All Forum Posts by: Zachary Handshoe

 Here is the difference: The article you point to is talking about mortgages. Mortgages are usually used on the east coast. A mortgage requires a lawsuit in order to foreclose. The lawsuit is filed in the county that the property is situated in. It goes through the legal process to a court hearing. The judge then determines if the conditions were met for a foreclosure. 

On the west coast and in TX, Deeds of Trust are most common. A Deed of Trust gives the lender permission to sell the property if you default, without a court hearing. There is no need to go to court to get a judge's approval. The process in most Deed of Trust states is to issue a Notice of Default., which is not recorded, and which gets sent to the borrower via certified mail and another copy is taped to the door of the property. It gives notice and allows 30 days (or more) to "cure" the default. Then, if the allotted time passes without the loan being "cured", a Foreclosure Notice is recorded, mailed and posted indicating a date in the future that a sale will take place if the loan isn't paid off. The borrower still owns the property at this stage and can sell. If the loan isn't paid off in the allotted time, an Auction occurs.

There are a lot more details of course, and it is very regulated, and it varies by state. Generally, if you are chasing foreclosures on the west coast, you are looking for a Foreclosure filing on a Deed of Trust. The NOD is not filed.

Texas has it's own way of doing things. I have property in Texas. And the counties take privacy more seriously than some other places. The county websites I used to access in Texas no longer allow me to see information I used to see.

What you want to do is contact a local title company and ask their marketing department if they provide a list of properties that have received a Notice of Default. If they charge anything it won't be more than a couple of hundred $$$. 

Foreclosures are done at the county level. Each county has their own process determined by state law. Since you don't mention the state and county, it's impossible to tell specifics, but generally: Notice of Defaults aren't recorded. They are a private document between lender & borrower. If the demand in the NOD is not met, the lender has the option to start a foreclosure. Foreclosures may show up as recorded documents. Foreclosures are mostly on hold at this point because of a foreclosure moratorium (as of July 2021). At some point, it is likely the moratorium will be dropped and then you start seeing foreclosures again. Some states have laws against targeting foreclosures.