If you’re behind on your mortgage in Maryland, you have more time and more options than it may feel like right now. State law requires a notice of intent before the lender can file, gives owner-occupants the right to request mediation, and lets you catch up and reinstate the loan until one business day before a foreclosure sale. You can also sell the house yourself at any point before the sale, which is often the best way to protect your equity.
The first call to make is to a free, HUD-approved housing counselor. If selling turns out to be part of your plan, we’re here for that too. A home value request tells you whether you have equity, and our seller page explains how we work.
This is general information, not legal advice. Talk to a housing counselor or a Maryland attorney about your situation. DHCD’s foreclosure page lists legal services groups around the state.
The Maryland timeline
Here’s how the process works for an owner-occupied home under Real Property § 7-105.1 (checked October 2026). These are the minimums the law sets. Real cases often take longer.
| Step | What the law says |
|---|---|
| Default | The lender can’t file until at least 90 days after a default. |
| Notice of intent to foreclose | Sent at least 45 days before filing, by certified and first-class mail, with a copy to the state’s Commissioner of Financial Regulation. |
| Filing | The lender files in circuit court. You’re served with a final loss mitigation affidavit, which starts the mediation clock. |
| Mediation request | You have 25 days after you’re served with the final loss mitigation affidavit to request mediation. |
| Mediation | Held by the Office of Administrative Hearings, generally within 60 days. |
| Sale notice | The sale is advertised in a local newspaper once a week for 3 weeks, the first ad at least 15 days before the sale. |
| Earliest sale | If you requested mediation, no sooner than 15 days after it’s held. |
| Right to cure | You can pay what’s past due, with fees, and reinstate the loan up to 1 business day before the sale. |
The two dates that matter most to you: the 25-day mediation deadline and the sale date. Write them down the day you get each notice.
Free help: housing counselors and mediation
Maryland’s Department of Housing and Community Development keeps a foreclosure prevention page with free resources (checked October 2026):
- If your mortgage payment is late: 877-462-7555
- Maryland HOPE hotline: 1-800-569-4287
- National HOPE hotline, free counseling 24/7: 1-888-995-4673
- Maryland 211: dial 211
DHCD says counseling is free and recommends starting with a HUD-approved housing counselor, who can explain your options and talk to your lender. The same page lists legal services groups around the state.
Mediation is your formal chance to sit down with the lender. To request it for an owner-occupied home, you file the request with the court within 25 days after you’re served with the final loss mitigation affidavit, along with a $50 fee. The statute lets the court reduce or waive the fee. DHCD puts it plainly: “Do not wait. If you miss the 25-day window, you will not get another chance for mediation.”
Loan modification and forbearance
If you want to keep the house and your income can support a payment, these are the main tools:
- Loan modification changes the loan’s terms, such as the rate, the length or adding the past-due amount to the balance, to get to a payment you can afford.
- Forbearance pauses or lowers payments for a set period, usually after a temporary hardship like a job loss or medical problem. The skipped amount still has to be repaid later.
- Repayment plan spreads the past-due amount over several months on top of your regular payment.
Your lender will want a hardship letter, income documents and bank statements. A housing counselor can help put the package together and follow up, which is often where these applications stall.
Selling before the sale date
If keeping the house isn’t realistic, selling it yourself almost always beats letting it go to a foreclosure sale. You own the house until the sale, so you can list it, take an offer and close. At settlement, the mortgage, the arrears and the lender’s fees are paid off, and anything left is yours.
Things that help:
- Know your numbers first. Get a payoff statement from the lender and a realistic value. If the value is comfortably above the payoff, you have equity to protect.
- Tell the lender you’re selling. Send them a signed listing agreement, and later the signed contract. Ask whether they’ll postpone a sale date for a pending closing. It’s their call, so don’t count on it.
- Price to sell. Time is the constraint. A house priced right with a clean, short contract does more for you than a high price that sits.
- Consider as-is. If repairs aren’t possible, our as-is selling guide explains what you still have to disclose.
If a cash buyer approaches you, compare their number with a listing price before you sign anything. Our post on cash offers vs listing walks through how.
Short sale
If you owe more than the house will sell for, a short sale lets you sell for less than the payoff with the lender’s approval. The lender takes the sale proceeds and releases its lien.
What to expect:
- Lender approval is required, and lenders can take a while to decide. Start early.
- The lender will want a hardship letter, financial documents, the purchase contract and a settlement estimate.
- Ask about the remaining balance. Get in writing whether the lender is waiving the difference between what you owe and what it receives. If it doesn’t, it may be able to pursue you for it.
- Ask a CPA about taxes. Forgiven mortgage debt can have tax consequences.
A short sale also lets you control the timing instead of waiting on a sale date. For how buyers approach these purchases, see our guide to HUD homes, foreclosures and short sales.
Scams to avoid: foreclosure “rescue” rules
People facing foreclosure get a lot of letters, calls and door knocks. Some are legitimate. Some aren’t.
DHCD’s warning signs are worth repeating word for word. Be wary of anyone who:
- Requires upfront fees for foreclosure help
- Asks you to sign over your deed or transfer ownership of your home
- Wants mortgage payments sent somewhere other than your lender
- Promises to “save” your home or guarantees to stop foreclosure
Maryland law also adds protections when someone buys a home that’s in default. Under Real Property § 7-310:
- You can cancel a contract to sell or transfer a home in default within 5 days after you sign it.
- The buyer can’t record the deed during those 5 days.
- The sale generally can’t be done with a quitclaim deed.
- Your right to cancel can’t be made conditional on paying anything back.
If something feels wrong, report it. DHCD lists the Commissioner of Financial Regulation at 1-888-784-0136 and the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division at 410-576-6550.
What to do this week
If you’ve just fallen behind or just received a notice, these steps help no matter which way you go:
- Open every letter from your lender and the court, and write down every date in it.
- Call a HUD-approved housing counselor through one of the hotlines above. It’s free.
- Gather your paperwork: recent pay stubs or income records, two months of bank statements, your mortgage statement and a short letter explaining what happened.
- Call your lender’s loss mitigation department and ask what options they offer. Write down who you spoke with and when.
- Find out what the house is worth and what you owe, so you know whether selling is a real option.
- Don’t sign anything from a stranger offering to save your home until a counselor or attorney has looked at it.
Bottom line
Foreclosure in Maryland follows a set of steps with real deadlines, and you have rights at each one: notice before filing, mediation if you ask within 25 days, and the right to reinstate until the day before the sale. Call a free housing counselor first. If selling is the right answer, start early, since every week gives you more choices and protects more of your equity. When you’re ready to look at that option, ask us for a home value, and we’ll go at whatever pace your situation needs.
Sources
- Maryland Code, Real Property § 7-105.1 (foreclosure of residential property), checked October 2026
- Maryland Code, Real Property § 7-310 (protections for homeowners in default), checked October 2026
- Maryland DHCD, Foreclosure Prevention, checked October 2026