Can A Bank Take More Than Your Home?

Can the bank go after a homeowners other assets if they are unable to stop foreclosure and end up with the house getting foreclosed on? Like a car or paycheck?

No. Since the homeowners put up the house as collateral for the mortgage loan, the bank does not have recourse to anything except the property. All of the foreclosure victim's personal belongings will remain in their ownership, whether it is in the property or not. Fixtures that have been installed in the property (such as a new furnace, water heater, etc.), that can not be removed without damage to the property, will have to stay. But the former homeowners can take all of their furniture and clothes and personal belongings.

If the bank wants to come after them after the foreclosure for any other assets besides the house, they will have to sue in court for a deficiency judgment. This is only the case if the house sells at the sheriff sale for less than the amount that the homeowners owed on the loan when the property went to auction. If the house sells for what they owed or more, there is no possibility of a deficiency judgment, since the bank will be paid off completely.

Just remember, the homeowners obtained the mortgage loan by promising them the house as collateral. They have no rights to go after any other personal belongings, unless the home sells for less than what you owed them.

And it's very, very uncommon for banks to pursue deficiency judgments against their clients. They know that the homeowners went into foreclosure because they could not afford to pay them anymore -- not because they suddenly had too much cash and didn't feel like making the payments.

Foreclosure is definitely not good for a foreclosure victim's credit, especially combined with all of the late mortgage payments. If there is some way to pay off the loan, either by selling or doing a short sale, then the credit situation will be slightly better. The goal should be to get a Paid In Full rather than a Foreclosure showing on the credit report, if at all possible. They can ask the bank for more time to sell, get them to postpone the sheriff sale, etc. Anything that gives the homeowners a better chance of preventing foreclosure is far better idea than just losing the home to the lender. This is why it is so important for homeowners to get the mortgage help they need before it gets too late.

About ForeclosureFish.com

ForeclosureFish.com has been designed to teach homeowners how to find out what options they have available to stop foreclosure on their own and save their homes, all while avoid potential foreclosure scams.

The site also provides hundreds of foreclosure leads every month to mortgage and real estate professionals who specialize in helping homeowners who are in financial hardships and in danger of losing their homes to foreclosure.