Are you facing foreclosure? Is your mortgage in arrears? If Bank of America is your servicer, you may be able to seek the help of its loss mitigation department and stop the foreclosure process. This department exists just to mitigate the loss of the bank by opening channels of negotiation with the homeowners and preventing foreclosure, which can be quite expensive for the bank.
Why do foreclosures happen?
Foreclosure is a legal process that allows a lender to sell the property on which a lien exists and the owner is not able to repay the loan obtained from the lender. The process once begun can be stopped by contacting the loss mitigation or foreclosure department of the bank.
The most common reason why you might be facing foreclosure is delinquency or the inability to make payments. Two other reasons are also there for Bank of America to foreclose on your property – selling your property without settling the debt you owe on it and violating the terms of your loan documents.
How foreclosure is a bad option for the lender as well as the homeowner?
Both the lender and the homeowner want to avoid foreclosure, but for different reasons. While the lender doesn’t want to pay large fees to attorneys and bear the heavy cost of legal proceedings, the homeowner doesn’t want the credit report blackened with an instance of foreclosure.
If a foreclosure happens, you won’t be able to borrow again for at least a few years. This is why Bank of America has placed a loss mitigation or foreclosure department that can offer a range of options for the borrowers to avoid a foreclosure.
Is there a way to prevent foreclosure at Bank of America?
You need to contact Bank of America foreclosure department for a range of home loan assistance options. You may be able to find an appropriate option depending on your current financial situation and the stage of your mortgage default.
To choose one, you must decide whether you want to continue living in your home or leave it and move to a different location.
If you want to stay in your home
- Refinance
- Forbearance
- Mortgage Modification
- Unemployment Assistance
If you prefer to leave your home
Is there a way to stop foreclosure if it has already begun?
If you have received a foreclosure notice, Bank of America still allows you to call its foreclosure department as soon as possible and negotiate a settlement. The bank will not advance the foreclosure proceedings as long as your loan is under review with its loss mitigation department.
There is little chance that a foreclosure sale happens and you lose your home while the bank is evaluating your request for a loan assistance program. To ensure that it doesn’t happen, you need to do the following.
- Complete the forms that the loss mitigation department send you in a packet and send them along with all necessary documents including a letter explaining in detail how you became late with your mortgage payments.
- Don’t neglect any foreclosure notices and continue to respond the same.
- Keep calling the loss mitigation department (or foreclosure department) at least once every week.
- Hire the services of a housing counselor or a foreclosure attorney.
- Contact a bankruptcy attorney and file for Chapter 13 bankruptcy if you think you will lose your home soon.
How to contact Bank of America Foreclosure Department?
The foreclosure department and the loss mitigation department are the same at Bank of America. You can contact either of the two with a single phone number, which is 1.800.846.2222.
This telephone number is open from 8 a.m. till midnight ET Monday through Thursday, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. ET on Friday, from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. ET on Saturday, and from 3 p.m. till midnight ET on Sunday.
Calling a phone number is quicker than sending messages to a mailing address although Bank of America has a number of customer assistance centers in Florida and other states. The bank representative will tell you the correct fax number of the department to send your documents for evaluation.