Your mortgage company cannot initiate foreclosure proceedings until you are 60 days delinquent on your payments. At that time, they can send you an Act 91 Notice. This informs you that you have the right to apply for a loan from the state to help pay your mortgage. You can apply for this assistance, but it is difficult to qualify. If you are denied, the foreclosure process can resume. The mortgage company would then file a foreclosure complaint and serve you with a copy, delivered by the sheriff. You have up to 30 days to respond. If you do not respond, they can get a judgment and schedule a sheriff's sale of your property.
Responses
When you have been sued, you have rights. The first right is to defend the suit. You can challenge the mortgage company's right to sue you, or some facet of the foreclosure complaint.
While you are defending the lawsuit, you can work on curing the default . A common strategy is to attempt a loan modification. While that may be hard to get, if you are successful, it can reduce your interest rate, forgive arrears or postpone payment on them until the end of the loan.
If you feel you are ultimately unable to afford the house, but have equity, you may sell the property while the lawsuit is being defended.
Finally, if you are unable to cure the default through loan modification or some other means, and want to keep your home, the last option is to file bankruptcy under Chapter 13. That will put an automatic stay in place, halting the process and any collection attempts on any debts. It will force the mortgage company to accept regular monthly mortgage payments and the arrears over the life of a plan.
Contact a friendly, accessible, knowledgeable and professional attorney at Nahrgang & Associates, P.C. Matt Nahrgang has been practicing law in this area for more than 20 years, has appeared numerous times on the radio hosting Legal Perspectives, and was voted Best Bankruptcy Attorney for 2006 in the Main Line Times.
Call for a Free Initial Consultation
Contact a lawyer at our Collegeville, Pennsylvania, law firm today to discuss your bankruptcy or family law questions. You can reach us by toll free phone at 888-773-6714 or via e-mail. We will respond promptly to all phone calls and e-mails, usually within 24 hours.
We are a debt relief agency. We help people file for bankruptcy relief under the Bankruptcy Code.
