Have you been notified by your lender that your house payment is overdue? Perhaps you are 2 or 3 payments behind, and the lender is threatening you with foreclosure on your home. You are not alone in this situation. In today’s difficult economy, many homeowners are in the same boat.

You may have fallen into this situation due to an unexpected financial hardship or the loss of your job. Whatever the reason, it is possible to stop foreclosure quick, if you take the appropriate action.

This involves responding without delay once you are notified by your mortgage lender that your payments are overdue. The sooner that you take steps to work with the lender, the more likely it is that they will work with you.

There is more than one way to stop foreclosure quickly. If your financial setback was temporary, and you now have adequate income, a forbearance agreement might be the simplest solution. This is a short-term plan whereby your lender agrees to accept a portion of the back payments now, and then the rest over the next few months. Keep in mind that these make-up payments are on top of your regular house payment each month. You may have to make a few sacrifices elsewhere in your budget, but if you have a steady income this is probably the quickest way to clear up the problem and avoid foreclosure.

Other possible ways to stop foreclosure quick include getting a short refinance loan, signing a deed in lieu of foreclosure, or negotiating a loan modification.

A loan modification seems to be the best option for most homeowners who want to keep their home, because it typically involves lower monthly payments. This requires a permanent change in your mortgage terms whereby the lender either agrees to reduce the interest rate on the loan, or they extend the total repayment period so that your monthly payments are brought down to a level that you can afford.

Loan modifications have become very popular. The good news is that thousands of homeowners have taken advantage of a loan modification to save their home from foreclosure. The bad news is that, most lenders now have a considerable backlog of non-performing home loans, and can be slow to respond to your calls and letters.

It is easy to understand the frustration of many homeowners over their failed efforts to work out an agreement with their mortgage lenders. They often find that they are bounced around from one person to another, speaking to someone different each time they call. The problem is that most of the people you talk to are reading from a script, telling you to send X dollars. But, they don’t have the authority to actually change any of the terms of your loan. You may find that, after sending in the payment you were told to, the lender continues with foreclosure proceedings anyway.

Even if you do manage to reach someone in authority, and you succeed in negotiating a loan modification agreement, it will be a rather long process. You will need to submit documentation, review, notarize and execute new loan documents, and oversee the entire transaction through escrow.

With all of these things in mind, you might want to consider enlisting the help of a loan modification expert. Experienced professionals have already dealt with most of the mortgage lenders so they know who to contact to get things done. They have the expertise to go to bat for you in negotiations with your lender, possibly saving you thousands of dollars over the life of the loan. Having all the details attended to can lift a huge burden off your shoulders, and may provide the most efficient way for you to stop foreclosure quick.

Author: James Sopher

James Sopher is a retired real estate professional and free-lance writer.

Get more tips on how to get a Loan Modification Agreement

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A short sale is one of the most misunderstood transactions in real estate and foreclosure. I ask people all the time if they know what a short sale is. Often times, they say yes and when I ask them to describe a short sale to me, their understanding is often quite different from reality.

While banks don’t necessarily like short sales, they don’t like to foreclose even more. When a foreclosure happens, it not only ruins the borrowers credit and it’s a total loss for the bank but it also affects the values of other homes in the block.

For a homeowner, a short sale is a way to avoid foreclosure and reduce the damage to their credit. Repairing credit is much easier after Short Sale than after foreclosure. This is because a short sale generally remains on your credit for 2 years while foreclosures are present for 5-7 years.

Although a short sale is not always the best choice for a lender, it does generally help them collect as much money as possible in a foreclosure situation. Most lenders calculate their loss on a foreclosure as high as 50%. If they can sell a home, using a short sale, for 70% – 80% of its value, this is a 30% – 40% improvement over trying to sell a home after the foreclosure process.

When attempting a short sale, it doesn’t matter what your income level is, or what your home is worth. Almost everyone can apply for a short sale. It’s just a matter of dealing with all the parties involved to arrange the best possible end to a bad situation. Even with multiple mortgages and even if your home is completely upside down, a short sale can help all parties.

You must keep in mind though, there are still options available that may allow you to keep your home with a lower monthly payment. In many foreclosure cases, we are seeing banks agree to mortgage modifications that include lowering the total amount owed on a mortgage. In cases like these, you may be able to keep your home with a more affordable monthly payment. Even in loan mods where the amount owed is unchanged, you may still be able to save your home with a successful modification.
A foreclosure modification is when the bank agrees to modify the old terms of the loan to accommodate your new financial situation. This may mean lowering your interest rate, extending the term of your loan, or even reducing the total amount owed on the mortgage. Essentially, this is like refinancing your home and getting a reduced house payment.

But if you’ve already reviewed all the other stop foreclosure solutions and a short sale is your only solution, then you should at least have an idea of what a short sale is.

Imagine homeowners who finds themselves unable to make their monthly mortgage payments. With the economic downturn, times have gotten tough and house payments are nearly impossible to make for many people in the USA. After around ninety days of missed payments, the lenders will start the process of foreclosure.

