There are some Detroit suburbs in which half of all the homes offered for sale are Michigan foreclosures. And for most of 2006, Michigan was in the top three US states when it came to homes in foreclosure or to those whose owners were behind on their monthly payments.

The Michigan housing market never participated in the housing boom which took the rest of the US by storm, and with the job cutbacks in auto manufacturing and auto-related industries, even those homeowners who had been able to handle their mortgage payments until recently are now becoming victims of Michigan foreclosures.

Why It Happens And What You can Do If you are a Michigan homeowner struggling with an adjustable rate mortgage which has caused your house payments to increase; caught in the tightening Michigan job market; or have other reasons for falling behind in your mortgage payments and are facing a Michigan foreclosure, you do have some options.

As soon as you know you are in financial hot water, approach your home lender and see if you can have the payback terms of your mortgage extended so that your monthly payments will be lower. You can attempt to sell your home before it becomes a Michigan foreclosure, and possibly protect your equity in it.

Just realize that people who invest in foreclosures have ways of finding out that you are behind in your payments, and will be expecting a favorable price for getting you off the hook, preventing your home from hitting the Michigan Foreclosures list, and saving you a big black mark on your credit report.

Another option you have which will mean you'll have to move out of your home, but can still save it from Michigan foreclosure, is the lease-option. A "tenant-buyer" will move into your home, making the monthly mortgage payments, and eventually taking title to the home if the mortgage is paid in full.

You'll avoid having your credit damaged by your home going into foreclosure, and if your financial situation improves you might even take possession of your home again. But Michigan foreclosures, once the procedures are initiated, happen quickly. If you are going to pursue a lease-option agreement, act quickly.

Declaring Bankruptcy Only do this if you see no other way out of your financial woes. It will not save your house, but it will eliminate the chance of it becoming a Michigan foreclosure, and buy you time to look for another place to live.

Talk to a good bankruptcy attorney, and decide whether a few extra months in your home is worth years and years of having a bankruptcy on your credit report, limiting your future financial prospects.