What is the difference between defaulting and foreclosure on a mortgage?

A default in your mortgage obligation is a term defined by the contract (usually called a promissory note) that creates the mortgage obligation.  Generally, this definition may include missing a certain number of monthly payments, failing to maintain property insurance on a home, or other activities that tend to endanger the lender’s ultimate ability to get its money back out of the transaction. 

A foreclosure, on the other hand, is a legal action which claims that because you have defaulted, the mortgage holder is entitled to demand immediate possession of the property and take action to sell it.  Put another way, a default is certain behavior that your mortgage forbids you to engage in, and a foreclosure is a certain legal response that your mortgage allows your bank to make to the default.  A bank often uses the threat of foreclosure to force you into taking other action, like short sales, designed to get the bank the largest portion of its money back out of the property.

Talk to a Foreclosure Defense Attorney to get legal advice, and find out what options you have to keep the home, or how to protect yourself should you decide to sell it.