Find the sheriff sale date on your notice or the county sheriff's listings. A sale of the house has to settle before that auction. If no date is set yet, you have more choices than you might think; if it is close, call today and tell us the date first.
How Foreclosure Works in New Jersey
In this state, foreclosure is a lawsuit. No lender can book an auction on its own say-so; it must file in the Chancery Division of the Superior Court and obtain a judgment before anything is sold. Cases nobody answers are processed by the state Office of Foreclosure, which is part of the Superior Court Clerk's Office. When the owner answers, the file moves to a General Equity judge sitting in the house's home county.
Even earlier, the Fair Foreclosure Act requires a written warning from the lender, formally called a notice of intention to foreclose. It has to go out by registered or certified mail at least 30 days before the lawsuit, and if 180 days pass without a filing the lender must start over with a new notice. The notice must tell you what you owe to bring the loan current, the date you have to do it by, how to reach the lender, that free housing counseling and court mediation exist, and where to find a lawyer or legal services.
Keep that notice. It is the first page of the file a housing counselor, an attorney or a buyer like us will want to see.
The Court Calendar, Step by Step
- Step 1
Notice of intention arrives
Your cure figure and deadline are on it. Paying that amount by the date stops the case before it is filed.
- Step 2
Summons and complaint
You have 35 days from service to file an answer. With no answer, the matter is treated as uncontested and handled by the Office of Foreclosure on the papers.
- Step 3, within 60 days
Mediation request
If the house is your primary residence and has one to four units, you can apply for the court's foreclosure mediation program within 60 days of receiving the summons. A housing counselor helps you prepare, and there is no fee.
- Step 4
Final judgment and writ of execution
Once the court enters judgment, the sheriff receives a writ. Per the Judiciary's self-help guidance, the auction must take place within 150 days after the sheriff gets the writ.
- Step 5
Adjournments
State law allows five postponements of the sale, each up to 30 calendar days: two the lender can request, two you can request, and one if both agree. Your two are worth using if a sale of the house is in progress.
- Step 6
Sheriff sale and the next ten days
After the auction, the owner has 10 days to redeem by paying what is owed, and an objection to the sale must be made in that window. Then the sheriff's deed is delivered and ownership passes.
Should the winning bid exceed the judgment plus costs, the difference is the former owner's money. It is deposited in the Superior Court Trust Fund and only paid out when someone files a motion to claim it. That money can be far less than the equity a voluntary sale would have kept, because the auction price is set by bidders, not by the market.
The Law That Protects You When You Sell
New Jersey has a specific statute for sales by owners in foreclosure, the Foreclosure Rescue Fraud Prevention Act. It covers a one- to four-family home where an owner lives in one of the units as a primary residence and the home is in a mortgage foreclosure or tax sale case, or the owner is more than 90 days behind on a loan secured by it. In practice, that describes most of the owners who call us about foreclosure.
- You may back out of the sale contract up to midnight on the tenth business day following your signature, or up to the sheriff sale if it falls earlier. Written notice delivered by any means is enough.
- The contract must say so in bold type next to your signature, and two copies of a notice of cancellation form must be attached for you to use.
- The buyer must record the contract with the county clerk within ten business days.
- The buyer cannot accept, ask you for or record a deed until your cancellation period is over.
- Deals where you stay in the house and are promised the right to buy it back carry much stricter terms, including at least 82% of fair market value and a buy-back window of at least three years.
We do not offer buy-back or leaseback arrangements. A sale to us is a straight sale: you are paid, the loan is paid off, and the house is ours. Every contract we sign with an owner in foreclosure includes the cancellation notice and form, and we set the closing date after the ten business days have run. That is one reason not to wait until the week of the auction to call.
Your Options, Side by Side
| Option | In practice | Suits you if | The catch |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reinstate the loan | Pay the missed payments, fees and costs; the case is dismissed | The hardship is over and you can afford the payment again | The cure amount grows with every month of legal fees |
| Modification through mediation | The lender changes the loan terms, often with a counselor's help | You live there and have steady income | Apply within 60 days; the case can still move while you wait |
| Short sale | Your lender takes a payoff smaller than the debt | The loan balance is above the house's value | Needs written lender approval; ask whether the remaining balance is forgiven |
| List with an agent | Market sale at full exposure | Months remain before any sale date and the house shows well | The buyer's mortgage and inspection can fail late |
| Sell to a cash buyer like us | Written offer, settlement on a set date, lender paid from the price | You have equity or need certainty about the date | Expect a figure under full retail; check it against an agent's estimate |
| Deed in lieu of foreclosure | Title goes to the lender by agreement instead of auction | There is no equity and the lender agrees | Any equity is lost; get the deficiency terms in writing |
| Let the sheriff sale happen | The house is auctioned; any surplus waits in court | Rarely the right choice if there is equity | You must file a motion to collect any surplus |
What to Gather Before You Call
- The notice of intention to foreclose, and the summons and complaint if you have been served
- The docket number of the case and any sheriff sale date
- Your most recent mortgage statement, and statements for any second mortgage or home equity line
- Any letters from the tax collector or a tax sale certificate holder
- The names of everyone on the deed, since all of them will need to sign
How a Sale to Us Works Mid-Foreclosure
The first conversation is about dates: where the case stands, whether a sale is scheduled, and how many adjournments have been used. Next comes one visit and a written offer. Once you accept, the title company requests a payoff letter covering the loan plus legal fees so far, and searches for any other liens.
After your cancellation period, we close. The lender is paid from the sale price, its attorney dismisses the foreclosure, and the balance comes to you. If the numbers show that you owe more than the house can bring, we will say so plainly, and a short sale or a counselor may serve you better than we can.
A foreclosure is also not the only way New Jersey owners lose a house. Unpaid property taxes lead to a tax sale certificate and, eventually, a separate foreclosure by the certificate holder. Since July 2024, an owner in that kind of case can ask the court for a sale of the property and claim the surplus, but only by acting before final judgment. The details are on our New Jersey tax lien guide.
Legal Services of New Jersey hotline: 1-888-576-5529. NJ Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency counseling: 1-800-NJ-HOUSE. Counselor referral for court mediation: 609-278-7508. Office of Foreclosure: 609-421-6100.
The state's homeowner assistance program, NJ ERMA, is no longer taking applications, so be wary of anyone who says they can get you into it for a fee.