In Connecticut, lenders may foreclose on a mortgage in default by using the judicial foreclosure process.
Judicial Foreclosure
The judicial foreclosure process in Connecticut is carried out by either strict foreclosure or a decree of sale.
With strict foreclosure, no actual foreclosure sale is held. Instead, the lender goes to court to try and obtain a court order demonstrating the borrower is in default of the mortgage. If successful, the title transfers to the lender immediately.
However, the court sets an established amount of time in which the borrower may redeem the property, but if they fail to do so, the title becomes absolute to the lender and the borrower has no longer has any claim to the property. The lender then has thirty (30) days to record a certificate of foreclosure, which must contain a description of the property, the foreclosure proceedings, the mortgage and the date the title became absolute.
With a decree of sale, the court: 1) establishes the time and manner of the sale; 2) appoints a committee to sell the property; and 3) appoints three appraisers to determine the value of the property.
The borrower may stop the foreclosure proceedings at any time before the sale by paying the balance due on the mortgage. If no such payment is made, the committee will go forward with the sale.
The lender may sue to obtain a deficiency judgment in Connecticut.
