Foreclosure starts in the Dallas-Fort Worth area have averaged a little more than 800 per month this year, an increase of about 24 percent compared with a year earlier and higher than the roughly 16 percent national increase, according to KERA News reports. The figures point to growing pressure on homeowners in North Texas, where state law allows a foreclosure sale within weeks of a default notice.
Leinart Law Firm is encouraging Texas homeowners who have received a default notice from their mortgage servicer to seek advice before a sale date is set. Reviewing options such as a loan modification, reinstatement, and Chapter 13 with a bankruptcy lawyer in Mesquite, TX before that point leaves more time to pursue whichever option fits, the firm said.
“Texas law allows a foreclosure sale within weeks of a default notice, which is why the first letter from a servicer deserves prompt attention,” said Marcus Leinart, founder of Leinart Law Firm. “When we meet a client before the notice of sale is posted, there is often time to work with the servicer while keeping a Chapter 13 filing available if that effort does not succeed.”
Most Texas mortgages can be foreclosed without a court case. Under Section 51.002 of the Texas Property Code, a homeowner must receive at least 20 days to cure a default on a residence and at least 21 days’ notice before the sale, which is held on the first Tuesday of the month. That can leave as few as 41 days between the certified default letter and the auction.
Filing a Chapter 13 case before the scheduled sale changes the homeowner’s position in three ways. For most filers, the automatic stay halts the foreclosure sale as soon as the case is filed. Past-due amounts are included in a court-approved plan lasting three to five years, while the homeowner resumes regular monthly payments. The servicer is bound by the plan’s repayment terms after the court confirms them, instead of demanding a lump-sum reinstatement.
Homeowners who have already received a notice of sale can still file before the auction, though the timeline leaves little room for preparation. The rise in foreclosure starts matters beyond individual households: it signals mounting financial stress in one of the nation’s fastest-growing metropolitan regions, where housing costs have climbed and affordability has tightened. For lenders and servicers, the increase may mean more loss-mitigation workloads; for communities, it could translate into more displaced families and downward pressure on neighborhood stability if sales accelerate.
Leinart Law Firm, founded in 2005 by Marcus Leinart, represents people facing foreclosure, repossession, wage garnishment, and mounting credit card debt, and handles Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 bankruptcy cases from offices in Dallas and Fort Worth. Leinart, a graduate of Texas Tech University School of Law who has held a Texas law license since 1995, has filed thousands of bankruptcy cases and belongs to the National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys. Homeowners and other prospective clients can book a consultation online.
