It’s not just a house: it’s your home.
It’s where you and your family have lived and made memories. When you’re facing bankruptcy, you might be afraid that your house will be the first thing to go. But with the help of an experienced Centerville foreclosure lawyer, you can find a way to keep your home or at least slow down the process so that you have time to find another place to live.
You want to keep your home, and at Horwitz & Horwitz, LLC, we will do everything we can to help you do just that.
Facing a home foreclosure can be stressful and anxiety-inducing under any circumstances. If you have children or elderly parents living with you, the thought of losing your home can be even more alarming. The uncertainty associated with a looming foreclosure can be overwhelming, shaking your stability, and leading to depression, anxiety, and even physical health problems. There are multiple ways of dealing with foreclosure proceedings. A skilled legal professional from Horwitz & Horwitz will help you find an option that works for you and your specific situation.
What is Foreclosure in Ohio?
Foreclosure in the state of Ohio is a complex, multistep process that allows a mortgage lender to repossess a home from a homeowner who has missed payments on their loan. The foreclosure process in the state can take from six to twelve months if you do not seek legal assistance. The steps to foreclosure include:
- One or more payments were missed on the loan, leading to default. You have probably received communications from your lender, whether in the form of mailed notices, or phone calls—probably beginning after two missed payments, or even after the first missed payment. You will receive a Notice of Default in the mail, which is a document that is legally required of the lender prior to initiating foreclosure. In Ohio, the homeowner must be provided a reasonable opportunity to “cure” the default before foreclosure proceedings begin—generally 28 days from receipt of the Notice of Default.
- The lender will file a complaint with the court which begins the foreclosure process.
- You will be served a summons, either in person or by certified mail.
- You have 28 days to respond to the summons and complaint; if you fail to respond, the lender may obtain a default judgment which allows foreclosure proceedings to move forward. This could mean your home is put up for sale, however, there is a redemption period between the sale and the confirmation of the sale by the court, which may give you a little additional time to stop the foreclosure.
- Eviction follows the sale of your home, although you can request a “Writ of Possession” from the court that grants you 3-7 days to vacate.
Your attorney may be able to stop the foreclosure proceedings at almost any point in the process, depending on which option works best for your situation. Bankruptcy may be the best option for halting foreclosure proceedings on your home.
Bankruptcy can help you:
- Stop the foreclosure process: The act of filing for bankruptcy will temporarily stop the foreclosure process, forcing your creditors to postpone the foreclosure proceedings until the bankruptcy is resolved. This gives you the time needed to get caught up with your payments, work out a more manageable repayment plan, or find another, more affordable place to live.
- Work out a reasonable payment plan: Through Chapter 13 bankruptcy, we can help you work out a reasonable payment plan with your creditors and the courts, allowing you to continue payments and keep your home.
- Get free from your house debts: With a Chapter 7 bankruptcy, we can help you streamline your expenses so that you can better afford your mortgage payments or find freedom from your house debts.
Why Choose a Centerville Foreclosure Defense Lawyer from Horwitz & Horwitz?
When you choose a Centerville foreclosure defense lawyer from Horwitz & Horwitz, you can rest easy, knowing we are working hard to ensure you are able to keep your home. Horwitz & Horwitz was founded in 2009 by attorneys Jonathan and Barbara Horwitz. With 53 years of combined legal experience between Jonathan and Barbara, our goal is to always provide the highest-quality services to our clients—but with a personal touch. We understand that the possibility of losing your home is a highly emotional issue and will do what we can to serve you in your time of need.
When you are facing financial difficulties in your life, we will put our knowledge and skills to work for you. Because we understand the pressure that results from a potential bankruptcy filing and a home foreclosure, we will work hard to minimize the pressure and stress. Your bankruptcy attorney will be with you from start to finish—you will never be handed off to a staff member. If you want a Centerville foreclosure defense lawyer who places your best interests above all else, Horwitz and Horwitz is the law firm for you.
How Can You Avoid Foreclosure?
There are a number of ways you can potentially avoid foreclosure on your home in the state of Ohio. These include:
- Filing Chapter 13 bankruptcy may potentially halt foreclosure proceedings, allowing you to structure a payment plan for 3-5 years that will catch you up on your missed payments.
- Chapter 7 bankruptcy is less likely to allow you to keep your home unless it is exempt under the rules of Chapter 7.
- Applying for a loan modification with your lender may allow you to have lower payments for a specified period of time while allowing you to pay off any missed payments as well.
- Refinancing could be an option, although, with interest rates higher, this may not be a very attractive option. Unfortunately, it may be difficult to qualify for refinancing if you have missed multiple payments as those missed payments will negatively impact your credit score.
- You might consider selling your home to avoid foreclosure, especially if the real estate market is up and you would receive more money for your home than you owe.
- A short sale allows you to sell your home for less than you owe, even though your lender may not recover the entire amount they loaned you.
- A deed in lieu of foreclosure occurs when you transfer your home to the lender, effectively clearing your debt. Of course, this choice requires that you vacate your home as soon as possible, and if you are trying to avoid leaving your home, then this is not a choice you would want to consider.
When is It Too Late to Stop a Foreclosure?
When no payment has been made to your lender in more than 120 days and you have received a notice of the lender’s intention to foreclose on the property, a notice will be posted in the legal section of your newspaper regarding an intended sale. The notice period will run for five weeks before your home is sold at a public auction. During that five-week period, you can stop the foreclosure by making up the missed payments or working with your attorney to stop the foreclosure process. The only time it is too late to stop a foreclosure is after your property is sold at auction, although you could still be entitled to a short redemption period.
Contacting a Centerville Foreclosure Lawyer Near You
We are a law firm dedicated to helping people like you find peace of mind through bankruptcy. We’re here to guide you through this difficult time with as little pain and stress as possible.
When you choose the Centerville foreclosure defense lawyer from Horwitz & Horwitz, you have taken the most important first step toward keeping your home. Although we primarily help those in Centerville, we also assist clients in Springboro, Beavercreek, Miamisburg, and Kettering. Our attorneys, Barbara Horwitz, and Jonathan Horwitz, enjoy helping people get through stressful times in their lives in the easiest way possible. We are always open and direct with our clients, going the extra mile to provide the best possible legal representation at a reasonable price. Contact Horwitz & Horwitz today.
We are a debt relief agency. We help people file for bankruptcy relief under the Bankruptcy Code.
