208,078 New Listings - November 2009 - Last update November 20, 2009 12:30 PM EST 
Mortgage Foreclosure: What to Expect
Many people go through foreclosure on their home one step at a time. On any given day they do not know what to expect, who might be knocking on the door, or what a judge is going to say in court. They do not know how long they will have to stay in their home or what their legal rights are. It’s a very scary situation to be in and it is advised that you talk with an experienced professional who can help guide you through what is coming your way. Let’s go through a quick glimpse at the steps involved in the mortgage foreclosure process.
Once your loan goes into default it will likely remain there for ninety days. Your lender will contact you and give you options to catch the mortgage back up to date. If you cannot do that, they go to court and file their intentions to foreclose on your property. How quickly they can proceed depends on your state. Some states make the lenders go through court and reclaim the title under their name before your home can be sold, and other states allow them to sell the home even with it still under your name. You can delay this action and remain in your home longer by challenging their motions in court, but it will not likely save your home from being auctioned off eventually.
Once their intentions are filed in court, the next step is to serve you notice of the foreclosure. It depends on your state law exactly how this is done, but often it is first attempted by someone coming to your door and giving you the documents. If they cannot find you, or you evade talking to them, it will usually be posted in the newspaper with details of your debt and that will be considered your notice. A lot of people do not want to deal with the problem and are scared what the server at the front porch is going to say or do, so they act as if they are not home. This does not solve your problem or make the foreclosure go away. It just turns it into public business by splashing it across the newspapers. It is best to simply open the door and accept your documents and consider yourself served.
In some states a lender can legally post your notice in the newspaper without sending it to your door. This is a problem if you do not regularly read the paper or it is in a publication most people do not read. Either way, after you have been served warning there will be a court date. You will be allowed to present your case but if you simply have not made your mortgage payments then you can expect the foreclosure to be granted.
There are situations where a foreclosure auction can be fought in court but you must seek counsel of an attorney to know if you have a valid defense. Once the foreclosure has been granted the foreclosed homes will either be auctioned off or sold through regular means.
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How negatively does a foreclosure impact credit score vs bancruptcy?
Please note: I am not asking for myself, am not in foreclosure nor considering.
thank you
I am holding two properties in my name for an llc
both are now in breech. I can pay all of my personal bills but if the llc cannot catch up with the payments or sell the homes (plenty of equity) than I stand to be forclosed upon. The properties are both multfamily and are in the state of Maryland. My partner will not agree to setting a reasonable sale price. There is no operating agreement and he has contributed the cash in the buisness, I have contributed my credit and labor.
Do I have recourse?