An increasing problem is that, oftentimes, neither homeowners nor servicers know what pre-foreclosure options are available. With foreclosure eminent, the homeowner decides it’s in his or her best interest to try to list the property for sale, so they contact a Realtor to put the house on the market.

The only problem is, when the home actually sells, it might not bring enough money to payoff all the mortgages and liens. For example, the mortgage(s) payoff is $250,000, but the home only sells for $190,000, the home owner may be required to pay the remaining $60,000 that is owed. This is where a short sale can be used. The lender has to agree that, based on the provided hardship documentation, they will agree to accept the $190,000 as payment in full and forgive the outstanding $60,000 that is still owed.

In most cases, it’s important to find a short sale expert to make sure the short sale is handled properly. The last thing you need when facing foreclosure is to find out, several months after giving up your home, that you have a deficiency judgment for $60,000. Keep in mind, just because your lender accepts a short sale, doesn’t mean they wont try and collect the balance. This is something that needs to be arranged beforehand and needs to be legally in writing. In general, most people do not have the knowledge or ability to perform a short sale without the help of a foreclosure company. The entire process can also be very time consuming and you’ll quickly find out that the tiny amount charged for this type of help is well worth the price.

But always understand, there are several other options that can prevent the need to sell your home when facing foreclosure. mortgage modifications are becoming much more popular and a foreclosure loan may still be an option for some. Regardless of the situation, it’s always smart to have a back up plan and to speak with an expert to find out all your options to save your home or credit from foreclosure.

Still the best way we find to avoid foreclosure is by getting a loan modification.

By: Nick Adama

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Too many people end up just completely packing up and walking away from their homes as soon as the foreclosure process has begun. While this is a sign of defeat in the eyes of many people, the fight does not have to be over just yet since there are such things as foreclosure short sales to be used.

If you have not been legally evicted from your home then there is no reason to leave just yet. Depending on the state you reside in, the foreclosure process can take anywhere from forty-five days to two years from start to finish.

You never know, as you may be able to come up with the money you need to pull yourself out of the terrible foreclosure trap. If you feel or even know that paying your past due amount plus the attorney fees is not feasible for you, there may still be other options such as using foreclosure short sales to your advantage.

The worst thing you can do is to just pack up and walk away. Completion of a foreclosure process affects your credit in an extremely negative way. Those with foreclosures on their record could very well end up with a hard time obtaining any sort of credit for a long time. After all, the way creditors are going to view it is that if you were unwilling or unable to pay for the place you lived at, you are not likely to repay a debt ran up on a credit card.

Home shorts sales and foreclosure prevention

Putting the house up for sale is the best thing to do if you feel that you are not going to be able to save it for yourself. With a depressed market though you may find that you are having trouble getting offers for the amount you owe the bank. This is where home short sales come into play: They are one of several foreclosure prevention methods available to homeowners in distress.

To short sale a home means that the bank, or company that holds the lien on the property, agree to take less than the amount that is owed.

Sometimes the difference in money owed is paid back to the bank over a period of time. Other times the difference is forgiven and borrowers can move on to the other important issues pending in their life and they will be completely done with foreclosure short sales.

Many banks will want all their houses on the market and listed for sale for at least three months before they consider foreclosure short sales. This is just to make sure that you gave the house a good shot at selling full price.

After enough time passes, the bank will generally see that it is much more beneficial to let the house be sold for slightly less than owed rather than spending thousands of dollars on attorney fees in order to foreclose. Here is where foreclosure short sales come into play.

By: Mei Fontana

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For more detailed information on foreclosure short sales.

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A deed in lieu of foreclosure allows homeowners to give their property back to the bank in fulfillment of their loan obligation. The bank accepts the property back and the homeowners are off the hook for paying the mortgage any longer. As well, any foreclosure procedures that have been initiated in the court system or with a trustee are canceled.

For borrowers who have no other option to save the home and begin making monthly payments again, a deed in lieu of foreclosure is often their last resort before just abandoning the house. Of course, this option is not for every homeowner, but there are at least four reasons to consider a deed in lieu instead of just walking away.

First, if homeowners have tried to sell their property on the open market for a period of months but have just not found a buyer, it may be worth considering just giving the property back to the bank. Mortgage companies do not always want to own foreclosed homes, but if it realizes it will end up with the home anyway through a sheriff sale, it may be quicker and cheaper to accept the deed in lieu.

Second, if the owners have little or no ability to pay the mortgage, they can consider giving the property back to the bank. This is often the case when there is a permanent change in the borrowers’ financial situation and a once affordable home is now too expensive. Instead of going through a lengthy foreclosure process, the bank may understand that they will not be paid back and it is better to take the property back.

Next, if homeowners have no equity in their home, their options are extremely limited for working out a solution to foreclosure. Refinancing is usually out of the question, even with hard money lenders, and negative equity will make selling the home very difficult. As well, the owners may just not even want to keep a home that is severely upside down, so offering a deed in lieu to the bank may be the best option.

