filed for bankrupcy, had creditors meeting, waiting on discharge- what happens now pertaining to foreclosure on my home. I am still living in the home.
The mortgage company has already requested a release of the stay, and was approved by the court.
Mr.Markus is correct. The bank must either ask the Bankruptcy Court for a "Relief From Stay" or wait until your discharge is granted in order to proceed with the foreclosure. If the bank requests a relief from stay, it will almost always be granted. But what happens then? It depends on what Ohio county you are in and which judge you drew in your foreclosure.
I practice in Erie County, Ohio. We have a mandatory mediation rule for all foreclosures. Even if you failed to answer your foreclosure suit, mediation is mandatory, if the defendant requests it. It usually takes 9-12 months to complete a foreclosure in Erie County. Other counties can take as little as 6 months. When the foreclosure is finally granted, an order of sale is issued by the Court. The sale date is set, usually for a the same day every month, like, 10:00 A.M. on the 1st Tuesday of each month.
On the date of the sale, the public is always welcome. Frequently, the bank will withdraw the property from sale and hope for better sale conditions. The property can not be sold for less than 2/3rds of the appraised price. If the property gets no bidders, it will be removed from sale and reappraised at a lower price. A new sale date will set. This will be repeated until the property eventually sells.
Frequently, the bank will bid an amount equal to its deficiency, because that costs the bank nothing. The bank will then refer the property to its real estate department for a private sale. There's no reason not to make an offer to the bank to buy it back at its true market value once the bank owns it.
Whoever buys the property at the sheriff's sale has 30 days from the date of the sale to pay up and request a deed of sale from the sheriff. Once the deed is "confirmed" by a court order, the new owner can request the sheriff to evict anyone in the home. This is done by a "writ." The sheriff will come to the property and serve the writ personally. This is one of the sheriff's least favorite duties.
In my experience the sheriffs are always been very polite and low key as they serve these writs. You should be polite and low key to the deputy as well. The foreclosure is not the deputy's fault. If you fail to leave the property after service of the first writ, the sheriff will reluctantly do their duty and serve a three day writ on whoever remains on the property.
At the end of those three days, you will find that the sheriff will indeed physically remove you.
If you call the "Civil Division" of your Sheriff's office, you can ask for the clerk or deputy in charge of foreclosures. You can give the clerk your name and civil case number and the clerk will be happy to tell you the status of your case. They will also tell you all about their procedures if you ask. They know their procedures better than any attorney. If your case has not been set for sale, you can get information from the clerk that is assigned to the judge assigned to your foreclosure.
Believe it or not, these clerks will be glad to help you understand the foreclosure procedure. After all, they are civil servants and they work for the public. Most of them sympathize with foreclosure defendants. And they answer dumb questions from attorneys all the time. Good luck!
time frames for foreclosures depend on the laws of whatever state the property is located in. Unless the creditor obtains permission from the bankruptcy court to start (or continue with) a foreclosure (known as obtaining relief from the automatic stay) then they will have to wait until the case is closed before starting (or continuing) with the foreclosure.
What timeline? We had a client wait over two years for the foreclosure occur and that was after the case was discharged. The law on mortgages is so convoluted now that it is anyone's guess. Once the stay is lifted, state law requirements and various other federal obligations kick in. Consult a good foreclosure attorney in your area for more information about the specifics of your case.
