Finding Foreclosure Help in Massachusetts

Finding Foreclosure Help in Massachusetts

Foreclosure prevention counseling services are provided free of charge by nonprofit housing counseling agencies working in partnership with the Federal Government. These agencies are funded, in part, by HUD and NeighborWorks® America. There is no need to pay a private company for these services.

Boston Regional Office

Thomas P. O’Neill, Jr. Federal Building
10 Causeway Street, 3rd Floor
Boston, MA 02222-1092

Phone: (617) 994-8200

Fax: (617) 565-6558
TTY: (617) 565-5453

Jurisdiction: State of Massachusetts

Richard A. Walega

Regional Administrator

Office Hours: 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Monday through Friday

Massachusetts Foreclosure Laws Summary

Quick Facts:

Judicial foreclosure process is available.
Non-judicial foreclosure process is available.
The primary security instruments are mortgages and deeds of trust.
The timeline can vary by process, typically 90 days.
The borrower has no rights of redemption.
The lender may not sue for deficiency judgements.
Lenders in Massachusetts can use a non-judicial process or an entry by possession to foreclose on mortgages or deeds of trust in default.

Foreclosure by Possession
The lender may gain possession of the property if a borrower defaults in the mortgage. This is done by obtaining a court order and entering the property peaceably. If the lender remains in possession of the property after 3 years, he then becomes the permanent owner.

Non-Judicial Foreclosure
This process is used when a power of sale clause is present, which means that the borrower has agreed that the lender sell the property in the event of his default. The lender or his representative may sell the property by following the guidelines stated below.

Power of Sale Foreclosure Guidelines
Unless the terms of the sale are included in the power of sale clause, the foreclosure process must be carried out as follows:

A notice of sale must be recorded in the county where the property is located, and a copy must also be sent to the borrower at least 14 days before the date of sale. An ad announcing the sale must be published in the newspaper once a week for 3 weeks with the first ad published at least 21 days prior to the sale.

This notice of sale should contain the important information about the sale, which includes time and date of the foreclosure hearing, date of the mortgage, names of the parties involved, etc.

The sale is to be conducted at the time and place specified on the notice of sale, through a public auction where the property will be sold to the highest bidder.

The borrower has no rights of redemption.