- Who sends it
- The lender's attorney, by ordinary mail with its first letter, and again served on you with the original notice and petition
- What it starts
- No deadline by itself, but it usually arrives as the lender calls the loan due or files in court
- Do this first
- Call Iowa Mortgage Help at 1-877-622-4866 and check for court papers with a 20-day deadline
What this notice is in Iowa
Iowa Code § 654.4B(2) says that before filing a foreclosure petition on a one or two family home that is the owner's residence, the lender must tell the owner that counseling and mediation are available, on a form the Attorney General prescribes. The notice must be mailed by ordinary mail with the notice of acceleration or the first letter from the lender's attorney, and served again with the original notice and petition.
The form in use is titled "Mortgage Mediation Notice." It says you are getting it because your lender believes your mortgage is seriously delinquent or a foreclosure petition was recently filed, and that free, confidential counseling is available through Iowa Mortgage Help, a program partnering with the Iowa Attorney General's Office and the Iowa Finance Authority. It ends: "This notice is being provided as required by Iowa Code section 654.4B(2)."
What it does and does not mean
- It does not stop the foreclosure or pause any court deadline. If it came with court papers, your 20 days to answer are already running.
- It is not a court order to mediate. Iowa has no court-ordered mediation for home foreclosures. Iowa Mortgage Help is voluntary, and the lender does not have to agree to a modification.
- The notice itself says a foreclosure petition does not necessarily mean you will lose your house.
- If the first copy came with an acceleration letter, the lender may also send a 14-day demand for the full balance, which it needs to claim attorney fees on that balance (Iowa Code § 654.4B(1)).
The 60-day delay if the notice was skipped
- If the court finds the notice was not served on you as required and you want counseling or mediation, it must delay the sheriff's sale. If the sale already happened and the lender or its affiliate won the bid, it delays recording of the sheriff's deed instead. Either delay is up to 60 days (Iowa Code § 654.4B(2)).
- You must apply, and the delay must be granted before the sale date or recording date. After that, the objection is barred.
- If the sheriff's affidavit of service in the court file says the notice was served with the petition, the court presumes it was. You would have to show otherwise.
- If the court delays the sale, the sheriff announces the new date out loud at the time of the old sale. The lender does not have to republish or serve a new sale notice.
The Iowa foreclosure mediation page explains how Iowa Mortgage Help works.
What to do this week
- Check whether court papers came with the notice. If you got an original notice and petition, your 20-day answer deadline is the most urgent date.
- Call Iowa Mortgage Help at 1-877-622-4866 or use the request form on its site. Hotline staff refer you to a local counseling agency.
- Gather pay stubs, bank statements, recent mortgage statements, tax returns and a short letter explaining your hardship.
- Apply to your servicer for every option to avoid foreclosure. A complete application received more than 37 days before a sale must be evaluated within 30 days under federal rules.
- Keep both copies of the notice and the envelopes. They show when and how you got them.
Free help and scam warnings
Iowa Mortgage Help says its counseling is free. Iowa Legal Aid gives free legal help to Iowans who qualify at 1-800-532-1503, or 1-800-992-8161 if you are 60 or older.
- No one needs to charge you to call the number on this notice. Iowa foreclosure consultants cannot take any money until every promised service is finished (Iowa Code § 714E.4).
- If someone offers to buy your home and lease it back, Iowa law requires a written contract and lets you cancel within 3 business days (Iowa Code § 714F.4).
- More places to call are on the Iowa foreclosure help page.
The rest of the Iowa process
See how foreclosure works in Iowa, the timeline, ways to stop it and free help in Iowa, or read the national guide to this letter.
Common questions
Why did I get the Iowa Mortgage Mediation Notice twice?
Iowa Code § 654.4B(2) requires it twice: mailed with the lender's attorney's first letter or notice of acceleration, and served again with the original notice and petition when the foreclosure is filed.
Does calling Iowa Mortgage Help stop my foreclosure case?
No. It can help you work with your servicer, but the court case and its deadlines keep running. Answer the petition on time and file any demand for delay of sale before judgment.
What if I never got the Iowa mediation notice?
If the court finds it was not served and you want counseling or mediation, it must delay the sheriff's sale, or the recording of the sheriff's deed when the lender won the bid, by up to 60 days. The application must be granted before the sale or recording date (Iowa Code § 654.4B(2)).
Other Iowa letters
- Notice of Right to CureBefore an Iowa lender can call your whole loan due or file a foreclosure on the home you live in, it must give you a written notice of right to cure. You then have 30 days to pay the missed installments, or the amount in the notice if that is less. If you cure, your loan goes back to normal.
- Original Notice and Petition (foreclosure)In Iowa, a foreclosure case starts when you are served with an original notice and the lender's petition. You have 20 days after service to serve an answer or motion. Read the first page closely: if it says the plaintiff elected foreclosure without redemption, you have a right to file a demand for delay of sale before judgment.
- Notice of Intent to File Written Application for DefaultIf you did not answer the foreclosure petition within 20 days, the lender must mail you a notice of intent to file written application for default before the clerk can enter your default. It gives you at least 10 days, counted from the date it was mailed. Treat it as your last warning to file an answer and, in most cases, a demand for delay of sale.
- Notice of Sheriff's SaleAfter judgment, the county sheriff sells the home at a public auction. The sale must be posted and published at least 4 weeks ahead, and if you live in the home the sheriff must serve you with written notice at least 20 days before. Whether you can stay after the sale depends on which track your case is on.
- Three-day notice to quit after a sheriff's saleAfter an Iowa foreclosure sale, you can be removed only by court order. Iowa Legal Aid says many foreclosure decrees already contain that order. If yours does not, the buyer must give you a written 3-day notice to quit before filing an eviction case, and the court then sets a hearing within about 8 days of filing.