subject: Foreclosures: The Process [print this page] Foreclosures: The Process Foreclosures: The Process
If you miss just one mortgage payment, you could be at risk for starting the foreclosure process. If you continue to not pay your required payments, after a few months, the foreclosure process will usually begin. Before the foreclosure process begins, however, you will get several letters letting you know that you have not been making your payments, and that payment is required immediately. You are therefore warned ahead of time and should be well aware that payments have not been being received.
Even if you start making your payments again after a few months without the foreclosure process starting, not only will you be behind on your payments, but there is a high change it could go on your credit that you have been late on payments, which would hurt your credit for sure. Having good credit is very important for being able to do anything on credit, including taking out other types of loans on a decent interest rate. So, if you are excessively late paying your payments, or you skip payments once in a while, it could ruin your credit without you even realizing it! So, if you ever move again, it would make it more difficult to be able to afford another place to live since you would not be able to get a good interest rate on another loan without having good credit.
Even if you skip payments though, not only can it go on your credit, you will be required to pay extra to make up for the months skipped so that you stay current on your payments. You will receive a notice telling you this, known as the notice to accelerate (to accelerate payments to stay current). If you do not make up your skipped payments by the deadline that the mortgage company sets up, you will be issued a letter of demand. A letter of demand states that unless payments are made immediately to make up for the skipped payments, an attorney will be hired and the foreclosure process will start. You will then get a notice of default letting you know the entire amount that needs to be paid for which you will have around a month to pay, but if you don't, the foreclosure process will continue and you will get the notice of sale, which lets you know exactly when your house will be sold, by which time you will need to be moved out.
