- Who sends it
- Your servicer, court or tax office, or a private company or scammer using public records
- What it starts
- Nothing, if it is a solicitation. A real notice may start a deadline, so check it
- Do this first
- Call the number on your own mortgage statement, court papers or tax bill, not the number in the letter
Real notices and solicitations
Real notices come from your mortgage servicer, a court, a trustee, a sheriff or your tax office. They name your loan, case or parcel, and they may set a deadline you must not miss. Our other letter pages explain each one.
Solicitations come from companies that found your name in foreclosure filings, tax lists or sale records. Some are legal sales pitches. Some are scams. A letter is a warning sign when it does any of these:
- Asks for a fee before you have signed an agreement with your servicer.
- Tells you to stop paying your mortgage, or to stop talking to your servicer, counselor or lawyer.
- Tells you to send your payments somewhere new.
- Asks you to sign over your deed or sign papers you do not understand.
- Wants payment by wire, cashier's check, gift card or a payment app.
- Uses an official-looking seal, a government-sounding name or "final notice" wording but gives no case number, loan number or parcel number you can check.
Common letters and what the law says
- "We can stop your foreclosure" mailers. Federal rules (Regulation O) cover paid help to stop or delay a foreclosure or get a modification. The company may not take any fee until you have signed a written agreement with your lender or servicer that includes the relief it got for you. Its ads must say it "is not associated with the government, and our service is not approved by the government or your lender" and that your lender may not agree to change your loan. It may not tell you not to contact your servicer, and if it tells you to stop paying, it must warn that you could lose your home and damage your credit. A lawyer licensed in your state is exempt from most of these rules but may hold an advance fee only in a client trust account.
- Letters that look like they are from the government or your lender. Regulation O bans a mortgage relief company from misrepresenting a government affiliation. Another common mailer offers a copy of your deed for a fee. Connecticut's consumer protection department warned that such mailers charged $50 to $100, came from mailbox addresses, and were not from any government agency, while the town clerk charged about $1 a page. Get records from your county recorder or clerk directly.
- "We buy houses" and cash offers. Selling is legal, and a real sale may be a choice for you. But the FTC warns about equity skimming: an offer of cash, often far below market value, if you sign over the deed and move out, with a promise to help you get the home back. The scammer rents out the home while your lender forecloses, and you still owe the mortgage. Get the home's value checked and have your own lawyer read any contract before you sign.
- Rent-to-buy and "rescue" loans. The FTC warns about offers to save your home if you sign over the deed and rent it back, and rescue loans where a deed transfer is buried in a stack of papers. Once you give up the deed, the other person controls the home.
- Deed theft and quitclaim mailers. The FBI warns that criminals forge documents to record a phony transfer of ownership, then sell, borrow against or rent out the home. New York's Attorney General says homes in foreclosure, homes with tax liens and homes of owners who died before heirs transferred title are common targets, and that real help never asks you to transfer your property.
- "Title lock" mailers. The FTC says title lock insurance is not title insurance, is not insurance at all, and only tells you after a fraudulent transfer has happened. You can check your title for free with your land records office, and some areas offer free alerts.
- Fake servicer change or payment redirection letters. A real servicing transfer notice comes at least 15 days before the transfer (from the old servicer) or within 15 days after (from the new one), gives the transfer date, and lists the name, address and toll-free or collect phone number of both servicers. The CFPB lists being told to pay someone other than your servicer or lender as a sign of a scam. See servicing transfer notice.
- Surplus finder letters. A company says money from your sale is waiting and offers to get it for a share. The money may be real, but you can usually claim it yourself for free, and some states cap or void these deals. See surplus funds notices.
Check it yourself
- Call your servicer at the number on your own monthly statement or coupon book, not the number in the letter. Ask whether it sent the letter and whether your loan was transferred.
- Look up your property at your county recorder, register of deeds or clerk. Check that you are still listed as the owner and that no new deed or mortgage was recorded. Ask whether your county offers free recording alerts.
- Look up your court case on the court's own website or call the clerk. A real court paper has a case number and court name you can confirm.
- Call your tax office using the number on the county's website or your tax bill to confirm any tax notice.
- Find out who backs your loan with the Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac lookup tools, then confirm help offers with your servicer.
- Ask a free HUD-approved housing counselor at (800) 569-4287 to look at the letter with you. Counselors may not charge for help with mortgage delinquency.
- Check your credit reports for free at AnnualCreditReport.com, as the FTC suggests, and watch for tax or utility bills that suddenly stop coming.
