If you are facing a foreclosure in Louisiana you are not alone. Baton Rouge foreclosures, as well as New Orleans foreclosures are a very common process, but they can also be extremely intimidating. Many clients come to our Baton Rouge or Metairie office after being served with Louisiana foreclosure papers and they have a lot of questions: how long do I have before the sale; what can I do to stop a sheriff sale; was I served properly; I was in negotiations with the bank so why would they foreclose on my home and more. While we are unable to give complete answers without meeting with you and discussing your personal home foreclosure, we would like to take a moment and explain some of the most common issues with home foreclosures in Louisiana.
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Judicial Executory Proceeding
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The most common type of foreclosure in Baton Rouge, New Orleans and other
surrounding parishes is a Judicial Foreclosure
- Upon default, the foreclosing party (your bank) files a foreclosure petition with the mortgage attached, and the court (after reviewing the mortgage and proof of default) summarily orders the property seized and sold unless the borrower (you) appeal the foreclosure or otherwise bring a lawsuit asking the court to halt the foreclosure process
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The most common type of foreclosure in Baton Rouge, New Orleans and other
surrounding parishes is a Judicial Foreclosure
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Notice for home foreclosure:
- A sheriff from the parish that your home is located within must serve the borrower (you) with a notice of seizure. (This serving process is why foreclosure sales are sometimes called sheriff sales.) Additionally, a notice of sale is published at least twice and not less than three days after you have been served with the notice of foreclosure or the notice of seizure.
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How long does it take to foreclose on a home in Louisiana?
- Foreclosure proceedings move forward at the discretion of the lender. Each mortgage company has their own regulations on how long they will wait after a deficiency to seek a sheriff sale date. We’ve had people come in and meet with our bankruptcy attorneys who haven’t paid a mortgage note in 3 years and were just served with foreclosure papers and we have clients who were only 3 months behind and were served with foreclosure papers. It is unfortunate that banks are not more uniform with their foreclosure procedures but the good news is that filing for bankruptcy stops all sheriff sales no matter how many or how few months you are behind on your mortgage.
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How long after I’m served with foreclosure papers will my house be sold?
- It depends on the court’s schedule, how many times the sheriff had to be dispatched before finally serving you with the papers and other factors, but typically takes 60-90 days to sell your home in a foreclosure sale. No matter how far away your sheriff sale date is you’ll want to contact an attorney as soon as you’ve been served with foreclosure papers.
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How do I get more information on the foreclosure of my home?
- The foreclosure papers you were served with should have a docket or case number on them. For more information on your sheriff sale you should visit the sheriff’s website for the parish in which your home resides and run a search with that number, or call the sheriff’s office directly. For your convenience we have linked those sites below:
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How can you stop a Louisiana foreclosure?
- The most effective way to stop Baton Rouge foreclosures or New Orleans foreclosures is to seek the help of a qualified bankruptcy attorney. Our attorneys have given thousands of Louisiana residents help stopping foreclosure sales in the area and they are ready to do the same for you. Call our Baton Rouge or Metairie office today, to schedule your free consultation and find out how filing for bankruptcy can stop a sheriff sale before you lose your home.
Sources: http://www.alllaw.com/articles/nolo/foreclosure/laws-in-louisiana.html https://www.foreclosure.com/state/la
https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/summary-louisianas-foreclosure-laws.html
http://www.corelogic.com/research/foreclosure-report/national-foreclosure-report-january-2014.pdf
