The most important thing you can do to save your home from foreclosure.

When people ask me if there's one bit of advice that I can give them that will help them save their home from foreclosure. I always answer the same way: "Talk to your lender." That's it that's the most important thing you can do.

I don't mean just talk to the customer service representative who calls to harass you on a daily basis and who demands that you make your payment. I mean call the loan loss mitigation department. Loan loss mitigation is a term that the lenders use to refer to the department in charge and with authority to negotiate with you and help you stay in your home.

It is to the lender's advantage to keep you in your home. The last thing the lender wants is to become a homeowner or a landlord. It knows that the expenses of the foreclosure process are only the beginning. If it takes the house back, it will have to deal with maintaining the home, insuring it, protecting it from vandals, possibly renting it out, possibly holding it for a long time, preparing it for sale and if it's lucky enough to sell it in this market, paying all the inherent closing costs. Taking all these costs and headaches into account, the lender prefers to negotiate with you.

For that reason, it is to your advantage to call the lender's loan loss mitigation department as soon as you realize that you may be in trouble. Customer service should be able to give you that number. If you have already fallen behind, the mail that you get from the lender will usually list the number for their loan loss mitigation department.

Don't pass up this opportunity to prevent foreclosure.