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Behind on the mortgage

Behind on your mortgage in Detroit?

Falling behind on a mortgage is scary, but in Michigan there's more time and more options than most people think. Here's how foreclosure works, how to keep your home if you can, and when selling makes sense.

How mortgage foreclosure works in Michigan

Most Michigan home foreclosures happen without a court case, under a set timeline. As the Michigan State Housing Development Authority (MSHDA) describes it:

  1. The first weeks: after a missed payment, the lender or servicer has to contact you about your options to catch up.
  2. Around day 45: you get a single point of contact and a written notice of the options.
  3. Day 45 to about day 121: the window to work out a modification, payment plan or other fix with your lender.
  4. After that: a sheriff's sale date is published in a county newspaper for four weeks, and a notice is posted on the house.
  5. Sheriff's sale: then a redemption period, most often six months (twelve if you owe less than two-thirds of the original loan).

During the redemption period you can still live in the house, and you can sell it or buy it back. You must keep it maintained and insured and allow the buyer from the sheriff's sale to inspect it. When the period ends, you lose the house.

Selling protects your equity

If the house is worth more than you owe, selling before the sheriff's sale, or during the redemption period, lets the title company pay off the loan at closing so you keep the rest. Waiting until the redemption period runs out can cost you all of it.

If you owe more than the house is worth, the lender has to approve the sale (a short sale). Tell us what you owe and we'll tell you straight whether we can help, and who to call if we can't.

How it works with us

  1. Tell us the address and roughly what's owed. We'll tell you honestly whether a cash sale makes sense.
  2. If it does, we send a written cash offer showing the payoff and what you'd walk away with.
  3. A licensed title company pays your lender at closing and pays you the rest.
Avoid foreclosure "rescue" scams. Never pay anyone up front to stop a foreclosure, and never sign your deed over to someone who says they'll fix it. A real sale happens only at a licensed title company, where the lender is paid and you get any money due to you. That's how we work.

If you want to keep it

  • Call your servicer and ask: "What are my options, and what do I qualify for?"
  • Get free help from a MSHDA-approved housing counselor. They negotiate with lenders every day and don't charge you.

This page is general information, not legal advice. The foreclosure timeline comes from MSHDA's published Stages of Foreclosure; your loan documents and servicer have the exact dates.

Quick answers

Can I sell my house during the redemption period in Michigan?

Yes. During the redemption period after a sheriff's sale you can still live in the house and sell it or buy it back, as long as you keep it maintained and allow inspections.

How long is the redemption period after a sheriff's sale in Michigan?

Most often six months. It's twelve months if the amount owed at the sale is less than two-thirds of the original loan, according to MSHDA.

Other situations we buy in: Inherited houses · Behind on property taxes · Rentals with tenants · Fire-damaged houses · Blight tickets & code violations · Divorce · Vacant houses