planOne of the most common problems our office encounters is when people in foreclosure are not able to gain acceptance on a payment plan they had submitted to the bank’s foreclosure lawyer. There are many reasons they fail but it usually comes down to a few key issues:

  1. The proposed lump sum payment to start the payment plan is insufficient.
  2. The length of time to pay off the mortgage arrears is too long.
  3. The submitted payment plan is too vague in scope and direction and/or too difficult to understand.

Most foreclosure lawyers run busy offices and they do not have the time to review obscure handwritten notes on how a borrower plans to make good on their mortgage arrears. The lawyers prefer concise written proposals that get to the point quickly in a format that is easy to understand.

We recently had a client approach us with this very issue. She had tried unsuccessfully to get to get the bank’s lawyer to accept her payment plan. Despite the fact she was fully employed, had a large sum of money readily available to her, and was willing to reinstate the mortgage in full through monthly payments, she was not aware how to best submit her solution. She failed on her first attempt and time was running out. She was only days away from the court application that would see her lose control of her house.

We worked quickly with this client to develop a plan and she ended up presenting her solution in court on the day she was set to lose her house. The Master (judge) and Plaintiff (bank’s lawyer) both agreed to the plan we developed with her. She paid a lump sum to the lawyer several days later, along with a plan for extra monthly payments, in addition to her regular mortgage payment, to be implemented over the next 6 months.

She was that close to losing her house to foreclosure! She was very grateful to have found a solution to stop her foreclosure and keep her house!