Video Transcript:
“Hey guys, this is Dean here with ASAP House Buyers. I want to do a quick video on the foreclosure process in Alberta, if you have been saying I need to stop foreclosure on my house in Calgary or just avoid foreclosure altogether I want this video to help you. In cases like this when you’re dealing with the biggest asset in your in your life really, knowledge is power, and we want you to have as much knowledge as possible.
Before I forget at the bottom of this page at the bottom of this video there’s a free guide or link to a guide on our website that will talk about everything that I’m saying here in this video but also it will give you some more help as well. So, with that let’s get started.
Foreclosure happens when you can’t make your payments. On your first payment that gets bounced, or what we call NSF which stands for “insufficient funds”, the bank will reach out to you. This is the sign to the bank so there could be an issue so at that point they’re going to have a chat with you and find out when they can expect money. Usually there is a small cost for the NSF payment, it can range anywhere from twenty five to a hundred dollars, but they want to know when they’re going to get their money.
Next step is if that payment is not made current, then what will happen is they will send a demand letter, usually after the second missed payment. Now, a demand letter is usually going to be sent by the banks lawyer, but it could be sent by the lender directly or by a collections company as well. Either way in essence what it is going to say is you need to bring things up to snuff, meaning you need to bring all your payments current otherwise we’re going to take this straight to a foreclosure claim.
So that’s the pre-foreclosure process, before you get the foreclosure statement of claim. Up until this point you’re still in good shape, it still hasn’t really affected your credit, we have tons of options as to how we can help you so just bear that in mind.
However, the next step is they will file a foreclosure claim, and what that looks like is that its going to come in a letter from the Court of Queens Bench and it will basically say “you’re being sued”. With your name, and whoever is on title, etc. Now, what you should do, anytime you get something like that from Court of Queens bench, is you should consult a lawyer. That is one of the first things that we would say.
There’s a few things that you can do once you’ve been served with this Statement of Claim. I’ll go through them real quick: you can re-pay the balance. That’s all the bank is looking for, is for the money you owe. You can do a statement of defence, which rarely helps because basically you haven’t made payments so there isn’t really a judge that’s really going to stand in your favour since the payments have been made (*unless there are extenuating circumstances). You can do a Demand of Notice, so if you want to try and sell it, basically that just means that you want the bank to keep you apprised of what their next steps are, each step of the way so that there are no surprises.
You can take No Action. And this is the worst thing you could do! Avoid phone calls from the bank, don’t respond to letters, or possibly even midnight move. The worst thing you could do because basically the bank is going to be able to jump to the end of the foreclosure process by you doing that so we really don’t recommend that.
You could do a Quick Claim, that’s option five, basically the borrower agrees to give the title back to the lender.
And then option six is you can consent to the foreclosure, however there’s repercussions to that. Again, in this case you’d want to talk to a real estate lawyer as there are tons and tons of nuances to all of these things. So this is meant for information purposes only just so you know what the next steps are, all right.
Once it goes through one of those six things that you chose, the property will go through a redemption period, as long as you didn’t give the title back or midnight moved on them. But there is typically a redemption period of somewhere on average of 3 to 6 months and where that varies is really if there’s any equity in the property. So if we go through the redemption period and you don’t bring things current, you don’t sell the property, you don’t find another solution, then at that point the court steps in and they list it as a judicial sale and your you’ve probably seen those judicial sales listed on Kijiji. “Court ordered sale of judicial lands” is one of the typical things that you’ll see.
Now if it goes through that and no bids are submitted or the submitted bids aren’t high enough, then basically it would go back to the back to the lender. It would be called an “Order a Foreclosure” and would go back to the lender. And so, those are the steps.
Ultimately, here’s what matters: how do we stop or avoid foreclosure in Alberta? Number one: sell the house. If you have if you have equity – pull it out sell, the house, and move on. Typically people can save anywhere from $300-$1000 a month by selling their house and becoming renters until they can rebuild and they can get things in order in their life, so that perhaps purchase another home down the road.
Another thing you can do is you can talk to your lender, see if they will amend the terms of the loan. Maybe they will reduce your payments for a short term?
And again, it all depends on your situation, every situation is different, but the absolute last thing you that you can do [that we don’t recommend] is Bankruptcy. And bankruptcy would require not only talking to a lawyer but we would also recommend talking to a bankruptcy trustee because they have different options available, which is a whole other video, but it will stay on your on your record for quite a while. You really don’t want that to be an option unless it’s a last resort.
So in closing, get as much information as you can. Speak to a realtor, speak to a lawyer, and if need be speak to a bankruptcy trustee, and speak to a recognized and respected local house buyer. Because as far as a company that can solve an issue quick we are very, very responsive when it comes to foreclosure processes in Alberta and we want to give you enough information so that you can make the best choice.
Whether that’s going with us or not, at the end of the day it’s not a good thing for anybody when foreclosures happen, and so we’re just looking to provide that information. So if I can help, this is been a fairly general video, but if I can help in anyway please don’t hesitate to give me a call. Again, it’s Dean from ASAP House Buyers and you can reach me directly at 403-613-8119.
I’d be happy to help in anyway I can once I get a bit more information because as I said, every situation is different, there’s no way for me to make a video that that would’ve applied to all situations. So, with that I’ll sign off. Thank you so much for your time, I hope you found this video helpful. And I didn’t forget: at the bottom of this page will be a link to get a free guide “How to Stop Foreclosure in Alberta” at our website. Thanks so much, have a wonderful day. Take care.”
Free PDF Guide: “How to Stop Foreclosure in Alberta”
We understand that the possibility of losing your home can be stressful. You aren’t alone. Citizens all over Calgary are going through the same troubles. Foreclosure can have a lasting effect on your financial life, and it’s important to move quickly and take advantage of any options available. You could save both your credit rating and remain in your home.
We may be able to help you avoid foreclosure… connect with us today and lets discuss your situation. We don’t charge any fees… we’ll evaluate your situation… and present you your options so you can move forward and get this foreclosure behind you.
Give us a call anytime at 403-613-8119