The (condensed) Florida Foreclosure Timeline

It is a daunting time when you realize that you are no longer able to make your mortgage payments. After the late period, your mortgage servicer will contact you to collect on the past due payments. Do not ignore these calls, always speak to your mortgage servicer and keep an open dialogue. Your Lender may be willing to work with you if you have missed a payment(s) but it is prudent that you contact your Lender/Bank immediately to explain why you are unable to make your payments and see if they are willing to afford you more time if needed or to start the modification process. At this stage, after your missed payment(s), you are considered to be in “pre-foreclosure” you have defaulted on your loan, but there is no action pending. If you are in need of a modification but do not understand the process or just do not want to deal with the Bank on your own, contact K/S Law as we offer different services and fees for homeowners seeking a modification of their mortgage.

If you were unable to come to a resolution with your Bank/Lender, or you were unable to make a payment, you will be sent a Notice of Default as required in your mortgage.  It is important that if you do not understand what is in this letter to contact us at K/S Law so we may help you understand what may be the proper course of action. Your Bank/Lender may or may not have started the foreclosure process so it is very important to contact us if you have received a Notice of Default. Even after being sent the Notice of Default, you are still in “pre-foreclosure” and still able to receive a modification, depending on what programs your Bank/Lender participates in and their eligibility requirements.

Next your Lender will file a Lis Pendens (LP) in the county records in which your house is located. The purpose of filing the LP is to put the world on notice, so to speak, that there is a problem with the title of the house, and is the first step in the foreclosure process. After the LP is filed, your Lender will file a Complaint. Lenders try and make the foreclosure process as short as possible, in Florida the timeframe they shoot for is approximately 120 from the complaint being filed in court to the sale of the property.  Shortly after the Complaint is filed in court you will be “served” with legal documents that are very important. In this packet will be a Summons, a copy of the Complaint, a copy of your original mortgage, a copy of your original note (or a Lost Note Count).  Once you have been served these papers, you then will have 20 days to answer.  Do not avoid service or ignore the Complaint! This will not only not help you in this process, conversely, you will actually be helping your Lender take your home without making them prove that they are entitled to do so.  If you ignore the Complaint you are telling the bank that you give up, and handing your home over to them, when they might not be entitled to it because of misrepresentations at your closing, fraudulent paperwork or deceptive practices. At this point we cannot stress enough how important it is for you to contact us for legal representation. Your lender has a lawyer you should have someone who can protect and defend your rights!

Next your Lender will push for a judgment on the Complaint.  The reason for this is they are attempting to recoup the property for auction. All throughout this process, the title to your home is in your name. The foreclosure process is the Lender trying to take title to your house based on the defaulted mortgage and promissory note.  It is important to remember that interest and penalties continue to increase during this process, as well as your Lender’s attorney’s fees, all of which you will be responsible for, unless you have an experienced attorney defending your rights.

Finally, a judgment will be filed with the court. If it’s not favorable to you, your property will be appraised for its value and set to auction.  Having legal representation or assistance will be extremely important so you can navigate your options.  The auction will take place and the court will name the highest bidder, typically your lender. In Florida, you have ten (10) days after the sale of your home to redeem your property or object to the sale, before the certificate of title transfers to your Lender.  After the redemption period has passed, the certificate of title will pass to the buyer and the foreclosure process is over.  At this point you will be contacted by the Sheriff. It is very important to know that only the Sheriff is allowed to remove you from the property.

We’re here to help you navigate you through this tumultuous period. Give us a call and we will defend your rights, help with a modification and can even help with short selling your home. You have many options other than foreclosure and you need attorneys who know the foreclosure process to help you navigate through the process and negotiate with your Lender for an alternative outcome. Contact us today; being proactive is the first step in saving your home.

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Have you seen our new commercial on TV yet?

We have a brand new TV commercial that is currently running! Have you seen it yet? If not it’s right here for you to check out. Also remember sharing is caring, share this with friends and family that may need some good advice for legal matters!

KS Law TV Commercial

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Check out these child guidelines before heading on the road

Here at KS Law we want to ensure you are always properly informed, this is in addition to all the legal services we can provide to you! It’s always good to refresh ourselves when it comes to the safety of  children so we’ve provided this link from the state of Florida to refresh ourselves on the guidelines we should always follow before heading out on the open highway.

http://www.flhsmv.gov/fhp/cps/CSSB.pdf 

Check back soon as we’re going to be continually providing you with helpful information!

