- Who sends it
- The trustee or the lender (beneficiary), who records it with the county recorder; the trustee mails it to owners
- What it starts
- A trustee foreclosure and your 115 days to cure, counted from the recording date
- Do this first
- Find the recording date, count 115 days, and check whether a loan modification request form came with it
What this document is in Idaho
Idaho Code § 45-1505(3) requires the trustee or beneficiary to record a notice of default in each county where the property is. It identifies the deed of trust by the trustor's name and where it is recorded, or by a description of the property, states that a breach has occurred and what it is, and states the election to sell the property to satisfy the debt. The trustee must mail it to anyone who owns an interest in the property.
It must be accompanied by a separate sheet in 12-point bold type titled "NOTICE REQUIRED BY IDAHO LAW." That page explains what foreclosure is, warns that some people may say they can "save" your home, and says that under Idaho law you have five days to rescind certain contracts that transfer interests in property or money in a foreclosure. If your deed of trust is in Spanish, the page must be in Spanish too.
If the home has a homeowner's property tax exemption for the year and the lender is state or federally regulated, the notice must also come with an Important Notice and Modification Request Form (Idaho Code § 45-1506C).
What it does and does not mean
- It does not set a sale date. The Notice of Trustee's Sale does that, at least 120 days ahead.
- It is not a lawsuit. A trustee's sale is allowed only if no lawsuit to collect the debt is pending, or any such lawsuit was dismissed (Idaho Code § 45-1505(4)).
- The rescue warning page needs no reply. It is there to protect you from contracts that could cost you your equity.
- Idaho has no statewide foreclosure mediation program, according to the state file. The modification request form is the state's built-in way to ask the lender for a review and a meeting.
The deadlines it starts and how to count them
- Cure: within 115 days of the recording of the notice of default, you can pay the entire amount then due, other than principal that would not be due without the default, plus costs actually incurred, a reasonable trustee's fee and attorney's fees as the note allows. The foreclosure must then be dismissed and the loan reinstated (Idaho Code § 45-1506(12)). Count 115 calendar days from the recording date, not from the day the mail came.
- Modification request: if the form came with the notice, the lender must receive it by the date printed on it, 30 days after the notice date (§ 45-1506C(1)).
- Notice of sale: must be mailed at least 120 days before the sale (§ 45-1506(2)).
- Rescue contracts: any contract about the property made during the foreclosure can be canceled in writing within 5 business days, and no money or interest in the home may change hands until then (§ 45-1603).
What to do this week
- Find the recording date on the notice, or ask the county recorder. Write the 115-day cure date on your calendar.
- If a modification request form came with it, fill it out and send it by certified mail, return receipt requested, so it arrives before the printed date.
- Ask the lender in writing for the exact amount to cure and how it was figured.
- Send your servicer a complete loss mitigation application too, and keep proof.
- Request free counseling from Finally Home! Housing Counseling (Idaho Housing and Finance Association), listed at 877-695-2655 in the state file.
- Read how to stop foreclosure in Idaho.
Help and scam warnings
The required warning page says: "You should be cautious about such claims. It is important that you understand all the terms of a plan to 'rescue' you from mortgage foreclosure and how it will affect you. It may result in your losing valuable equity that you may have in your home."
- To cancel a rescue contract, give written notice to every other party within 5 business days. Notice by mail is effective when mailed, and certified mail to the address in the contract is conclusive proof (§ 45-1603).
- Report rescue offers to the Idaho Attorney General's Consumer Protection Division at 1-800-432-3545.
- For legal help, the state file lists the Idaho Volunteer Lawyers Program and the Idaho State Bar Lawyer Referral Service, both at (208) 334-4500. See the Idaho foreclosure help page.
The rest of the Idaho process
See how foreclosure works in Idaho, the timeline, ways to stop it and free help in Idaho, or read the national guide to this letter.
Common questions
How long do I have to catch up after an Idaho notice of default?
115 days from the day the notice of default was recorded (Idaho Code § 45-1506(12)). You pay what is past due plus allowed costs and fees, not the whole loan. After that, catching up depends on the lender agreeing.
What is the Notice Required by Idaho Law that came with my notice of default?
It is a one-page warning in bold type that Idaho Code § 45-1505(3) requires. It cautions you about people who say they can save your home and tells you that you have five days to undo certain contracts made during foreclosure.
Does a bankruptcy or court order affect my Idaho 115 days?
The funnel file says a stay does not count against the 115 days if you ask the trustee in writing to postpone the sale after the stay is lifted (Idaho Code § 45-1506B). Get legal advice on how to make that request.
Other Idaho letters
- Important Notice: You are in danger of losing your property, with Modification Request FormIf your Idaho home has a homeowner's property tax exemption and your lender is state or federally regulated, the notice of default must come with this notice and a Modification Request Form. If the lender receives your form by the printed date, 30 days after the notice date, it must review it, meet or talk with you if you ask, and answer in writing within 45 days. The trustee's sale cannot happen until it answers on time.
- Notice of Trustee's SaleThe Idaho notice of sale gives the date, time and place of the trustee's auction, at least 120 days after it is mailed. It is also served or posted at the home and published in the newspaper for four weeks. Your right to cure by paying only what is past due ends 115 days after the notice of default was recorded, which can be before the sale.
- Summons, complaint for possession and notice of trial setting after a trustee's saleIn Idaho, the buyer at a trustee's sale is entitled to possession on the 10th day after the sale, and anyone still there is a tenant at sufferance. The buyer can file a short court case for possession without first sending a notice to quit. The court sets a trial within 12 days of filing, and you must be served at least 5 days before trial.
- Complaint for a money judgment after a trustee's sale (deficiency lawsuit)Idaho lets a lender sue you for what is left on the loan after a trustee's sale, but only within 3 months after the sale. The complaint must state the debt, the sale price and the home's fair market value on the sale date. The court must find that value itself, and the judgment cannot be more than the debt minus that value, or more than the debt minus the sale price.