Judicial Foreclosure

The judicial process of foreclosure, which involves filing a lawsuit to obtain a court order to foreclose, is used when no power of sale is present in the mortgage or deed of trust. Generally, after the court declares a foreclosure, the property will be auctioned off to the highest bidder. However, there is a wait time between the date the suit was filed and the day the property is sold.

In Indiana, the date the mortgage was signed determines the length of time a lender must wait between filing the suit and proceeding with the foreclosure sale. The wait time is anywhere from three (3) to twelve (12) months, but the owner may file a waiver of the time limit, which allows the sale to proceed without delay. When this occurs, the lender loses the right to pursue a deficiency judgment.

The foreclosure sale process involves publishing an ad once a week for three weeks. The first ad must be run 30 days before the sale. At the time the first ad is run, each owner must be served with notice of the foreclosure sale by the sheriff. The sheriff conveys title by a deed given immediately after the sale. The owner may reside in the property, rent free, until the foreclosure sale, provided the owner is not committing waste, which means tearing up the property.