The Way In Which The Home Foreclosure Process Works

If you are facing hard financial times thanks to a loss of a job or some finance setback, and you own a house, you could be having difficulties keeping up with your payments. You are not alone. There’s more than 177,000 houses in foreclosure just in the state of Florida at the moment. And that amount is down from just 2 years ago.

Of course, your home may never go as far as going into foreclosure. If you can hang in there and stay abreast of your payments, you may be able to circumvent the foreclosure process altogether.

But if the spectre of foreclosure is bothering you, you could be considering how the foreclosure process works. Here’s an overview of what might occur. Of course the method differs from state to state, but here is what may happen.

Notice To Accelerate

If you have missed a loan payment or two you may receive a letter from your bank reminding you you are behind on your payments. You may continue to get these letters for 2-3 months.

If you get past 60 days past due you'll receive a “Notice To Accelerate” letter. They will be demanding payment and threatening action in the courts if some part of the loan payment isn't made. If you want to avoid foreclosure this is the time to reply and contact the lender. You could be able to work something out.

If you fail to respond you may be putting yourself in a bad position. The best thing you can do is begin bargaining with the bank.

Demand Letter

If you do not respond by the stated date the bank may send you what is often known as Demand Letter. This is formal notice that if you don't pay they may file foreclosure legal papers with the court. Your are now formally in the court system.

The bank will usually have their own solicitor at this point.

Notice of Default

Now things are getting serious. The lender’s lawyer will file the foreclosure and you'll get a Notice of Default. This legal document will show the amount that has to be paid. It will give you 20 to 30 days to reply.

Notice of Sale

After the 20 to 30 day period, if you haven't answered, the counsel will file a Notice of Sale. This notice will set an auction date for the property, usually inside 30 days of the notice. This notice goes in the newspaper and your home will legally be put up for auction. The sale customarily takes place in front of the court house. If somebody buys your house, they may sometimes be required to pay in full inside 24 hours. Your house now does not belong to you.

This Is The Process

In a judicial foreclosure state, this is sometimes what happens. The process can be stopped at any time before the particular sale date. Once the sale goes thru there is very little you can do.

Remember the lender does not want to sell your house any more than you do. They typically lose money and they do not want to be in the home selling business. Respond fast and you could have an opportunity to save your house. Reflect upon hiring a foreclosure attorney who understands foreclosure defense. They can help you get through this process.

Rick Hart is a web business specialist. He provides tools for foreclosure lawyers in Tampa that help with loan modifications, short sales and foreclosures.