Home foreclosures continue to rise throughout the country, with three million expected this year. Hit particularly hard by foreclosures is the Washington, D.C. urban area. With no rural or suburban areas, D.C. has no areas where foreclosure rates are low. Neighboring state Maryland has one of the country’s worst foreclosure rates. One out of every 407 households in Maryland is in foreclosure. It has gotten so bad that the state’s politicians have recently sought to pass a bill that would require banks and financial institutions to meet with homeowners who are in danger of losing their homes and discuss ways to modify loans so that they can remain in the house.
Avoiding Foreclosure
A Washington DC or Maryland bankruptcy attorney can help you assess your situation and arrive at the best plan to keep your house. The following are steps you can take to avoid foreclosure:
- Act as soon as possible – as soon as you suspect you are having problems keeping up with your mortgage, take action. Ignoring the problems will only make things much worse.
- Let your creditors and banks know that you are having problems making your payments, as, many times, they may be able to offer you forbearance or some other plan to get you back on track. Lenders can give you time to get your life back in order. They do prefer that you make your payments in the end, even if you run into some trouble now and again.
- A Chapter 13 bankruptcy may be a last resort for you. Such a bankruptcy stops the foreclosure process and puts into place a repayment plan, but a bankruptcy has many negative consequences for consideration before opting for one.
The Consequences of a Foreclosure
A foreclosure’s consequences should scare most people into taking steps to avoid it. Some of the consequences are:
- You lose your home. You must find a new place for you and your family to live.
- A large, negative impact on your credit reports and scores- Your credit card rates will jump, and you will find it difficult to get car and other loans.
- It may jeopardize your ability to get a new job if your employer looks at your credit report, which is increasingly likely today.
- You are likely to face a hefty tax bill on top of your foreclosure problems for the interest that your mortgage lender was not able to get from the sale of your property.
If you are in danger of having the bank foreclose on your house, contact Maryland or Washington DC bankruptcy lawyer at the Law Firm of Kevin D. Judd immediately to develop your best plan of action.
