To stop a foreclosure in Maryland, you have several tools: submit a loss mitigation application to your servicer, request state foreclosure mediation, reinstate the loan by paying what you owe, file for bankruptcy to trigger the automatic stay, or negotiate a short sale or deed in lieu to exit without a forced sale. Maryland requires lenders to go through court to foreclose, which builds time into the process and gives you more than one chance to intervene. Every option has a deadline attached, and the sooner you act after missing a payment, the more of them remain open.
How Much Time You Actually Have
Maryland law bars a foreclosure filing until the later of 90 days after your default or 45 days after the lender mails you a Notice of Intent to Foreclose.1Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Code Real Property 7-105.1 – Residential Property Foreclosure Procedures Federal servicing rules add another layer: your servicer cannot make the first foreclosure filing until you are more than 120 days delinquent.2eCFR. 12 CFR 1024.41 – Loss Mitigation Procedures Taken together, these rules give you roughly four months from your first missed payment before any court action can begin.
Once the lender files an Order to Docket in circuit court, the case moves toward a sale. Notice of the sale must be given between 10 and 30 days before it happens. That window is your last practical chance to use most of the options below, so figure out where you are in the sequence before you decide what to do next.
Return the Loss Mitigation Application
If you own and live in the home, your Notice of Intent to Foreclose will arrive with a loss mitigation application, instructions, a description of programs you may qualify for, and a prepaid envelope.1Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Code Real Property 7-105.1 – Residential Property Foreclosure Procedures This application is the single most important document in the packet. Fill it out and send it back as soon as you can.
Why it matters: federal law prohibits your servicer from moving for a foreclosure judgment or conducting a sale while a complete loss mitigation application is pending, as long as you submit it more than 37 days before a scheduled sale. The servicer must evaluate you for every available option, tell you the decision in writing, and give you time to appeal a denial.2eCFR. 12 CFR 1024.41 – Loss Mitigation Procedures This is called the dual tracking ban, and it is one of the strongest protections you have.
The word that does the work there is “complete.” If the servicer asks for a pay stub, a bank statement, or a hardship letter, send it the same week. An incomplete file does not trigger the ban.
Request Maryland Foreclosure Mediation
Maryland runs a foreclosure mediation program through the Office of Administrative Hearings. You sit down (often by phone or video) with your lender and a certified mediator who helps you negotiate an alternative to foreclosure. The mediator cannot order a result, but the session forces the lender to the table. Filing costs $50, and the court can waive the fee if you qualify.1Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Code Real Property 7-105.1 – Residential Property Foreclosure Procedures3Office of Administrative Hearings. Foreclosure Mediation
There are two ways in, and both have short windows:
Prefile Mediation
You can ask for mediation before the lender files anything in court. Submit the prefile mediation application that came with your Notice of Intent to Foreclose within 25 days of the date the notice was mailed.1Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Code Real Property 7-105.1 – Residential Property Foreclosure Procedures The hearings office must then schedule a session within 60 days, and the foreclosure cannot advance while mediation is pending.
Postfile Mediation
If the lender has already filed an Order to Docket, you still have 25 days to request mediation. The clock runs from either personal service of the foreclosure action (if the final loss mitigation affidavit was included) or the postmark on the envelope containing that affidavit if it was mailed later.4Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development. Foreclosure Mediation – Frequently Asked Questions Mark the date on the envelope the day it arrives. Miss the 25 days and mediation is off the table.
Reinstate or Pay Off Before the Sale
Maryland gives you the right to reinstate your mortgage any time up to one business day before the foreclosure sale by paying all past-due payments, penalties, and fees.5Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Code Real Property 7-105.1 – Residential Property Foreclosure Procedures Pay in full and the foreclosure ends. You can request the exact reinstatement figure from the lender or its foreclosure attorney at any time, and they must give it to you within a reasonable period.
This is the hard stop in the process. If a tax refund, a family loan, a retirement withdrawal, or a buyer’s deposit on another asset can cover what you owe, reinstatement is cleaner and faster than any workout.
Negotiate a Loan Modification, Forbearance, or Repayment Plan
Loss mitigation is the umbrella term for arrangements with your lender that keep the home. Which one you get depends on your income and how far behind you are.
A loan modification permanently changes the terms of your mortgage to lower the monthly payment. The lender might cut the interest rate, extend the loan term, or add past-due amounts to the balance and re-amortize. You apply with the loss mitigation application, plus proof of income, bank statements, and a hardship letter explaining what happened.
Forbearance pauses or reduces your payments for a set period while you recover from something short-term like a job loss or medical emergency. When it ends, you and the servicer agree how to repay the missed amount: a lump sum, a structured catch-up added to each future payment, or a modification that rolls it into the balance.
A repayment plan works similarly without the pause. You resume normal payments and the servicer adds a portion of the arrears to each one until you are current. It fits best when the delinquency is small and your income has stabilized.