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Have You Heard About 1-800-Good-Advice?

Check out our brand new commercial on tv yet? If not why not check out the video right here!
https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/EpetUgRuJ8s?rel=0

Also, don’t keep this video and good advice to yourself, share with your friends and family!
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Auto Accidents and Truck Accidents

Auto accidents are unfortunately a common problem in Florida, and even what may seem to be the smallest accident can lead to the biggest problems. Not only the headache of dealing with the damage to your automobile, but more importantly the physical injury that may lead to permanent damage to your body, lost time at work, and require medical attention and therapy to assist in your recovery. All medical treatment of course costs money, but fortunately, your PIP benefits will cover your medical expenses up to $10,000.00.

The attorneys at K/S have represented individuals who have been injured in auto accidents, and K/S has been successful in assisting people by achieving the following results:
1. Assisting with the repair of our client’s vehicle
2. Payment of their medical expenses
3. Reimbursement for lost wages
4. Reimbursement for mileage to and from the medical provider’s office.
5. Compensation for pain and suffering
6. Compensation for future loss of earning and future medical expenses.

K/S has assisted thousands of victims by fighting to receive the compensation that they deserve in Court. K/S is a litigation firm, so we are experienced in the litigation of our clients’ claim from beginning through trial. Insurance companies hire strong and aggressive attorneys to work with their adjusters to protect the financial assets of the insurance company. You deserve the same aggression and dedication to fight for your rights to compensation, which is why you should consider K/S to represent your interests.

K/S handles several types of automobile accident cases, including hit and run, and cases where the wrongdoer does not maintain adequate insurance to cover your losses requiring you to make claims for uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage. All consultations are free, and we do not make any money unless we make you money as our client; hopefully, you have not been injured in an auto accident, but should that happen, contact K/S to fight to ensure that you receive your due and just compensation

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Can Certain Injuries be Excluded in Disability Contracts?

ANSWER: Yes, as a matter of fact, the interview and application process can be tedious because the insurance company wants to know what injuries you have or have had. This way they can evaluate the propensity for relapse of the injury, which ultimately may result in a rider excluding or reducing benefits for relapse of prior injuries for a period of time of the policy or for the entire duration of the policy. In most cases, these injuries are not arbitrarily chosen, but rather generally based on a pre-existing injury or condition that could ultimately return in time, e.g. back disorder, mental condition or disorder.

 

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Have You Recently Suffered an Injury?

The attorneys in our firm have been aggressively protecting the rights of injured people and their families for many years. We have helped thousands of victims receive the compensation they deserve. Insurance companies have strong, aggressive attorneys working with their adjusters to protect the financial assets of the insurance company. You deserve the same legal strength fighting for your right to be compensated. Our firm handles many types of automobile accident cases including hit and run cases and other types of Uninsured Motorists claims.

Our attorneys have experience representing injured Floridian and formerly Maryland residents in all forms of personal injury to include but not limit, automobile accidents, slip and fall, product liability, dog bites, cruise ship injuries, and work related injuries. K/S attorneys are all litigation and trial attorneys that are experienced in litigating your case in Court.

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Are You Prepared for Estate Planning? Check out our Estate Planning Glossary!

What do these documents mean?

Last Will and Testament

A Last Will and Testament is a document that provides instructions of how you want your belongings to be distributed among your surviving loved ones, relatives, and friends. Without this document, your assets become susceptible to higher taxes, which your loved ones who receive these assets will be required to pay. Not having your assets and final instructions may also result in the contestation between your surviving loved ones of how to distribute your assets and handle your funeral services.

DID YOU KNOW? Florida maintains law and precedent that provides what is called, full faith and credit, to any and all wills drafted and executed outside the state lines of Florida, so long as the Will complies with the state law in which it was drafted in.

DID YOU KNOW?Oath of Witness affidavits are required to be filed in Court in order to open an estate unless the witnesses signed each page of the Will along with the signature of the person executing the Will?

Living Will

Living Will is a document that authorizes a loved one to make the decision to stop treatment by a hospital on your behalf in the event that a terrible accident or illness which renders you incapable of sustaining life without constant aide of respirator or equipment.

