When you fall behind on your house payments, the mortgage lender will move forward with foreclosure. In Arlington and Alexandria in Virginia, your lender will take all of the necessary steps to seize and sell your home in order to repay the debt balance that you owe. Once the foreclosure process starts, it can be difficult to stop. You can either come current and repay the money that you owe to the lender. There are other ways to stop a foreclosure in Alexandria Virginia, however.
An experienced Alexandria Virginia foreclosure and bankruptcy lawyer can provide you with comprehensive advice about how you can stop a foreclosure from happening to your home. Contact Lee Legal today if you are facing foreclosure in Virginia, Washington D.C. or Maryland. Call to schedule your consultation with a bankruptcy lawyer who can help you.
Stopping a foreclosure when you’re not too far in default
Repaying the amount owed to the lender is the best and easiest way to stop the foreclosure, but you must have the money in order to repay the debt. Most people don’t.
Instead, try to work out some type of mortgage modification. There are programs available to save people’s homes from foreclosure. Your mortgage company may reduce your monthly payments. Or you could be a candidate for a mortgage refinance.
These options, however, take time and require a lender’s approval. It is usually best to pursue these options before foreclosure proceedings start. One a foreclosure auction date is set, time is running out.
How to quickly stop a foreclosure in Alexandria Virginia
Once the formal foreclosure process is underway, often the best thing that you can do is to file for bankruptcy protection. As soon as you have filed the paperwork with the court, any pending foreclosure proceedings must stop. Lenders are prohibited from moving forward with the foreclosure process once you file bankruptcy. After filing bankruptcy, then you have the time to try to work something out with the lender, such as a mortgage modification.
Bankruptcy doesn’t just erase mortgage debt. In certain limited cases, a Chapter 13 can allow you to have second mortgage debt reclassified as unsecured debt, which would mean that your second mortgage lender could no longer foreclose if you didn’t pay in full. However, this is not always an option and you’ll need to discuss this option with your bankruptcy attorney.
Bankruptcy could help you keep your home by buying time to work out a deal with the lender or by getting rid of your other debts so your home loan becomes more affordable to you.
We keep our eye on the prize
At Lee Legal, we know that avoiding foreclosure and keeping your house is your top priority. We can help you to explore bankruptcy and other solutions to prevent foreclosure. Give us a call or contact us online today for more information on how we can help in your situation.