Finally, many borrowers wish to preserve their credit scores as much as possible, and having a deed in lieu appear on their credit report instead of a full foreclosure will help with this. Also, they will be able to avoid some of the late payments by giving the property back to the bank quickly. While this is often a minor concern to many homeowners just trying to get out from under a house, it is another good reason to consider a deed in lieu.

While it is not always easy to convince a bank to accept a deed in lieu, it is not much more difficult than negotiating for a mortgage modification or other foreclosure help program the lender may offer. Homeowners should focus on working with a company or individual who can help explain the process and help them put together a proposal to the bank, and then be persistent in following up with the deed in lieu of foreclosure.

By: Nick Adama

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You can read more about the author by visiting: www.foreclosurefish.com/

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Many of the things you should consider when your home is going into foreclosure include: – The foreclosure process – Tips on Saving Your Home

The foreclosure process can take up to a year for some people. This is because there are many steps of the foreclosure process. Not every home forecloses in exactly the same amount of time. This process can take six months for some homes and a year for others.

When a foreclosure begins a bank will issue a statement of claim because you have missed at least three payments on your mortgage. Your ability to service the financing of your home will be questioned. The second phase of a foreclosure is when the statement of claim is served to you. The third step of a foreclosure is the bank demanding you sell the home. This will be stated inside of the statement of claim. The bank will give you time to try to sell the home. This timeframe can be up to six months. This period is usually called the redemption period. Toward the end of this period the fifth step is the Order of Sale. This documentation will be served to you as a homeowner. This will include a date when the bank is going to sell the home through an auction at the county courthouse in your local county. The final period is when the home is sold through the auction and you are required to move out of the home. This entire process can be very lengthy.

Some people are not serious about saving their home. Because of the length of time it takes before you will be legally removed from the home, some people live in the home for free right up until the day the home is sold at the auction. If you want to keep your home you should not let the home get past the third stage of the foreclosure process.

There are three primary methods you can save your home from foreclosure. These three methods include loan reinstatement, forbearance, and loan modification. If you are serious about keeping your home you should look at these three options and determine which method is right for you.

The forbearance agreement is a common way a homeowner can save their home. This agreement is made between the bank and the homeowner. The homeowner commonly has an emergency in the household that prevents them from making the monthly payments. They make an agreement with the bank to catch up on the arrearages by making larger monthly payments on the home loan until they are caught up. The bank will usually give the homeowner a six month period. This could double the payments in some cases and may not even be affordable for you. When you agree with the bank on a forbearance agreement it does not stop the foreclosure process. This puts the foreclosure on hold until you are entirely caught up with your payments. If you do not make the promised payments your home will go through with the foreclosure process.

A loan modification used to be the most common method of resolving the problems of foreclosure in the past. This method allows the lender to issue a new home loan agreement with you where all of the arrearages are added to the end of the loan. This would extend the life of the loan but the homeowner can continue making their payments as if they were never behind and everyone wins. This is not a common solution anymore and banks rarely agree to allowing a homeowner have a loan modification.

The loan reinstatement is the third way you can save your home from foreclosing. This method is when the lender has initiated the process of foreclosure and you find a way to pay back all of the missed payments, late fees, attorney costs, etc. These amounts must be paid back in full and zeroed out in order for it to be valid.

There are many positive sides to the loan reinstatement you might consider. These include being able to keep your home without the worry of losing it to a foreclosure. You are back at square one with your monthly mortgage payments. You are not behind and you don’t owe any additional money for late fees or anything else. This is the best method and banks are usually willing to accept this method if you can come up with the payments to catch up.

There is a downside to the loan reinstatement that you might want to consider. The downside is that if you have to borrow the money to be able to pay the bank all of the money you now owe someone else. This may be another monthly payment for you. If you are in the foreclosure process because your monthly payments are difficult to be able to afford you might have a hard time making payments on an additional loan too.

The loan reinstatement method of saving your home from a foreclosure is the most expensive way to save your home and be able to keep it. It is important to remember that if you take a loan out to save your home then you must give the bank the entire amount you owe them including the fees. Do not just pay back the monthly payments you missed or the home may continue to go into the foreclosure process. A bank will not work with you on the loan reinstatement unless you zero the balance out.

You should be sure you can afford to come up with all of the money in this process also. If you really cannot afford to do this you might be digging an even bigger hole than you expected. It may be inevitable that your home goes into foreclosure but you are denying that you really cannot afford it. It is important to know for sure that you really can afford to save your home through the loan reinstatement program.

A loan reinstatement is the most commonly accepted method of saving your home if the bank has started the foreclosure process. It isn’t common for banks to agree to other methods because they want their money. You should be sure that you really can afford your home if you can get out of the hole you are in before you decide to pay off the entire debt.

By: Peter Baptiste

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