Foreclosure is the initiation of a lawsuit for the rights to ownership of the property. It seeks to remove from the owners from living in the property and having the property sold at auction to satisfy an unpaid mortgage on the property. The foreclosure process can be initiated by the financial institution’s attorneys as they have a vested interest home which has been used as collateral for the loans.
Start Of The Foreclosure Process
The foreclosure process begins after the homeowner’s default, which technically occurs when they have missed mortgage payments on their home mortgage loan. The number of payments a homeowner can miss before a default notice is sent depends on the financial institution and its policies with regard to defaulted loans. Generally speaking, if you are three months behind on your mortgage payments, your house can be placed into foreclosure.
Missing a Payment – What Should You Do?
If you miss one payment your mortgage company will generally allow you a grace period of up to 15 days during which time you can pay that amount due and avoid late charges. If you do not remit your payment by the end of the grace period, your lender may try to contact you and remind you you’ve missed your payment and advise you that you now owe late fees in addition to your payment. If you get one of those late payment letters it is suggested you contact your financial institution and make arrangements to catch up on your mortgage payment.
What If You Can’t Make Your Mortgage Payments?
If you miss one or more mortgage payments and you do not have the financial capability of catching up on your mortgage payments, you can take action to avoid going into foreclosure or into a pre-foreclosure situation. There are plans such as forbearance agreements, mortgage modifications and other programs which financial institutions have to assist homeowners who have incurred their financial difficulties.
The Start of the Foreclosure Process In New York
Here’s how the foreclosure process in New York works. The financial institution which holds the mortgage on the home hires a law firm. The law firm drafts the summons and complaint. The summons and complaint is filed in the county clerk’s office of the Supreme Court in the county where the property lies. The lender, after filing the summons and complaint, also files a document called a “Lis Pendens”. This is a public notice legal action has been taken regarding your home and this puts everyone on notice that there is a problem with the title to your home and you no longer have good title to the house. Thereafter the lawyers for the financial institution, higher a process server to go to your home and serve you with a copy of the summons and complaint in the foreclosure lawsuit.
The law office of Schlissel DeCorpo have been defending homeowners regarding mortgage issues for more than three decades. They can be reached at 516-561-6645, 718-350-2802, 631-319-8262 and 914-998-0080 or emailed at Elliot@sdnylaw.com.
