What happens upon foreclosure?

[sweetbambi]

My daughter's house is being foreclosed on soon and sold on the courthouse steps. What happens then? Do they go in the house and throw all the furniture out? Is she allowed to go back in the house? I don't mean to imply that any of you have gone through this, but maybe you know someone who has. Incidentally, she has another place to live 4 days after the foreclosure.

 

[4HppyCamprs]

My daughter's house is being foreclosed on soon and sold on the courthouse steps. What happens then? Do they go in the house and throw all the furniture out? Is she allowed to go back in the house? I don't mean to imply that any of you have gone through this, but maybe you know someone who has. Incidentally, she has another place to live 4 days after the foreclosure.

It seems like once it is sold in auction the house and all contents would belong to new owner. My parents went through a foreclosure and it was a long process more than enough time for them to find a new place to live but the bank did change the locks once they moved toward repossession. She should get her stuff out before there are new owners.

Hopefully others will chime in.

 

[happily single]

In Rhode Island, and I'm guessing most States, the house is bought back by the bank that holds the mortgage. Your daughter's things will not be thrown out on the street. Once it is sold the bank has to notify her of the sale of the home (I believe). Here in RI the bank would give her so long to get out and if she doesn't move then they would need to start an eviction action against her.

 

[jojo0612]

Don't quote me on this...but I believe even if they do change locks on here, your daughter still has 30 days to get her belongings. She just needs to notify the bank. Again, don't quote me...but I believe that is how it is done.

 

[Jimsig]

Start by calling the states Atty General office (where the house is located) and ask them. All states have different laws and time frames. It's the only was to know what applies to her.

 

[wiigirl]

Start by calling the states Atty General office (where the house is located) and ask them. All states have different laws and time frames. It's the only was to know what applies to her.

 

[goingtowdwwithkiddos]

I have been through this (13 years ago) and currently work for the banks As I am in CA our laws may differ. Prior to lock out here the sheriff post a notice on the door and that is at the very end. If another person not the bank buys the house they would go through an eviction. If it is bought by the bank or maybe even now she can ask for cash for keys!!!! So scary to go through and ideally she can move prior to the sale date

edit to add contact her mortgage loss mitigation and give the date she can move TALK to them it can't hurt. I agree find out regarding her specific state for laws

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

Once the houses sells she will be served an eviction notice giving her 7-10 days to get out. After that time the locks are changed and the contents moved to the curb

 

[tvguy]

The process takes so long most folks have moved out months and months before ownership actually changes hands.
One house around the corner from me was put in foreclosure 2 years before the sale actually happened.
People next door moved out 10 months before the bank took any action, then the bank refused to foreclose, instead forced them to do a short sale. That was an odd one though, they decided they wanted to keep their cars and rv and let the house go when he lost his job. But he wasn't on the mortgage, only the wife, and she made enough to keep making the payments, AND had a clause in the mortgage where the bank could garnish her wages to make the payment. So they couldn't walk away and not make payments.

 

[RitaE]

There's a house down the road from us that they emptied in a foreclosure sale. They set all the contents out on the driveway right before a huge snowstorm. They covered it all with a blue tarp but I have to think that anything in there that was damageable was likely ruined.

I don't know what happened after that. I drove by a couple of weeks later and it was all gone. I imagine somebody finally just got a dumpster and trashed it all. It was really sad.

If nothing else would it be possible for you to rent a storage unit for her for a couple of months to protect the most important items?

 

[Colleen27]

It varies by state so you really need to look into the specific process for where you/she lives. Here, the bank buys the home at that initial foreclosure sale unless there's a buyer for more than is owed (seldom happens). Regardless of who purchases the property, the new owner then has to follow formal eviction processes to eject the former owner. This can happen immediately or the bank can take months to follow through to that step. The fastest I've seen was around 45 days; the slowest was almost 8 months from sheriff's sale to eviction. I strongly doubt there's any jurisdiction where the process is so speedy that notification of the sale and eviction would take less than a week.

 

[queenbetsey]

Not sure but I would think that maybe they might want to rent a storage place and move their stuff before the foreclosure is done. I also would recommend that you call an attorney that specializes in this kind of thing and maybe they have a free consult and can answer your questions as states have different laws on stuff like that. I also agree with the pp and would suggest that your daughter check with the mortgage holder if they will consider cash for keys.
Either way you need to find out the laws for your state. In the past I have had rentals in California and in Tennessee and those laws are as different as night and day so I am sure that foreclosure laws are just as different state to state

 

[sookie]

Not a sarcastic question: Why would she not move out BEFORE this happens so she doesn't risk losing her belongings too?

Get her a 30-40 dollar storage space if that is what it takes.

Sorry that is happening to her.

 

[DisneyMomma2000]

It depends on the state and also the lender. She should have received an official notice from an attorney (sometimes private firm and sometimes state) giving her notice with dates.

