Forbearance
Forbearance is a temporary agreement with your mortgage servicer to pause or reduce payments for a set period during financial hardship, with the missed amount repaid later rather than forgiven.
A borrower requests forbearance, the servicer approves a set period (often 3 to 12 months), and then borrower and servicer agree on repayment — a lump sum, a repayment plan, a loan modification, or deferral to the loan's payoff.
Forbearance itself doesn't stop the underlying default from accruing, and once the period ends, California servicers can and do move forward with the standard notice of default and notice of trustee's sale process if repayment terms aren't met.
Sellers coming out of forbearance without a clear repayment plan often face a payment cliff they can't absorb. Selling while there's still equity is frequently a stronger outcome than resuming full payments only to fall behind again months later. Talk with your servicer or a HUD-approved housing counselor about the options first.
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