You are seriously behind on a New York mortgage
At 90 days or more the file has usually left ordinary collections. Nothing has been decided, but the steps ahead are defined ones, and knowing them tells you how much room you have.
A 90-day statutory notice must come before a case
New York foreclosures go through court
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You are in the pre-foreclosure
stage, not the foreclosure.
The distinction is not cosmetic. Before a New York foreclosure case exists there are required steps, and each of them takes time you can use.
New York is a judicial foreclosure state. A lender cannot take a home here through a private sale or an administrative process. It has to file a lawsuit, serve you, and get a judgment from a court, and every one of those things is visible and contestable.
Before it can even start, a home loan requires a statutory 90-day pre-foreclosure notice, and federal servicing rules generally bar a first foreclosure filing before a borrower is more than 120 days delinquent. That is the ground you are standing on right now.
This is the widest set of options you will have
Reinstatement, loss mitigation and a normal sale are all ordinary transactions at this stage. After a case is filed they become harder and more expensive.
What has to happen
Between here and a courtroom.
None of these steps is automatic and none of them happens overnight. They are also the points at which a mistake by a servicer becomes visible.
- 01
A notice of default under the mortgage
Most New York mortgages require a letter identifying the default, what will cure it, and a date not less than 30 days out by which to cure, before the balance can be accelerated.
A servicer letter, not a court paper
- 02
The statutory 90-day notice
For a home loan, New York requires a pre-foreclosure notice sent by certified or registered mail and separately by first-class mail, with prescribed language and a list of at least five housing counseling agencies.
No case may be commenced for at least 90 days
- 03
A filing with the state
Within three business days of mailing that notice, the lender must file information about you and the loan with the Superintendent of Financial Services.
How the state tracks foreclosure activity
- 04
Only then, a summons and complaint
A foreclosure case begins when you are served with court papers. That is the point at which a deadline starts running against you.
20 or 30 days to answer, depending on service
What is open now
Four routes worth pricing before a case is filed.
- 01
Reinstatement
Paying the arrears, late charges and advances to bring the loan current. Ask your servicer in writing for a reinstatement quote with a date it is good through, because the number moves.
- 02
A loss-mitigation review
A repayment plan, forbearance, deferral or modification, depending on who owns the loan. Only the lender or servicer can approve one, and a complete application matters more than a persuasive phone call.
- 03
Selling on ordinary terms
If there is equity, a normal sale before a case is filed is far simpler than one after a notice of pendency lands on the property record. It is worth pricing honestly rather than dismissing.
- 04
Getting the file reviewed
What the servicer says you owe, how the notices were sent, and who holds the note are all checkable now. Problems found early are worth more than problems found late.
In detail
Things worth knowing at this stage.
Serious delinquency attracts attention, some of it useful and some of it not. These are the parts that repeatedly catch New York homeowners out.
Get the numbers in writing
Ask your servicer, in writing, for a reinstatement quote and a payoff quote, each with a good-through date. Ask for a full transaction history on the loan as well.
Compare that history against your own records. Misapplied payments, fees you were never told about, and escrow shortfalls that were never explained are all common, and they are much easier to argue about before a judgment fixes an amount.
The 90-day notice is a document to keep
When it arrives, keep the notice, the envelope and any certified mail receipt together. Compliance with the notice statute is a condition the lender has to satisfy before commencing a foreclosure action, and courts have treated it strictly.
This is not a plan. It is a reason not to throw mail away.
How long this stage usually lasts
There is no fixed period. Some files move to a case within months of the 90-day notice. Others sit for a year or more, particularly where a loss-mitigation review is running.
Do not read a quiet stretch as a decision. Servicing transfers, internal reviews and backlogs all produce silence, and the file usually reappears.
Who starts contacting you
Pre-foreclosure activity generates mail. Some of it is from people offering to buy the house, take over payments, or stop the foreclosure for an up-front fee.
New York regulates distressed property consultants and sale-leaseback deals because of what has happened to homeowners in exactly your position. Free HUD-approved counseling exists. Have any written offer reviewed by someone with no stake in it before you sign.
A short list for this week
- Request a reinstatement quote, a payoff quote and a full loan transaction history, in writing
- Ask what loss-mitigation options your loan allows and what a complete application requires
- Put every notice and envelope you have received in one folder
- Call a HUD-approved housing counseling agency
- Have the file reviewed by an attorney before a case is filed rather than after
This page describes general New York foreclosure procedure. It is not legal advice, and procedure has exceptions, county practice and case law that no general page can apply to an individual situation. NewYorkForeclosureHelp.com is not a law firm, a lender, or a government agency. If a deadline, court date, or sale date is approaching, speak with an attorney promptly.
Common questions
At 90 days and beyond.
How long before they file a foreclosure case?
There is no fixed answer. A home loan in New York requires a statutory 90-day notice before a case may be commenced, and federal rules generally bar a first foreclosure filing before a borrower is more than 120 days delinquent. After that it depends on the servicer and the file.
Can I still get a modification this late?
It can still be requested and is commonly requested at this stage. Only the lender or servicer can approve one, and nobody can promise it. Making the application complete is the part you control.
Should I keep making partial payments?
Ask in writing how they will be applied before sending them. Some servicers hold partial payments in suspense rather than applying them to the loan, which can leave you worse off than you expect.
Is bankruptcy the answer?
It is one of several possibilities and it is a significant step with wide consequences. Whether it fits depends on your income, your other debts and your goal for the property. It is a question for a lawyer who has looked at your whole position.
Do I have to talk to the servicer?
You are not obliged to take collection calls. You are generally better off engaging in writing, because it produces a record. If the calls are abusive or the debt is disputed, raise that with an attorney.
Statutes and sources behind this guide
- F4: RPAPL § 1304 requires a 90-day pre-foreclosure notice for a home loan. The action may not be commenced until at least 90 days after the notice is given. (RPAPL § 1304), read 2026-09-09
- F8: RPAPL § 1306 requires the lender/servicer/assignee to file borrower and loan information electronically with the Superintendent of Financial Services within three business days of mailing the § 1304 notice. (RPAPL § 1306), read 2026-09-09
- F7: Strict compliance with § 1304 is a condition precedent to commencing the action; failure results in dismissal of the complaint., read 2026-09-09
- F1: New York is a judicial foreclosure state: a lender must foreclose through the courts. (Strategy blueprint; RPAPL Article 13), read 2026-09-09
- F31: Only the lender or servicer can approve a loan modification. No attorney can promise one. (Strategy blueprint (positioning); `app/src/lib/legal.ts`), read 2026-09-09
Statutory claims on this page were checked against published New York law and court guidance on 2026-09-09 and are recorded, fact by fact, in the site's evidence file. Statutes change; the date is the date of the check.
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