how judicial foreclosure works
judicial foreclosures can last anywhere from six months to around three years depending on the state to begin the foreclosure process the mortgage servicer or the company to which mortgage services are paid must wait until the borrower is delinquent on payments for 120 days 4 at this point the servicer will notify the foreclosing party with a breach letter letting the debtor know they are in default on their mortgage in most cases the debtor then has 30 days to cure the default and if they are not able to the servicer will move forward with foreclosure proceedings the foreclosing party next files a lawsuit in the county where the property is located and requests the court to allow the home to be sold to pay the debt as part of the lawsuit the foreclosing party includes a petition for foreclosure that explains why a judge should issue a foreclosure judgment in most cases the court will do so unless the borrower has a defense that justifies the delinquent payments depending on the state the foreclosing party may also be entitled to a deficiency judgment a deficiency judgment allows the house to be sold at a foreclosure sale for less than the outstanding mortgage debt the difference between the debt and the foreclosure sale price is the deficiency in most states the foreclosing party can get a personal judgment against the borrower for the deficiency 3 mortgage lending discrimination is illegal if you think you ve been discriminated against based on race religion sex marital status use of public assistance national origin disability or age there are steps you can take one such step is to file a report to the consumer financial protection bureau or with the u s department of housing and urban development hud 