If you are facing the possibility of a foreclosure on your home, you need an attorney to help you navigate the process. The following are some reasons why a foreclosure attorney is necessary:

An Attorney Will Help You Better Understand the Timeline of Events

A foreclosure begins officially when the mortgage company or financial institution files a lawsuit against you and serves you with a summons. When you receive a summons, you have to respond to the complaint by a specific deadline determined by your state. Your attorney will ensure you meet the necessary response deadline. If you miss the deadline, the complaint is sent to the court and you can lose the case just by not responding in time.

The next part of the process is discovery. At this time, documentation is exchanged and each side of the case will request information. If you do not have an attorney, you will be on your own to find out the necessary information you should request to prove the case. This is a difficult process that an attorney will have extensive experience in. He or she will make sure you know exactly what you need to do within a specific timeframe.

Once the discovery period is over, a judge can use a summary process in order to determine the final outcome. If the judge finds against you, you could lose the case and your home will go up for sale.

If a judge does not go through a summary process, your case will go to trial. This is the most important time, and you need to have an attorney for this process. As the case goes through the trial period, you need to have a thorough understanding of how the process works as well as how to handle the heat of the courtroom. This is a complex and frustrating time, so an attorney is essential to keeping your home.

An attorney will help you have an increased chance at a resolution that could save your home. For instance, an attorney may be able to work out a deal with the mortgage company in which you abide by a plan to allow you to keep your home and make arrangements for reasonable payments.

There Are Additional Ways an Attorney Can Help

Specifically, there are several things an attorney can do to help you keep your home. He or she can recognize if the case has not been filed properly or identify when a lender is in violation of predatory lending laws. Your attorney can also determine if a lender even owns your loan, as they are often sold multiple times through the life of the loan. If you are in the military, an attorney will work to prove there are certain legal measures in place to help protect your home via the Service Members Civil Relief Act. These are just a small sampling of what an attorney can do for you during a foreclosure.