It all depends on the laws that govern the state in which you live, however, the average loan is 484 days — or about 16 months — past due, according LPS Applied Analytics (via WSJ.com).

The article provides more context:

“In New York, the average borrower in foreclosure hasn’t made a payment in roughly 20 months. The shortest foreclosure timelines occur in Nebraska and Wyoming, where the average is 358 days, according to LPS.”

Keep in mind that typically if you miss three monthly mortgage payments your lender will likely initiate the foreclosure process.

But, again, it all depends on the state laws (judicial foreclosure proceedings often take longer), as well as your lender. If the lender is jammed up, it could take awhile before it gets to your case — that’s the reason you might see a vacant foreclosure house that isn’t yet listed for sale.

Always proceed with caution and care in a foreclosure situation. Don’t think that you can live rent-free for 16 months! Contact your lender early and often about your foreclosure situation and try as hard as possible to negotiate a mutually beneficial resolution.

To check out nationwide foreclosure laws and procedures in all 50 states click here.

While the recent “foreclosure freeze” that many major lenders recently adopted to avoid inaccurate/unlawful home seizures was a sigh of relief for many in distress, it could have the reverse effect on those who are looking to carve out their own small slice of the American Dream.

The National Association of Realtors^® (NAR) today issued a press release, warning that “a prolonged review process would have a damaging impact on many communities and hinder the nation’s economic recovery.”

Basically, the self-imposed moratorium that JPMorgan Chase and Co., Bank of America Corp. and Ally Financial Inc (formerly known as GMAC) placed on selling foreclosed homes could stall an already soft housing market and, in the process, deter would-be buyers from making purchases now and in the future.

NAR President Vicki Cox Golder makes the case for a speedy thaw:

“As the leading advocate for homeownership issues, we understand that many lenders need a time-out to review their actions to ensure that homeowners are not improperly foreclosed on and that the lenders are following regulations and state laws. After that, the foreclosure process must resume quickly to return stability to families, the housing market and the economy.”

The report cites “uncertainty,” “anxiety,” and “possible remorse” among buyers as the primary reasons to get this situation resolved as soon as possible. Of course, NAR understands that the rights of borrowers who are in default need to be protected, but there are certainly valid foreclosures that should move ahead and shouldn’t be “lumped in” with the mortgages are suspect.

It’s a fine line.

FREEZE! Don’t move a muscle.

That’s exactly what J.P. Morgan Chase, which is among the largest banks in the United States, intends to do as it sorts through stacks of potentially-flawed foreclosure paperwork, according to the Washington Post.

About 56,000 borrowers in 23 states will be granted temporary reprieve from possible eviction while the bank investigates claims about “forged documents and signatures and other similar problems are being used to try to overturn court-ordered evictions.”

Apparently, serious questions have been raised about whether or not the foreclosure files were properly assembled and if the employees who signed off on/executed the documents even reviewed them.

In fact, a J.P. Morgan Chase employee recently admitted that “she and her team signed off on about 18,000 foreclosures a month without checking whether they were justified.”

Sounds like a big mess.

At least J.P. Morgan Chase is doing the right thing now to fix whatever mistakes or oversights it may have made in the past. Expect other lenders/banks to follow suit as the lens on this issues begins to sharpen.

This house, located at 1819 Herbert Street in Lansing, according to BusinessLansing.com:

See what $25 will get you after the jump:

Read the rest of this entry »

Michael Murphy at MarketWatch.com lays out the compelling, and concise, case (bullets have been shortened):

1. Desperate sellers. Not the homeowners, of course. It’s the banks that financed the mortgages that are desperate…. That gives the few buyers out there big leverage.
2. Little competition. … those investors willing to be patient and do the work will reap big rewards down the road.
3. Low financing rates. … getting 4-to-1 to 32-to-1 leverage at a low fixed rate of interest is like having someone give you money … rates for 30-year fixed mortgages are an incredible 4.5%. That’s the lowest in 39 years….

To drive his point home, Murphy correctly points out that the real estate summer sales season is almost over. Most house hunters prefer to get settled before school starts and certainly before the holiday season begins to heat up.

Indeed, the time between Labor Day (Sept. 6, 2010) and New Year’s Day (Jan. 1, 2011) is the perfect time to “seriously consider making a low-ball bid on a distressed situation.”

Get a headstart today with a seven-day trial to search Foreclosure.com for the best deals in you’re area — it’s FREE! Click here.