What Happens If I Miss A Mortgage Payment?

Definition of "What happens if I miss a mortgage payment?"

Are you like “OMG! I forgot my mortgage payment! What happens now? Will I have to pay double the value I had to pay?! Are the cops coming to get my house?!

Calm down. It’s not the end of the world. Maybe nothing happens at all!

Here’s the deal: some mortgages come with a grace period. So consult the paperwork to figure out if yours is the case because you might be suffering and barricading the home for no reason. Mortgage grace periods are typically from 10 to 15 days, so you might not be late; you might still be able to mail the check.

If not, it’s extremely important that you take the appropriate measures to rectify the situation because although there are no immediate effects, in the long run, you can have not only your credit score damaged but also the status of your homeownership too.

What happens when you miss a mortgage payment is that, first, a late fee will appear on your next statement. That late fee is usually 5-10% of your monthly mortgage payment. Next, you will likely get a phone call from the Lender about your defaulting. The context of that call will vary from lender to lender and from your own history too. If they believe your inability to pay is only temporary, they might try to work something out so you’ll have a month or two to get things up to speed and make the loan payments current. If they consider your problem a bit more serious, they might transfer you to their collections/loss mitigation department to see if you can apply to some sort of forbearance agreement or even loan modification and stay in the home.

Note: it’s of the utmost importance that you ANSWER the calls and talk to them. If you keep dodging them, they will consider you will have no intention to pay the loan. If you get to 90 days late – even if you paid the subsequent mortgages – they will likely take measures within their rights to start the process of seizing your home and putting it up for a foreclosure auction. What can you do if that ship has sailed, you did your best but failed to revert the situation? Calling for bankruptcy can provide you with some protection and buy you some time until your debt is assessed and discharged by the government.

Either way, now that you know what happens when you miss a mortgage payment; it’s better to just *not* miss a mortgage payment; right? Better yet: why don’t you change your focus and start wondering about the effect of paying extra principal on your mortgage? Your wallet will appreciate that!

 

Need help as a:

I'm interested to:

Buy
Sell
Rent

I work in:

Residential
Commercial
Rental
Reach out to the local professionals for help
 
I agree to receive FREE real estate advice.

Agents, get listed in your area. Sign up Now!

Here's what you'll get:

1. Full zipcodes coverage for the city of your choice for 3 months

2. The ability to reach a wider audience

3. No annual contract and no hidden fees

4. Live customer support/No robo calls

$75 - Any City - 3 Months Coverage
 
loader gif

Please wait ...

I agree to receive FREE real estate advice
I agree with Terms & Conditions and Section 5-5.9.

image of a real estate dictionary page

Have a question or comment?

We're here to help.

*** Your email address will remain confidential.
 

 

Popular Mortgage Questions

Popular Mortgage Glossary Terms

The payment of principal and interest made by the borrower. ...

Interest from the day of closing to the first day of the following month. To simplify the task of loan administration, the accounting for all home loans begins as if the loan was closed ...

The specific interest rate series to which the interest rate on an ARM is tied, such as 'Treasury Constant Maturities, One-Year,' or 'Eleventh District Cost of Funds.' ...

The option to convert an ARM to an FRM at some point during its life. ...

A facility offered by some lenders to mortgage brokers where de jure the brokers become employees of the lender but de facto they retain their independence as brokers. One of the ...

A plan purporting to protect FHA homebuyers against property defects. ...

A variety of unsavory lender practices designed to take advantage of unwary borrowers. Predatory lending covers much the same ground as Mortgage Scams and Tricks/Scams by Loan Providers. ...

A mortgage Web site designed to provide leads to lenders. A 'lead' is a packet of information about a consumer in the market for a loan. Lenders pay for leads, and these sites are an ...

A computer-driven process for informing the loan applicant very quickly, sometimes within a few minutes, whether the application will be approved, denied, or forwarded to an underwriter. ...