Florida Mortgage Foreclosures can take years

Think foreclosure numbers look bad now?  Mortgage foreclosures can take up to years due to Florida’s foreclosure laws.

In Florida, lenders must file a lawsuit to remove homeowners from their homes when they’re delinquent on paying their mortgage.  This typically won’t begin until a borrower is 120 days late, which means 5 months after the mortgage payment is due.

Once the lawsuit begins, it typically takes 60 to 90 days to actually remove the homeowner.  Sometimes it can even take longer.  Timothy Kingcade, a lawyer with Kingcade & Garcia in Miami, said he had a client live in a home for 22 months after foreclosure proceedings began.

Read more about foreclosures at the Tampa Tribune.