Louisiana is a southern state in the United States that boasts of New Orleans as being its largest metropolitan area. The state is the only one in the US that is divided not into counties but into parishes. It is a beautiful state, the topography of which is comprised of two major parts. These are the alluvial, swamp and coast regions and the uplands. The former make up an estimated 20,000 square miles of the entire area of the state while the latter cover an area of 25,000 square miles.

The Louisiana real estate market could offer the greatest landscapes with scenic view to any buyer. The magnificent bayous, the vast prairies, the bays locked within lands as well as the inland lakes provide varied choices to any person who may want to live near these kinds of natural beauty. These bounties are even coupled with a perfect subtropical climate that is humid. Louisiana’s weather is the kind that provides any resident or would be resident the preferred long summers that are hot and humid, which are perfect for trips to the lake or rides across the rivers. It is also the best weather for taking that family or romantic picnic by the bay. The winters in the state are also not bothersome because they are just mild and short.

The Louisiana real estate market is indeed a very lucrative business for any investor. This is because the state also has an economy that is very stable. In 2005, the total GSP of Louisiana of $168 billion placed the state in the 24th rank among the 50 states of the nation. The per capita income per person was also recorded as $30,952. While the state is known for its tourism industry, it is also quite notable for its production of seafood. Louisiana is considered as the biggest craw fish producer in the whole world. Aside from seafood, the state also produce cattle, cotton, rice, dairy products, soybeans and poultry and eggs. They are also not far behind when it comes to industrial products.

If these advantages are not enough to lure people into buying Louisiana real estate, then the offerings of quality education sure will. As the world becomes more competitive, parents are now very concerned about the higher education that they provide to their kids. Louisiana offers among the nation’s best public and private schools as well as colleges and universities. Anyone who would invest in the real estate in Louisiana will surely get huge capital gains for their investment while those who buy properties will be provided with the best that they are looking for in a place of residence.

Louisiana is a state where the only way a bank can foreclose is by using the courts. This is referred to as a judicial foreclosure. There are two types of in-court foreclosure that can be used, executor process and ordinary process. Executory foreclosure occurs when the bank has used a mortgage that includes in its language “an authentic act that imparts a confession of judgment” Basically, this means that the home owner signed and acknowledged the obligations of the mortgage in the presence of a notary public and two witnesses. This type of mortgage makes the foreclosure process a lot easier for the bank. It speeds up the process. Once the suit has been filed along with the original note and a certified copy of the mortgage, the court automatically issues an order for the process to begin.

Once this order is issued, the home owner will then be served with a demand for the back payments. Louisiana gives the home owner only three days to pay the money. Following these three days, if the money is not paid, the court will issue a Writ of Seizure and Sale. The date, time, and place of the sale must be advertised for thirty days before it can be held.

Banks may seek a deficiency judgment. This means they can try to get the former homeowner to pay them the difference between what the house sold for and what the amount owed was. This doesn’t occur very often, but the bank can sue for that money if they want to.

The former home owner has no right of redemption in this state. A right of redemption is a time period, allowed in most states, during which the person who lost their home to foreclosure can regain ownership of the house by paying either the amount of the loan or the price paid at the sale for the house. This option is not available in Louisiana.

Even though judicial foreclosure usually takes a lot longer than non-judicial foreclosure, Louisiana has streamlined the process and it is one of the quickest states in which the bank can move towards the sale of the home. Sixty days is the average length of the foreclosure process in this state.

The ordinary foreclosure process works more like a lawsuit, and is more costly and time consuming. Consequently, ordinary foreclosure is rarely used by the banks.

In executory foreclosure, the bank is required to send any notification to the home owner, prior to starting the foreclosure process. The mortgage or deed of trust may have language requiring this notification. If it does not, no prior warning will be given to the homeowner.