Health Care Surrogate

Health Care Surrogate is a document that authorizes a loved one to make the decision on your behalf for the type of additional or alternative treatment a doctor performs if an unexpected issue arises during the course of surgery that you have not already authorized the Doctor to perform.

Durable Power of Attorney

Durable Power of Attorney is a document that authorizes another individual to make decisions on your behalf in the event you are mentally or generally incapacitated. This document may also provide an individual authority for a specific purpose.

Credit Shelter Trust

This trust is prepared within the Last Will and Testament and provides tax benefits for amounts up to two million dollars USD for beneficiaries of estates. These trusts can be stacked by existing in husband and wife estates and by generation. Therefore, if you and your wife create these trusts in their Wills, the children will receive tax benefits up to four million dollars.

Family Limited Trust

Family limited trusts are entities incorporated in which assets are transferred into during lifetime to enable these assets to be exempt from any probate proceedings. Federal laws allow you to transfer up to one million dollars in assets each year into the family limited trust without tax ramifications for the transfer. Upon the passing of the family members moving assets into this trust, the trust becomes effective and the assets are distributed to the beneficiaries in accordance to the terms of the trust. More importantly, the assets are completely exempted from probate and therefore any inheritance tax.

Homestead Exemption

In the event the deceased is on the deed of a house protected under homestead, in the event the surviving member is also on the deed and is protected under homestead, the home is transferred to the surviving member and exempted from probate and any claim or lien.

Testate

If you have a Last Will and Testament, your surviving family members will have a set of instructions on how to distribute your assets. In addition, wills appoint an individual, individuals, or an entity as the estate’s Personal Representative. The Personal Representative is essentially the officer of the estate who has the power to close open accounts that are liabilities, such as car loans, credit cards, even simple things like cell phone contracts or the water bill. The Personal Representative also collects all of the assets into the estate and then distributes them in accordance to the terms of the will once creditor publications have expired. So long as a Will is in place, these responsibilities and appointments of Personal Representatives are straightforward and simplified, and the Court as well as the Personal Representative has the Will’s instructions to follow in closing any liabilities and distributing any assets. There are tax benefits with estates opened and closed by Last Wills and Testatments.

Intestate

In the event you do not have a Will, then you must file for probate as an intestate. This means that there are no instructions on how the assets are to be distributed, and no specific appointment of a Personal Representative. These situations result in more timely and costly probate proceedings, because it will involve everyone who survived and may have an interest in the assets. However, more impressively, it takes longer to close liabilities, meaning close the accounts or change the accounts because it will take longer for the Court to appoint a Personal Representative, because there is no Will to instruct the Court as to who the Personal Representative is going to be. As an analogy, it is like building a car engine without instructions when you don’t know how to add window washing fluid. Taxes levied on estates that were files intestate are significantly higher than estates filed testate.

Letters of Administration

This is an executed Court order that appoints the Personal Representative enabling the Personal Representative to open a bank account for the estate, as well as transfer assets, and close liabilities.

Personal Representative

Each state has their own title for the person or entity charged by Court order to handle all matters of the estate, including but not limited to, transfer assets, open accounts for the estate, close liabilities, and handle liens against the estate. Florida titles this position as, “Personal Representative”; however, other names for this position are, “Executor” and “Executrix”

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Have You Received a Citation for a DUI?

When you are issued a citation for DUI, the citation is your license for a period of ten (10) days. The DMV then automatically suspends your license for a period of six (6) months if your breathalyzer test indicates an alcohol level higher than .08. If you fail to submit to the breathalyzer test your license will be suspended by the DMV for a period of (1) year. In addition to defending your DUI charge, K/S offers the service of appealing the DMV suspension automatically enforced on your license from the stop. By appealing the DMV suspension, you will be afforded a temporary license pending the DMV administrative hearing. K/S will represent you at the hearing in effort to remove the DMV suspension and reinstate your license pending your Court verdict.

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What is a Credit Shelter Trust?

This trust is prepared within the Last Will and Testament and provides tax benefits for amounts up to two million dollars USD for beneficiaries of estates. These trusts can be stacked by existing in husband and wife estates and by generation. Therefore, if you and your wife create these trusts in their Wills, the children will receive tax benefits up to four million dollars.

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