Mentor, Ohio Foreclosure Attorney

Foreclosure is a scary word.  It means that the bank is seeking to gain ownership of your home or real property to repay the money lent by them for the purchase.  This action can cost you your home. The filing of the Complaint in Foreclosure is not the end of the process. You have time and options to exercise.  

The process of a Foreclosure is this:

1. Complaint filed
2. Answer of Defendant (you) or if no Answer, a Motion for Default Judgment by the bank
3. Judgment in Foreclosure granted either at trial or upon Motion of the bank
4. Appraisal of the property by the Sheriff
5. Listing of the Sheriff sale date in the local newspaper
6. Sale goes through and the home is purchased
7. The Sheriff sale is confirmed with the court
8. You receive notice to vacate the home

The process has many opportunities for you to work with your lawyer to slow or stop the Foreclosure.  

1. If you want to keep your home or have a chance to do so you want to file an Answer.  This is a response to the allegations of the bank listed as the Complaint that was filed. If you do not answer the bank, this can proceed to a judgment on a Motion for Default.  You will have no option to stop that judgment if you have not filed an Answer.  
2. Once you file your Answer, you can request Mediation, if your jurisdiction has that option.  If you can enter mediation, you and your attorney work with the mediator and the bank’s attorney to pursue a mortgage modification or other option to save your home.  This can slow the process of the foreclosure to allow you to pursue other options or result in a modification of your mortgage. If you accept the modification, then the Foreclosure stops.  You can choose to file bankruptcy, either a chapter 7 or 13, during the mediation phase of the process.   
3. If you file bankruptcy, each chapter offers a different solution.  In Chapter 7 bankruptcy, you can discharge your other debt, along with the obligation on the promissory note the bank is suing on, and that may facilitate the mortgage modification going through or if you choose to surrender you home you will not be responsible for the debt you still owe the bank for the purchase of your home.   If you file a Chapter 13 you can pay your regular mortgage payment and the back payments over up to a 5-year period and the foreclosure will stop.  
4. If you choose to surrender your house, there are several options.  You can work with the bank to assess if they use the cash for keys program (gives you some moving expenses money), you can let the process run out to buy you more time in your home before you have to move. You also can seek a solution through a short sale or Deed In Lieu.  
5. If a judgment is granted and the home goes to a Sheriff sale, you may still have more time if the bank or another entity does not purchase the property.  The Sheriff sale process would start again, and you can remain in your home.  
6. Once the property is purchased at the Sheriff sale and the sale is confirmed with the court, you will have approximately three days to vacate the home.  Once the sale is confirmed, there is no option left to save your home.  

Foreclosure Lawyer in Mentor, Ohio

This process is confusing and full of pitfalls, so it is best to work with an experienced foreclosure attorney in Mentor as you navigate the process and exercise the options that will work best for you. 

To get in touch, give us a call at (440) 255-0832 or fill out our contact form and we’ll get back to you as soon as possible!

Moseman Law Office, LLC looks forward to helping you through your financial circumstances.