“I’m behind in house payments. How do I stop foreclosure? Help me sell my home fast before I lose it to the bank!” I faced foreclosure and won! You can too. Additionally you may be asking yourself when you’re staring down the barrel of your lender’s imaginary gun. What is foreclosure? How do I stop a sheriff’s sale or trustee sale? Can I get a loan modification to stop foreclosure?

FIRST, Please try to relax and take a deep breath, I know it can be a scary thought especially when you don’t know what may or may not happen to you and your family. I’ve done a lot of research and been through this myself. I wish I had a relative or friend who could have walked me through the process and relieved me from the stress and sleepless nights of NOT KNOWING MY FORECLOSURE OPTIONS to keeping my home. I felt powerless, under informed, ignored by my mortgage company, challenged by my bank’s bureaucracy and frustrated with dead-end “so-called” loan modification bank representatives. I felt I had no one I could trust or turn to, because let’s face it…NO ONE within your circle of friends will admit to being behind in their house (mortgage) payments. Maybe it’s pride, maybe it’s admitting guilt, fault, mismanagement of household income or the feeling of failure. No matter what YOU are feeling, there are thousands of people in the same situation. And I was one of them!

As one of my daughter’s friends was being dropped off to spend the night, her father and my husband got to talking and discovered that they were both in sales for different companies in very different industries. The conversation quickly turned to how many times they had each received pay cuts to their commissions during the housing crisis and how most of our friends had encountered at least three pay cuts over the last two years. As the conversation continued, the most shocking comment made by this father was that six of his closest friends were all in home foreclosure at that very moment. We both lived in a thriving community with middle to upper class income. How could this be happening? It makes you stop and think; how did so many people get to this point, and what can any one do to help struggling homeowners during this massive wave of house foreclosures?

And then a few months later, the foreclosure tsunami had engulfed our family too.

I wish someone would have been brave enough to share their experience with me. I searched online until I had exhausted every lead that would answer my questions about my family’s uncertain fate – during the foreclosure process. I guess some things you have to learn for yourself if others aren’t willing to share their own story. But that’s also the reason I’m telling my story, to dispel some of the myths and fears associated with the foreclosure process.

One night after a business meeting, my husband came home and told me about a man he had met that happened to be in the same situation we had recently faced. This couple owned their own company, lived comfortably as a middle-class family with two children, a pet and a few family toys; then one day, the bottom dropped out from under them. While at a business event, the man began to open up to my husband about his situation and his feeling of regret, fear of losing his home, anger over the loss in company profits and the threat of selling a business he had built over the last 8 yrs.

BINGO!! We had a winner…another family facing the same situation we had been faced with when the economy crashed. We had just been through everything this man and his family were about to embark on. We had just finalized our bankruptcy AFTER reviewing and exhausting ALL our options to save a company we had built. I told my husband I felt horrible that they were facing the same stresses we had been put through and wished someone would have walked us through the bankruptcy and foreclosure process so I knew there was still…

LIGHT AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL!

How could I possibly help this couple? What was I looking for when our family was faced with the inevitable? I came up with the only answer that would have made sense to me!! Find someone who had gone through foreclosure or bankruptcy and have them tell me everything that happened so I could prepare my family, avoid mistakes someone else may have made, and create the best possible scenario based on all the information I could gather.

That’s when I had an idea…”I don’t know these people, and they have nothing to lose and everything to gain by hearing our personal story; they certainly aren’t going to judge me for my past”…so what’s stopping me from sharing everything I’ve learned with them? If I were them, I would have loved to talk to someone…ANYONE…who had already been through the process and could answer some of my bankruptcy and foreclosure questions. Someone who would calm my fears.

The next day we called and arranged to meet the man and his wife for lunch in a relatively private restaurant. We didn’t tell the couple why we wanted to meet with them…only that we wanted to take them to lunch. The initial conversation was just getting to know each other as I had never met the couple; later in the conversation, my husband cautiously brought up the fact that he had learned of their recent dilemma and that we understood their situation as we had been faced with the same financial crisis. It was at that point that I began to explain my feelings of regret and failure over starting a corporation from the ground up and how I too had to face the fact that we were losing it right out from under our feet; how I felt that I had not only let my family down, but my investors, my community and my employees.

We had tried to sell the business for more than a year but every offer came in for less than what was owed. The thought of bankruptcy — though FAR from my prideful mindset — was getting ever closer to reality. To sum up the lunch meeting, we continued to share in detail our journey. We explained that we wished someone had been willing to talk openly with us about their experience with bankruptcy and foreclosure; if for no other reason, to reduce the amount of stress we had put on our selves from NOT KNOWING OUR POTENTIAL FATE. The wife, now in tears, grabbed my hand and said they couldn’t thank us enough for sharing our story. They had been so overwhelmed with the thought of losing their home, the fear of facing foreclosure and the affects of bankruptcy on their credit report that it was preventing them from sleeping. This couple that I had only met two hours ago hugged me like I was family and thanked us again for sharing what seemed — for us — a painful and private admission.

