How to prove wrongful foreclosure is one of the most difficult questions, an attorney may have to face. A foreclosure lawsuit is when a bank sues a homeowner in court order to reclaim their principal from the mortgage loan. California has seen an increase in wrongful foreclosures over the years. Yet, not all of these cases are wins for the homeowners. Close to 40,000 more homes were put up for foreclosure in just last year. With this said, it should be no mystery as to how to win a wrongful foreclosure case.
One of the first things you need to do if you are faced with this situation is to seek help. A loan modification attorney should be your first avenue of defense. They understand the legal framework within the state and can provide you with the proper advice to handle this particular issue. If you are in serious financial trouble and facing foreclosure, seeking the services of a loan modification attorney is the best thing you could do.
The foreclosure lawsuit can also be filed against the homeowner. If the homeowner had missed payments on their mortgage, they are fully liable for these debts. In addition, lenders may file suit against the homeowner and ask a judge to force the homeowner to pay off these debts. The foreclosure lawyer will know which lender to contact to get the best outcome for the client.
When looking for a lawyer, make sure they are fully knowledgeable about the laws in your state and are experienced foreclosure attorneys. Having an experienced foreclosure attorney on your team will allow them to easily deal with lenders who may file counter-suits against your homeowner. An experienced attorney will also be able to give you the best advice for fighting back against these suits.
Another option is to use a short sale, but a short sale does not remove the right to foreclose. If the homeowner still has not been able to work with the banks to find a solution, they are legally allowed to carry out the procedure known as foreclosure. Banks are more willing to accept negotiations if the homeowner knows they have options available to them. For instance, many homeowners are able to negotiate for a short sale with the bank, whereas they may not be able to negotiate with another lender.
This option of a short sale is often best handled by an experienced foreclosure lawyer. In fact, the short sale is often used to get the most affordable payment plan possible for the homeowner and the bank. A short sale does not remove the legal right to foreclose, it simply allows the owner to walk away from the home and not have to make any payments towards the house. Negotiating a short sale can take several months to accomplish, and in some cases the bank will not agree to a plan until all the money needed is saved up to offer the full amount requested. This is why it's often a good idea to let a foreclosure attorney handle this aspect of the transaction; they are well-experienced at getting a low price and avoiding foreclosure on a homeowner's credit report.
One of the first steps that a borrower must take after being served with a copy of the foreclosure notice is to make sure that they are actually behind on their mortgage. This is because a borrower can negotiate for a lower payment plan with a pre-foreclosure company, but they will be responsible for missing payments if they do not have the money saved up to make them. It's important to remember that although these companies may offer lower payments, if the payments still haven't been made, borrowers are still facing foreclosure. In fact, many of these lenders will begin foreclosure proceedings immediately after a lender receives the missed payments, even if the borrower hasn't moved yet.
The second step borrowers should take after being served with the foreclosure notice is to try and work out a loan modification with the lending company. Many companies will be willing to consider a loan modification based upon the information that is already on their books. Borrowers should not ignore phone calls or letters from these companies, but borrowers need to be careful about how much information the company wants to obtain from them. If the loan mod company asks for the borrower's social security number, a straightforward response is that this is not information that will be needed by them to make a loan modification decision. On the other hand, if a borrower provides information such as a credit score or income level that is used to help determine what monthly payments the company can approve for the homeowner, the lender may use this information to make an exception to approve the loan modification request.