Foreclosure starts in the Dallas-Fort Worth area have averaged a little more than 800 per month this year, an increase of about 24 percent compared with a year earlier, according to KERA News reports. The regional increase is ahead of the roughly 16 percent national rise, signaling that North Texas homeowners may be facing heightened pressure.
Leinart Law Firm, a Mesquite-based practice that represents homeowners, is encouraging Texas homeowners who have received a default notice from their mortgage servicer to seek advice before a sale date is set. Reviewing options such as a loan modification, reinstatement, or Chapter 13 bankruptcy with a bankruptcy lawyer in Mesquite, TX before that point can leave more time to pursue whichever option fits, the firm said.
“Texas law allows a foreclosure sale within weeks of a default notice, which is why the first letter from a servicer deserves prompt attention,” said Marcus Leinart, founder of Leinart Law Firm. “When we meet a client before the notice of sale is posted, there is often time to work with the servicer while keeping a Chapter 13 filing available if that effort does not succeed.”
Most Texas mortgages can be foreclosed without a court case. Under Section 51.002 of the Texas Property Code, a homeowner must receive at least 20 days to cure a default on a residence and at least 21 days’ notice before the sale, which is held on the first Tuesday of the month. That can leave as few as 41 days between the certified default letter and the auction.
Filing a Chapter 13 case before the scheduled sale changes the homeowner’s position in three ways, according to the firm. For most filers, the automatic stay halts the foreclosure sale as soon as the case is filed. Past-due amounts are included in a court-approved plan lasting three to five years, while the homeowner resumes regular monthly payments. The servicer is bound by the plan’s repayment terms after the court confirms them, instead of demanding a lump-sum reinstatement.
Homeowners who have already received a notice of sale can still file before the auction, though the timeline leaves little room for preparation.
The implications extend beyond individual households. With foreclosure starts rising faster locally than nationally, early legal intervention could determine whether homeowners in North Texas keep their homes or face a rapid auction under a process that offers limited time to respond.
