Currently in the United States foreclosures are at an all time high. Thousands of homeowners are just one paycheck away from getting behind on their mortgage do to any unforeseen circumstance. For most people, their home is their castle, their most precious asset and the only options that usually present themselves to prevent foreclosure are investors attempting to take their home or attorneys advising them to file bankruptcy. With the new bankruptcy law, which became effective on October 17, 2005, this option is more difficult but still applies.

Most homeowners are unaware of their rights and options, the programs that are available for them to get current on their mortgage, plus they are usually intimidated by the lender, and understandably so.

Typically the lender will demand all of the arrears and all of the late fees, delinquent charges, etc. This situation leaves the homeowner with few options if they are unable to come up with the arrears. Seldom can a homeowner find the extra cash to save the home in this fashion.

The average foreclosure often generates huge losses to the homeowner and the lender. It is therefore in the best interest of the homeowner and the lender, to come to a settlement, stop the foreclosure proceedings, and re-instate or modify the mortgage of the home. Unfortunately for homeowners and lenders, this coming together doesnt occur as often as one outside the industry would think.

There is a solution to this problem which is called loss mitigation. When a hardship has occurred that caused the homeowner to originally fall behind in their mortgage payments and has been resolved, loss mitigation can be the most effective means of avoiding or stopping foreclosure. Loss mitigation is an intervention program wherein the lender is willing to work out an agreement that will allow a homeowner to continue making payments, save the home and not come up with all of the past due arrears.

There are twenty seven different ways to mitigate a case to prevent foreclosure. In order to qualify for loss mitigation assistance you must be delinquent sixty days or more on your mortgage payments, you must have resolved the hardship that caused your delinquency and you must have sufficient income to resume your mortgage payments.

If you are having difficulty in making your mortgage payments, we suggest that you should contact your lender as soon as possible to negotiate arrangements to avoid further delinquency. Consider tapping into all financial resources that you have available at your disposal to draw from to make the next months payment, i.e. 401k hardship withdrawal, part-time job, savings etc. Be sure to read all your mail from your lender.