We often see people get kicked out of their homes in the movies,unfortunately this doesn’t just happen in the movies. Home foreclosure is one of the greatest fears of families due to debt. Even though this is true we often take our bills for granted in favor of our credit cards. Before we know it bills have easily stacked up and we end up not knowing who to pay first to stop the calls.

Even though your house is being foreclosed there are still legal procedures to follow. Your lender can’t just kick you out of the house. There are laws that protect homeowners from these situations. Here are some of the important facts you need to know when facing a foreclosure.

I have missed a few months on my mortgage…can they just toss me out?

Simply put: No. The mortgage lender/bank can only kick you out of the house with a court order. Before they can do that they also have to follow a set of legal procedures.

How long does the foreclosure take before they take my house?

That will depend on how your mortgage lender pursues the case. The usual time is 6 months but that may also vary from state to state.

After the foreclosure process do I have to get out of the house?

No you don’t have to. After the foreclosure auction ends the ownership will be transferred from you to the highest bidder. You will become a tenant of the house. The new owner must also follow legal procedures before he or she can evict you out of the house.

In some cases you can become just a “renter” to the new owner. (this is dependent on the new owner of course)

What happens when I get evicted?

The new owner of the house will send you a notice to leave the premises. (The notice usually gives you 72 hours.) If you fail to follow the notice the new owner must present his case to the court before a judge to get an order for you to be evicted. The judge will be the one to decide if you should be evicted or grant you more time. If you fail to follow the court order the new owner may procure an execution of the eviction order. this is when the sheriff shows up and escorts you from the property.

The sheriff will give you a notice of the execution and give you 48 hours to pack and leave. If you fail to follow the notice this is the time when the sheriff can physically move you out of the premises.

The Soldier and Sailor Civil Relief Act or SSCRA was signed by President Bush on December 2003. The point for this act was to set legislation to simplify or ease both legal and economic burdens to military personnel whether active or retired.

What is the SSCRA

SSCRA addresses the inability of military men to meet financial obligations when they are in active duty. Financial obligations to include rentals, leases, mortgages, credit card payments and other similar transactions. The SSCRA also stretches to cover the dependents of the military men in question under the same guidelines.

SSCRA covers those under active duty, to include out on basic training exercises or assigned in the field. Most veterans fail to pay their financial obligations since they are unable to do so during the line of duty. The SSCRA aims to provide legislation to these individuals so that they are given consideration regarding deadlines and payment due dates.

One area covered by SSCRA for military personnel/dependents includes leasing/renting of a property for residential purpose (not to exceed more than $1,200 a month.) Also the conditions must be met and the transaction must be first be made before the service man is enlisted into active duty.

Once on active duty, it’s becomes almost impossible for them to settle this obligation. The next course of action is for the service man to send a request of being under the protection of the SSCRA to the court when he or she receives an eviction notice. If the judge finds sufficient grounds which merits the protection from SSCRA then the court may postpone the eviction until the term of duty of the personnel expires.

Advantage of SSCRA for veterans on active duty

Often military personnel on active duty will not have the ability to fulfill their financial obligations to various institutions like credit cards, banks, insurance or mortgage lenders. The SSCRA was developed to provide a form of security to these men on duty on active duty.

SSCRA will provide enough “elbow room” for military personnel to be given extended deadlines for payments, foreclosures and mortgage transactions when they are in the line of duty. However, not all veterans are qualified for the protection of the SSCRA; some criteria and requirements must be met for both the transaction and the personnel before they are granted protection.

SSCRA and Interest Rates

Members on active duty who are unable to pay mortgages and who are facing foreclosure may then invoke the protection of the SSCRA to avoid such problems. Qualified debts are those incurred prior to service men coming into the line of duty. Also, the request will only be valid if the personnel are in the line of duty when the request was made which limited them from settling the said obligation.

If qualified, the service member needs to send a letter to the lender/bank requesting that their interest rate be capped to 6% according to the provision stated in SSCRA. Also, they may should send a photocopy of the military order to the lender as proof that they are on military duty as stated in their letter of request. the process can take up to 3 months to complete.

Foreclosure and the SSCRA

The SSCRA can also help cover the military member under the obligation of a mortgage, trust deed or security of property for any financial obligation. The SSCRA simply states that the personnel are valid for protection under the SSCRA if the obligation and the property were done prior to their military service.

The provision states that prohibition of foreclosure or sale of mortgage property without the presence of the borrower, the military personnel in this case, whether in a judicial or a non-judicial foreclosure. It is also stated in the SSCRA that maturity dates and deadlines will be given an extension when the military personnel is in active duty until they are released from their given designation.

Even if the maturity date or the date of foreclosure is extended due to the military personnel’s inability to pay, the court will try to achieve a compromise agreement from both parties requiring the mortgage lender to pay at least half of the amount due while the mortgage holder extends the deadline or put a stay on the foreclosure or sale of the property.