Where to report
- Mortgage relief scams, fake lender or government letters, and title lock or deed copy mailers: the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov, and your state attorney general, who can sue to enforce Regulation O.
- Problems with a servicer, or a company asking you to pay someone other than your servicer: the CFPB or (855) 411-2372.
- Deed theft, forged deeds or money you wired to a scammer: the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center at ic3.gov. The FBI says it can work with partners to try to stop wire transfers and recover funds within the first 72 hours, so report fast and call your bank.
- Deed theft also: your local police, sheriff or district attorney, and your county recorder. In New York, call the Attorney General's deed theft line at 1-800-771-7755.
- Identity theft: IdentityTheft.gov.
Read foreclosure rescue scams and your federal rights.
How much time do you have? It depends on your state.
See the foreclosure timeline, deadlines and free local help for the state where the home is.
Common questions
Is every company that writes to me about my foreclosure a scam?
No. Some are legal businesses, and some lawyers advertise too. But under federal rules, a company that is not your lawyer cannot charge for mortgage relief until you have signed an agreement with your servicer, and must tell you it is not associated with the government or your lender. If a letter skips those rules, treat it as a warning sign. A free housing counselor can do much of the same work at no charge.
I got a letter saying my loan was sold and to pay a new company. What do I do?
Do not change where you pay until you confirm it. Call your current servicer at the number on a past statement. A real transfer notice lists both companies with phone numbers and gives the transfer date. For 60 days after a real transfer, an on-time payment sent to the old servicer cannot be treated as late.
Someone wants me to sign a quitclaim deed so they can save my home. Should I?
Do not sign any deed without advice from your own lawyer or a free housing counselor. The FTC and New York's Attorney General warn that once you sign over the deed, the other person controls the home, and real help does not ask you to transfer your property.
Do I need to buy title lock to protect my home?
The FTC says these products do not lock anything and only alert you after a transfer has happened. You can check your records for free at your county recorder, and some counties offer free alerts.
Keep reading
- Late notice and early intervention letterThis letter is a warning, not a foreclosure. Federal rules make your servicer reach out early and tell you about help. In most cases a foreclosure cannot start until you are more than 120 days behind, so this is the best time to act.
- Breach letter (demand or notice of intent to accelerate)A breach letter says you are in default and gives you a date to catch up. If you do not, the lender can call the whole loan due and move toward foreclosure. Many standard mortgages and deeds of trust require at least 30 days to cure.
- Notice of defaultIn many states that foreclose without a court, a recorded notice of default is the official start of the foreclosure. It is not a sale and not an eviction. It starts a waiting period before a sale can be set, and you can usually still catch up or apply for help.
- Notice of intent to forecloseMany states make the lender send a warning letter before it can start a foreclosure. These letters often give you a set number of days, a cure amount and a list of free counselors. The deadline in the letter matters, so act on it now.
- Lis pendens (notice of pendency)A lis pendens is a public notice, filed in the land records, that a lawsuit or foreclosure affecting your home is pending. It does not mean the home is sold or that you must move. It usually means the court papers are coming or have already been served.
- Foreclosure summons and complaintA summons and complaint means the lender has sued to foreclose. You have a short, firm deadline to respond in writing, often 20 to 30 days from the day you were served. Missing it can let the lender win without your side being heard.
Sources
- 12 C.F.R. § 1015.2, what counts as mortgage assistance relief (eCFR)
- 12 C.F.R. § 1015.3, prohibited representations (eCFR)
- 12 C.F.R. § 1015.4, required disclosures (eCFR)
- 12 C.F.R. § 1015.5, ban on advance fees for mortgage relief (eCFR)
- 12 C.F.R. § 1015.7, attorney exemption (eCFR)
- FTC: Mortgage relief scams
- FTC consumer alert: Home title lock insurance? Not a lock at all (Aug. 26, 2024)
- CFPB: What are mortgage loan modification scams?
- CFPB: What happens if the company that I send my mortgage payments to changes?
- 12 C.F.R. § 1024.33, mortgage servicing transfers (eCFR)
- FBI Boston: Quit claim deed fraud is on the rise (Apr. 1, 2025)
- FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3)
- New York Attorney General: Deed theft
- Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection: Grant deed offers may mislead consumers (May 16, 2012)
- FTC: ReportFraud.ftc.gov
- CFPB: Submit a complaint
- CFPB: Find a housing counselor