- Who sends it
- The lender's foreclosure attorney, served with the notice of sale and repeated at least every 60 days until the sale
- What it starts
- Nothing new on its own; it tells you the reinstatement amount, sale date and redemption period
- Do this first
- Call the lender's loss mitigation number on the page and a foreclosure advisor at 651-659-9336
What these notices are in Minnesota
Minn. Stat. § 580.041 requires two separate notices for a home of 1 to 4 units where the owner lives as a main home. Each must be in 14-point bold type, on its own page, and on colored paper different from the notice of sale and from each other. Neither may be published in the newspaper.
The foreclosure advice notice is titled "Help For Homeowners in Foreclosure." It names the attorney preparing the foreclosure and the lender's loss mitigation phone number, and says: "AS OF [date], this lender says that you owe $[amount] to bring your mortgage up to date." It gives the sale date, time and place. It must come with the notice of sale and with later written foreclosure letters, or at least once every 60 days, until the sale.
The notice of redemption rights is titled "What Happens After the Foreclosure Sale." It explains that you can redeem after the sale, states your redemption period in months, and says you can keep living in your home during that time.
What they do and do not mean
- The dollar figure is what the lender says it takes to reinstate as of the date printed. Interest and costs keep adding up, so it will be higher later.
- Reinstating means paying the past-due amount and allowed costs, not the whole loan (Minn. Stat. § 580.30).
- Redeeming after the sale means paying the sale price plus interest and costs. The notice says this amount "may be less than the amount you owed on the mortgage before the sale."
- You can also sell the home during the redemption period and keep what is left after the buyer and other claims are paid.
- A tenant in the home gets a different colored notice, "Foreclosure: Advice to Tenants" (Minn. Stat. § 580.042).
The dates on these notices and how to count them
- The "AS OF" date is the date the reinstatement figure was calculated. Ask for a fresh figure. The lender must give it within three days of your request, and it is good for seven days or until the sale (§ 580.30, subd. 1).
- The sale date is the day the sheriff auctions the home. Reinstatement is possible only until then.
- The redemption period runs from the sale date, usually six months (Minn. Stat. § 580.23). Payment must be delivered on a weekday between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., so do not plan on paying on the last day if it falls on a weekend or holiday.
- If these notices were not given as the law requires, a lawsuit to undo the sale must be started, and a lis pendens filed, within one year after your redemption period ends (§ 580.041, subd. 4).
What to do this week
- Call the lender's loss mitigation number printed on the Help For Homeowners page and ask what options remain.
- Call a foreclosure prevention counselor. The notice lists the Minnesota Homeownership Center at 651-659-9336 or 866-462-6466 or www.hocmn.org, and HUD at 1-800-569-4287.
- Ask the attorney named on the page for a current reinstatement amount in writing.
- Keep every colored page and envelope. Note the date each one arrived.
- If you think you might redeem or sell, start talking to a lender or real estate agent now, before the sale.
Scam warnings in the notice itself
The redemption rights notice warns: "Be careful! After the foreclosure sale, people may approach you to buy your house or ask you to transfer your house to them for little or no money." It tells you to learn what the house sold for, by going to the sale or calling the sheriff's office, before you sign anything, including a deed.
- Minnesota foreclosure consultants cannot be paid until they have fully done what they promised, and you can cancel until midnight of the third business day (Minn. Stat. §§ 325N.03, 325N.04).
- The Attorney General says that when someone buys your home in foreclosure for your benefit and you cannot stay, you must be paid at least 82 percent of fair market value, minus certain costs.
- Free help is listed on the Minnesota foreclosure help page.
The rest of the Minnesota process
See how foreclosure works in Minnesota, the timeline, ways to stop it and free help in Minnesota, or read the national guide to this letter.
Common questions
Is the amount on my Minnesota Help For Homeowners notice what I owe in total?
No. It is what the lender says it takes to bring the loan current as of the date printed, not the full balance. Under Minn. Stat. § 580.30 you can reinstate by paying the past-due amount plus interest and allowed costs any time before the sheriff's sale.
Why do I keep getting the same colored notice in Minnesota?
Minn. Stat. § 580.041, subd. 1b requires the Help For Homeowners notice to come with each later written foreclosure communication, or at least once every 60 days, up to the sale. Each copy may show a newer reinstatement figure.
How do I find out what my Minnesota home sold for?
The What Happens After the Foreclosure Sale notice says you can attend the sheriff's sale or contact the sheriff's office after it. The sale price, plus interest and allowed costs, is the starting point for your redemption amount.
Other Minnesota letters
- Preforeclosure Notice: Foreclosure Prevention CounselingIn Minnesota, before a foreclosure is recorded on the home you live in, the lender must send this notice on colored paper. It names a free, government-approved counseling agency that the lender has already given your contact details to. No sale date is set yet, so this is the time to get help and apply for a workout.
- Notice of Mortgage Foreclosure SaleThis is the notice that sets the date of the sheriff's sale in a Minnesota foreclosure by advertisement. It is published for six weeks and handed to whoever lives in the home at least four weeks before the sale. The move-out date it lists is the end of the redemption period after the sale, not a date to leave before the sale.
- Summons and complaint to reduce the redemption period to five weeks (abandoned property)Minnesota lets the foreclosing lender, the holder of the sheriff's certificate, or the city or county ask a court to cut your redemption period to five weeks by claiming the home is abandoned. If no one shows up to oppose it and there is evidence, the court enters the order. If you still live there or plan to redeem, go to the hearing.
- Sheriff's Certificate of SaleAt a Minnesota sheriff's sale, the sheriff gives the buyer a certificate of sale. It does not take your home right away. It lists the price paid, the interest rate and your redemption period, and only becomes the buyer's title if no one redeems. If the sale brought in $100 or more over what was owed, the sheriff also mails you a surplus notice.
- Eviction summons and complaint after the redemption periodIf no one redeems and you are still in the home after the redemption period, the buyer can file an eviction case in district court. The summons sets a hearing 7 to 14 days after it is issued. Only a court order can make you leave, and you can answer at that first hearing.
Sources
- Minn. Stat. § 580.041 (foreclosure advice and redemption rights notices)
- Minn. Stat. § 580.042 (foreclosure advice notice to tenant)
- Minn. Stat. § 580.30 (reinstatement)
- Minn. Stat. § 580.23 (redemption by mortgagor)
- Minn. Stat. § 325N.04 (foreclosure consultant violations)
- Minnesota Attorney General: Facing Mortgage Foreclosure