If you need to stop a foreclosure, you may want to check out the Washington State Foreclosure Fairness mediation, a program specifically for Washington state residents. There are numerous Washington State homeowners out there just like you who are struggling to make their mortgage payments. A foreclosure defense attorney can advise you on your options and if the Washington States foreclosure fairness act and mediation can assist you in saving your primary residence.
The Washington State foreclosure fairness act mediation program was adopted in July 2011 and facilitated a new way in which borrowers could meet with their lenders through mediation prior to go through a forced foreclosure sale. The goal is of the meeting is to allow the home owners a last ditch effort to save their home by attempting to negotiate a loan modification or repayment plan in which the borrowers could potentially retain a primary residence. In order for a borrower to qualify for the right to request foreclosure fairness mediation, the home in question must be a owner occupied primary residence and the borrowers must have received a notice of default or a notice of trustee sale and have requested mediation within 20 days of the notice of trustee sale being recorded in the county where the property is located. Additionally, foreclosure fairness mediation may only be requested by a credit counselor or an attorney through the Washington State Department of Commerce.
Once the mediation is requested by an attorney or housing counselor, the foreclosure date will be postponed and notice will be given to all parties involved including the foreclosing trustee assigned to your matter and and your case will be assigned a mediator who will schedule a foreclosure fairness mediation date that works for all parties. You should be aware that borrowers and the lender must pay to an assigned mediator a fee of $300 each for the mediators time and additional fees could be incurred if the mediation needs to be rescheduled. From the time the mediator is assigned up until the mediation dat, documentation will need to be provided to the lender through their representatives. This documentation includes information regarding the borrowers income and expenses recent tax returns, hardship letter and bank statements. At the mediation the lender is required to send somebody to the meeting that has authority to act on behalf of the lender. The Washington state foreclosure fairness act is especially helpful for those who have been a few payments late and the bank has started to reject the payments post bankruptcy due to there being a deficiency. Having a real local and live person to talk to will be extremely helpful in getting results and making sure documentation is not lost by the bank.
The primary goal of the mediation is to stop the foreclosure sale that is scheduled on your home and then you can look to getting your loan modified which can reduce your interest rate and monthly payments. For best results you should be employed and show that you can make your mortgage payments moving forward. If the foreclosure fairness mediation is not an option, you could look to filing a chapter 13 bankruptcy to make up your arrears over 5 years or you can seek to file a lawsuit against you lender if you think there have been mistakes made by your lender. Of course, most of the time, you will need to show that you can make some sort of payments moving forward in order to retain your home.
If you need to stop a foreclosure in Washington State please schedule a free consultation with Symmes Law Group by calling 206-682-7975 to get the legal counsel you need.
