Florida Foreclosure Process and Timeline
Foreclosure proceedings begin with the filing of a civil action complaint, the recording of a Lis Pendens in the Public Records and the issuance of a summons to each defendant in the case including the homeowner.
As the homeowner, you will be given 20 daysto respond to that summons by filing an answer to the complaint. If you fail to answer, you may not be given an opportunity to present your side of the case to the judge, and a Final Judgment may be entered against you.
If a Final Judgment is signed by the judge, it will instruct the Clerk of Court to sell the property at auction, to the highest bidder. The foreclosure clerk assigns a date to auction the property and publishes a Notice of Sale in a publication that meets the requirements of the Florida Statutes.
Here’s a timeline of the foreclosure spiral:
|
Foreclosure timeline
|
|
|
Day 1
|
|
Mortgage payment due today, the first of the month. Borrower misses it.
|
|
Day 16-30
|
|
Late charge assessed on payment. Mortgage servicer starts attempting to make contact to find out what happened.
|
|
Day 45-60
|
|
Servicer sends “demand” or “breach” letter to the borrower pointing out that terms of the mortgage have been violated.
Borrower given 30 days to resolve the situation by paying the delinquent amount.
|
|
Day 90-105
|
|
Servicer refers loan to foreclosure department. Hires local attorney or other firm to initiate foreclosure proceedings.
Depending on the state where the home is located, the servicer’s representative may record a formal notice of foreclosure at the local courthouse, publish details of the debt in the local newspaper, attend hearings on the case and make appropriate court filings.
|
|
Day 150-415
|
|
House sold at foreclosure sale or auction. Wide time range due to different state requirements.
Borrowers in states with judicial foreclosures, or those in which lenders have to retake property titles via the court system, can get almost a year to straighten out their affairs before the sale. Those in nonjudicial states have as little as two months.
|
|
Day 150-415
|
|
After the sale, some states grant borrowers a “redemption period” in which they can still rebuy the property if they have the money. Others force consumers out immediately following the auction.
|
|
|