Stop Foreclosure: Understanding How The Foreclosure Process Works In Florida

Stop Foreclosure: Understanding How The Foreclosure Process Works In Florida

Owning a home has always been a part of the "american dream", but having a home foreclosed on can quickly become the american nightmare for many people. Going through foreclosure has a stigma of failure and can be devastating to families. 

Homeowners don't have to worry about foreclosure having a bad stigma. After the financial crisis of 2008 left over 4.5 Million homeowners in foreclosure, all from different walks of life, it no longer was seen as something that could only happen to someone who didn't have a higher education or who couldn't manage their money wisely, it was now something that was happening to anyone.

As more and more people faced foreclosure some homeowners decided to take a stand and fight back. They learned that there was a process a lender had to go through to properly file a foreclosure and they had to have certain documents to be successful, other homeowners found out there was other options that kept a foreclosure from being put on their credit report.

The Foreclosure Process

To understand how to avoid foreclosure on your Florida home you must first learn about the foreclosure process in Florida.

Pre-Foreclosure

If you've missed a mortgage payment a lender can't just go ahead and foreclose on your home. The lender will first send you a past due bill, after missing a few more payments they more than likely send you a few letters reminding you that you are behind along with collections phone calls. Federal law now requires that a homeowner must be over 120 days delinquent before filing for foreclosure. Before this case of default is filed at the court you have 7 options that could stop the foreclosure process in its tracks. 

These options include:

1) Sell your house to a cash buyer

2) Loan Modification

3) Forbearance Agreement

4) Payment Plan

5) Deed-in-Lieu of Foreclosure

6) Short Sale
7) File for Bankruptcy

Notice of Default

Once the 120 days have passed the lender can then file file a lawsuit in a Florida state court, this is a called a Notice of Default (NOD). Once this has been filed you have 20 days to respond! This part is extremely important due to the fact that if you do not respond to lawsuit within that time frame the lender can request the court to give a default judgement. A default judgment pretty much means you lose the case and the the lender can move on with the foreclosure. However, if you file a respond it then gives you time to find options to avoid the foreclosure and delay the trial date. 

Motion for Summary Judgement or Foreclosure Trial

This is one of the most crucial points in fighting your foreclosure. A lender can file a motion for summary judgement requesting the judge to expedite the foreclosure and not go to trial. The judge will award this if the lender can prove that the homeowner is in default and has no case against the foreclosure or the judge will rule to go to trial. This is your time to FIGHT BACK!! If you have decided to raise a defense to the foreclosure this is when you and your lawyer can challenge the lender. 

After the financial crisis of 2008 it was discovered that the banks and the real estate industry had become prevalent with fraudulent and predatory lending practices. Mortgages were sold over and over again to different investors by packaging them up with good loans and bad loans many times without having the correct or necessary paperwork. (Discuss your defense options with your lawyer as I am in not form a legal expert)

Foreclosure Sale

If you were unsuccessful at winning your foreclosure trial and the judge sided with the lender then the next step will be a foreclosure sale. This is often called the courthouse foreclosure sale. This is usually scheduled between 20-35 days after the judgment. The foreclosure sale is when many real estate investors buy houses cash fast. 

At the foreclosure sale, the property is: 

• Either sold to the highest third-party bidder or 
• It goes back to the lender and is now an REO

At this point there is an extremely small window where a homeowner can get their home back by paying off the amount of the debt, including the interest, and attorney's fees in full before the clerk of courts files the certificate of sale (this can be between 1-10 days).

To learn more about foreclosure and other ways to defend yourself against a foreclosure and to learn about our program to help homeowners avoid foreclosure download our FREE Stop Foreclosure Guide Here.