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Free foreclosure help in Missouri

Free foreclosure help exists in Missouri, and who to call first depends on where you are. Missouri's Homeowner Assistance Fund program cannot fund new help after September 30, 2026, so most help today is counseling, legal aid and complaint handling. Every organization below is a government office, a court-related service or a nonprofit. None should charge you an upfront fee.

Free HUD counselor: (800) 569-4287

Reviewed against Missouri law and official sources on October 12, 2026. General information, not legal advice.

Ask for help in Missouri

Free. A person replies with the options and official help that fit. Messages about a scheduled sale are answered first.

For example: a sale date, what your servicer has told you, or what changed in your income. Please do not include your loan number, Social Security number or bank details.

Free, and there is nothing to buy. A person reads your message and replies by email, or by phone if you leave a number. We never ask for a fee and we do not sell your details. See the privacy policy.

Who to call first, by situation

  • You are not behind yet but expect to be

    As soon as you see trouble coming

    Call your servicer and ask what hardship options it offers, then talk to a HUD-approved housing counselor for free. The Missouri Housing Development Commission (MHDC): Resources for Homeowners page links to HUD counseling agencies. If you are a senior or 100 percent disabled, check the Missouri Department of Revenue: Property Tax Credit.

  • You are behind but have no notice of sale

    Before you are 120 days behind

    This is the best time to apply for a loan modification or repayment plan, because Missouri gives only 20 days' notice once a sale is set. A HUD-approved housing counselor can help with the application. Missouri Legal Services: Home Foreclosures explains your choices in plain language.

  • You got a demand letter or a notice of sale

    The same day; a sale can be 20 days away

    Use Missouri Legal Services: Applying for Legal Aid to find the free legal aid program for your county and apply by phone or online. If you do not qualify for a lawyer, you can post a question to Missouri Free Legal Answers, though answers may not come before your sale date.

    RSMo § 443.325

  • A sale date is set

    Today

    Call the trustee named on the notice to confirm the date, and call your servicer about a pending application or the payoff amount. For legal advice, call your local legal aid program or find a lawyer through The Missouri Bar: LawyerSearch. If you may want to redeem, the written notice must reach the trustee at the sale or within 10 days before it.

    RSMo § 443.410

  • Your servicer is not following the rules

    Before the sale if possible

    File a complaint with the Missouri Division of Finance: Consumer Complaints, or call (573) 751-3242, if your lender or mortgage broker is state licensed or state chartered. Its page says complaints about national banks go to the federal Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. Only a court can stop a sale, so also talk to legal aid.

  • A foreclosure rescue company contacted you

    Before you sign or pay anything

    In Missouri a foreclosure consultant cannot take any money until all promised work is done, and you can cancel the contract until midnight of the third business day. Report problems to the Missouri Attorney General: Consumer Protection at 800-392-8222. A HUD-approved housing counselor does the same work for free.

    RSMo §§ 407.937, 407.940

Official and nonprofit help in Missouri

None of these charge homeowners for foreclosure help.

SAFHR for Homeowners (Missouri Homeowner Assistance Fund)

SAFHR for Homeowners was Missouri's Homeowner Assistance Fund program, run by the Missouri Housing Development Commission (MHDC). Its website still shows an application portal and an old answer saying there is currently no deadline, and it does not post a closing notice. But the U.S. Treasury says the Homeowner Assistance Fund period ended on September 30, 2026, and states may no longer use that money to help homeowners, so it cannot fund new help. MHDC's own Homeowners page no longer lists the program and points homeowners to HUD housing counseling agencies. One other state program shows as available on its own page: the Missouri Department of Revenue's Property Tax Credit (the circuit breaker) gives certain seniors and 100 percent disabled owners a credit of up to $1,100 for real estate taxes paid on the home they own and live in.

Check the program’s current status

Common questions in Missouri

Where can I find a free foreclosure lawyer in Missouri?

