They’re Taking My Home: Understanding the Foreclosure Process

When you receive a foreclosure notice for your home due to unforeseen financial circumstances or lost wages, it’s natural to immediately give up hope and think that it’s over—there’s nothing you can do to save your home.  This is simply untrue.  The foreclosure process is a long, paperwork-heavy procedure that can take several weeks (or even months) to progress.  It begins with the foreclosure notice but this notice doesn’t mean that you’ve run out of options.

 

The best way to not give up hope when you receive your foreclosure notice is to understand the foreclosure process so you’ll have more incentive to make the right choices to save your home during this critical time.  With this understanding, along with the right help from a qualified professional, your foreclosure can be stalled until you have time to get back on your feet.  It can even be completely avoided!

1. When you receive missed-payment notices

Many banks have a grace period for which they allow homeowners to be slightly late on payments.  For some, this grace period is 5 days, for others it is 10 days, and for others it might be 15 days or more.  When you miss your payment, the first thing you should expect to receive is a missed-payment notice.  As long as you send in your payment by the date given to you on this notice, your mortgage will be in good standing.  Many mortgage companies require a late payment, however, if the payment is made within the grace period.

 

2. When you receive a notice of default

Homeowners typically receive a notice of default (NOD) when they are 30 days or more late on their mortgage payment.  This notice gives you a certain number of days to make the mortgage current or run the risk of foreclosure.

 

3. When you get the foreclosure notice

This notice will generally give you the total amounts due, including interest owed, and the contact information for the mortgage company’s attorney.  After you receive this notice, it could be anywhere from 15 days to 15 months before the home goes up for auction on the foreclosure auction block.  The amount of time will depend largely on your lienholder’s regulations and the amount of foreclosure “backlog” they have to work on.  It will also largely vary depending on your location and how many foreclosures are happening within your area or municipality.