Whatever the cause of a person getting behind on their mortgage payments, the process from that point onwards is fairly set. Initially, the lender will file a public default notice. This initiates the foreclosure process, and at this point the property officially enters the pre-foreclosure stage.
So basically, pre-foreclosure is like a grace period. The homeowner is being warned that they’re in default and need to do something about it, but at this point, the lender is unable to claim back the property and sell it to recoup their costs. The length of the grace period varies, as it’s determined by state laws. Some states allow the grace period to last for as long as 6 months, but many states have shorter periods.
So, what does this map tell us? Bupkis.