Extra Options for FHA and VA Borrowers
Government-backed loans come with programs your servicer has to consider before foreclosing.
FHA-Insured Mortgages
FHA has a required loss mitigation waterfall. Beyond the standard workouts, you may qualify for a standalone partial claim, which moves your past-due balance into a separate, interest-free lien that you do not pay on until you sell, refinance, or pay off the first mortgage. A combination modification and partial claim restructures the payment while deferring a portion of principal. A payment supplement option uses a partial claim to temporarily lower your monthly payment for three years. Most of these require a successful trial payment plan first, and you can usually receive only one permanent FHA loss mitigation option every 24 months unless a presidentially declared disaster applies.6U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. FHA Loss Mitigation Program
VA-Guaranteed Loans
If your VA-guaranteed loan reaches 61 days past due, the VA automatically assigns a loan technician to your case. You can also call 877-827-3702 to reach one directly. VA options include repayment plans, special forbearance, and loan modification, and the VA can negotiate with your servicer on your behalf. One warning: pursuing a VA short sale or deed in lieu may reduce your future VA home loan benefit.7Veterans Affairs. VA Help To Avoid Foreclosure
File Bankruptcy to Stop a Scheduled Sale
Bankruptcy is the emergency tool. The moment you file, the federal automatic stay halts all collection activity, including a foreclosure sale set for the next day.8Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 USC 362 – Automatic Stay Which chapter you file determines whether that pause is a reset or just a delay.
Chapter 13
Chapter 13 is built for homeowners with steady income who need time to catch up. It lets you propose a three-to-five-year repayment plan that cures your mortgage arrears while you resume regular payments going forward, and the lender must accept a plan that meets the legal requirements.9Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 USC 1322 – Contents of Plan You can file Chapter 13 even after a sale is scheduled, as long as the sale has not happened yet. The requirement is income enough to cover the regular mortgage payment, the arrears spread across the plan, and your other living expenses. A Chapter 13 filing stays on your credit report for up to seven years.
Chapter 7
Chapter 7 also triggers the automatic stay, but it gives you no mechanism to cure missed mortgage payments. You get breathing room, usually a few months, while the case proceeds. If you cannot resume paying and clear the arrears through another route in that window, the lender can ask the court to lift the stay and keep foreclosing. A Chapter 7 stays on your credit report for up to ten years. It fits best when you need time to arrange a short sale or finish a negotiation, not when the goal is long-term retention.
When Keeping the Home Isn’t Realistic
If the numbers do not work, two options let you exit on better terms than a completed foreclosure.
A short sale is a sale for less than you owe, with the lender’s approval. You find a buyer, submit the offer, and the lender agrees to accept the proceeds as partial satisfaction of the debt. Negotiations can take months because the lender must sign off on every offer. The credit damage is typically less than a foreclosure.
A deed in lieu of foreclosure is a voluntary transfer of title to the lender in exchange for release from the mortgage. Lenders usually only accept one when other options have been exhausted and no junior liens sit on the property. FHA borrowers who use a deed in lieu may receive a release from all obligations under the mortgage.6U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. FHA Loss Mitigation Program
With either exit, insist on written confirmation that the lender waives any remaining balance. Without that waiver, Maryland law lets the lender file a motion for a deficiency judgment for the shortfall, with up to three years from the ratification of the auditor’s report after sale to do it.10New York Codes, Rules and Regulations. Maryland Code Real Property 7-105.17 – Motion for Deficiency Judgment Losing the home and still owing tens of thousands is the outcome a written waiver prevents.
Watch Out for Foreclosure Rescue Scams
Default filings are public, and scammers watch them. Expect calls, letters, and door knocks from people promising to save your home. Federal law bans any company from charging upfront fees for mortgage assistance or foreclosure relief services. If someone wants money before delivering a result, that is a violation.
Warning signs include anyone guaranteeing they can stop your foreclosure, instructions to stop talking to your lender or route your payments to a third party, pressure to sign over your deed, requests to sign documents you have not read, and unsolicited offers of a “forensic loan audit” that will supposedly force a modification. No legitimate service charges in advance, and no audit guarantees a modification.
Where to Get Free Help
HUD-approved housing counseling agencies provide free or low-cost help understanding your options, filling out loss mitigation applications, and communicating with your servicer. Find a local agency through the HUD counselor directory.11U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Housing Counseling Services Your Notice of Intent to Foreclose itself recommends counseling and lists resources.
A foreclosure defense attorney can check whether the lender followed Maryland and federal procedure, represent you in mediation, file exceptions to a sale, handle a bankruptcy, and negotiate a deficiency waiver. Maryland Legal Aid and local pro bono programs may be available if private counsel is out of reach. The call to make first is the one you make soonest.