Right to contact, a notice of default, and at least 3 months before a sale notice
Cal. Civ. Code § 2924(a)(2)–(3)
In plain words
Before a notice of default is recorded, the servicer must contact you (or try hard to) to talk about options, then wait 30 days. After the notice of default is recorded, at least three months must pass before a notice of sale can be given. The notice of sale must then be mailed, posted and published at least 20 days before the sale.
Who is protected
California homeowners facing a nonjudicial (trustee) foreclosure.
When it applies
- Only in California.
- Only while you are behind but have no foreclosure notice yet, after a notice of default or once a sale date is set.
What you can do
Put the deadline on your calendar
Write down the recording date on the notice of default and the sale date on any notice of sale.
Deadline: 3 months after the notice of default is recorded; the sale can be no sooner than 20 days after the notice of sale
Open the toolAsk in writing
If no one contacted you before the notice of default, write to the servicer asking how it met Civil Code § 2923.5 and request a loss-mitigation review.
Open the toolRead the California guide
Our California page explains the whole process step by step, with its sources and free local help.
Open the tool
Honest limits
- These are minimum waiting periods; they do not stop a sale by themselves once they have run.
- The pre-notice contact rule applies to loans on owner-occupied homes of 1–4 units and has exceptions.
- This is general education, not legal advice. Laws change and details depend on your papers and your court; check the current law or ask a lawyer or legal aid.
The law
- State lawNotice of default and three-month wait
Cal. Civ. Code § 2924(a)(2)–(3)
Exact part: (a)(2)–(3)
What it says: At least three months must pass after the notice of default is filed before the notice of sale.
Read the official texthttps://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=CIV§ionNum=2924 - State lawContact before a notice of default
Cal. Civ. Code § 2923.5(a)(1)–(2)
Exact part: (a)(1)–(2)
What it says: No notice of default until 30 days after the servicer contacts you, or makes diligent efforts to, about options.
Read the official texthttps://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=CIV§ionNum=2923.5 - State lawNotice of sale: 20 days, posting and publication
Cal. Civ. Code § 2924f
What it says: The notice of sale must be posted and published starting at least 20 days before the sale.
Read the official texthttps://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=CIV§ionNum=2924f
Court cases
- Homeowner wonSame topicYvanova v. New Century Mortgage Corp.
Yvanova v. New Century Mortg. Corp., 62 Cal. 4th 919 (2016)
a borrower may bring a post-sale wrongful-foreclosure claim by alleging that the assignment to the foreclosing party was void
- Homeowner lostSame topicBoren v. U.S. National Bank Ass'n
Boren v. U.S. Nat'l Bank Ass'n, 807 F.3d 99 (5th Cir. 2015)
a lender may abandon a prior acceleration by giving notice that it seeks less than the full accelerated balance, which restarts the four-year limitations period
- Homeowner lostSame topicMartins v. BAC Home Loans Servicing, L.P.
Martins v. BAC Home Loans Servicing, L.P., 722 F.3d 249 (5th Cir. 2013)
a mortgage servicer acting for a properly assigned mortgagee may foreclose in Texas without possessing the original note, and an oral promise to modify a large loan is not enforceable
- Partial winSame topicReinagel v. Deutsche Bank National Trust Co.
Reinagel v. Deutsche Bank Nat'l Tr. Co., 735 F.3d 220 (5th Cir. 2013)
a Texas borrower may challenge an assignment of the loan on any ground that renders it void, though not on grounds that make it merely voidable
- Partial winSame topicGlaski v. Bank of America
Glaski v. Bank of Am., 218 Cal. App. 4th 1079 (2013)
a borrower may challenge an assignment of the loan that is void, including a late transfer into a securitized trust
- Partial winSame topicCulhane v. Aurora Loan Services
Culhane v. Aurora Loan Servs., 708 F.3d 282 (1st Cir. 2013)
a mortgagor may contest the validity of a MERS assignment to the foreclosing entity, although the MERS framework itself is lawful
Related rights
Right to catch up (reinstate) until 5 business days before the sale
Cal. Civ. Code § 2924c(e)
In California you can stop a trustee sale by paying the past-due amount plus allowed fees and costs. You do not have to pay off the whole loan. The right starts when the notice of default is recorded and lasts until five business days before the sale date. If the sale is postponed more than five business days, the right comes back.
Read this rightRight to ask a court to stop a sale for Homeowner Bill of Rights violations
Cal. Civ. Code § 2924.12(a)(1)–(2), (b)
Most California foreclosures happen outside court, but you can sue to stop one. Before the trustee’s deed is recorded, a borrower may ask a court for an injunction for a material violation of key Homeowner Bill of Rights rules, such as dual tracking. The sale stays stopped until the court finds the violation was fixed. After the sale, you may be able to seek damages instead.
Read this rightThe right to be heard in court, and to speak for yourself
U.S. Const. amend. XIV, § 1Due Process Clause
Due process means that before the government, through a court, takes your property, you must get a meaningful chance to be heard. In federal court, you have a legal right to present your own case without a lawyer. Most state courts also let people represent themselves, under state rules.
Read this rightThe right to real notice before the government takes or sells your home
U.S. Const. amend. XIV, § 1Due Process Clause
Before a state or county sells your property — for example at a tax sale, or through a court foreclosure — the Constitution requires notice that is reasonably likely to actually reach you. If the government knows your address, publishing a notice in the newspaper is not enough. If a mailed notice comes back unclaimed, the government must take extra reasonable steps to reach you, if it practicably can.
Read this rightThe automatic stay: filing bankruptcy pauses most collection
11 U.S.C. § 362(a)
When a bankruptcy case is filed, an "automatic stay" goes into effect right away. It generally stops lawsuits, foreclosure steps, and other collection against you and your property, without anyone needing to ask a judge. Creditors who knowingly violate it can owe damages.
Read this rightChapter 13: catch up on missed mortgage payments over time
11 U.S.C. § 1322(b)(5)
In a Chapter 13 bankruptcy, a plan can let you catch up on missed mortgage payments over a reasonable time (often 3 to 5 years) while you keep paying the regular monthly payment. For your main home, you can use this cure until the home is sold at a foreclosure sale held under state law.
Read this right