Understanding San Bernardino Foreclosure Options

If you are behind on mortgage payments for your San Bernardino County home, you may feel that you have few or no options to help you get back on your feet again. However, you may have more options than you realize – if you have run into a temporary financial difficulty, or if you are able to make payments on your mortgage but are behind a few months, you may be able to save your home. If not, there are still options available that will allow you to avoid having a San Bernardino foreclosure on your credit report.

Saving your home may be as simple as contacting the bank. In the current market, banks are reluctant to have yet another foreclosure on their books. This, coupled with new programs to help homeowners afford their mortgage payments and stay in their homes, can help you to renegotiate your mortgage so that it is affordable once more. Your bank may be willing to cut the interest rate on your current mortgage, move past-due payments to the end of the mortgage, renegotiate a lower payment for your monthly mortgage cost, or any number of other options that can help you to get back on your feet and remain solvent.

If you can’t work with your bank, and federal programs aren’t helping, you may seek relief through a San Bernardino Chapter 13 bankruptcy. This can be helpful for individuals whose bank will not negotiate terms that are affordable, or for individuals who had reached a prior agreement, but have suffered another financial setback and need more help than the banks can provide. Under a San Bernardino Chapter 13 bankruptcy, you will have to pay back any arrears on your mortgage over the life of the bankruptcy repayment plan – typically 3-5 years. This gives you time to pay back what you owe gradually, without worrying about a large lump sum. The bank may also be able to negotiate some of your loans so that payments are more reasonable and you have more income available to pay down your mortgage.

When You Can’t Make Payments – Alternatives to San Bernardino County Foreclosure

If you just can’t make the payments, you may want to look at other options, such as a short sale or deed in lieu. These two options allow you to sell your home, either to another interested party, or the bank itself, without having to make up the difference in the cost of the original mortgage and the selling price. Short sales can prove difficult in this market, as many times, home prices have fallen well below their initial cost. This can also make short sales less attractive to banks, though there are some which may be willing to assist you.

San Bernardino Foreclosure is a stressful prospect, and many people are often tempted to ignore the warning signs or to pretend that it will all just go away. Unfortunately, this type of response will only lead to the loss of the home and damaged credit with nothing to show for it. If you are in danger of having your home foreclosed and you need help, please contact our San Bernardino County Bankruptcy Law Firm as soon as possible. A timely Chapter 13 bankruptcy filing may be able to save your home and allow you to move forward financially.