As we drove home, I told my husband, “in spite of my own fear in admitting the challenges we had undergone, I felt better than ever for sharing our story with someone who truly needed the help”. This is where my new found pride comes from…humbly embracing my circumstances to help others who may be facing home foreclosure or bankruptcy.

I know the fear, shame and feelings of humiliation that go along with thinking the bank is going to walk in any minute and ask you to put a sign on the door, “Business CLOSED effective immediately”! or a fire blazing red, “Bank-Owned” property sign announcing to my friends and neighbors that I too had lost my home to foreclosure. The thought of those signs and being labeled as a failure was more than I could bear. That’s when I decided to do something about it. I couldn’t stop the business from closing it was too late for that but I could put up a fight for my home and learn how to stop foreclosure.

In most cases…it doesn’t happen right away so BREATHE!!! I can also appreciate the fear of thinking the bank is going to send you a letter that says “you must VACATE YOUR HOME IMMEDIATELY!! Again in most cases, it won’t even happen within three months…so BREATHE!!! You have time to make arrangements with your bank. They don’t want your home; it’s a financial liability to them…they would rather work with you and have you keep it.

I’m an over planner, I don’t like surprises; I researched beyond what sometimes even seems normal. I like to know what’s happening, when it’s going to happen and how do I best protect myself from anything that might try to catch me off guard BUT…

I WASN’T PLANNING FOR AN ECONOMIC CATASTROPHE or a HOUSING CRISIS!

That’s when I dug through every available source over the course of several weeks and months, applied twice for home loan modifications and was turned down until my third attempt several months later was approved. That was the best feeling in the world…the news that my family was going to be able to keep the home we had lived in for more than 14 years and my kids could stay with the friends they had grown up with. It wasn’t until shortly after our journey through the foreclosure process that I came up with the idea of a FORECLOSURE CRASH COURSE. That’s what families and struggling homeowners really needed — a way to find out how to move through the process and get all the answers in ONE place. I wish I didn’t have to go through the agony of spending weeks and months to try and learn some of the most basic concepts, uncover the many options available to help you save your home OR discover the hidden secrets to save my home from foreclosure. I wanted someone to lay it all out for me and tell me all my options so I could weigh the pros and cons. I guess I expected by lender to provide that or a foreclosure consultant to emerge for guidance but that never happened. What happened to all the mortgage consultants who were banging down my door during the housing bubble more than willing to lay out all these grand options for getting loans, refinancing, offering 2nd and 3rd mortgages. Why weren’t they using their expertise to help me save my home? I guess they gotten eaten up by the foreclosure tsunami too!

If you’re interested in finding out how to save your home from foreclosure – like I did! Watch a 20 minute foreclosure video by visiting howtosavehomefromforeclosure.net.

If you’re looking for a Foreclosure Crash Course. You’ll discover all the hidden secrets and learn how to successfully apply for a home modification loan and stop the sheriff’s sale or trustee sale from happening in the foreclosure video — like I did!

You may be in danger of foreclosure if you fail to make payments on your mortgage loan on time. But you will definitely have a problem if you default on these payments. But don’t give up just yet because foreclosure avoidance is still possible if you take the right steps.

For any of the following options to help, one thing must happen. Your lender must agree to cooperate.

See if you qualify for what is referred to as a special forbearance. It may be set up if your financial situation changes. Your mortgage holder will have to agree to re-arrange your payments. They may be willing to do so if you can show that you will be able to meet the newly arranged payment schedule.

Another possible option is a modification of your current mortgage. This involves a refinancing of the amount that is owed and may also include an extension of the term of the mortgage. The goal is reducing your monthly mortgage payments so they become affordable for you.

You may be eligible for an interest free loan from the HUD agency in order to make your mortgage current, if you meet specific conditions. This may be referred to as a partial claim. Your lender can assist with the application process and should be willing to explain more about this type of loan. Or you can get in touch with your local HUD office for details.

A pre foreclosure sale is another possible way to avoid foreclosure. In this case you are trying to sell your property prior to foreclosure so you can pay off debt and keep your credit intact.

If you’re sure that you will be unable to make your mortgage payments even if they do get lowered, then a pre foreclosure sale may be something to consider. You will have to see if can get your lender to agree to give you some extra time to sell before they go ahead with foreclosing.

There is one final option to think about, and this should only be a last resort. It is called a deed-in-lieu of foreclosure. With this you are essentially giving your house to your lender rather than paying off the mortgage.

Even though you’ll lose your home this still may be a better option than losing it to the foreclosure process. The reason is that your chances of being able to obtain a mortgage loan in the future are a lot better than if your home is lost because of a foreclosure.

Foreclosure avoidance is possible if you use one of these options. But always contact your mortgage holder at the first sign of financial difficulty. By doing this one thing, you greatly increase your chances of finding a solution.

