Few Idaho residents take advantage of foreclosure review

One in every 839 homeowners in Idaho have been served with a foreclosure notice in the month of April, but few of these troubled homeowners have taken advantage of the foreclosure review process, which could result in a cash settlement if they lost their homes to inaccurate or fraudulent foreclosure paperwork.

While some homeowners who had the foresight to allow a foreclosure attorney review their default notices and prevent a wrongful seizure of their homes, millions of homeowners across the country have not participated in the review process. In fact, there are approximately 4.3 million homeowners eligible for a free review of their documents, which would allow them to receive up to $100,000 if the bank made errors in their default notices.

The review process came in the wake of the robo-signing scandal, where mortgage lenders allowed employees to sign foreclosure paperwork without checking for inaccuracies. Those property owners eligible for mortgage modifications were often denied.

As a consequence of the banks pushing foreclosures through the system quickly, the federal government set up the review process to allow homeowners the opportunity to obtain compensation for their wrongful foreclosure, but so far only 4 percent of those eligible have taken advantage of the program.

Many homeowners fail to take action by employing a foreclosure attorney and instead allow the banks to seize their homes, perhaps because the process is challenging or they don’t think they have a chance of winning against a large bank. However, a troubled homeowner has a number of options for debt relief that will allow them to stay in the home they worked hard to purchase.

An Idaho foreclosure lawyer can help and will outline the options an individual has to keep possession of their property. Either a mortgage modification or a personal bankruptcy will allow a person to stay in their home while reducing their debts or their monthly mortgage payment. With a short-sale, you will have to move but is a good alternative to foreclosure.