Alternatives to Foreclosure

Anyone who has been served a Notice of Foreclosure knows the unsettling feeling one gets when threatened with the thought of losing one’s home. Fortunately, for those people who have fallen behind on their mortgage payments and are now facing foreclosure or the threat of foreclosure, there are other solutions they can turn to in an effort to avoid foreclosure, such as:

• Loan Modification – an attorney negotiates with the lender to modify your mortgage loan so that it is more affordable. This might include lowering the interest rate, reducing the principal balance, changing an adjustable rate to a fix rate, etc.
• Loan Forbearance- the lender agrees to let you stop making mortgage payments for a while until you are in a more financially stable place. This does not eliminate your obligation to make those payments, it just gives you the opportunity to pay them later when you’re in a better place financially.
• Short Sale – the bank agrees to let you sell your home for less than it’s worth and simply write off the difference in balance that you would have owed. Lenders tend to agree to a short sale because they’d rather recuperate some of their money than deal with having to go through the foreclosure process.
• Deed in Lieu – the lender agrees to take back the deed to the house and dismiss any money or debt you still owe on the house. Although you don’t get to keep the home, you will avoid the negative impact a foreclosure will have on your creditor rating.
• Bankruptcy – An automatic stay will be imposed once you file for bankruptcy that prevents creditors and lenders from taking further action against you. As soon as you file for bankruptcy, the lender must cease all foreclosure efforts pending the outcome of the bankruptcy reorganization.

Take a moment to contact an experienced foreclosure defense attorney today to learn more about the ways you can avoid foreclosure. Click here to find a bankruptcy attorney in your area that has experience representing clients facing foreclosure.