outcomes, and relocation assistance are controlled by your lender and your specific situation, and we cannot promise any of them. We strongly recommend speaking with a HUD-approved housing counselor (free, at hud.gov/findacounselor or 1-800-569-4287) and/or a Minnesota attorney before signing any agreement about your home.