Anatomy Of A Foreclosure

In the course of my work, I come in contact with a lot of professionals. Lawyers, Accountants, Mortgage Professionals, Doctors, Mechanics, Executive Officers, Clergy... You name it.

Let's say you were experiencing a medical problem. Would you fail to mention it when you were meeting with a physician when you were getting a checkup in his or her office? Or would you fail to make the appointment to deal with the problem?

The reason I bring this up... and ask the question is this - I have noticed this annoying tendency in myself. Not so much with physicians... But in the case of my foreclosure, I had a lot of people that were both willing and able to help... if only I had told them about my predicament. I know a large number of public accountants, and a small number of mortgage/loan professionals. I called none of them.

Why? Simply stated, shame and pride. Pride can be a good thing - pride in your work, pride in your children. It can also work against you - as in this case, when I bypassed a LOT of professional help because I was so embarrassed about the situation in which I found myself.

One of the professionals with whom I could have received help was a VERY knowledgeable professional who was going through the same process.

Moral of the story? Get professional help, and get it early. Put your pride in your pocket, get help.

I was talking with a friend the other day about her situation; she is also going through the foreclosure process, but is only about 2 months behind. During the conversation, we identified the fact that this is a game of options. You, the person facing foreclosure, must either find or manufacture options for yourself. The mortgage company representatives will either deliberately or accidentally fail to advise you of your options.

The best way to find or manufacture an option is to get with professionals that have done this before for other clients. It is perfecty sensibe to talk to a Certified Public Accountant, a Mortgage Professional, and possibly an Attourney.

The bottom line is this - If I can give any advice - talk about the situation you're in. Talk about it often. Bring it to the attention of the professionals in your sphere of influence. If there are none, get some. The options that are available to you may not be apparent - the guidance of a professional can help to identify them.

-=C=-