I am an office manager for a real estate office, and handle many short sales. A short sale is possibly another option, to lessen the damage to her credit. Basically she can sell the house with permission from the lender. I would suggest she speak to an agent that knows short sales well. They can sometimes get foreclosure proceedings stopped via the lender to allow the sale of the home. Only the lender can stop foreclosure proceedings.

If not, she needs to be speaking with her lender every day. They are notorious for miss-communication, un-organization, and just all around frustration, so you have to stay on them like white on rice! They may have options as well, but don't hold your breath. They actually don't care if they foreclose because they can write it off as a loss.

I had to deal with this regarding the sale of my parent's home after they died. It was in foreclosure, but we were able to get it stopped and ended up selling it.

Good Luck!

 

[plummer925]

Not a sarcastic question: Why would she not move out BEFORE this happens so she doesn't risk losing her belongings too?

Get her a 30-40 dollar storage space if that is what it takes.

Sorry that is happening to her.

This! Help her out if she has no money (which I assume since she is being foreclosed on) - rent her a 1 month storage locker and get her a hotel for the 4 nights between foreclosure and new rental. She should move everything but her bed & a suitcase of stuff into the storage locker BEFORE the foreclosure - move the bed & suitcase the morning of the foreclosure. Don't risk it. It's not worth it. Sure...it MAY be days, weeks or even months. But it may not, either. Why risk!? PLUS - once that legal notice goes on the door, it shows everyone that it's in foreclosure - I'd think the risk of robbery to the home would be great at that point...

 

[robinb]

This! Help her out if she has no money (which I assume since she is being foreclosed on) - rent her a 1 month storage locker and get her a hotel for the 4 nights between foreclosure and new rental. She should move everything but her bed & a suitcase of stuff into the storage locker BEFORE the foreclosure - move the bed & suitcase the morning of the foreclosure. Don't risk it. It's not worth it. Sure...it MAY be days, weeks or even months. But it may not, either. Why risk!? PLUS - once that legal notice goes on the door, it shows everyone that it's in foreclosure - I'd think the risk of robbery to the home would be great at that point...

I know someone who for some reason or another didn't move and get their stuff out in time and their house was locked up with all their stuff in it. It was a real PITB.

 

[mhfrau]

Former Georgia resident here, look up the laws on the state website. It gives the timeline and what happens each step of the way. Georgia doesn't give a lot of leeway to homeowners, and it is a fast foreclosure state compared to someplace like Nevada or California. In our old subdivision, several homes went into foreclosure and I remember the Sheriff will always come to post a notice on the door giving the specific lockout date. I want to say it is something like 10 days (?) from the date the eviction notice is served. At any rate, once it is "sold" on the courthouse steps, which almost none actually do, it will then revert to bank ownership, and I'm pretty sure that at that point she needs to be completely moved out. If she already has the notice of the date of sale, and it's posted in the newspaper, which by law in Georgia they have to do, I sure wouldn't count on having that extra 4 days.

 

[daughtersrus]

A house in our neighborhood was sold at auction 7 weeks ago and the people are still living in it. They have not made a mortgage payment in over 3 years. They had the house resided and a new roof put on lasy summer but the contractor has not been paid. The mortgage company will not sign the check from the homeowners insurance(hail damage). I think they choose the worst color combination (blue siding, red roof , grey garage door and brown brick) because they knew they'd be kicked out soon.

Does weather come into play? We've had a really cold winter so I was thinking that maybe they can't be evicted until it gets warmer

 

[North of Mouse]

My daughter's house is being foreclosed on soon and sold on the courthouse steps. What happens then? Do they go in the house and throw all the furniture out? Is she allowed to go back in the house? I don't mean to imply that any of you have gone through this, but maybe you know someone who has. Incidentally, she has another place to live 4 days after the foreclosure.

Don't quote me on this...but I believe even if they do change locks on here, your daughter still has 30 days to get her belongings. She just needs to notify the bank. Again, don't quote me...but I believe that is how it is done.

She should definitely get everything out 'before' the sale. Our neighbor across the street from us lost their home and have moved out already. A 'Fannie Mae' guy stopped at our house this week and asked it they had moved as it was now in their hands. They are changing the locks, put a no trespassing notice in the window (he also gave us a copy with phone #, etc) and said it was 'off limits' to everyone now. They are going to fix it up, paint, etc. then put it on the market just like any house (per what he told us). Anything removed now, or any access at all, is considered theft, and unlawful entry.

 

[tnd]

It is very state-dependent. In my state, there is a post-sale redemption period that may be up to 6 months. So here, the owner gets to stay in the home rent/mortgage free for up to 6 months after the property is sold.

Other states, as people have said, have much shorter time frames. You and your daughter can google your state. A lot of states have a lot of good information online. Legal Aid for your county or city might also be able to help.