Georgia Foreclosure Process
Georgia Foreclosure Process This entry was posted on 02/22/2006
01:04 PM and is filed under foreclosure.
The overwhelming majority of all foreclosures in Georgia are
accomplished by the use of the power of sale. This is a
non-judicial sale, wherein the lender declares default, follows
the statutory notice and sells the property on the courthouse
steps.
Breach letter The first step in enforce default, the lender must
1) make a written demand upon the borrower (mortgagor) setting
forth a breach and accelerating the debt (declaring the entire
debt due and payable immediately).
Notice of Sale Letter
The Lender must serve a notice on the homeowner 15 days prior to
the date of the sale. A notice of sale must be served on the
original mortgagor or current owner (if his identity has been
made known to or acknowledged by the lender) by certified mail,
return receipt requested. The notice must be sent to the
borrowers last known address, which is the address listed on the
Deed to Secure Debt or an address the borrower has subsequently
designated with notice by certified mail to the lender. It is
generally a best practice to provide notice by regular and
certified mail to all known addresses for every borrower. The
notice must be postmarked and provided to the defaulting
borrower no later than 15 days prior to the date of proposed
sale.
NEWSPAPER PUBLICATION
Prior to the sale taking place the lender must have published
the scheduled foreclosure sale in the legal organ (newspaper)
for the county in which the real property collateral is located
for four (4) consecutive weeks immediately preceding the first
Tuesday of the month (sale day). The notice of sale must contain
the date, time and place of sale along with a description of the
property, the names of the mortgagee and mortgagor and a
reference to the power of sale provision.
Foreclosure Sale
The foreclosure always occur on the first Tuesday in every month
on the courthouse steps of the particular county. Exceptions are
made for certain legal holidays that may fall on the first
Tuesday. The sale must be conducted between 10:00 a.m. and 4:00
p.m.. Sales are generally conducted by the foreclosing attorney,
and the foreclosing attorney is permitted to credit bid at the
sale on the lender's behalf.
Successful bidders are required to tender the full amount of
their bid in cash or certified funds immediately upon the
conclusion of the sale, except if foreclosing lender is the
successful bidder. Should a sale be postponed, terminated or
voided, the entire foreclosure process must be repeated. Once
the sale occurs, the foreclosing attorney prepares and issues to
the successful purchaser a Deed Under Power of Sale which gets
recorded in the land records of the particular county in which
the property is located. Once a sale is concluded on the
courthouse steps, there is no right to redeem given to the
defaulting borrower (mortgagor).
Motion To Confirm The Sale: The banks effort to make you pay a
deficiency judgment In situations where the foreclosure sale
does not produce enough cash to pay the loan balance in full
(after deducting expenses and accrued unpaid interest), the
lender may elect to obtain a personal judgment against the
borrower for the unpaid balance. This deficiency process in
Georgia is accomplished through confirmation of the foreclosure
sale. For the foreclosure sale to be confirmed an application
must be brought to the Superior Court in the county in which the
sale occurred within 30 days of the sale, otherwise the right to
pursue a deficiency is lost.
The Judge will generally examine how the sale was conducted to
determine whether the property was sold for its fair market
value. The lender must enter a minimum bid equal to at least the
fair market value of the property for the sale to be
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