Are you facing foreclosure? Do you think you may be in the near future? You don’t have to be resigned to the lender’s repossessing your home. A strong foreclosure defense might be able to help you keep your home, but often, this area of the law is more complex than it seems. When other foreclosure defense strategies have failed, bankruptcy may prove to be the best way for you to keep your home. Here’s a guide to understanding foreclosure defense in Ohio and how bankruptcy can play a role.
Sometimes saving your home from foreclosure requires creative solutions. For some homeowners, bankruptcy is the solution. Declaring bankruptcy immediately halts foreclosure proceedings, giving you time to strategize. In some cases, you may be able to arrange to repay your mortgage through your bankruptcy repayment plan, dismissing foreclosure proceedings entirely.
Understanding Foreclosure Defense in Ohio
You Have More Options Than You Think
Foreclosure defense involves creating strategies to help you avoid losing your home to foreclosure. While the name makes it sound as if foreclosure defense only happens in court, litigation is just a small (and relatively uncommon) part of the typical foreclosure defense. When you work with a foreclosure defense lawyer, your attorney may use one or more of the following strategies to help you keep your home:
Making Sure the Foreclosure Is Valid
Sometimes, mistakes or even deliberate misconduct on the part of your lender can lead to foreclosure. Carefully looking through the terms of the mortgage and the foreclosure filings can determine whether the foreclosure is legitimate.
Negotiating With Your Lender
Sometimes, especially early in the process, you can work out a plan to catch up on missed payments. Your lawyer may be able to help you do this.
Requesting Court-Supervised Mediation
In Ohio, when you receive a notice that your lender has filed a foreclosure lawsuit, you have the option to request mediation
Helping You Declare Bankruptcy
Bankruptcy temporarily halts foreclosure proceedings and can even stop them entirely in some cases. If bankruptcy is right for you, your attorney can help you through the process from beginning to end.
Minimizing Credit Damage
Unfortunately, you sometimes may not be able to keep your home despite your efforts. In this case, your attorney may be able to help you explore short sales and other strategies to reduce the impact on your credit score.
The sheer number of foreclosure defense strategies can be a lot to take in, but our team can help you understand them and choose the best path forward. Call Fesenmyer Cousino Weinzimmer at 614-228-4435 (Columbus), 937-222-7472 (Dayton), or 877-654-5297 (Cincinnati) for a free consultation.
Understanding Bankruptcy in Ohio
There are two types of bankruptcy you may be able to file as an individual:
Chapter 7 (Liquidation Bankruptcy)
Your income must be below a certain threshold to qualify for Chapter 7 bankruptcy. Usually, this is the better option for those with low income and few assets. Most debts are discharged, and non-essential assets may be sold to cover some of your existing debts.
Chapter 13 (Reorganization Bankruptcy)
With this kind of bankruptcy, you keep your assets but organize a repayment plan to repay your creditors over the coming three to five years. This is often a better option for people whose income makes them ineligible for Chapter 7 bankruptcy.
When you declare either Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy, there is an automatic stay issued to halt creditors’ collection efforts. In some cases, you may be able to find a permanent resolution that lets you keep your home. That might sound easy, but bankruptcy has its downsides. It can temporarily damage your credit and may make it harder to secure new credit for several years. However, if you’re at risk of losing your home, that’s often a worthwhile trade-off.
The Power of a Combined Approach
The combined approach of foreclosure defense and bankruptcy is not a simple one, but it tends to be effective. In the short term, the benefit is the same whether you declare Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy. Declaring bankruptcy immediately pauses the foreclosure process while the bankruptcy is ongoing. That gives you and your legal team time to figure out a way forward.
When to Consider This Approach
Using bankruptcy as a way to prevent foreclosure may not be right for everyone, and you should generally try less extreme strategies first, such as negotiating with your mortgage lender. However, here are some situations where bankruptcy might be a viable option:
- You have attempted to negotiate an agreement with your lender already.
- Your home’s foreclosure sale is imminent.
- You have no realistic way to catch up on mortgage payments.
- Keeping your home is a top priority.
An experienced bankruptcy attorney can review your entire financial situation and help you to determine which chapter of bankruptcy would be best for you.
The Importance of Seeking Legal Counsel
You Need a Legal Team Experienced in Foreclosure Defense and Bankruptcy
Bankruptcy is an intricate legal process with considerable paperwork and many deadlines. The same can be said about foreclosure. You should have a knowledgeable attorney if you attempt either of these, but legal representation is even more important when you’re navigating both at once. At Fesenmyer Cousino Weinzimmer, we have decades of experience representing homeowners through bankruptcy and helping them save their homes from foreclosure. We recognize that no two cases of foreclosure are identical, so we take the time to get to know your case before helping you come up with a customized solution.
We know that facing a foreclosure can be an immensely stressful situation. We’re committed to helping you discover a brighter financial future on the other side of this challenging time. Call Fesenmyer Cousino Weinzimmer at 614-228-4435 (Columbus), 937-222-7472 (Dayton), or 877-654-5297 (Cincinnati) to set up a free consultation today.
