The beginning of this year proved to be one of the hardest times for many families facing an increasing number of home foreclosures. As of January 1, 2011, tenants and soon-to-be former homeowners living in homes in the process of foreclosure, have less time to pack up and move out of their homes. That was the date that the protection accorded to this class of people under the California Foreclosure Prevention Act (CFPA) of 2009, was set to end. Under CFPA, the foreclosure process was temporarily changed by requiring that banks wait an additional 90 days before selling the homes at auction. (In more ways than one the CFPA was only a temporary fix considering the massive and rapidly growing problem of foreclosures, especially here in California, where we rank 3rd from the top in the entire nation of the most foreclosures according to a recent study by RealtyTrac).
Before the beginning of this year, many tenants and homeowners had some breathing room between the beginning of the foreclosure process and the eventual sale of a home at auction. This was the case, especially for people I would call 'unsuspecting tenants' living in homes where the homeowners have stopped paying their monthly mortgage payment to the banks many months before. For many of these tenants, the first time they find out about there being any problem with the homes they are living in is when they receive a paper entitled "Notice of Default." While it can be argued who stands to lose more in the whole foreclosure process, no one is going to argue that a lot of 'unsuspecting tenants' who have signed a year or longer lease with a homeowner are the biggest 'victim.'
It's important for 'unsuspecting tenants' going through this foreclosure process to know what their rights are through this whole ordeal. Many are confused about what is going on because they hear different explanations from different sources. A "Notice of Default" and any resulting "Notice of Trustee Sale" can be very intimidating to anyone who is not informed about what the foreclosure process is and what it all means to them in the near future. Some 'unsuspecting tenants' may be misled into agreeing to something with either the soon-to-be former homeowner or representatives of the bank itself, without knowing what their options are.
If you are an 'unsuspecting tenant,' and/or a soon-to-be former homeowner, and need to be informed about the foreclosure process, or need to what your options are before making a decision about your home, you need to talk to competent legal counsel who can assess your particular situation and advise you of what steps, if any, need to be taken. Attorney John Molina is that competent legal counsel. Call Mr. Molina at his office for a no-obligation free phone consultation at (714) 224-1860 or (951) 840-7868. Let us be on your side in uncertain times like these.
