Key Aspects of State Foreclosure Law: 50-State Chart

Check out this 50-state chart to learn about the important features of each state's foreclosure procedures.

When you sign a mortgage (or deed of trust) as part of a home loan transaction, this document gives the loan owner the right to sell the home through a process called foreclosure if you fail to make the payments. The proceeds from the sale go towards repaying the loan.

Your foreclosure will be governed, in large part, by state law. In the chart below, you can learn about some key aspects of foreclosure law in each of the 50 states, plus the District of Columbia. For each state (and D.C.) the foreclosure chart will provide the following information:

The Most Commonly Used Foreclosure Procedure In the State

A foreclosure can be either judicial (which means the foreclosing party files a lawsuit in court and the case goes through the court system) or nonjudicial (which means the foreclosing party follows a set of state-specific, out-of-court procedural steps to foreclose the home). In some states, foreclosures are always judicial. In other states, the foreclosure may be either judicial or nonjudicial; in those states, usually one or the other is more commonly used.

Whether a Deficiency Judgment Is Allowed

When a house is sold at a foreclosure sale for less than the amount of the outstanding mortgage debt, the difference between the total debt and the foreclosure sale price is called the deficiency. For example, let’s say you owe $300,000 on your mortgage loan and the home is sold at a foreclosure sale for $250,000. The deficiency is $50,000. Some states let the foreclosing party get a personal judgment—called a “deficiency judgment”—against the borrower for this amount, while other states prohibit deficiency judgments under particular circumstances. In the chart below, this column states whether a deficiency judgment is allowed in (or after) the most commonly used foreclosure procedure for that particular state.

Whether You Can Redeem the Home After the Foreclosure Sale

Certain states give foreclosed homeowners a period of time called a "redemption period" to buy back—or "redeem"—the home after a foreclosure. Depending on state law, in order to redeem you have to reimburse the purchaser for the amount paid at the sale (plus certain allowable costs) or repay the total mortgage debt, plus interest and expenses. In the chart below, this column shows whether a borrower gets a redemption period after the most commonly used foreclosure procedure for that particular state.

Whether You Get the Right to Reinstate Before the Foreclosure Sale

A reinstatement occurs when the borrower brings the delinquent loan current in one payment by paying the overdue payments, plus fees and expenses incurred as a result of the default. Once the loan is reinstated, the borrower resumes making regular payments on the debt. In a foreclosure, state law sometimes gives a borrower the right to reinstate up until a specific deadline. You should be aware that, even if state law does not give you the right to reinstate, your mortgage or deed of trust might. In the chart below, this column indicates whether state law allows the borrower to reinstate the loan in the most commonly used foreclosure procedure for that particular state.

Getting More Information

The chart below gives basic information about the key aspects of foreclosure law in the states and District of Columbia for the foreclosure process listed (nonjudicial or judicial). It is only a summary of your state’s laws associated with the most common foreclosure process used in the state, and does not tell the entire story. The chart is intended for owners of single-family residences and doesn’t address special laws for agricultural land or the rights of tenants in foreclosed homes owned by their landlords.

Also, keep in mind that laws change, so checking them is a good idea. To get further information about how foreclosures work in your state, and your rights during the process, talk to a foreclosure attorney.

