Thinking about filing chapter 13 -- "PLEASE ADVISE"

threes -

Welcome to the forums! You have come to the right place for advice.

First, I would think long and hard about filing bankruptcy. Chapter 13 will stop the foreclosure, but it will also adversely affect your credit for a very long time.

If the sale date is not until July, 2007, you have some time. Can you gather the money to make the normal mortgage payments plus enough to make up the past due (by paying extra each month) by that time?

Also, if you feel Chapter 13 is your only option, be sure to discuss this situation with your attorney when you go for your initial consultation. I know others here will come along with more useful suggestions than I have been able to offer- please keep an eye on this thread for more info and possible solutions.

I meant sale date is January 12,2007

Whoa...you definitely need to move fast, then. If the sale date is January 12, you need to talk to a Chapter 13 bankruptcy attorney immediately if your plan is to file in order to save your house.

If someone else has any other options for this situation, please post them.

threes--

July 2007 is long while from now, but if you feel Ch 13 is your only option, then discuss the matter with a bankruptcy attorney. In a Ch 13, it will stop the Sheriff's foreclosure sale, and allow you to repay your mortgage arrears, but you will still be obligated to make all future paytments directly to the mortgage company, and they can't proceed with the foreclosure. I'm not advising you to file a Ch 13, it is something you should discuss at the consultation.

brownsugar - sale date is JANUARY 12....there was an error in the original post.

I'm sorry :(

No problem - don't be sorry! I just wanted to be sure you were aware there was some urgency to this case, where they really don't have time to catch up on the payments.

I've had a consultation with a BK attorney, and some of the info the attorney had given me was that, they(BK attorneys) usually need a full two weeks notice to ensure that all pending sales are stopped successfully.

Any suggestions? We have tried everything.

Do you think there are any attorneys that would do it more quicly than others?

You would need to consult a bankruptcy attorney ASAP. Unfortunately Brownsugar is right. (At least that is the case if you were living in OH)

I am in Michigan. Any suggestions?

I don't know what type of loan you have, HUD has programs to stop foreclosure. Have you asked your mortgage company about these programs? I know where I live the Housing Agency here provides assistance to homeowners by paying their past due mortgages up to $3500 to prevent foreclosure.

threes - I am also in Michigan, and filed Ch. 13 myself. Can you PM me and tell me where you are?

Here is a link from HUD on how to seek assistance/counseling when you are faced with foreclosures:

http://www.hud.gov/offices/hsg/sfh/hcc/hcs.cfm

Isn't there something about certified checks that the bank or wherever they were written can call them back? I thought that that was one of the protections that you received when you got a certified check. I could be wrong, but some where in the recesses of my mind this seems to stick out.

But what if the checks have been cashed by the company she sent them to? She didn't say for certain that they had been, but I would think that would complicate things somewhat. Then she'd have to go after the company that cashed them, wouldn't she?

I'm in unfamiliar territory with the cashier's check question.

I know at my bank, if I purchase a cashier's check(certified check), it can be traced after 7 days to see if it has been cashed. If it hasn't, the bank will put a stop payment on it and re-issue me another one. I've never ran into a situation where a check has actually been cashed by someone, just one's that have been lost in the mail and a stop payment was issued by the bank.

I went through the nightmare with a cashier's check. I paid my rent with one. The property manager called me and confirmed they received the check but that someone had stolen the checks from the file in their office. They asked me to put a stop payment on it and get another reissued. I went to the bank and was advised that it took 10 days to get a stop payment and that I would have to post a bond and also sign an acceptance for liability for the check if it got cashed anytime during that 10 days while the stop payment was being processed.

I went back to the law firm I work at and talked to one of the attorneys. He told me that since the property manager confirmed they received the payment, I had completed 'performance' as far as I was required to do under the lease agreement and I had no liability. The property manager, who wasn't happy with my answer, but there wasn't anything they could do about it.

Care is always advised with ANY chapter of Bankruptcy. There are many small details that the attorneys often forget to tell you - this may be a situation that could have been prevented had your attorney had the foresight to discuss this with you. Or maybe this is a new wrinkle that is only now coming to light - I don't know. I do know, however, that with any chapter of Bankruptcy, you have to be very careful. It's advisable to have a list of questions prepared when you go to your initial visit with the attorney.

mortgage companies have a legal obligation to notify you when they sell the mortgage and for a 60 day period following the transfer of your mortgage, the new mortgage holder cannot report your payments as being late when sent to the former mortgage holder/servicer.

From another web site:


Don't know if any of this helps or if you have time to do anything about it. Good luck.

Yes! But you need to file ASAP, and it must be time stamped before the sale takes place!