How to Find Out If the Home You Rent Is in Foreclosure
With foreclosures continuing to dominate the news, their impact on homeowners is well known. But there is another group of people, tenants, who stand to lose much if the home they rent is under foreclosure.
Your tenancy may be threatened if your landlord quits making his mortgage payments or if the house is seized for back taxes. As a tenant, your state conveys certain rights to you, but those rights could be trampled if you are not informed of a foreclosure. A recent federal law strengthens tenant rights, too.
In some states tenancy cannot be ended due to foreclosure. While you need to understand your rights, you need to find out if the home you rent has been foreclosed.
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Instructions
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Instructions
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Interpret telltale signs. Before a tenant-occupied home has been foreclosed, you may have received copies of notices from a mortgage company or taxing authority indicating something is amiss. Usually, these notices go directly to the landlord's home address or post office box, but a copy may have been sent to your address in error. It is a federal offense to open up other people's mail, but if the return address is from a bank, mortgage company, or tax assessor's office, then copy that information down and contact same to confirm foreclosure.
Other signs of possible foreclosure is neglect of the property. If maintenance or repairs fall behind schedule, then your landlord may no longer be responsible for the home. If you live in a multiple-dwelling home, some states require that emergency contact information be posted in a conspicuous place. If that information has recently been updated, then your home has changed ownership. But it may not reveal foreclosure, which means that you need to explore other options to uncover a change in ownership.
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Review legal notices. In the state of Massachusetts, lenders who foreclose on property are required to send a notice to tenants declaring same within 30 days of foreclosure. Other states have similar rules, while some states offer no such requirement. If you receive a notice, it should include new contact and rental payment instructions.
Your local newspaper publishes legal notices including bank action regarding property. Review these notices with an eye toward discovering your home's foreclosure.
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Check public records. Whenever property is sold, that information becomes a matter of public record. A foreclosure is the sale of a home; therefore that information is recorded by the tax assessor and by your county's register of deeds.
Some counties post tax data online, while others make this information available to anyone during regular office hours. Plan a visit to your nearest office and ask for the property record for your address. You may be able to obtain a photocopy of same; otherwise be prepared to write down current ownership details. Follow up with a phone call to confirm change of ownership.
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Tips & Warnings
Your rights as a tenant under foreclosure can be jeopardized. A 2009 federal law has extended tenant rights to keep leases from being wiped out in foreclosure.
Contact a housing counselor to learn about your rights, including legal notices and eviction procedures.
