Most of us are working towards the American Dream of home ownership. The white picket fence, hosting the neighborhood barbecue in your backyard, and pulling into your driveway after a long day at work to be greeted by the window shutters you painted in your favorite color. But millions every year fall into the American Nightmare: Foreclosure. From divorce, medical issues, or sudden relocation, regardless of income or neighborhood, they can happen anywhere and to anyone.
Related : The Top 7 Causes of Foreclosures
How many payments can you miss
before foreclosure happens?
When borrowers take out a home loan, they have to start making monthly mortgage payments. As many homeowners know, it can be easy to miss a few payments. You might wonder how many mortgage payments you can miss before foreclosure happens. The answer is that you can miss four payments, or about 120 days, before you’re in danger of being foreclosed upon. Now cases can always be different and its always a good idea to consult a lawyer before taking action or if you have any questions, but here's a look at the foreclosure process in Connecticut.
What happens when you miss mortgage payments?
As a rule, the more mortgage payments you miss, the more trouble you’ll be in with mortgage companies. Missing mortgage payments can cost you more — and with each missed payment, you’ll be inching closer to foreclosure.
Paying your mortgage should be among your top priorities. Missing mortgage payments can be disastrous for your personal credit and can have an adverse effect on your credit score, for which payment history is a major factor. If you do start missing payments, you should be familiar with the penalties and what can happen after each missed payment.
First Missed Mortgage Payment
If you miss your first mortgage payment, your lender will typically offer you a grace period of fifteen days. During these fifteen days, you can send in your payment without being considered delinquent.
Once this grace period is up, however, you’ll be charged a late fee. This fee is usually a fairly substantial percentage of your mortgage, such as 2 to 5 percent of the monthly payment amount.
Second Missed Mortgage Payment
If you miss your second mortgage payment, your mortgage is likely considered to be in default. At this point, the lender will probably contact you to find out why you haven’t made your payments. You should take the opportunity to explain your situation to your lender and let him know what you’re doing to resolve the situation.
Your mortgage company will usually become increasingly aggressive about getting paid if you miss your second mortgage payment, but it gets even worse if you continue missing payments. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development advises that it can help to work with a housing counselor at this — or any — point.
Related: 5 Steps to Prevent Mortgage Default When You Lose Your Job
Third Missed Mortgage Payment
After you’ve gone about 90 days without making a payment, you’ll receive a demand letter. A demand letter informs you of the amount you are delinquent and that you have 30 days to bring your mortgage current. If you don’t pay the specified amount or make arrangements by the deadline, foreclosure proceedings might begin. You still have time to try to work out an arrangement with your lender, but it’s unlikely that they will take less than the total amount of mortgage payments you owe.
If you still can’t make the payments within 90 days, however, it’s game over: The lender will begin the foreclosure process and bring legal action against you.
Fourth Missed Mortgage Payment
After you’ve missed the deadline provided in the demand letter and you are four months behind on your mortgage payments, the foreclosure process will usually begin. First, you’ll be referred to your lender’s attorneys. As a result of your delinquency, you’ll be required to pay any legal fees during this time. You could still have a chance to avoid foreclosure if you can make your payment or work something out with your lender.
Foreclosure
If you’ve reached the foreclosure stage in Connecticut, you have the right to stay in your home throughout the process, but it will be difficult to get your home back. After all legal work has been completed and the lender is legally allowed to foreclose on the home, the process will begin.
The first thing that will occur in the foreclosure process is that the lender will record a Notice of Default. From here, you have 90 days to pay what you owe. After 90 days, if you have not made your payments, a Notice of Sale will be recorded and sent to you by certified mail. The notice will also be published in a newspaper and posted on your home and in a public place, such as the local courthouse. After a minimum of 21 days from the Notice of Sale being recorded, the house will be put up for auction; you will immediately lose control of your home once it’s sold.
Foreclosure is the last thing you want to happen to your home, but it can be relatively easy to get caught up in other expenses and even lose the home in a matter of months. By making your payments on time — and if that’s not possible, taking advantage of the grace period — you can avoid any legal difficulty with mortgage payments.
It’s easy to run into foreclosure, but it is possible to avoid it within the due dates of the first three payments. It’s no huge deal if you miss a payment or two, but the sooner you make your payments, the better.