Foreclosure in Florida – A Guide For At Risk Homeowners
Homeowners
If you want to stop foreclosure in Florida, it is imperative that you understand the differences between Florida laws and regulations and those of other states.
Generally, the foreclosure process begins when you miss a payment or two on your mortgage.
The lender will send a legal notice that you are in the foreclosure process. You will be given a term, or length of time, in which to catch up on the payments you missed while keeping up with current loan payments. If you are unable to catch up, the lender will then pursue foreclosure through judicial or non-judicial means; most foreclosure cases end up in court at some point in time. If judgment is entered against the homeowner, there will be a foreclosure sale or auction. At that point, someone other than you now owns the home, and if you haven’t already vacated, you will be evicted.
Florida is a judicial state. That means that foreclosure can only happen if the lender files suit in a Florida court. Florida does not require a “grace period,” so the homeowner may not have the opportunity to catch up on back payments, even if you are currently making your mortgage payments. Florida foreclosure law also states that only the primary borrower has to be notified of foreclosure; if you are not the primary borrower, you may not be notified until the eviction notice is posted, even if you have been responsible for the mortgage loan payments
Despite these rather stringent laws, the mortgage holder is able to stop the foreclosure at any point up to the actual sale of the home. Homeowners are able to use a variety of means to work with their lender to resolve the foreclosure, including negotiating a temporary agreement and using a loan modification kit.
If these methods fail, and the sale takes place, the lender must then notify the court that the property has been sold. The time between the sale and when the court officially takes notice is called the redemption period. During this time, it is important to check how your foreclosure was handled, because the only reason to set aside the sale in the state of Florida is if there was an error in the foreclosure procedure. Courts in Florida will not set aside the sale for a low selling price.
If the price at auction is less than the homeowner owes on the mortgage loan, the lender can then file for a deficiency judgment. This means that the now ex-homeowner still owes the lender the difference between the selling price of the home and the amount of the original loan. Because of the likelihood of this happening in the current economical crisis, it is imperative that if you wish to stop foreclosure in Florida, you look at a loan modification kit or other means of negotiating with your lender before you get to the sale process.
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