State	Common foreclosure process	Deficiency judgment allowed?	Redemption allowed after sale?	Reinstatement available under state law?
Alabama	Nonjudicial	Yes	Yes	No
Alaska	Nonjudicial	No	Not available after a nonjudicial foreclosure, unless the deed of trust specifically provides a right of redemption	Available any time before sale, but lender can refuse to reinstate if it filed two or more prior notices of default and the borrower cured the defaults
Arizona	Nonjudicial	Not for one- or two-family home on 2.5 acres or less	No	Available until 5:00 p.m. on the day before date of sale (other than a Saturday or legal holiday)
Arkansas	Nonjudicial	Yes	No	Allowed prior to sale
California	Nonjudicial	No	No	Allowed up to five business days before the sale date
Colorado	Nonjudicial	Yes	No	Available until noon the day before the sale provided the borrower files a notice of intent to cure with the public trustee no later than 15 calendar days before the sale date
Connecticut	Judicial (strict foreclosure or foreclosure by sale)	Yes	Strict foreclosure: until Law Day Foreclosure by sale: until court confirms the sale	No
Delaware	Judicial	Yes	Yes (up until court confirms the sale)	No
District of Columbia	Nonjudicial	Yes	No	Allowed up to five business days before the sale, once in two consecutive years
Florida	Judicial	Yes	Yes, but must do so before the clerk files the certificate of sale, or the time stated in the foreclosure judgment	No
Georgia	Nonjudicial	Yes, if a court confirms the sale	No	High-cost home loans may be reinstated until title is transferred
Hawaii	Judicial	Yes	No	No
Idaho	Nonjudicial	Yes	No	Available within 115 days after notice of default is filed with county recorder
Illinois	Judicial	Yes, if borrower is personally served or enters an appearance in the action	Yes, if loan owner purchases the home at the sale and the sale price was less than the total amount owed	Available within 90 days after foreclosure complaint is served on borrower. Under High-Risk Home Loan Act, foreclosing party must serve notice of right to reinstate at least 30 days before starting foreclosure lawsuit.
Indiana	Judicial	Sometimes	No	If the borrower reinstates before the court enters judgment, the foreclosure must be dismissed. If the borrower reinstates after judgment, but prior to the sale, the foreclosure must be stayed (postponed). Reinstatement also available for high cost home loans (defined in Ind. Code § 24-9-2-8) any time before title is transferred by means of foreclosure.
Iowa	Judicial	Sometimes	Sometimes	Available within 30 days after notice of default if the land is nonagricultural
Kansas	Judicial	Yes, unless borrower is served by publication and does not appear in the action	Yes	No
Kentucky	Judicial	Yes, generally	Sometimes	Generally, no right to reinstate (except as permitted by the terms of the mortgage). If loan is a high-cost home loan (under Ky. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 360.100), foreclosing party must provide a notice of default giving the borrower at least 30 days to reinstate before filing the foreclosure complaint.
Louisiana	Judicial (executory proceeding)	Yes	No	No
Maine	Judicial	Yes	No	Borrower has the right to reinstate within 35 days after receiving the notice of right to cure. Also, lender, in its sole discretion, may let borrower reinstate the loan any time before the sale.
Maryland	Nonjudicial (court must ratify)	Yes	Yes, but only up until court ratifies the sale	Available until one day before sale date
Massachusetts	Nonjudicial	Yes	No	90-day right to cure
Michigan	Nonjudicial	Yes	Yes	No
Minnesota	Nonjudicial	No (in most cases)	Yes	Available any time before the foreclosure sale
Mississippi	Nonjudicial	Yes	No	Available at any time before the sale
Missouri	Nonjudicial	Yes	Yes	No
Montana	Nonjudicial under Small Tract Financing Act	No (in most cases)	No (in most cases)	Any time prior to sale under the Small Tract Financing Act
Nebraska	Nonjudicial	Yes	No	Borrower may reinstate by paying amount due within one month after recordation of notice of default
Nevada	Nonjudicial	Yes (but not in certain cases)	No	Borrower may reinstate up to five days prior to sale
New Hampshire	Nonjudicial	Yes	No	No
New Jersey	Judicial	Yes	Yes, up until court confirms the sale or if lender gets a deficiency judgment	Available up to date of final judgment of foreclosure. Judgment may be delayed for 45 days if borrower needs extra time to reinstate.
New Mexico	Judicial	Yes	Yes	Borrower usually gets a 30-day opportunity to reinstate before the foreclosing party initiates foreclosure. Some borrowers may also reinstate at any time prior to the time title is transferred by means of foreclosure sale.
New York	Judicial	Yes, if borrower served personally or appears in the action	No	Available any time before final foreclosure judgment (foreclosure will be dismissed) and any time after judgment, but before sale (foreclosure will be stayed)
North Carolina	Nonjudicial	Yes, in some cases	Yes, during the upset bid period (initial upset-bid period lasts for 10 days after the report of sale is filed)	No
North Dakota	Judicial	Yes, but not for most owner-occupied homes	Yes (but not abandoned properties)	Available within 30 days after service of the notice before foreclosure
Ohio	Judicial	Yes	Yes, up until the court confirms the sale	No
Oklahoma	Judicial	Yes	Yes, up until court confirms the sale	No
Oregon	Nonjudicial	No	No	Available up to five days before sale. The law limits the amount borrower can be charged in attorney or trustee fees.
Pennsylvania	Judicial	Yes	No	Available until one hour before the bidding at the foreclosure sale, but a maximum of three times in one year
Rhode Island	Nonjudicial	Yes	No	No
South Carolina	Judicial	Yes	No, but if lender seeks a deficiency judgment, then borrower can make an upset bid during 30-day period following sale	No
South Dakota	Nonjudicial	Yes	Yes	No (unless the mortgage is a short-term redemption mortgage, then 20 days before acceleration)
Tennessee	Nonjudicial	Yes	Yes, unless loan documents waive right to redeem	No (except in the case of a high-cost home loan)
Texas	Nonjudicial	Yes	No	Available within 20 days after foreclosing party serves (mails) the notice of default
Utah	Nonjudicial	Yes	No	Available for three months after notice of default is recorded
Vermont	Judicial (foreclosure by judicial sale or strict foreclosure)	Yes	Foreclosure by judical sale: redemption period is prior to sale Strict foreclosure: yes, after foreclosure decree	Available upon agreement before sale
Virginia	Nonjudicial	Yes	No	No
Washington	Nonjudicial	No	No	Available up to 11 days before sale
West Virginia	Nonjudicial	Yes	No	Notice of default must give the borrower ten days to cure the default and reinstate the loan. The borrower loses the right to reinstate after three defaults.
Wisconsin	Judicial	Yes	No	Available any time before judgment. Borrowers may reinstate after judgment, but if they subsequently default, the foreclosure will continue.
Wyoming	Nonjudicial	Yes	Yes	No

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