Missouri has four legal aid programs: Legal Services of Eastern Missouri, Legal Aid of Western Missouri, Mid-Missouri Legal Services and Legal Services of Southern Missouri. The Missouri Legal Services Applying for Legal Aid page shows which one serves your county and how to apply. If you do not qualify, The Missouri Bar's LawyerSearch lists lawyers taking new clients.

Is Missouri's SAFHR for Homeowners program still helping homeowners?

It cannot fund new help. SAFHR for Homeowners was paid for by the federal Homeowner Assistance Fund, and the U.S. Treasury says that period ended on September 30, 2026. The SAFHR website has not posted a closing notice, and MHDC's homeowner page no longer lists the program.

Who takes complaints about mortgage lenders in Missouri?

The Missouri Division of Finance takes complaints about banks, mortgage brokers and lenders under its oversight and says the process generally takes about 30 days. The Missouri Attorney General's Consumer Protection Section takes complaints about fraud and deception, including rescue scams, at no charge.

Step by step

More on foreclosure in Missouri

Understand the process

What is happening and how much time there is.

Weigh your options

What can stop it, and what happens if it goes ahead.

Get help now

Who to call, and what to do when a sale is scheduled.

Back to the Missouri overview

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Sources for this page

  1. RSMo § 443.350, Foreign trustee must have Missouri cotrustee
  2. RSMo § 443.380, Recitals in trustee's deed prima facie evidence
  3. RSMo § 534.090, Serving of summons
  4. RSMo § 443.290, Mortgages and security agreements with power of sale
  5. RSMo § 443.300, Death of debtor, foreclosure stayed
  6. RSMo § 443.310, Sales, where made, number of days' notice
  7. RSMo § 443.320, Notice, contents, how published
  8. RSMo § 443.325, Individual notice of foreclosure sale
  9. RSMo § 443.327, Times and places of trustee's sale
  10. RSMo § 443.355, Continuance of sale without readvertisement
  11. RSMo § 443.360, Compensation of trustees
  12. RSMo § 443.370, Penalty for overcharging
  13. RSMo § 443.400, Redemption before sale
  14. RSMo § 443.410, Foreclosures by trustee's sale, redemption
  15. RSMo § 443.420, Notice of redemption, how given
  16. RSMo § 443.430, Motion for approval of bond for redemption
  17. RSMo § 443.440, Certificate of sale, deed on failure to redeem
  18. RSMo § 443.454, Enforcement and servicing of real estate loans, local law preempted
  19. RSMo § 443.190, Petition to foreclose (judicial foreclosure)
  20. RSMo § 534.030, Unlawful detainer defined, foreclosure notice to tenants
  21. RSMo § 534.070, Complaint and summons, court date
  22. RSMo § 534.210, Merits of title cannot be inquired into
  23. RSMo § 534.330, Judgment for complainant
  24. RSMo § 534.350, Execution, when issued
  25. RSMo § 407.935, Foreclosure consultants, definitions
  26. RSMo § 407.937, Right to cancel contract
  27. RSMo § 407.938, Contract form and required notices
  28. RSMo § 407.940, Foreclosure consultants, unlawful acts
  29. RSMo § 407.943, Action against foreclosure consultant
  30. U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, M&I Marshall & Ilsley Bank v. Sunrise Farms Development, LLC, No. 13-1479 (Dec. 13, 2013), describing Missouri deficiency law and First Bank v. Fischer & Frichtel
  31. Missouri Legal Services: Home Foreclosures
  32. Missouri Legal Services: Steps You Can Take to Avoid Foreclosure
  33. The Missouri Bar: Steps You Can Take to Avoid Foreclosure (brochure)
  34. Missouri Legal Services: Applying for Legal Aid
  35. SAFHR for Homeowners (Missouri HAF program)
  36. MHDC: Resources for Homeowners
  37. U.S. Department of the Treasury: Homeowner Assistance Fund
  38. Missouri Attorney General: Consumer Protection
  39. Missouri Division of Finance: Consumer Complaints
  40. The Missouri Bar: LawyerSearch
  41. Missouri Free Legal Answers
  42. Missouri Department of Revenue: Property Tax Credit