- Who sends it
- Your lender must attach it to the front of the complaint the sheriff serves on you. The court or its program then mails a mediation scheduling notice with the date
- What it starts
- 30 days to meet a counselor and file the Certificate of Participation, and a conference 45 to 75 days after service (10 Del. C. § 5062C(d), (e))
- Do this first
- Call the Attorney General's Foreclosure Hotline at (800) 220-5424 or a counselor on the list in the notice
What this notice is in Delaware
Delaware runs an Automatic Residential Mortgage Foreclosure Mediation Program under 10 Del. C. § 5062C. It covers foreclosure cases on owner-occupied homes with 1 to 4 units used as a primary home. You do not have to apply. A 2024 law removed the program's old end date, and the Attorney General's office still runs it.
The notice is headed "NOTICE REQUIRED BY DELAWARE LAW" in English and Spanish. It says your lender has filed a foreclosure action, you are eligible for mediation, and your lender cannot seek judgment until the day after your scheduled conference. It comes with a list of HUD-approved housing counselors and a Certificate of Participation form.
Later you will get a mediation scheduling notice with the date, time and place of the conference. If the date was already set, it may be attached to this notice. After each conference the mediator fills out a Continuing Mediation Record or a Final Mediation Record.
What it does and does not mean
- It does not stop the case. It pauses judgment: none can be entered until the day after the scheduled conference (10 Del. C. § 5062C(n)).
- It is not a promise of a deal. The mediator helps both sides talk. Options include catching up, a repayment plan, a loan modification, forbearance, a short sale, a deed in lieu, or moving out by a set date for a payment.
- You do not pay the mediation fee. The lender pays it (10 Del. C. § 5062C(e)).
- You must appear in person. If you cannot attend on the date, ask promptly to reschedule for good cause.
- If you check "NO" to any of the three questions on the certificate (you are the borrower, you live there, you want to keep the home or resolve the case without a sheriff's sale), the conference is canceled. You can ask to reinstate it any time before judgment (10 Del. C. § 5062C(e)(1)).
The national page on mediation notices covers programs in other states. Our Delaware foreclosure mediation page explains every step of the program.
The deadlines it starts and how to count them
- 30 days: meet a HUD-approved housing counselor and file the Certificate of Participation no more than 30 days from the date the notice was served on you. Send copies to the mediator and the lender's lawyer (10 Del. C. § 5062C(e)(1)). Count calendar days from the service date.
- 45 to 75 days: the conference must be set for a date at least 45 and no more than 75 days after the notice was served on you, unless you agree otherwise (10 Del. C. § 5062C(d)).
- 14 days before the conference: give the lender and the mediator your completed financial proposal worksheet (10 Del. C. § 5062C(f)).
- 7 days before the conference: the lender must send you and your counselor a checklist of documents to bring (10 Del. C. § 5062C(g)).
- Your answer to the complaint is not late if filed on or before the date of a scheduled conference (10 Del. C. § 5062D(c)).
If you miss the 30 days, you can still attend, but the notice warns the mediation is less likely to work and the lender may seek judgment right after it.
What to do this week
- Call a counselor on the list in the notice, or the hotline at (800) 220-5424, and make an appointment within the 30 days.
- Fill out the Certificate of Participation with your counselor. The form says it can be filed by emailing it as a PDF to the Program Administrator, delivering a copy to the Program Administrator, or e-filing it with the court.
- If a co-borrower will go in your place, the form asks you to authorize that in writing. Otherwise all defendants should attend.
- Start gathering pay stubs, tax returns, bank statements and a hardship letter for your proposal.
- Watch your mail for the mediation scheduling notice and put the date on your calendar.
- Read how to stop foreclosure in Delaware for options to raise at mediation.
Free help in Delaware and scam warnings
Mediation help is free. The Attorney General's program page posts the forms, the counseling agency list and contact details, including the email mortgage.mediation@delaware.gov. You may bring a housing counselor and a lawyer to the conference. Legal aid groups can be found through Delaware Legal Help Link.
- No one needs to be paid to get you into Delaware mediation. It is automatic.
- If someone charges a fee up front to "handle your mediation" or modification, that is a warning sign. Delaware law bars loan modification sellers from taking a fee before you sign a modification with your lender (6 Del. C. § 2406C).
- Report scams to the Attorney General's office at (800) 220-5424.
The rest of the Delaware process
See how foreclosure works in Delaware, the timeline, ways to stop it and free help in Delaware, or read the national guide to this letter.
Common questions
What happens if I do not file the Certificate of Participation?
The conference still happens and the lender must still attend and mediate in good faith (10 Del. C. § 5062C(e)(2)). But the notice warns your mediation is less likely to work, and the lender may seek judgment right after the conference.
What happens if I miss my Delaware mediation conference?
The mediator can record that you failed to appear and that mediation is complete, and the foreclosure may go forward. If you cannot make the date, ask to reschedule promptly; good cause is required.
What if the lender does not show up?
The Final Mediation Record form lets the mediator note that the lender failed to appear. If the lender misses two conferences in a row, the case may be dismissed.
Which phone number is right for the Delaware hotline?
The Attorney General's pages and the official notice form use (800) 220-5424. One sentence in the statute prints 1-800-320-5424, so use 220-5424.
Other Delaware letters
- Notice of Intent to Foreclose ("Notice Required by Delaware Law: Take Action to Save Your Home from Foreclosure")This is the notice Delaware law requires before a lender can file a foreclosure case on an owner-occupied home with 1 to 4 units. The lender must wait 45 days after sending it before it can file in Superior Court. Use those days to check the numbers, call a free housing counselor and apply for help.
- Writ of Scire Facias Sur Mortgage and ComplaintA writ of scire facias sur mortgage, served with a complaint, means your lender has filed a foreclosure case against your home in the Delaware Superior Court. Your deadlines run from the day you were served. For a home you live in, a mediation notice should be attached to the front.
- Notice of Sheriff's Sale (advertisement of sale of real estate)A Delaware notice of sheriff's sale means the court has entered judgment and the sheriff has set a date to auction your home. The sale is not final until the Superior Court confirms it, usually the next month. Until then you can still object or redeem.
- Rule to Show Cause Why a Writ of Possession Should Not Be AwardedThis court paper means the buyer at the sheriff's sale has asked the Superior Court for a writ of possession to put the buyer in possession of the home. You get a date to tell the court why the writ should not be issued. The writ cannot issue until the court makes the rule absolute.
Sources
- 10 Del. C. ch. 49, subch. XI (§§ 5062C, 5062D)
- Delaware Department of Justice: Automatic Residential Mortgage Foreclosure Mediation Program
- Delaware Department of Justice: Notice of Foreclosure Mediation form
- Delaware Department of Justice: Certificate of Participation form
- Delaware Department of Justice: Final Mediation Record form