When it comes to a legal situation that involves an asset as important as your home, it is vital that you do not venture into litigation on your own. In fact, the first step to assuring that every possible option will be exhausted to help you keep your home is to find a qualified foreclosure lawyer in your area.
Whether you predict that your home will be foreclosed or the process has already begun, the right attorney can guide you through the correct course of fighting back against lenders. It is crucial that you are prepared for every step of the foreclosure process from the time you are first made aware of the situation, to litigation and the final ruling. To help you get a better idea of what you can expect during foreclosure, Ahmad Sulaiman, a sought after real estate attorney in Illinois explains what a complaint of foreclosure is, and what your response should be.
A complaint of foreclosure is the legal document that states that your lender — usually a bank — is filing a request to foreclose on your house because you have been unable to uphold the payment terms of the loan, says Sulaiman. The complaint will be addressed to you and will include the name of plaintiff (the lender who is making the claim against you), the details of your loan, the outstanding debt that you owe and possibly how long you have before the lender will try to sell your home.
When you receive the complaint of foreclosure, you are required to supply the court with an answer, or a written statement that addresses the fact that you have received the complaint and how you would like to respond to the lender’s claims. The exact amount of time you have to answer the complaint differs state to state but it is usually between two weeks to one month. When compiling your answer, you can either confirm or deny the claim.
Confirming the complaint of foreclosure
If everything in the complaint is completely accurate, your course of action would be to admit to the court that you are aware of the balance you owe and understand that if the loan is not settled, the lender can take your home away from you in order to regain his money. In essencem you are choosing not to fight the foreclosure.
Denying the complaint of foreclosure
If you do not agree with what has been issued to you about your loan and the lender, then you can attack the complaint of foreclosure. When writing your answer, make it clear that you deny the claim and give reasons for why the plaintiff is inaccurate.
- Defects in the claim: If your name, the lender’s name or the amount of loan is misrepresented, then it serves as a defect in the claim of foreclosure and you have a case if you choose to fight the claim.
- Counter claim: When you are served with the notice, you can also choose to sue the plaintiff on the belief that the lender partook in actions that are illegal under federal, state or common law.
What happens next?
In order to make sure that you achieve the best possible outcome, it is crucial that you attend all court hearings and are prepared to defend your claims in front of a judge. And, of course, the best way to properly prepare your case is to have the right attorney on your side who knows what errors to look for and can negotiate with lenders so that you can regain control over your mortgage and remain in your home.
This article is for informational purposes only. You should not rely on this article as a legal opinion on any specific facts or circumstances, and you should not act upon this information without seeking professional counsel. Neither publication of this article nor your receipt of this article create an attorney-client relationship.
