Falling behind on your mortgage payments can be a stressful situation. In Florida, if your home loan goes into default, your lender can initiate foreclosure proceedings to reclaim the property and recoup their losses.
Florida follows a judicial foreclosure process, which means that lenders must go through the court system before they can foreclose on homes. Understanding the steps involved in a judicial foreclosure can help to better ensure that you know what you can expect as a homeowner.
Receiving a notice of default
Florida is a judicial foreclosure jurisdiction that uses mortgages instead of deeds of trust. Judicial foreclosure can be a slow process, often taking several months to a year or more. The process begins when you miss mortgage payments and default on your loan. The lender then sends you a notice of default outlining the delinquency and potential consequences, including foreclosure.
Foreclosure lawsuit
If the default continues, the lender will file a foreclosure lawsuit in state court. This lawsuit asks the court for permission to foreclose on your property. You will be served with a summons and a complaint detailing the lender’s claim.
You have a limited time, typically 20 days, to respond to the lawsuit. You can choose to fight the foreclosure by filing an answer with the court. This answer might raise possible defenses against foreclosure, such as errors in the loan calculations or violations of lending laws. If you don’t respond within the timeframe, the lender can request a default judgment, which grants them the right to foreclose without further court proceedings.
Foreclosure judgment
If you respond in time, the court holds hearings to determine if the foreclosure is justified. Remember, you have the right to present your case and potentially challenge the foreclosure. However, if the court rules in favor of the lender, a judge issues a foreclosure judgment authorizing the sale of the property. From here, the property goes up for public auction, and the proceeds are used to pay off the mortgage debt.
Suppose you’re a Florida resident who is struggling to keep up with mortgage payments. In that case, you may be facing judicial foreclosure, which, thankfully, through court involvement, offers an opportunity to contest the foreclosure or negotiate a loan modification. Hiring a legal team to represent you as proactively as possible can help you find out if declaring bankruptcy might be your saving grace.
