Foreclosure at end of 13

[alorth]

Our plan was amended in December to include our house in the Plan. The mortgage bank shows on our creditor list. However, they sold the mortgage to a 3rd party on Jan. 1st, less than a month after the Plan was amended. That 3rd company has been harassing us ever since, even though they have been notified in writing of the house being included in the BK, and have been given our atty name and case number. We finally got on a 3 way call with our atty and the mortgage company, and supposedly this was hashed out, however we did receive another mailing about a week or so after that call.

Now our Plan is complete according to the TT, and we are awaiting discharge.

The house is scheduled for foreclosure auction this month. We do not live there, as we moved out of state late last year, which was necessary for a job, and which is why the Plan was amended to include the house.

I am on pins and needles wondering what is going to happen from here. Is the property considered abandoned since we haven't lived there for several months? If so, then the redemption period is 30 days. Otherwise it is 6 months. I am not sure what this mortgage company will do towards us going forward, even though the house was included in the amended Plan, which they don't seem to acknowledge, and we even volunteered through our attorney to turn over the keys in lieu of deed. That offer was ignored by the mortgage company.

What are our rights in this case? When we get our discharge, if they continue to harass us for deficiency, what do we do? They have been reporting this to the credit bureaus as late mortgage payments. I have disputed this to the bureaus stating that the mortgage was included in the bankruptcy.

We don't even care about the redemption period, as we just want this to be done, and never bothered about it again. However, with the way the real estate market has caught fire since we moved, I am now wondering if we might be able to sell the house and avoid the foreclosure? I don't know if that's possible so quickly, or even smart to pursue. Maybe even thinking about that is dumb.

So many damned complications with this stupid case.

[justbroke]

What are our rights in this case? When we get our discharge, if they continue to harass us for deficiency, what do we do? They have been reporting this to the credit bureaus as late mortgage payments. I have disputed this to the bureaus stating that the mortgage was included in the bankruptcy.

Quite simply, your lawyer should (or should have) warned them that they are in violation of the automatic stay and will be in violation of the permanent discharge if they continue to attempt to "collect" on the debt. Suffice it to say that you will have recourse if they keep doing this. It reads as though you did not involve your attorney when it first started, but now they are on notice. You should log every call that they make to you (in some sort of written journal). You should tell your attorney every single time they "bother" you (and it's not just a "notice" acknowledging that you filed bankruptcy and they aren't attempting to collect on a debt).

It's a shame that they don't take you up on the deed in lieu and I don't want to speculate as to what could cause that issue.

If they try to collect at any time after your attorney contacted them, you tell your attorney and your attorney should pounce. Pounce means to file a motion for sanctions with the bankruptcy court. Creditors are simply not allowed to harass or event "attempt" to collect a discharged debt or one that is covered by the automatic stay. These creditors get away with this way too often because debtors think they'll just go away. Always contact your attorney. If your attorney doesn't seem like it's a problem reinforce that it is a problem and that you want sanctions filed so that the creditor stops.

[LadyInTheRed]

However, with the way the real estate market has caught fire since we moved, I am now wondering if we might be able to sell the house and avoid the foreclosure? I don't know if that's possible so quickly, or even smart to pursue. Maybe even thinking about that is dumb.

If you think you can make a profit selling it, contact a real estate agent about listing it. It can take a while for the lender to get to foreclosure. But, if there will be nothing left for you after expenses of sale and paying off the mortgage, then I wouldn't bother.