If you are trying to prevent the foreclosure of your home, you may need some help. Get free foreclosure information and find out how to avoid foreclosure.

If you are having trouble making mortgage payments and at risk of foreclosure their are several relief options you may be eligible for such as home loan refinance, home loan modification, repayment plans, reinstatement, or forbearance.

As a result of so many borrowers falling behind in monthly payments many homeowners are trying to find relief. The dual effects of a weakened property market and increasing fees is too big a burden for lots of property owners to handle.

Due to the substantial growth in mortgage foreclosures many mortgage companies are willing to negotiate workout options with mortgage holders. If you are a home owner and at risk of foreclosure you could be qualified for a restructuring of your current mortgage agreement, this can happen as a result of home loan refinance or mortgage modification.

Home loan refinancing is when a mortgage holder takes out a new home loan with better conditions and utilizes the proceeds to repay the current mortgage. Depending on the equity in your home this may be an option.

Mortgage modification is an agreement between the mortgage company and home owner to change only specific elements of an existing home loan agreement. These changes can be lowered monthly payments and usually make it easier for people to keep up with their home loan amortization schedule.

There are also plans that are intended to allow home owners who have ceased making payments to get current with no late fees. These options preserve the existing loan agreement but alter it temporarily to accommodate hardship situations and include repayment plans, reinstatement, and forbearance.

A property loan repayment is a option that represents a grace period for late borrowers to repay past due monthly fees without penalties. The late payments are usually added to the regular payments for a period of time at the end of which the home owners is current.

Reinstatement is similar to repayment in that it allows delinquent home owners to repay past due mortgage bills. The difference is that reinstatement is one big lump sum payment. Reinstatement is often used along with forbearance as a means for borrowers to quickly get caught up with payments.

Find other pieces on ways to avoid foreclosure and keep you property, if you are unable to make regular payments there are foreclosure help opportunities you can find.

With the current financial crisis many people are faced with difficulties in paying their mortgage. For many if they don’t know what to do to avoid this situation it will result in them losing their home. However, below we offer a few tips that could help you to know how to avoid foreclosure on your home.

Tip 1 – It is important that as soon as you are faced with the difficulty of paying your mortgage that you don’t try to ignore the situation. It is far better if you contact the lender immediately and explain to them what your current financial situation is. By doing this they may well be able to devise a payment program that ensures that you can still pay the mortgage and so keep your home.

Tip 2 – You should immediately respond to any and all correspondence that you receive from the mortgage lender as promptly as you possibly can. In a lot of cases the first letter you will receive from the lender with regards to you payment problems will be one that may offer some ways to help you to know how to avoid foreclosure.

Ignoring such correspondence initially could cause you more problems in the future, as it may well contain information regarding legal proceedings the lender is about to take against you. This is not excuse you can use to the judge when you do end up in foreclosure court.

Tip 3 – Another thing that you should be doing as soon as you have any changes in your financial situation is to go through the mortgage documentation you have. It is important that you read it through slowly and carefully as you will then be able to see what will happen if you are unable to make the payments of your mortgage. For those who are unsure where they stand legally when it comes to foreclosure then they should seek out assistance from either a good lawyer or their local citizens advice bureau.

In 2008, over 3.1 million homeowners received a foreclosure notice. Most simply did not take the actions required to stop a foreclosure and they lost their house. It’s foreseen that another 3 million notices will go out in 2009.

Have you received a notice of default due to a financial hardship? Is your mortgage more than your home is worth? Are you finding it next to impossible to afford your hosue payments?

If so, the exciting thing is you may be able prevent a foreclosure and reduce your monthly payment by filing a mortgage modification request.

What is a Mortgage Loan Modification?

A mortgage modification is a reworked agreement between the borrower and home lender with re-negotiated terms, interest and payments. Mortgage modifications can be the perfect solution to prevent foreclosure for home owners who are find themselves on the brink of foreclosure.

Do You Qualify for a Mortgage Modification?

Perhaps you’ve lost a job, got slammed with unexpected medical expenses, so you can no longer afford the obligation. You’ve made every effort to save your home from foreclosure, buy you have trafically hit upon hard times and now find yourself bordering on the brink of foreclosure.

A mortgage loan modification may be the solution!

Every bank has their own mortgage modification qualification criteria. Here are the most common:

* The unit is your principal residence

* You have had a financial hardship or a change in financial circumstances

* You’ve missed 2 or 3 payments

* You have not filed bankruptcy

* You are not purposefully defaulting to get a loan modification

* You are willing to be honest, and provide all necessary paperwork

If you have not yet missed a monthly payment you may still qualify for a mortgage modification if you can prove you are on the edge of suffering financial hardship. In other words, due to circumstances, you will eventually default and miss payments if you don’t get some immediate financial relief.

How to Stop a Foreclosure Now!