More and more homes have been going into foreclosure over the past year or two than ever before. One reason is the poor economy overall, but perhaps the biggest reason is the sub-prime lending fiasco of the past few years that allowed too many people to enter into mortgages they shouldn’t have or couldn’t keep up with.
A foreclosure is legal proceeding in which the holder of a mortgage, or other lien holder, usually a lender, obtains a court ordered termination of the agreement and takes possession of the property.
When a mortgage or home loan or mortgage is underwritten, the lender or bank will get a security interest from the borrower. In effect, they are pledging the property or home as security collateral for the loan. If they fail to meet the payment terms, the lender or mortgage holder can try to foreclose, or repossess the property.
While the main reason for foreclosure is failure to pay the mortgage note or loan, it isn’t the only reason. Property tax that hasn’t been paid, overdue HOA dues or assessments, even unpaid contractor bills are all problems than can lead to a foreclosure action.
The actual process of foreclosure on a residential mortgage loan can begin after the owner has failed to comply with the mortgage agreement. At that point, the creditor, usually the bank, would want to take possession of the property in order to try to recover their principle by reselling the property.
In foreclosure, the lender can opt to try and sell the property and keep the proceeds to pay off its mortgage and any legal costs. When this happens, this is considered as a lender foreclosing on the mortgage or loan. While there are some legal remedies, it is obviously much better to avoid going into foreclosure to begin with.