Save Your Home – Stop The Foreclosure – Can Filing Bankruptcy Really Do This?

08/18/2015
Yes, filing bankruptcy CAN stop a foreclosure on your home. The bankruptcy laws provide that attempts to collect debts are stayed or stopped when you file a bankruptcy case. If you are in foreclosure, then filing bankruptcy before the sale date will stop the foreclosure and force your mortgage company into the bankruptcy court.

Every state has a process for foreclosing on a mortgage. In Florida, your mortgage company must file a Complaint (or lawsuit) against you and you are served with a Summons to appear in the County Court for the county in which you reside. You are given an opportunity to defend and oppose the foreclosure. In Alabama, there is no Complaint, just a Notice. Foreclosures in Alabama proceed much quicker than those in Florida.

We must understand that most foreclosures are about broken contracts. We agreed to pay, we got behind and are in default, and now the mortgage company wants the house back. Even though the county court may be sympathetic to your situation, ultimately, in most cases, it is a question of did you pay or not. There is not much “mercy of the court” in a foreclosure proceeding.

We use Chapter 13 Bankruptcy as a tool to stop the foreclosure and force the mortgage company into a repayment plan, which they would not have agreed to otherwise. Chapter 13 Bankruptcy in Florida allows us to seek modification of the mortgage or simply pay back what is past due over a three to five year period. Chapter 13 Bankruptcy was specifically designed with homeowners in mind.

My firm, Lewis & Jurnovoy, P.A., files Chapter 13 Bankruptcy cases for clients in cities like Milton, Crestview, and Panama City almost every day. We have helped thousands of people along the Gulf Coast stop foreclosures and save their homes. Call us today for a Free Consultation.

Martin S. Lewis