- Who sends it
- The parish sheriff, by handing it to you or leaving it at your home, after a judge signs an order for a writ of seizure and sale
- What it starts
- 15 days to take a suspensive appeal, and a first sale date at least 60 days after the judge's order
- Do this first
- Write down the day you were served and the sale date, then call free legal aid the same day
What this document is in Louisiana
Most Louisiana home foreclosures use executory process. The lender files a petition in the parish district court with the mortgage attached. If the paperwork is in order, the judge signs an order for a writ of seizure and sale. No citation is served on you and there is no hearing first (La. C.C.P. art. 2640).
When the sheriff gets the writ, the sheriff seizes the home on paper and must serve you a written notice of seizure by personal or domiciliary service (La. C.C.P. art. 2721). The notice must follow the form in La. R.S. 13:3852(B). It begins "This is formal notice that today ... I am seizing the property of" and lists the writ, the court, the docket number, the amount claimed, and the date, time and place of the sheriff's sale, or the website if the sale is an online auction.
For a home, the form must also say you may be able to bring your account current through a loss mitigation agreement or by paying all past due payments plus permitted costs, that you are strongly encouraged to seek legal counsel, and that free housing counseling is available through HUD or the Louisiana Housing Corporation.
What it does and does not mean
- It does not mean your home is sold. The sheriff's sale is still ahead, and the first sale date cannot be set any earlier than 60 days after the judge signed the order (La. R.S. 13:3852(A)).
- It is not a lawsuit you answer. To object, you must ask the court for an injunction, take a suspensive appeal, or both (La. C.C.P. art. 2642).
- It is public. The sheriff also records a notice of seizure in the parish mortgage records and serves a notice addressed to "occupants" of the home (La. C.C.P. art. 2293).
- The sale date can change. The sheriff does not have to serve you again about a rescheduled date while the sheriff still holds the writ (La. R.S. 13:3852(C)). The new date is published in the local newspaper.
The deadlines it starts and how to count them
- 15 days to take a suspensive appeal from the order for seizure and sale, counted from the day you were served (La. C.C.P. art. 2642(B)). The appeal needs security of the balance due plus one half, so most families cannot use it.
- How to count: do not count the day you were served. Count every day after it, including weekends, and the last day counts unless it is a legal holiday, in which case you get until the end of the next day that is not a holiday (La. C.C.P. art. 5059). Louisiana counts Sundays as legal holidays, and in some parishes every Saturday too (La. R.S. 1:55).
- An injunction has no set filing day, but no temporary restraining order is allowed for a home, and the hearing on a preliminary injunction must be held before the sale (La. C.C.P. art. 2752). File early enough to get a hearing.
- A claim that the attorney's fees are unreasonable must be raised by a rule to show cause filed at least 10 days before the sale, not counting holidays (La. C.C.P. art. 2753(C)).
- The sheriff cannot order the sale advertised until 3 days after you are served, not counting holidays (La. C.C.P. art. 2331(C)).
See how long foreclosure takes in Louisiana for the full timeline.
What to do this week
- Write the service date on the notice and mark day 15 on a calendar. Mark the sale date too.
- Call free civil legal aid the same day. Use the Louisiana State Bar Association Find Legal Help directory to reach the program for your parish. Bring the notice and your mortgage papers.
- Ask your servicer in writing for a loss mitigation application and a reinstatement quote. Louisiana has no statute setting a reinstatement deadline, so ask what deadline your servicer will honor.
- Call the Louisiana Housing Corporation at 225-763-8700 or HUD at (800) 569-4287 to find a free HUD-approved housing counselor.
- If you can pay the full amount owed, you can stop the sale by paying the sheriff the judgment with interest and costs any time before the home is adjudicated to a bidder (La. C.C.P. art. 2340).
- Read how to stop a foreclosure in Louisiana. If the home will be appraised, also watch for the notice to appoint an appraiser.
