Foreclosure sale date set in Iowa: what you can still do

Options still open before a sale in Iowa

• Confirm the sale is still on

  Today, and again the day before the sale

  The sale is posted at the county courthouse and published twice in a local newspaper, and the notice served on you states the time and place. Call the county sheriff's office with your case number to confirm. A postponed sale does not need a new notice: the new date is announced out loud at the time the sale was supposed to be held, so you or someone you trust should check that day.

  Iowa Code §§ 626.75, 626.78, 626.81

• Ask the lender to postpone the sale

  Before the sale; a complete loss mitigation application more than 37 days before the sale has federal protection

  The sheriff may postpone a sale when the judgment creditor asks or when the parties agree. Call your servicer and the lender's attorney, ask in writing for a postponement while your application is reviewed, and have Iowa Mortgage Help press the request with you. Postponements are limited to two, totaling 60 days, unless both sides agree in writing to more.

  Iowa Code § 626.81; 12 C.F.R. § 1024.41(g)

• Pay the judgment

  Before the sale

  On the without-redemption track, paying the lender the full amount of the judgment before the sale means the judgment is satisfied and the sale is not held. Get the payoff figure in writing from the lender's attorney and confirm with the sheriff's office that the sale is called off.

  Iowa Code § 654.21

• Apply for a 60-day delay over the mediation notice

  The court must grant it before the sale date

  If you were never served with the counseling and mediation notice and you want counseling or mediation, apply to the court for a delay of up to 60 days. Iowa Legal Aid or a licensed attorney can check the court file, which controls whether the court presumes you got the notice.

  Iowa Code § 654.4B(2)

• Talk to a bankruptcy attorney

  Before the sale, and not at the last minute

  Iowa Legal Aid says a Chapter 13 bankruptcy might let you catch up on the delinquency over three to five years if your income supports it, and warns against waiting until just before a sheriff's sale. It adds attorney and trustee fees, so get advice from a licensed bankruptcy attorney.

• Bid at the sale or plan for redemption

  At the sale

  You may bid at the sale, and written sealed bids can be given to the sheriff ahead of time. In a foreclosure without redemption, an owner who bids the amount of the judgment gets the home even over higher bids. If your case is on the with-redemption track, the sale is not the end: you keep possession and can redeem within the redemption period.

  Iowa Code §§ 626.80, 654.23, 628.3

Common questions in Iowa