Summary of Pennsylvania's Foreclosure Laws

If you are facing foreclosure in Pennsylvania, it’s important to understand some of the basics, including:

the most common type of foreclosure procedure (judicial v. nonjudicial) used in Pennsylvania
how much time you have to respond
your rights and protections in the process, and
what happens afterwards (for example, whether you’ll be liable for a deficiency judgment).

Below we have outlined some of the most important features of Pennsylvania foreclosure law. Keep in mind that this is just a summary; we've included statute citations so you can get more details from the laws themselves. And be sure to check out Nolo’s extensive Foreclosure section, where you can find information about all aspects of foreclosure, definitions of foreclosure terms (like redemption and reinstatement), and options to avoid foreclosure.

Topic	State Rule
Common type of foreclosure process	Judicial
Time to respond	Foreclosing party must serve 30-day notice of intention to foreclose on homeowner by certified mail. At the same time it must send a separate notice explaining homeowner’s right to apply to Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency for assistance. After foreclosing party files foreclosure lawsuit, homeowner has 20 to 30 days to respond. In Philadelphia Common Pleas court and Allegheny County Court, pilot programs mandate a delay between foreclosure judgment and sheriff’s sale to allow for possible conciliation.
Reinstatement of loan before sale	Until one hour before the bidding at the foreclosure sale, but a maximum of three times in one year.
Redemption after sale	No
Special protections for foreclosures involving high-cost mortgages	None
Special state protections for service members	Pa. Stat. Ann. tit. 51, § 4105
Deficiency judgments	Allowed if foreclosing party files separate lawsuit after sale
Cash exempted in bankruptcy	About $11,000 for one person, $22,000 for a married couple under federal bankruptcy exemptions
Notice to leave after house is sold	No special provisions for evictions following foreclosure. New owner will likely have to go to court to get an eviction order. Court-ordered evictions usually take two weeks to a month, depending on whether or not former owner responds to the lawsuit.
Foreclosure statutes	Pa. Stat. Ann. tit. 35, §§ 1680.402c to 1680.409c; Pa. Stat. Ann. tit. 41, §§ 403 to 404; Pa. R. Civ. P. 1141-1150