After the peak of the foreclosure crisis in 2010, legal steps were put into place to give more aid to homeowners instead of mortgage lenders, and particular protections were put into place for those in the military.
If you are an active or prior service member in the American Canyon area who is facing foreclosure, find out how the Service Members Civil Relief Act could potentially delay, if not prevent entirely, the foreclosure that you are facing.
You have fought hard for your country, let foreclosure attorneys step in to help you.
Enacted in 2003, and amended many times since, the Service Member Civil Relief Act is based on the Soldiers and Sailors Civil Relief Act of 1940. The SSCRA had been established to ease the financial burdens of those in service.
The SMCRA of today is to financially protect service members as they enter active duty. It offers financial protection for situations regarding:
- Income tax
- Life insurance
- Health insurance
- Mortgage foreclosures
- Credit card and mortgage interest rates
- Evictions
- Rental agreements
- Security deposits
If you have signed a mortgage before going on active duty, then some of the best protections of the Service Member Civil Relief Act are regarding foreclosure. Any foreclosure sale without a court order is illegal, and even a threat to foreclose without a court order is illegal.
This provides great safety in states where nonjudicial foreclosures are legal. In the USA nonjudicial foreclosures can be legal in over 30 states.
This means that for service members who have signed a mortgage before active duty in American Canyon, only judicial foreclosures are legal. The SCRA requires a court order (or waiver) before the house can be sold at a foreclosure sale.
The process of a judicial foreclosure takes much longer and means that there is greater opportunity to work out the repayment issues with the lender before something as drastic as foreclosure happens.
If you have signed a mortgage after going on active duty, then this means that it is illegal for there to be any default judgments on your foreclosure case (except in very specific circumstances). It also ensures that you have the opportunity to at least delay the foreclosure by 90 days.
Default judgments can happen if you do not reply to, or show up in court for, the foreclosure suit. However, with the protection of the SMCRA, it is prohibited to enact a default judgment. Unless the court can appoint an attorney for the absent serviceman, and it has been a period of no less than 90 days where the appointed attorney has been unable to locate the serviceman and is certain that there is no viable defense.
If this happens to you, you might be able to reopen the case if you can present a viable defense.
To mount the best defense, you must have the best lawyer. In the American Canyon area, one of the best real estate and foreclosure lawyers is Jason W. Estavillo. With over 50 years of experience, Estavillo Law promises to bring personalized care, attention, and empathy to each of their cases. We will explore every avenue to help with foreclosure and help you achieve your goals and get the care you deserve.
Contact Estavillo Law to talk about your case today.