The drop was the first in 14 months according to Alpharetta based Equity Depot, a company that tracks foreclosure notices published each month across the country.

Barry Bramlett, president of Equity Depot, told the Atlanta Journal Constitution that he was hesitant to say hat things were turning around until he saw better results from one quarter to the next, not month to month.

A record number of homes were threatened with foreclosure last year and economists expect the problems to get worse before they get better. According to a report published by RealtyTrac Inc, 2.8 million homes were threatened with foreclosure in 2009. The company projects that number could climb to between 3 million and 3.5 million homes this year.

Many homes that might have been pulled from foreclosure lists in efforts by the Federal government and states to help troubled homeowners. But banks have been slow to negotiate mortgage modifications, and have been even slower to make them permanent.

One way to stop foreclosure proceedings on your home is to file bankruptcy. Chapter 13 bankruptcy can give you time to make up arrears and delinquent payments on your mortgage.

Foreclosure rates in July were up 32 percent over last year’s numbers, according to RealtyTrac a California based firm that tracks foreclosures nationwide.

The group complains that taxpayers are footing the bill to rescue banks that are still foreclosing on homes in record numbers. Jackson complained to the Atlanta Journal Constitution that “we are watering the leaves, not the roots of the economy.”

Rev. Jackson may be right. Homeowners who are in danger of losing their home shouldn’t feel trapped or resigned. They should find an Atlanta bankruptcy attorney and plot a course to stop the foreclosure proceedings on their home.

The good news is that in many cases, filing for bankruptcy will immediately stop foreclosure, repossession, and credit collections.  This is the result of the “automatic stay” provision, which automatically stops all creditor actions as soon as a bankruptcy has been filed. 

The changes to the bankruptcy law enacted in 2005 limit this provision in the case of second and subsequent bankruptcy filings.  As a result, if you are filing a second chapter 13 bankruptcy case within one year of the dismissal of your first, the automatic stay will only be in effect for 30 days after the filing of the new case. 

If your home is about to be under foreclosure, a chapter 13 bankruptcy filing will stop this process.  Remember that in Atlanta foreclosures take place on the first Tuesday of each month.  If your foreclosure is quickly approaching, you will need to coordinate this timing with the timing of your Atlanta bankruptcy filing. 

A chapter 13 bankruptcy filing also may stop vehicle repossession.  You will be able to verbally notify any repossession agent of your bankruptcy filing and retain your vehicle.  If your vehicle has already been repossessed, you may still be able to recover it as a result of your chapter 13 bankruptcy filing. 

Again, if this is a second or subsequent bankruptcy case, your ability to recover any of your possessions that have already been repossessed is limited. 

The automatic stay created by your bankruptcy filing may also suspend any pending lawsuits which have been filed against you.  This is true regardless of whether you file a chapter 7 or chapter 13 bankruptcy.