Pre-foreclosure timeframes in the State of California are as follows:

• You stop paying your mortgage for about two months
• The Bank files a NOD (Notice of Default) against your property and the clock begins to run
• 90 days after the bank files the NOD, the bank can then file a “Notice of Trustee’s Sale”
• 15 days after the bank files the “Notice of Trustee’s Sale”, the ability to redeem a property goes away
• 21 days after the bank files the “Notice of Trustee’s Sale”, the bank may sell your home at auction.

What we are seeing in practice is that the banks are not sticking to the 21 days to sale after filing the “Notice of Trustee’s Sale”, but are using an arbitrary number of 31 days.

Because the banks are so inundated with requests for short sales and loan modifications, the extra 10 days has been added most of the time to accommodate them. The sale date can be postponed by the bank and often is, if there is a short-sale in progress. Don’t become complacent just because a sale date has  been postponed. The bank filed the original “Notice of Trustee’s Sale” to keep the clock running and to have control of the process. At anytime the bank can move to force the sale.

Many sellers don’t realize they have options when their home enters the foreclosure process. They do have options and it is in their best interest to seek them, even when they are not sure, if they can be helped.