New Hampshire Foreclosure Laws

Foreclosure laws in New Hampshire follow non-judicial procedure with a typical foreclosure timeline of 60 days. In cases where a loan document does not contain a Power of Sale provision, a judicial foreclosure applies. However, this type of foreclosure rarely happens in New Hampshire. If it does, a strict foreclosure process is followed.

Non-Judicial New Hampshire Foreclosure Info

New Hampshire foreclosure is accomplished through out-of-court method because mortgage agreements contain a Power of Sale clause. This provision which is signed by the borrowers authorizes the lenders to pursue a foreclosure on a property in cases where borrowers or homeowners fail to meet the terms of the agreement. This will serve as collateral in the event that the homeowner defaults on his or her payments.

To commence an out-of-court foreclosure, the lender should issue a Notice of Default to the borrower. This Notice should specify the default amount owed by the borrower. Also included in the Notice is the 30-day grace period which is allotted to the borrower to pay off debt. If the borrower fails to pay off the debt in that given period of time, the lender may schedule the date of the foreclosure sale on property in question. The borrower can still stop the foreclosure procedure up until the day of the auction by providing a full payment plus any applicable interests or costs.

Under New Hampshire foreclosure laws, an after-sale statutory right of redemption is not permitted. A foreclosure sale is absolute; hence, borrowers whose property has been foreclosed cannot reclaim ownership.

New Hampshire foreclosure laws permits lenders to exercise their right to file for deficiency judgment in the instance that the property was sold for less than the amount of the mortgage loan. When deficiency action is approved, this means that the borrower must pay the lender for the difference between the amount of the property sold for at the auction and the amount of the original loan.

The foreclosure sale or public auction is supervised by the either a licensed auctioneer or the lender’s attorney. The auctioneer sets the opening bid at 70% to 85% of the property’s market value. The highest bidder claims right of ownership of the property bought at the sale.

Notice of Sale New Hampshire

Before a foreclosure sale occurs, a Notice of Sale is necessary and must be published weekly in a local newspaper for 3 weeks. Also, the Notice must be mailed to the borrower or homeowner at least 26 days prior to the day of the auction. The Notice should contain date, time, and place of auction; property description; and other pertinent information.