How to Stop Foreclosure in Michigan
Published by Dave Buys Lansing, October 2, 2026
To stop foreclosure in Michigan, act before the sheriff’s sale: call your mortgage servicer, send a complete loss mitigation application more than 37 days before the sale date if the house is your home, and talk to a free HUD-approved housing counselor about catching up, refinancing, selling, or bankruptcy. After the sale, Michigan law still gives you a redemption period, usually 6 months or 1 year, to buy the house back.
This guide from Dave Buys Lansing walks through each stage of a Michigan foreclosure, the deadlines written into the statutes, and where to get free help. It is general information, not legal advice. For advice on your own situation, talk to a housing counselor or a Michigan attorney.
How does foreclosure work in Michigan?
A Michigan lender can foreclose without going to court, through a foreclosure by advertisement under MCL 600.3204, when you are in default and the recorded mortgage contains a power of sale. The process runs on fixed notice periods, ends with a public auction called a sheriff’s sale, and is followed by a redemption period.
| Stage | What happens | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Missed payments | If the mortgage is on the home you live in, most servicers cannot make the first foreclosure notice or filing until the loan is more than 120 days delinquent. That federal rule does not cover a house that is not your main home, such as a rental or a vacant inherited house. | 12 CFR 1024.41(f);1024.30 |
| Notice of sale | The sale notice runs once a week for 4 weeks in a newspaper in your county, and a copy is posted on the house within 15 days of the first publication. | MCL 600.3208 |
| Sheriff's sale | The house is sold at a public auction, usually to the lender. The sale can be postponed; a delay of more than a week is published again. | Michigan Legal Help;MCL 600.3220 |
| Redemption period | You can still get the house back by paying the sale price plus interest and fees. It lasts 6 months if more than two-thirds of the original loan was owed when the notice ran, 1 year otherwise, and as little as 30 days to 1 month if the house is abandoned. | MCL 600.3240 |
| After redemption | If the house was not redeemed and you are still there, the sale buyer can file an eviction case. | Michigan Legal Help |
Put together, for a home you live in, roughly five months or more pass between the first missed payment and the sheriff’s sale (more than 120 days of delinquency, then 4 weeks of notice). Every option in the next section is easier to use in that window than after the sale.
How do you stop foreclosure once it starts?
You stop a Michigan foreclosure by curing the default or by getting your lender to agree to another outcome before the sheriff’s sale. These are the 7 paths, roughly in the order to try them. A free housing counselor can help you compare them.
- Apply to your servicer for help. Your servicer’s phone number is on your monthly statement. Ask about forbearance (a temporary pause or reduction in payments that you repay later, per the CFPB), a repayment plan, or a loan modification. If you send a complete loss mitigation application more than 37 days before the sale, and the house is your main home, federal rules require most servicers to decide it within 30 days, and the servicer may not conduct the sale while it is pending (12 CFR 1024.41). These federal protections do not cover a rental or other house you do not live in, and small servicers are exempt from most of them (12 CFR 1024.30).
- Talk to a free HUD-approved housing counselor. HUD funds free or low-cost counselors who can explain your options and negotiate with your lender for you. Call (800) 569-4287 or search the HUD counselor list. Michigan Legal Help puts it plainly: never pay a fee for help working with your lender.
- Catch up on what you owe. Paying the missed payments and fees during the notice period can stop the foreclosure. Ask your servicer for the exact amount in writing.
- Refinance. A new loan that pays off the old one also ends it, if you can qualify in time.
- Sell the house before the sale. The sale proceeds pay off the mortgage. Fannie Mae and Michigan Legal Help both list selling as a way to avoid foreclosure. More on this below.
- Ask about a short sale or a deed-in-lieu. Both need the lender’s agreement. In a short sale the house sells for less than you owe and the lender accepts the proceeds. In a deed-in-lieu you hand ownership to the lender to avoid foreclosure; the CFPB advises making sure it covers the entire amount you still owe.
- Talk to a bankruptcy attorney. Filing a bankruptcy petition triggers an automatic stay that stops acts to enforce a lien on your property (11 U.S.C. 362). If you had a case dismissed within the past year, the stay may last only 30 days, or may not start at all after two or more dismissed cases. It is a court case with its own rules, so get advice first.
If selling turns out to be the option that fits, Dave Buys Lansing can give you a cash number to compare against the others. Call 517-742-3769 or send us the address.
When is it too late to stop foreclosure in Michigan?
In Michigan it is not over until the redemption period ends. Before the sheriff’s sale, every option above is open. After the sale, you can still redeem the house, but only by paying the full sale price, not just the missed payments. Once redemption expires, the house belongs to the sale buyer.
