Foreclosure is a legal process in which a person who has made a mortgage (or executed trust deeds) in order to borrow money loses his or her rights to the mortgaged property (usually their home).

When a home owner fails to make the monthly mortgage payment on his or her house, resulting in a default, a lender will initiate foreclosure on the home in order to sell it and recover the money owed by the loan.

When property goes into foreclosure state law typically dictates the foreclosure process. In California and most other states properties are secured by lenders by a deed of trust.

In New York, loans for real property are secured through mortgages rather than through deeds of trust. New York belongs to a minority of states, including Florida, Connecticut, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, South Carolina, Maine, Louisiana, and North Dakota, known as judicial foreclosure states. Generally, foreclosure proceeding in judicial foreclosure states must go through a court process before a property may be sold at public auction. On average it takes 12 to 18 months for a foreclosure proceeding to move through the courts in a judicial foreclosure state. Altenatively, "trust states" may proceed through foreclosure without involvement of a court in as few as approximately 100 days.

Due to the complexity of foreclosure laws you should consult a qualified legal professional for answers to all legal questions. Local Bar associations typically have a list of local attorneys experienced in the field of law concerning real estate and foreclosures.