Has a Foreclosure Judgment been entered against you and now your property will be sold at a foreclosure sale (auction)? There may still be time to negotiate a loan modification or short sale!

In Florida foreclosure cases, no matter the county (be it Hillsborough, Lee County, Broward County, etc.), all foreclosure judgments will result in the affected property being sold at a foreclosure auction. For the most part, many of these auctions are now online. If you have just left a foreclosure hearing in which judgment was given to the bank, you have probably already found, or been told, where the auction will take place. Assuming you do not have the funds to reinstate your mortgage, have not pursued a short sale, were denied for a loan modification, or simply did not try to work with the bank in any form, you may have some options before your home is sold at a foreclosure sale. It is important that you find out about these options by meeting with an attorney as quickly as possible.

Can you save your home even with a foreclosure sale date set?

This answer used to be very clear - outside of a bankruptcy (chapter 7 or chapter 13) there were very few options at your disposal. Now, it is not that simple. There have been recent changes to federal regulations governing loan servicers that have put an interesting twist into post judgment loss mitigation. Put simply, when a foreclosure sale has been set, you may still be able to pursue a loss mitigation option. If you are facing a foreclosure sale of your property it is important that you meet with an attorney to go over what options you may still have. If there are more than 40 days between today and your foreclosure sale, there may be a way to work something out with the bank. But each day is important, you may have only one or two days to take advantage of the recent changes in Federal law (namely, RESPA.)

If you were not aware of the foreclosure hearing, and did not appear, you have options.

If your final foreclosure hearing was a trial or a motion for summary judgment and you were not given notice of that hearing, you may be able to request a new hearing pursuant to Florida Law. The facts that support this ability are very specific and should be met prior to filing any motion with the court. For example, there are certain requirements in an order setting a non jury trial that both the bank, and the court, must abide by in setting trial. A thorough review of your case will be necessary to determine if you can get another hearing. Again, there may be options other than bankruptcy that allow you to work something out with a bank, but if you are able to actually assert your own defenses and appear at trial, it may be worth while.

Why you must act quickly

It's simple - everyday counts here. If you want to work something out with the bank, you have to act before the timeline expires. This is important if you are trying to avoid filing a bankruptcy and in avoiding a foreclosure sale of your home. If you have around 40 days between today and the foreclosure sale date, you may have options that are not just bankruptcy. If this describes you, please contact my office at 813.252.0239 to schedule a post-judgement foreclosure consultation.