Georgia Foreclosure Laws

Foreclosure Laws in Georgia

Georgia allows for both judicial foreclosures and non judicial foreclosures. Non-judicial foreclosures, which are more common, can take less than two months to complete in Georgia.

Depending on the presence of a Power of Sale clause in the mortgage in question, the foreclosure process in Georgia may or may not require judicial proceedings. If the mortgage does not carry a Power of Sale clause entitling the lender to pursue a foreclosure themselves, then the lender must file a petition with the local court to begin a foreclosure outlining the default details and the amount owed. The homeowner has 30 days to respond to this notice, and if they do not, the court will rule in favor of the lender and schedule a foreclosure sale of the property.

Since Power of Sale clauses are very common in Georgia, most foreclosures are handled out of court. In this case, the lender simply schedules a foreclosure sale in the event of a homeowner default. While Georgia foreclosure law does not require the lender to notify the homeowner before starting a foreclosure, some mortgages may stipulate that this is necessary.

If the homeowner can find foreclosures help or pay off their default debts plus an interest and additional costs, in many cases they can avoid foreclosures and halt any sale scheduled. However, Georgia foreclosure law does not guarantee this. However, the homeowner can legally halt all proceedings by paying off the total loan debt owed at any point before a sale occurs.

The lender must publish a Notice of Sale containing all pertinent information and details of the property and sale in a local newspaper once a week for four consecutive weeks leading up to the foreclosure sale.

The foreclosure sale is run as a public auction, usually by a trustee of the lender, and takes place between the hours of 10 am and 4 pm on the first Tuesday of every month at the county courthouse. The winning bidder must provide full payment of their bid to the trustee immediately following the conclusion of the sale. If a sale is cancelled or needs to be postponed, the entire process must be started from the beginning before another sale of Georgia foreclosure homes can take place.

After the sale concludes, it is subject to confirmation by the court. If no one contests the validity of the sale within 5 days of its conclusion, and the sale price is deemed sufficient to satisfy the value of the property, the court will approve the sale and ownership of the property will be transferred to the winning bidder.

The original homeowner retains no right to redemption under Georgia law once a sale is concluded.