Homeowners may not realize that there are proactive steps they can take to prevent their home from going into foreclosure. With the stress of an approaching foreclosure sale, homeowners all too often wait to call an experienced bankruptcy attorney to understand all of the options available to them to save their home. The sooner you call, the sooner you can explore all of your options, including possibly not having to file a bankruptcy to save your home.
Saving Your Home
Knowledge is the best way for a homeowner to learn how to stop a foreclosure. The first thing that any concerned homeowner should do is consult with an attorney experience with the foreclosure process and the bankruptcy process. There are various programs for a homeowner to consider when facing foreclosure. However, these options need to be explored well before a scheduled foreclosure sale date to take advantage of them.
The most important thing a homeowner needs to know is their rights, and the timeline of the foreclosure process in New Hampshire. Most foreclosures in New Hampshire are non-judicial, which means the bank does not need to commence a court case to complete the foreclosure process. We will take the time to listen to your current situation and provide you with all of the options available to you. Our goal is to allow our clients to be able to make an informed decision as to how best handle a threatened loss of their home through a foreclosure.
Available Options
A homeowner may have several options available for stopping a foreclosure. First, the bank may allow a period of forbearance where you do not need to make payments for a limited period of time due to illness or loss of income. Second, a homeowner may seek a loan modification from the bank, which may allow you to take your missed payments and re-capitalize them into the loan and resume making your regular monthly payment or a reduced monthly payment if the mortgage is able to be modified with an interest rate reduction or extension of the term of the mortgage.
Is Bankruptcy an Option?
A homeowner may choose to file a bankruptcy to either cancel or postpone a foreclosure sale. To cancel the foreclosure, a homeowner can file a Chapter 13 bankruptcy, which will give the homeowner up to five years to pay back the missed mortgage payments, while the homeowner makes the future mortgage payments on time. If a homeowner merely wants more time to move out of their home, they can file a Chapter 7 bankruptcy to delay the foreclosure sale and give the homeowner time to organize their affairs.
If your home is in danger of foreclosure and you are in need of more information about the foreclosure process and all of the options available to you in New Hampshire, then a bankruptcy attorney is a good place to start. Call us today to discuss your situation regarding your home.
By Christopher Kelley
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