Every month throughout the United States there are tens of thousands of homeowners whose homes are posted for foreclosure. Whatever reason may be, once they have fallen behind on their mortgage, property taxes, or homeowner’s association dues, they face loosing their homes at the upcoming foreclosure sale. Besides the recent changes in the subprime mortgage market, most people fall behind because of medical illness, increases in property taxes, adjustable rate mortgages, and loss of employment. For most homeowners up for foreclosure, their home is their life’s biggest investment so they will do most anything to stop the foreclosure and keep their homes.
When a foreclosure has been initiated against you, your name becomes a matter of public record because a foreclosure is a legal proceeding. Once your home is posted for foreclosure, you will most likely begin to receive letters from many different companies promising to be able to stop the foreclosure and allow you to save your home. Some of these letters may be from licensed attorneys or legitimate companies that really may offer realistic options to stop the foreclosure. Be careful, because there are many others that are not so legitimate. They will often call themselves mortgage negotiators, mortgage assistance companies, or foreclosure negotiation specialists. These mortgage negotiators or mortgage assistance companies also send advertisements to those facing foreclosure promising that they can stop the foreclosure as well as help you to avoid filing for bankruptcy.
You need to be cautious of these companies because the majority of the time, if these companies don’t end up being scams, they usually end up not working out. If you ask an experienced bankruptcy lawyer, they’ll probably tell you that very few, if any foreclosures are ever stopped by a so called mortgage negotiator or mortgage assistance company. It may be that there are such companies out there who have some magical power, or powers of persuasion that an experienced bankruptcy lawyer might not have. If you visit a bankruptcy attorney’s office the day before the foreclosure sale, you’ll probably see many people who hired mortgage negotiators or mortgage assistance companies only to find these companies were unable to stop the foreclosure. As such, they turn to a bankruptcy lawyer at the last minute because if they are eligible to file then bankruptcy will definitely stop foreclosure.
If you are about to loose your house to foreclosure, don’t fall victim to a mortgage negotiator or mortgage assistance company scam. Many of these companies are outside of your state and are simply preying on people who are in a desperate situation. They will usually attempt to take advantage of your desire to keep your home and help you "avoid bankruptcy." Depending on your situation, filing for bankruptcy will stop a foreclosure and allow you to keep your home and “avoid getting scammed”. These “mortgage assistance" companies will usually require a payment equal to one or two month’s mortgage payments to “negotiate” with. They may even promise to obtain another mortgage loan in order to pay off your existing loan and stop the foreclosure.
More often than not, they will wait until just before and sometimes after the foreclosure sale (if at all) to inform you of their inability to help you. Ironically, these companies may ultimately recommend that you should see a bankruptcy attorney or buy a bankruptcy forms kit to stop the foreclosure.
Should you decide to utilize one of these mortgage negotiators or mortgage assistance companies, be sure to ask for references from their previous clients whom they were successful in stopping the foreclosure. Check their references and check with the Better Business Bureau and your state’s Attorney General’s office to make sure there aren’t any complaints against them. When you stand to loose your most important property at a foreclosure sale, make sure you have an experienced licensed professional on your side.
Whatever state you live in, if you are facing foreclosure, don’t wait until the last minute to see what your options under Bankruptcy are to stop the foreclosure.
Contact an experienced bankruptcy lawyer to discuss your legal options on how to stop foreclosure and save your house.
Copyright: Copyright © 2008 RJ Atkinson LLP – Attorneys At Law
About the Author:
Rogena Jan Atkinson of The Law Offices of RJ Atkinson,LLP, (rjabankruptcy.com) is a bankruptcy lawyer & foreclosure attorney who has stopped thousands of foreclosures with bankruptcy. Visit
www.rjabankruptcy.com to learn more about foreclosure and bankruptcy.