Filing Bankruptcy To Keep From Foreclosure

Posted by Gibson Maseko

September 13, 2008

by Gibson Maseko

It can be very difficult to choose between settling for bankruptcy or allowing a foreclosure to take place. Few people realize how difficult the choice is to make, or recognize that the decision is not an either/or one. A mortgage lender will file a foreclosure action when it is not paid its monthly mortgage payments.

Paying the lender is the only true way this action can be prevented. A mortgage loan is sort of like a car loan and if a person does not pay his car payment, he will lose the car through repossession. In a similar vein, if a person is lax in their monthly mortgage payments, they will experience losing their home via foreclosure.

If a person’s debt is so bad that they cannot pay their debts, then they sometimes must file bankruptcy. This action stops all civil proceedings against the debtor while the debtor is in bankruptcy. As a result, the mortgage lender is incapable of immediately continuing their foreclosure, or any other legal action.

However, a mortgage lender can file for relief from the automatic stay, and when the relief is granted, simply proceed with the aforementioned action. The bottom line is that bankruptcy does not stop foreclosure and it does not allow a debtor to keep a house without paying the mortgage lender. While it cannot stop the action, bankruptcy can slow it down.

While bankruptcy doesn’t stop foreclosure, it can give a person extra time to pay the lender, or make it easier to do so. Mortgage lenders are required to stop their foreclosure due to bankruptcy, and this gives the person owing money additional time to raise money to pay the lender. Through bankruptcy, many unsecured debts are eliminated completely, and a person who is in debt will frequently find that they have money to pay their mortgage payments with that they didn’t before bankruptcy. Also, a chapter 13 bankruptcy is a court ordered payment plan and allows a debtor to pay the mortgage catch up amount over a period of time.

Of course, there is a good chance that a debtor might not actually be able to file for bankruptcy, as eligibility is an issue, and even if they do qualify, there are legal fees that need to be paid. For some, they may find that the exorbitant fees they are asked to pay are even higher than the payments they were behind on. Anyone considering bankruptcy to prevent foreclosure should discuss it with a lawyer. Bankruptcy is a complicated legal process that should not be handled by yourself alone. The scope of this article is to give you basic information, and if you are wanting more detailed information, you need to speak to a lawyer who is actually licensed in your home region.

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