Foreclosure After Bankruptcy

Question:
I recently received my Ch7 discharge in Washington state. We are giving up our home, ie we have not paid the last 3 mortgage (and 2nd mortgage) payments. So far I don't know of any notice to remove the stay to start foreclosure, but now that we have been discharged I imagine that will start - we have had no contact so far regarding the mortgage or any foreclosure proceedings that I'm aware of. My question is, how long are we likely to have before we have to move out of the house? Any info would be appreciated. We are trying to figure out what to do next... Oh just as a general note, our Ch7 went through with no problems. We did a lot of research and finally decided to go through with it, and so far it seems like the right thing to have done. We had huge debts due to medical problems, and then I got laid off. We are leaving the home because it was too upside down on the 2nd mortgage.

Answer:
I can't tell you how it will work in Washington state but I can share with you my experience here in Louisiana. I filed chapt. 7 on my birthday Sept 24. Although I still owe money to the trustee for my "so-called" assets I received notice recently that the chapt 7 was final. We moved into an apartment in January but the house has still not been foreclosed on and the last mortgage payment was in April 2002! Maybe because it was a VA loan. I would caution you not to panic and make the mistake I did. Since no one could tell me how long the foreclosure process would take and concern over getting an apartment with bad credit, we entered into a lease on the one complex I thought would take us in fall of last year. I paid a security deposit and 1 and 1/2 month's rent but never moved in awaiting foreclosure. My wife hated the place because it was small and not what she wanted but I thought it was the only place I could get w/bad credit. Well we decided to contact the apartment complex where we used to live before moving into the house and they welcomed us with open arms. Luckily we were able to get out of our lease on the other place and only forfeited the deposit. But look how much money I could have saved if I had stayed in the house a couple more months. Just do your homework and find a place that will take you with your credit rating but don't let them pressure you into signing a lease yet. You may still have months to stay where you are. They don't just give you week to move out or all your stuff goes on the street, they have to give you at least 30 days or more. Hope things work out for you. It varies tremendously. I have had clients remain in their homes up to 2 1/2 years after the foreclosure before the mortgage company was able to evict them, though this much time is very unusual. Since foreclosure varies tremendously from state, I suggest that you ask your bankruptcy attorney. He or she will know just how much time you are likely to be able to stay.





Categories