February 1st, 2012 by Reed Allmand 
When your home is at risk for foreclosure, you may feel like the only thing you can do is throw up your hands and let the banks take over the house you raised your family in. But you don’t have to sign over the deed just yet. There are steps you can take when trying to save your home and any one of them could stop the foreclosure proceedings and help get you out of the jam you are in. The first two can be hit or miss and if they fail bankruptcy may be the only option you have left before your house is put on the auction block.
Call Up Your Lender
You may feel like foreclosure is just around the corner, but there still may be time to work with your lender on keeping your home. As soon as you miss a mortgage payment, give your mortgage lender a call to let them know you’re struggling financially. You may be surprised to find that they are willing they will be to work out a new payment plan with you.
Get a Forbearance
When you let your mortgage lender know that you are having financial troubles, they may opt to declare forbearance on your mortgage payments. This means that your lender will put a stop to any and all foreclosure proceedings, as long as the renegotiated terms of the mortgage are met. Forbearance could range from a few months free of mortgage payments, or a smaller monthly payment; however, if you break the contract, the bank will immediately start foreclosure proceedings on your home.
Declare Bankruptcy
If you have already tried working with your mortgage lender, or you just cannot afford the mortgage payments, it may be time to declare bankruptcy. Even if you are in the midst of foreclosure proceedings, filing for bankruptcy will enact an “automatic stay”, which means that your debtors must stop all debt collections. If your mortgage lender persists in foreclosing on your home, you are entitled to take legal action against them.
When it comes to protecting your home from foreclosure, do not wait for the last minute to save your house. Filing for bankruptcy can give you the relief you need; additionally, you may have other unsecured debt that can discharged as well.
Don’t let a few missed mortgage payments prevent you from staying in your family home – contact a bankruptcy attorney today.
About Reed Allmand
Allmand's vision is rooted in his own financially precarious childhood in Abilene "My father always had difficulty holding a job and supporting our family, so after my parents divorced when I was 12, my sister and I got jobs to help make ends meet," he recalls. "I remember what it felt like as a child to worry that our car would be repossessed or home foreclosed on."
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