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If you are facing hard economic times because of a loss of a job or some monetary setback, and you own a house, you may be having difficulties keeping up with your payments. You are not alone. There’s more than 177,000 homes in foreclosure just in the state of Florida currently. And that figure is down from just 2 years ago.

Naturally, your home may never go as far as going into foreclosure. If you can hang in there and keep up with your payments, you may be able to bypass the foreclosure process altogether.

But if the spectre of foreclosure is bothering you, you may be considering how the foreclosure process works. Here’s a top level view of what might occur. Of course the method is different from state to state, but here's what may occur.

Notice To Accelerate

If you've missed a loan payment or two you'll receive a letter from your bank reminding you you are behind on your payments. You can continue to get these letters for 2-3 months.

If you get past 60 days past due you will receive a “Notice To Accelerate” letter. They are going to be demanding payment and threatening legal action if some bit of the loan payment is not made. If you want to avoid foreclosure this is the time to respond and contact the lender. You may be able to work something out.

If you fail to respond you could be putting yourself in a bad position. The nicest thing you can do is begin dealing with the bank.

Demand Letter

If you do not reply by the stipulated date the bank may send you what is known as Demand Letter. This is formal notice that if you do not pay they can file foreclosure legal papers with the court. Your are now officially in the court system.

The bank will sometimes have their own lawyer at that point.

Notice of Default

Now things are getting serious. The lender’s lawyer will file the foreclosure and you will get a Notice of Default. This legal document will show the amount that needs to be paid. It'll give you 20 to 30 days to respond.

Notice of Sale

After the 20 to 30 day period, if you haven't replied, the barrister will file a Notice of Sale. This notice will set an auction date for the property, typically within 30 days of the notice. This notice goes in the local news and your home will legally be put up for sale. The auction customarily occurs in front of the court house. If somebody buys your home, they may sometimes be needed to pay in full within 24 hours. Your house now does not belong to you.

This Is The Process

In a judicial foreclosure state, this is sometimes what occurs. The method can be stopped at any point before the actual sale date. Once the sale goes thru there is very little you can do.

Remember the lender doesn't want to sell your house any more than you do. They typically lose money and they don't want to be in the home selling business. Respond fast and you could have a chance to save your home. Consider hiring a foreclosure attorney who understands foreclosure defense. They can help you get thru this process.

Rick Hart is an internet business expert. He provides tools for foreclosure lawyers in Tampa that help with loan modifications, short sales and foreclosures.