How many times can you be late with a mortgage payment...

[zanne]

Before they foreclose on your house?

[Midlodemocrat]

1. I would think simply being 'late' wouldn't lead to foreclosure.

If you didn't pay for a month or several, that's another matter.

And, how late are you talking? Our mortgage has a 10 day grace period built into it.

[MnFats]

10. no. they don't want to foreclose -- they make no money from you..

they start to call with the second one; usually a polite 'can we help' comment.
they let us skip a month all together when we hadd a hard time.
get several months behind and they'er on your ass, though.the more payments behind, the more pressure they apply,
at least that was the experince of .... my brother! yeah, that's it! It was my brothr.

[napi21]

2. It depends on your lender. Some are very reactionary and do it

pretty quick, and some are more rational. If you will not pe able to pay your mtg. this month, call your lender. It's better for YOU to call them! Explain your problem and ask what you can work out together.

[nonconformist]

3. It varies... but generally, if you miss about 3 payments, they'll start the process. nt

[panader0]

4. At the least, they will sock you with a penalty

just like those nice credit card folks.

[bsdetector]

5. Once...if it's late enough.

...

[RT Atlanta]

6. review your mortgage

Either the mortgage or your note/loan agreement will contain a reference to when the payments are due, and should contain some level of grace period (e.g. 5-10 days). The mortgage likely also contains language that provides that even if the bank accepts late payment that it does not waive its right to deem that a breach of the agreement (which avoids the argument that you could make that by accpeting the late payment, the payment terms have been modified).

What makes you ask this question? Have you received any notices from your lender?

[NMDemDist2]

7. 90 days would 'normally' start the process... however

the banks have such a huge backlog you could probably live rent free for over a year.

[Orrex]

8. Depends entirely on the terms of the mortgage and the company holding it

Sorry, that's not much of an answer, but it's true. In any case, if you "miss" a payment, you'll likely either have to make it up immediately (ie., every subsequent payment will be considered "late" until the missed payment is made up) or else strike some kind of deal to tack that payment onto the end of your loan (perhaps they'll delay that one payment for a service charge of, say, $100. Car loans often include this kind of feature).

But whatever you do, don't fall too far behind. If they send you a warning of foreclosure, you'll likely have to pay the entire outstanding (late) sum in order to stop the foreclosure process.

[SoCalDem]

9. Being "late" does not trigger foreclosure UNLESS

you are LATE as in not paying at all for months.. If you are past the "due by date" , but still pay it, you just pay a penalty...

[stopbush]

11. 90 days is the norm for them to start the process.

You can generally stay in your home for about a year without making a payment. If you're actively working to sell your home, you can usually stay longer, especially in this down market.

Mortgage lenders do not want to foreclose. If you stay in touch with them and work towards a solution, they will usually work with you.

It varies from state to state and mortgage to mortgage, but the lenders are being more flexible these days because they have no choice.

[The_Casual_Observer]

12. You could be late every month. I don't know if you have to pay some kind of late fee

though.

[ET Awful]

13. Depends on the lender, the circumstances and the state laws. For instance

in Massachusetts, they can't even consider a payment "late" for 14 days.

In some case 90 days would start the process, usually it's longer than that before a bank would actually take the steps to foreclose (foreclosure is an expensive procedure for the bank as well). Some banks would wait 6 months or longer. The circumstances have a lot to do with it, for instance if you've been paying for 20 years on a 30 year mortgage with NO issues, they'll be a lot more understanding and work with you a lot more than if you've been paying sporadically on a 5 year-old mortgage.

[Turbineguy]

14. My little story

When I was traveling I had my pay sent to an investment outfit (which shall remain nameless) to be distributed as I directed. One of the distributions was to my mortgage bank. At a given point my Wife got a call from the Manager of the mortgage bank asking her "how things were going". The upshot was that they had not received a mortgage payment for three months. As I was due to return a few weeks later my Wife told the manager when I would be back and that I would deal with it then.

When I came back I found out that the investment outfit had been sending the money to a different back where I did not even have an account! I called that bank and they told me they had been wondering what to do. They issued me a check and I hotfooted it over to the Mortgage bank.

As a courtesy they dropped all the late fees, but I lost a few dollars in equity build. Needless to say, they have a customer for life and I am happy to recommend them: Washington Federal Savings and Loan.

So I guess is it depends on the bank and your relationship with them.

If you have a problem, I suggest discussing it with the bank. The sooner they are in the picture, the more time they have to work a solution. If you plan on staying in your house, continue to pay even though the mortgage may be under water for a few years. It's better than to lose what equity you used to have and damage your credit.

Of course there are so many people in the foreclosure situation now who may in a few years be back in the market for a home loan, maybe some sort of amnesty will be given. Bankers love to lend money as we have found out.

[Wilber_Stool]

15. It probably has to do with

how much you have already paid. If your mortgage is near its end, they get your money and your house. If it's early they just get the house.

[Turbineguy]

16. If you are

foreclosing because you can't make the payments (job less for example) you still get to keep whatever equity you have (minus the hefty fees of course) if your house can be sold for more than is owed on the mortgage.