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Foreclosure sale date set in Washington, D.C.: what you can still do
If your Washington, D.C. foreclosure sale is scheduled, you may still be able to stop it, but you must move fast. The firmest option is the right to cure, which ends 5 business days before bidding starts. Start by confirming the sale is still on, then work through the options below. None of them is guaranteed.
Reviewed against District of Columbia law and official sources on October 12, 2026. General information, not legal advice.
Tell us your sale date
Free. A person replies with the options and official help that fit. Messages about a scheduled sale are answered first.
Options still open before a sale in Washington, D.C.
Confirm the sale is still on
Today, and again the day before the sale
On the out-of-court route, the Notice of Intention to Foreclose gives the date and time, and a copy plus the mediation certificate are recorded in the land records, which you can search through the Recorder of Deeds. In a court case, check the D.C. Superior Court case search or call the Civil Actions Branch at 202-879-1133. Also call the trustee or lender's attorney named on the notice.
D.C. Code § 42-815(c), (d)
Cure the default
Out-of-court sale: up to 5 business days before bidding starts
Ask the lender's attorney or trustee in writing for the exact cure amount. Pay it by cash, cashier's check or certified check. You can do this only once in any 2 calendar years in a row; in a court case, ask the court and the lender's attorney instead.
D.C. Code §§ 42-815.01(b), (c), 42-815.04
Check for a missing or defective mediation certificate
Before the sale
A sale is void if the lender filed its Notice of Intention to Foreclose without a final recorded mediation certificate. If you think a step was skipped, call Legal Aid DC the same day.
D.C. Code § 42-815.02(h-1)
Ask the judge for help in a court case
Before the auction
If the sale was ordered in a court case, any request to stop it goes to the judge in that case. Legal Aid DC or the D.C. Bar Pro Bono Center: Free Legal Help can tell you what to file.
Ask the servicer to postpone
As early as possible before the sale
If you have a complete application under review, a refinance or a buyer, tell the servicer and the trustee in writing and ask them to postpone. Get any agreement in writing.
File bankruptcy
Before the auction starts
A bankruptcy filing stops the sale under the federal automatic stay. Make sure the trustee gets proof of the filing before the sale, and talk to a lawyer first.
11 U.S.C. § 362(a)
Call today, not tomorrow
With a sale on the calendar, every option above has a cutoff. A free HUD-approved housing counselor can call your servicer with you today: (800) 569-4287. For legal aid and court help, see free foreclosure help in Washington, D.C..
Common questions in Washington, D.C.
How much notice do I get before a Washington, D.C. foreclosure sale?
On the out-of-court route, the lender must mail you a Notice of Intention to Foreclose and send a copy to the Recorder of Deeds at least 30 days before the sale. The 30 days start on the day the Recorder of Deeds receives it.
Is it too late to cure 3 days before a Washington, D.C. sale?
Under the right to cure statute, the deadline is 5 business days before bidding starts, so it may be too late to use that right. You can still ask the lender to accept a payment and postpone, or talk to a lawyer about other options right away.
Can my condo association foreclose separately in Washington, D.C.?
Yes. Legal Aid DC warns that a condo association can foreclose for unpaid dues, and an auction can usually happen as soon as 32 days after its Notice of Foreclosure. Contact a lawyer right away if you get one.
Step by step
More on foreclosure in Washington, D.C.
Understand the process
What is happening and how much time there is.
Weigh your options
What can stop it, and what happens if it goes ahead.
Get help now
Who to call, and what to do when a sale is scheduled.
- Free foreclosure help
- A sale date is set (this page)
Back to the District of Columbia overview
Free, official, nationwide
Free help anywhere in the country
HUD-approved housing counselors
Free foreclosure prevention counseling from agencies approved by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. A counselor can review your budget and deal with your servicer alongside you.
(800) 569-4287CFPB: help for struggling homeowners
Plain-language guides from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and a complaint form if your mortgage servicer is not following the rules.
Legal Services Corporation: find legal aid
Find the free civil legal aid office for your county if you have been served with a foreclosure lawsuit or given a sale date and cannot afford a lawyer.
Sources for this page
- D.C. Code § 42-815.04, construction (scope of the power of sale chapter)
- D.C. Code § 42-522, estates at will after a mortgage sale
- D.C. Code § 42-3203, tenancy at will ended by 30 days' notice
- DISB Form FM-1, Notice of Default on Residential Mortgage (Rev. 11/21)
- D.C. Superior Court: Superior Court Case Search
- D.C. Office of Tax and Revenue: Recorder of Deeds
- Housing Counseling Services: Foreclosure Prevention
- D.C. Code § 42-815, notice under power of sale provision
- D.C. Code § 42-815.01, right to cure residential mortgage foreclosure default
- D.C. Code § 42-815.02, foreclosure mediation
- D.C. Code § 42-815.05, requirement for deed before action against current occupant
- D.C. Code § 42-816, sale of property and deficiency judgments
- D.C. Code title 42, chapter 24A, Foreclosure Rescue Prohibited
- D.C. Code § 42-2432, prohibited foreclosure transactions and practices
- D.C. Superior Court: Mortgage Foreclosure Sales (last updated 02/12/2026)
- DISB: Foreclosure Prevention Program
- DISB: Foreclosure Prevention
- LawHelp.org/DC: Foreclosures (D.C. Bar Antitrust and Consumer Law Section)
- Legal Aid DC: Foreclosure FAQs
- Legal Aid DC: Ways to Let Go of Your Property
- DC Department of Housing and Community Development: Homeowner Assistance Fund (HAF)
- DC Homeowner Assistance Fund program site
- U.S. Treasury: Homeowner Assistance Fund