Challenges to Foreclosure

The first category includes challenging the foreclosing party's right to foreclose on substantive grounds (meaning the foreclosure itself breaks the law). The second category of foreclosure defenses deals with a situation in which the foreclosing party does not follow proper procedures (for instance, does not give proper notice to the debtor). Typically, the grounds for stopping a foreclosure include cases in which:

1. There was no actual default on the loan;
2. The foreclosing party has no valid lien on the property. This is one of the major defenses against foreclosure, as explained below;
3. There is fraud in the original loan transaction;
4. The amount the foreclosing party is claiming to be owed is incorrect;
5. The notice of default or notice of sale were not legally correct;
6. The scheduling of the sale was improper;
7. The posting or publication of the sale was defective; or
8. The way the sale will be conducted will be improper (for example, if the bidding parties are planning to conspire to bid so that the sale price of the property will be far lower than its value).