The business news is full of tales of woe. Foreclosures are looming for over-stretched borrowers. This invites the question: Is there anything that can be done to stop foreclosure?

The answer is yes, quite a few things. Here's a quick list:

1. Take legal advice from a qualified lawyer or counsellor, preferably someone with extensive experience in foreclosures.

He should be able to point to work he's done in the past. With the upsurge in foreclosures, we can be sure that a lot of barely-qualified people will be trying to horn in on making money from other people's distress.

2. Keep all correspondence and relevant documents in an organised file.

If you have to go to court, or consult with your lawyer, this will save time. You'll have the facts at your fingertips.

3. You may consider filing a lawsuit to enjoin or stop the foreclosure.

This might work if procedural errors were made in the foreclosure or in the loan origination.

4. A reinstatement.

You promise to pay a lump sum to the lender to make your payments current (up to date) by a specified date.

5. A repayment plan.

The lender adds a portion of the past due amount, to a specified number of payments, in order for the borrower to make up his arrears. This is instead of paying one lump sum covering all the arrears in one go to the lender.

The homeowner receives a payment schedule adjustment. They may also receive a suspension of payments for a certain period of time. This can be arrived at by discussion with the lender.

7. A 'Mortgage modification'.

The homeowner extends the loan period or refinances their current loan to get a lower rate and thereby have lower monthly payments.

8. Remortgaging.

If you have enough equity in your property you might be able to change lenders and start again.

9. Bankruptcy is a temporary solution.

It will stop the foreclosure for a short time only. It may give you some leverage in resolving the situation. Consult with your lawyer, as local laws vary.

10. Selling the property.

Some find that selling their home is best. They do it with a pre-foreclosure sale. They sell their home for an amount less than the total mortgage amount. One can ask lender to put the foreclosure on standby to give one time to sell, so as to get the best price possible.

11. Submit a deed in lieu of foreclosure.

You deed the property over to the lender. This has less of a negative effect on your credit rating. It won't prevent you from losing your home, but you won't have a foreclosure on your credit history.

12. Do something, rather than nothing.

Properties are often foreclosed on people who sat still and did nothing, in the hope the problem would somehow 'go away'. Once you get a letter from a lender about a missed payment, that's the time to get moving. Get on the 'phone, get writing, and work out a plan to keep your house. The longer you leave it, the worse your situation becomes.

The lender doesn't want to evict you. They want money. Maybe you can work something out?

• Stop Foreclosure Before it Starts.
Few of us are financially immune from the unforeseen catastrophes which life can send our way. A job loss, a sudden illness, or as millions of American homeowners have learned with disastrous consequences, a continuing rise in the prime lending rate, may be all it takes to send someone in a downward financial spiral which leads to the brink of foreclosure.

The best time to stop foreclosure is before you have missed your first house payment. As soon as you see financial trouble brewing on the horizon, even if it only means you are starting to dip into you savings to meet your day-to-day expenses, you should get in touch with your mortgage lender. Explain and document the nature of the expenses which may cause you to fall behind on your mortgage payments.

Investigate the possibility of a bridge loan to tide you over so that you can keep current on your house payments until your financial problems have abated, because it’s critical that you stop foreclosure from damaging your credit rating if at all possible. A history of foreclosure may prevent you from qualifying for a future mortgage.

By being proactive and trying to avoid foreclosure before you have actually fallen behind on your mortgage you’re greatly improving the odds of saving your credit history, and possibly your home.

When you approach your lender regarding your inability to keep up with your house payments, you must be completely aboveboard about the reasons for your financial shortfall. If your lender understands that your situation is only temporary, and that you have always honored your debts in the past, the chances of their working with you to stop foreclosure will improve dramatically. Why?

Because most lenders are almost as reluctant to put homes into foreclosure as homeowners are to be foreclosed on. Lenders do not want to be stuck with empty homes on which they are making no money, but still have to pay insurance and maintenance costs. It’s definitely to your lender’s advantage to keep you in your home, even if you are paying reduced house payments until your finances have recovered.

Your lender might even be willing to discuss a grace period during which your payments will be suspended entirely, as long as you can give solid evidence of why and when you expect to cover the arrears and resume your normal payment schedule.

The ultimate responsibility for working with your lender to stop foreclosure, however, is yours. You should be capable of presenting a clear and concise picture of your finances, and you should always make a written record of your dealings with your lender. The work will most definitely be worth the effort, however, if it gets you the bridge loan or payment hiatus you need to stop foreclosure, stay in your home, and protect your credit rating!