Foreclosure Process | Timeline For Foreclosure

Understanding the timeline for foreclosure in your state is an essential element if you want to save your home.  This understanding benefits you in a number of ways.

There’s a big difference in what your options are if you have several months as compared to several weeks.  You have more time to think and plan.  You have more time to put the whole process into perspective. You have more time to raise money. 

The timeline for foreclosure is different in each state.  So you will want to make certain that you clearly understand what the timeline is where you live. In this article we will investigate the timeline TIMEFRAME for foreclosure in some of our states.

The foreclosure process is fastest in Texas, Alabama, Rhode Island and Missouri. Unimpeded the entire foreclosure process takes 3 months in those states. Reading these words may not help you fully grasp just how fast this time is. But to try and help you put this timeframe into perspective–it is comparable to the time it would take for a woman to give birth to a child in the first trimester of pregnancy.

Unfortunately for those of you in these states, your chances of successfully evading a foreclosure–once it gets started–is somewhat like a person trying to stop an oncoming train moving at full speed by  standing on the tracks waving their hands frantically as it approaches. Remember what happened when you put a penny on the railroad track?

A number of other southern states–although not only southern states–have timeframes that are, within a month or two, the same as Texas. Georgia, Alabama, Arkansas, Mississippi, New Hampshire, Tennessee, North Carolina, Arizona and West Virginia all have timeframes that end within 4 to 5 months.

Ten states have a timeframe of 7 months: California, Kentucky, Colorado, Alaska, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Oregon and South Carolina.  Seven months is more than twice as long as three months, so those of you in these states can just sit back and be cool, right?

Foreclosure sneaks up on you! Most of the time of foreclosure EVAPORATES before most of us can really understand the danger we are in. A psychologist’s would say we are in a state of denial.

Why would you think you were in danger of losing your home after only one missed payment?  Or even two?   After three months I would think it would be obvious to you that you were in trouble.  But what should you do? 

If you must experience foreclosure the best place in America to be is The Pine Tree State, Maine. The foreclosure process takes almost two years or 22 months.  Vermont, where my grandson, Pierce, will soon go to college, takes 17 months.  So does Iowa.

New York, New Jersey, Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota and Wisconsin all take 12-14 months. The challenge for people in these communities is that they may think they have all the time in the world.   And that mindset could prove costly.

When your ultimate goal is to save your home, that mindset can prove to be costly because some federal workout programs may only be available when the number of months you are in arrears is within certain parameters.

A government program might require that those with delinquent mortgages be LESS THAN say, 10 months in arrears to qualify for a particular program. And, of course, you are disqualified beyond that.  The point is check with someone who knows early to best position yourself to save your home.

In summary, what you will want to understand quickly is what the timeline or timeframe for your state is.  This can be crucial in short timeframe foreclosure states like Texas and Missouri, where the entire process–from the start to the sheriff requesting that you leave your home for good, immediately–can happen in 3 months.

This article was written for information and education purposes only. This writer is not an attorney or realtor. So for legal advice please speak to your attorney.  And for advice regarding real estate please speak to your realtor.

Tags: foreclosure notice sale, foreclosure proceedings, Foreclosure Process, how does foreclosure work, timeline for foreclosure, understanding foreclosures