Most homeowners in foreclosure eventually turn to a source of outside help to receive assistance to save their homes. This may be through consulting with an attorney to discuss filing bankruptcy to stop foreclosure, applying for a bailout loan from a mortgage broker, or seeking loss mitigation assistance from a foreclosure help company. With record numbers of homeowners facing foreclosure, though, scam artists will frequently try to take advantage of these situations. It is important for homeowners to do enough research on their own before they consult with foreclosure experts and, when they do find an individual to work with, they know what questions to ask and what "red flags" to be on the lookout for.

The first thing that homeowners should look for, before deciding which foreclosure help company to work with, is free information and advice. This can be found on literally hundreds of websites online. This will help the foreclosure victims conclude if they can stop the foreclosure process on their own, without taking the next step of working with a specialist. This is one of the key concepts that homeowners must remember: they should never trust anyone besides themselves to save their homes. If they do not know how foreclosure works and what can be used to stop it, then they are in much greater danger of being taken advantage of by a foreclosure scam.

Most homeowners, though, will realize that they do need outside assistance to work out a plan to avoid foreclosure. They should have a basic understanding of how the foreclosure process works and what options they may be qualified for. This will help them focus on only the methods of saving a home that are most likely to succeed, and will result in the most effective use of the time they have available. Also, being aware of various methods to stop foreclosure should persuade homeowners to consider multiple plans of action, rather than relying on just one expert or solution. In fact, every family facing foreclosure should have at least a couple of backup plans, in case their preferred solution falls through at the last minute.

The most successful plans to prevent losing one's home are the result of hard work by the homeowners themselves, rather than blind trust in an attorney, mortgage broker, or foreclosure specialist. Typically, the homeowners who are featured in news stories as having been taken advantage of by scammers are the ones who were running out of time, did not know how the foreclosure process worked, and put their faith in another's knowledge instead of their own abilities to solve the mortgage problem.

Avoiding scams, though, can be quite simple, as long as homeowners ask themselves and the companies they choose to work with some very pointed questions. A few concerns are listed below, and homeowners who have done enough foreclosure research on their own can put together numerous additional questions.

1. Have they offered any free advice to homeowners?

2. Do they write articles or participate on forums to answer questions?

3. Are there any complaints about the company, and do the complaints seem sincere and legitimate?

4. If there are complaints, did the company respond to them adequately?

5. Does their website offer free help and explanations or is it just a way to get someone to call without understanding the process?

Foreclosure victims who take the time and effort to research various methods to avoid foreclosure and the companies that offer these services will be much better prepared to save their homes. The more that homeowners understand about the foreclosure process and what resources are available to stop it, the less likely they will find themselves taken advantage of by a foreclosure scam, or find that they have used the wrong method. If one of their plans falls through when they are running out of time before a sheriff sale, the bank will be much more willing to work with them and postpone the auction if they are aware that the homeowners have been working seriously on ways to stop foreclosure, and if they know that the homeowners have a backup plan they can quickly implement. Thus, the successful homeowners who save their homes and begin the process of financial recovery with a head start are the ones that have done their research and placed their trust in the only individual in whom it belongs: themselves.

The ForeclosureFish.com website encourages homeowners to put together a plan to stop foreclosure on their own and trust in their own abilities and resources. With hundreds of pages of blog entries, articles, and reference materials, foreclosure victims can research various ways to save their homes, including deed in lieu of foreclosure, short sales, and loan modification, among many others. Visit the ForeclosureFish.com website today and begin learning how foreclosure works and how the process can be stopped, including how to stop a sheriff sale: http://www.foreclosurefish.com/

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