- Before the sale: apply for help, catch up, refinance, sell, or file bankruptcy.
- During redemption: pay the amount bid at the sale, plus interest at your mortgage rate from the sale date, plus the sheriff’s fee, plus any property taxes, insurance premiums or association dues the buyer paid and filed an affidavit for, among other amounts (MCL 600.3240). The exact amount is in the affidavits filed with your county Register of Deeds, and the deadline is on the certificate of sale.
- After redemption: the buyer owns the house and can file to evict.
How long can you stay in your home after foreclosure in Michigan?
You can stay for the whole redemption period: 6 months or 1 year for most homes, and as little as 30 days to 1 month if the house is abandoned. According to Michigan Legal Help, you do not have to make mortgage payments during that time. The redemption periods come from MCL 600.3240.
- The sale buyer can inspect the house, with at least 72 hours’ notice.
- If the buyer finds damage, they must give you 7 days to fix it before filing an eviction case.
- If you decide to move out early, tell the buyer at least 10 days before you go.
- Some buyers offer “cash for keys”: money in exchange for leaving before redemption ends.
Can you sell a house in foreclosure in Michigan?
Yes. Michigan Legal Help lists selling your home as a way to avoid foreclosure during the notice period, and Fannie Mae lists it too: the proceeds pay off the mortgage, or part of it in a short sale if you owe more than the house is worth. Selling before the sheriff’s sale also keeps a foreclosure from being completed on the house.
A legitimate sale looks different from a foreclosure rescue scam:
- You sign a written purchase agreement, and you can have anyone review it first.
- The sale closes at a title company. Your mortgage payoff comes out of the price at closing, and any money left over is yours. The deed passes to the buyer at that closing, at the same moment your mortgage is paid off. Never sign your deed over to anyone outside a title-company closing.
- Nobody charges you a fee, asks you to rent the house back, or asks you to send them your mortgage payments.
Selling for cash is a trade, so compare it honestly with listing the house:
| Cash sale to Dave Buys Lansing | Listing with an agent | |
|---|---|---|
| Speed | An offer, usually within 4-6 hours; closing on your timeline, in as little as 10 days | Depends on finding a buyer and on that buyer’s financing |
| Repairs | None; sold as-is | Buyers and their lenders may ask for repairs |
| Commissions and fees | None | Usually an agent commission plus seller closing costs |
| Price | A fair cash offer for the house as-is | Set by what buyers will pay, if there is time to sell before the sheriff’s sale |
Before you decide, get your payoff figure from your servicer, ask a housing counselor, and get any offer in writing. If a cash sale fits, send the address and you will usually have a number within 4-6 hours. There is no obligation to accept it.
What about property tax foreclosure in Michigan?
Property tax foreclosure is a separate process run by the county treasurer, and it takes just over two years from the day unpaid taxes are turned over to the county to the last day to redeem. The Michigan Department of Treasury publishes the calendar:
| When | What happens |
|---|---|
| Year 1, March 1 | Last year's unpaid property taxes go to the county treasurer as delinquent. A 4% fee and 1% a month interest are added. |
| Year 2, March 1 | The property is forfeited to the county treasurer and a $175 title fee is added. |
| Year 3, March 31 | The circuit court has entered the judgment of foreclosure (by March 30). March 31 is the last day to redeem; then title passes to the county or the state. |
If your taxes are behind in Ingham, Eaton or Clinton county, call that county treasurer’s office for your exact payoff. Michigan’s housing help page also lists tax foreclosure legal assistance.
How do you spot a foreclosure rescue scam?
The Michigan Attorney General warns homeowners to avoid anyone who does any of these 8 things:
- Guarantees to stop the foreclosure, no matter what.
- Tells you not to contact your lender, your lawyer, or a housing counselor.
- Charges a fee before the work is done.
- Wants you to rent your house back from them and buy it back later.
- Asks you to send your mortgage payments to them instead of your lender.
- Asks you to sign your deed or title over to them.
- Offers to fill out your paperwork for you.
- Pressures you to sign papers you have not had a chance to read or do not understand.
Where can you get free foreclosure help in Michigan?
Free foreclosure help in Michigan comes from HUD-approved and MSHDA-certified housing counselors, the state’s housing help page, and legal aid. Start with these:
- HUD housing counselor line: (800) 569-4287 (TTY (800) 877-8339), or the HUD counselor search.
- Michigan foreclosure prevention resources: find a foreclosure prevention counselor, financial assistance, and the State Emergency Relief program.
- Michigan Legal Help: plain-language guides to the sheriff’s sale, redemption and eviction, and a guide to finding a lawyer.
- HUD’s tips for avoiding foreclosure, starting with: do not ignore the problem, and contact your lender as soon as you realize you have one.