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 property 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:
A foreclosure can be either:
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. The chart below says which process is used most often in a particular state.
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.
Certain states give foreclosed homeowners a "redemption period" to buy back or "redeem" the property after a foreclosure. To redeem, depending on state law, you'll either have to reimburse the purchaser for the amount paid at the sale, plus allowable costs, or repay the total mortgage debt, plus interest and expenses.
The chart below shows whether a borrower gets a redemption period after the most commonly-used foreclosure procedure for that particular state.
A "reinstatement" occurs when the borrower brings the delinquent loan current in one payment by paying the overdue payments, plus fees and expenses incurred due to 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 doesn't give you the right to reinstate, your mortgage or deed of trust might. Or your lender might agree to let you reinstate the loan.
In the chart below, this column indicates whether state law provides a reinstatement right during the most commonly-used foreclosure procedure for that particular state.
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's only a summary of your state's laws associated with the procedures used typically in the state and doesn't tell the entire story.
The chart is intended for owners of single-family residences. It doesn't address special laws for agricultural land or the rights of tenants in homes that landlords owned before the foreclosure process.
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? |
|
Nonjudicial |
Yes |
No |
||
|
Nonjudicial |
No |
Not available after a nonjudicial foreclosure, unless the |
Available any time before sale, but lender can refuse to |
|
|
Nonjudicial |
No |
Available until 5:00 p.m. on the day before date of sale |
||
|
Nonjudicial |
Yes |
No |
Allowed prior to sale |
|
|
Nonjudicial |
No |
Allowed up to five business days before the sale date |
||
|
Nonjudicial |
Yes |
No |
Available until noon the day before the sale provided the |
|
|
Judicial (strict foreclosure or foreclosure by sale) |
Strict foreclosure: until Law Day Foreclosure by sale: until court confirms the sale |
No |
||
|
Judicial |
Yes |
Yes (up until court confirms the sale) |
No |
|
|
Nonjudicial (However, to avoid the District of Columbia's mediation program and due to other factors, lenders sometimes choose the judicial process.) |
Yes |
No |
Allowed up to five business days before the sale, once in two consecutive years |
|
|
Judicial |
No |
|||
|
Nonjudicial |
No |
High-cost home loans may be reinstated until title is transferred |
||
|
Judicial (In the past, most foreclosures in Hawaii were nonjudicial. However, some lenders have switched to judicial foreclosures to bypass Hawaii's Mortgage Foreclosure Dispute Resolution Program. Also, a nonjudicial foreclosure can be converted to a judicial foreclosure in some instances.) |
Yes |
No |
No |
|
|
Nonjudicial |
Yes |
No |
Available within 115 days after notice of default is filed with county recorder |
|
|
Judicial |
Yes, if borrower is personally served or enters an appearance in the action |
Available within 90 days after foreclosure complaint is served |
||
|
Judicial |
No |
If the borrower reinstates before the court enters judgment, the foreclosure must be dismissed. If the borrower reinstates |
||
|
Judicial |
Sometimes |
Sometimes |
Available within 30 days after notice of default if the land is |
|
|
Judicial |
Yes, unless borrower is served by publication and does not appear in the action |
Yes |
No |
|
|
Judicial |
Yes, generally |
Sometimes |
Generally, no right to reinstate (except as permitted by |
|
|
Judicial (executory proceeding) |
No |
No |
||
|
Judicial |
Yes |
No |
Borrower has the right to reinstate within 35 days after |
|
|
Nonjudicial (court must ratify) |
Available until one day before sale date |
|||
|
Nonjudicial |
Yes |
90-day right to cure |
||
|
Nonjudicial |
No |
|||
|
Nonjudicial |
Yes |
Available any time before the foreclosure sale |
||
|
Nonjudicial |
Yes |
No |
Available at any time before the sale |
|
|
Nonjudicial |
Yes |
No |
||
|
Nonjudicial under Small Tract Financing Act |
No (in most cases) |
No (in most cases) |
Any time prior to sale under the Small Tract Financing |
|
|
Nonjudicial |
Yes |
No |
Borrower may reinstate by paying amount due within |
|
|
Nonjudicial |
Yes (but not in certain cases) |
No |
Borrower may reinstate up to five days prior to sale |
|
|
Nonjudicial |
Yes |
No |
No |
|
|
Judicial |
Yes, up until court confirms the sale or if lender gets a deficiency judgment |
Available up to date of final judgment of foreclosure. |
||
|
Judicial |
Yes |
Yes |
||
|
Judicial |
Available any time before final foreclosure judgment |
|||
|
Nonjudicial |
Yes, during the upset bid period (initial upset-bid period lasts for 10 days after the report of sale is filed) |
No |
||
|
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 |
|
|
Judicial |
Yes, up until the court confirms the sale |
No |
||
|
Judicial |
No |
|||
|
Nonjudicial |
No |
Available up to five days before sale. The law limits the |
||
|
Judicial |
Yes |
No |
Available until one hour before the bidding at the |
|
|
Nonjudicial |
Yes |
No |
No |
|
|
Judicial |
No, but if lender seeks a deficiency judgment, then borrower can make an upset bid during 30-day period following sale |
No |
||
|
Nonjudicial |
Yes |
Yes |
No (unless the mortgage is a short-term redemption mortgage, then 20 days before acceleration) |
|
|
Nonjudicial |
Yes, unless loan documents waive right to redeem |
No (except in the case of a high-cost |
||
|
Nonjudicial |
No |
Available within 20 days after foreclosing party serves (mails) the notice of default |
||
|
Nonjudicial |
Yes |
No |
Available for three months after notice of default is |
|
|
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 |
|
|
Nonjudicial |
No |
No |
||
|
Nonjudicial |
Available up to 11 days before sale |
|||
|
Nonjudicial |
No |
Notice of default must give the borrower ten days to cure the default and reinstate the loan. The borrower |
||
|
Judicial |
Available any time before judgment. Borrowers may |
|||
|
Nonjudicial |
Yes |
Yes |
No |