Scam warnings tied to this notice
The notice of seizure is recorded in public records, so expect offers. The notice itself says counseling is free. Be wary of anyone who charges a fee to stop a foreclosure or asks you to sign over your deed, and report it to the Louisiana Attorney General's Consumer Protection Section at 1-800-351-4889. See Louisiana foreclosure help for free options.
The rest of the Louisiana process
See how foreclosure works in Louisiana, the timeline, ways to stop it and free help in Louisiana, or read the national guide to this letter.
Common questions
Why did I never get a lawsuit before the Louisiana notice of seizure?
Because executory process does not need one. Citation is not necessary in an executory proceeding (La. C.C.P. art. 2640). The judge signs the order based on the lender's papers, and the sheriff's notice of seizure is often the first official paper you see.
How soon can my home be sold after a Louisiana notice of seizure?
The first sheriff's sale cannot be scheduled earlier than 60 days after the judge signed the order for the writ (La. R.S. 13:3852(A)). The notice itself lists the scheduled date. Dates can move, so confirm with the sheriff's civil division.
Can a Louisiana judge give me a temporary restraining order to stop the sale?
Not for a home. La. C.C.P. art. 2752 bars a temporary restraining order against the seizure and sale of immovable property. You can ask for a preliminary injunction, and its hearing must be held before the sale. Security is usually required, but not for certain grounds such as a debt already paid or a forged mortgage (La. C.C.P. art. 2753).
My Louisiana sale date passed and I heard nothing. What happened?
The sale may have been postponed. The sheriff does not have to serve you again about a new date while it still holds the writ (La. R.S. 13:3852(C)), but a rescheduled sale must be published in the newspaper at least once (La. C.C.P. art. 2331(B)). Call the sheriff's civil division with your docket number.
Other Louisiana letters
- Notice to name an appraiser before a sheriff's saleIf your home is being sold with appraisal, the sheriff must serve you a notice at least 7 days before the sale asking you to name your own appraiser. The appraisal sets the lowest price the home can sell for at the first offering, and it decides whether the lender can later sue you for a shortfall.
- Notice to vacate (to an occupant after a sheriff's sale)After a sheriff's sale, Louisiana law treats you as an occupant, not an owner. The buyer must deliver a written notice to vacate that gives you 5 days to leave. It is not a court order. If you stay, the buyer must go to court, or ask the clerk for a writ of possession.
- Rule to show cause why possession should not be delivered (eviction)If you stayed after the 5-day notice to vacate, the buyer can have you cited to a quick court hearing called a rule to show cause. The hearing can be held as soon as the third day after you are served. If the judge rules for the buyer, you have 24 hours to leave before a warrant issues.
- Citation and petition (deficiency or ordinary foreclosure suit)Most Louisiana foreclosures skip the citation step. You get one only when the lender sues in an ordinary proceeding, either to foreclose or, after a sheriff's sale, to collect a shortfall. A citation gives you 21 days after service to file an answer.
- Post-tax-lien-auction noticeSince January 1, 2026, Louisiana parishes auction a tax lien certificate on unpaid property taxes instead of selling your home. This notice says the certificate holder plans to sue. You keep your home for now and can end the lien by paying the termination price to the tax collector.
Sources
- La. R.S. 13:3852, Notices of seizure (official form)
- La. C.C.P. art. 2721, Seizure of property; notice
- La. C.C.P. art. 2642, Assertion of defenses; appeal
- La. C.C.P. art. 2640, Citation unnecessary
- La. C.C.P. art. 2752, Injunction procedure
- La. C.C.P. art. 2753, Security not required in certain cases
- La. C.C.P. art. 2293, Notice to judgment debtor and occupants
- La. C.C.P. art. 2331, Publication of notice of sale
- La. C.C.P. art. 2340, Payment of debt prior to adjudication
- La. C.C.P. art. 5059, Computation of time
- La. R.S. 1:55, Legal holidays
- Louisiana Housing Corporation
- Louisiana State Bar Association: Find Legal Help