Have you gotten a foreclosure notice and feel lost on what to do from here?
Basically, a foreclosure Notice of Default is a document that has to be filed by a lender to start the foreclosure process. If you have received this notice, that means your lender has started the process on your home.
The Notice of Default must be sent to anyone who has any interest in the property. That includes you as the owner as well as any other potential lien holders (for example other loans, lenders, or even contractors who are owed money for work they did to your property but were never paid).
The Notice of Default must also be published publicly at the subject property’s County Clerk’s office and physically mailed to the property owner’s last known address.
Although this can be really embarrassing to someone going through foreclosure, it’s actually a very important protection for consumers. It means the lender has gone through every attempt possible to notify the seller of a pending foreclosure.
Back before US law required a notice of default, people were sometimes foreclosed on without any warning.
Before it was a law to take all of these steps, it wasn’t uncommon for a homeowner to say they were completely unaware of the pending foreclosure until after the home was foreclosed on and it was too late. That forced the government to make a national law requiring lenders to take all of these precautionary steps to prevent homeowners from getting foreclosed on without warning.
The notice of default is a very important step within the foreclosure process that gives the owners of the property an appropriate amount of time to step forward and remedy the situation before it’s too late. If you’ve received a notice of default, don’t wait. Time is definitely of the essence, and you should take action as soon as possible.
Depending on your state, the foreclosure process can vary in the amount of time it takes a lender to foreclose. If you’re in Texas, it usually takes about 6 months from the time of default to the date of the auction. Once you receive the final notice with a foreclosure date listed, you usually only have 30 to 45 days before the auction takes place. Once the auction happens, you will no longer be the owner of your home. That’s why it’s important to start taking action now to get out of this situation before it’s too late.
Here are a few key steps you could take:
1) Stay calm and don’t wait
This may sound obvious, but it’s probably the most important. Anyone in foreclosure is dealing with a lot of stress beyond just the property. It’s not uncommon for people to panic to the point of shutting down and just hoping it eventually resolves itself, which it never does. It requires action to fix this.
The resolutions that are out there don’t fix the problem overnight. It can take some time, so you don’t want to wait until it’s too late. Just remember to practice good coping techniques and take good care of yourself and your family. Panicking can lead you to make bad decisions, so just remember to stay calm.
2) Educate yourself.
Learn everything you can about the foreclosure process in your state so that you know what’s happening and what’s coming up next. Here is our blog where we go over every step available to you that could hopefully get you out of this pending foreclosure situation: Foreclosure notice of default
3) Gather your resources.
There are also many non-profit and government resources available out there. You’re making the right step by reading this article. You should also look into the government resources that are provided to homeowners to help them in this very situation. I go over one commonly used resource in my 9 Ways To Stop A Foreclosure blog but remember that not all options might fit your local area or your situation in particular.
4) Learn your options.
We’re here to help you avoid foreclosure. We buy houses with cash and can close very fast. We are very flexible with your needs and are willing to help as much as we can no matter what your situation or needs are.
We’ve been in the real estate industry for a long time and have helped homeowners through almost any situation. If you want to discuss your options with us, please give us a call, and let’s see how we can help.
5) Communicate.
The banks normally don’t want your property. They only want their money bank, and what you say matters a lot. You can slow down or stop the foreclosure process if you take the appropriate action. All it takes is a call to your lender to discuss your situation. Once you speak with them, see if there is anything they can do that will help your situation. If they do agree to anything, it’s important to get that in writing.
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