It happens fast. The unpaid bills that have been piling up now make it impossible to meet your mortgage payments. The possibility of foreclosure looms over your home like a dark cloud on an otherwise sunny day. Unfortunately, this is a scary reality that many Americans find themselves facing.
What can you do to stop foreclosure? Well, as a homeowner, you have several options. Let’s break them down:
Speak With Your Lender
While avoiding your lender is an understandable impulse when you can’t make your payments, it will only cause more harm in the end. The debt isn’t going away, no matter how many phone calls you ignore.
In fact, your lender may even be able to help. Contact your lender to see if they can help you avoid immediate foreclosure. If possible, you may be able to come up with a plan to get on top of those overdue payments. If you can do that, the process of foreclosure will stop, and you’ll be able to keep your home.
Modify Your Loan
You may be able to work with your lender to apply for a loan modification or forbearance. A loan modification might be your answer to how to stop foreclosure if an adjustment to your payment rate or loan amount will help you meet those payments. While your request for a loan modification is under review, your lender cannot proceed with foreclosure. On the other hand, a forbearance will temporarily suspend your monthly payments until you can get your finances back on track.
File for Bankruptcy
What can you do to stop foreclosure dead in its tracks? File for bankruptcy. As soon as your lender is notified that you’ve filed for bankruptcy, the lender cannot proceed with foreclosure.
However, filing for bankruptcy isn’t how to stop foreclosure permanently. Your lender can take the case to bankruptcy court to appeal for continuing with foreclosure. The process will only buy you time to recover financially, restructure your debt, and possibly develop a payment plan that works for you. Consult a bankruptcy attorney to find out if this option is right for you.
Ask for a Deed in Lieu of Foreclosure
A deed in lieu of foreclosure means signing the deed to your home back to the bank. It sounds easy, but lenders don’t often agree to deeds in lieu of foreclosure due to the legal risks associated with them. Because of that — and the effect that a deed in lieu could have on your credit — this may not be how to prevent foreclosure for you.
Sell Your Home
Other than reworking your loan agreement, filing for bankruptcy, or asking for a deed in lieu, what can you do to stop foreclosure? In some cases, you can sell your home.
You can try your luck on the market, but that how long that could take varies. In a high-demand seller’s market, that can take three to 10 days, but in a buyer’s market, that can take a month or more.
In order to sell your home fast, consider selling it to a home buying company. That way, you can get cash for your home, regardless of its condition. It’s quick, easy, and it’ll give you the money you need to put the stress of foreclosure behind you for good.