Foreclosure attorneys glossary
Short, plain-English definitions of the terms you'll meet when choosing a Foreclosure Attorney provider in Hempstead Metro.
- What is a CEMA (Consolidation, Extension and Modification Agreement)?
- A CEMA is a New York mortgage document that combines multiple loans or restates loan terms into a single instrument, typically used in refinancing and modification scenarios to minimize mortgage recording taxes.
- What is a CPLR 3408 settlement conference?
- A CPLR 3408 settlement conference is a mandatory pre-trial mediation in New York foreclosure cases involving owner-occupied homes, where the homeowner, lender, and court-appointed mediator meet to negotiate potential resolutions including loan modification.
- What is a cramdown?
- A cramdown is a Chapter 13 bankruptcy provision that allows a debtor to reduce a secured debt (typically a second mortgage or junior lien) to the current fair market value of the collateral property.
- What is a deficiency judgment?
- A deficiency judgment is a court order requiring a borrower to pay the difference between the home's foreclosure sale price and the remaining mortgage balance owed to the lender.
- What is a forbearance agreement?
- A forbearance agreement is a contract between a borrower and lender allowing the borrower to pause or reduce mortgage payments for a set period during financial difficulty, with the missed payments typically due at the end of the forbearance term.
- What is a judgment of foreclosure and sale?
- A court order issued at the conclusion of a judicial foreclosure case that authorizes the sale of the property at public auction and specifies the total debt amount, costs, and attorney fees owed by the borrower.
- What is a lis pendens?
- A lis pendens is a notice of pending litigation filed in the county clerk's office that indicates a foreclosure action has been commenced against a property in New York, placing a cloud on the title.
- What is a notice of default?
- A formal notice from a mortgage servicer declaring that a borrower has failed to make required payments and is in breach of the mortgage agreement, usually requiring the delinquent amount plus fees to be paid within a specified cure period.
- What is a referee's deed?
- A referee's deed is the legal instrument by which a court-appointed referee transfers property title to the highest bidder following a foreclosure auction sale.
- What is a referee's report of sale?
- A formal document prepared by a court-appointed referee after a foreclosure auction that records the final sale price, expenses incurred, and how proceeds are distributed among mortgage lenders, tax authorities, and other creditors.
- What is a RPAPL 1304 notice?
- A RPAPL 1304 notice is the 90-day pre-foreclosure warning that New York lenders must send homeowners before initiating a foreclosure action, which must disclose the borrower's rights and available loss mitigation options.
- What is a statute of limitations on foreclosure?
- New York law sets a six-year deadline for a lender to file a foreclosure action from the date a mortgage payment becomes due; failure to file within this period allows borrowers to raise the statute of limitations as an affirmative defense.
- What is a surplus money proceeding?
- A surplus money proceeding is a court action filed to recover and distribute funds remaining after a foreclosure sale when the sale price exceeds the total debt, costs, and liens owed on the property.
- What is an acceleration clause?
- An acceleration clause is a mortgage provision that allows a lender to demand immediate repayment of the entire loan balance if the borrower defaults on payments or violates other loan terms.
- What is an adversary proceeding?
- An adversary proceeding is a formal lawsuit filed within a bankruptcy case to resolve specific disputes, such as challenging a creditor's claim, determining the validity of a lien, or recovering property for the bankruptcy estate.
- What is an automatic stay?
- An automatic stay is a federal court order that immediately stops foreclosure proceedings, collection calls, wage garnishment, and most other creditor actions once a bankruptcy petition is filed.
- What is an escrow shortage?
- An escrow shortage is a deficit in a mortgage escrow account when the funds collected fall short of the amount needed to pay property taxes and homeowners insurance.
- What is an upset price?
- An upset price is the minimum acceptable bid amount set by the court before a foreclosure auction begins, below which the property cannot be sold.
- What is force-placed insurance?
- Force-placed insurance is a policy that a mortgage servicer buys and bills to a borrower when the borrower's homeowner's insurance policy lapses or is cancelled, protecting the lender's collateral interest in the property.
- What is MERS (Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems)?
- MERS is a centralized electronic system that records and tracks changes in mortgage ownership when loans are bought and sold between lenders and servicers.
- What is robo-signing?
- Robo-signing is the practice of signing or certifying foreclosure documents in bulk without actually reviewing them for accuracy or legal compliance.
- What is standing in foreclosure litigation?
- Standing in foreclosure is the legal requirement that a plaintiff prove it owns or holds the note before it has the right to sue for foreclosure; lack of standing is a common defense.
- What is the Foreclosure Abuse Prevention Act?
- The Foreclosure Abuse Prevention Act (FAPA) is a 2022 New York law that restricts when lenders can accelerate loans in foreclosure and closes statutory limitations gaps that previously allowed lenders to restart the clock on claims.
- What is the right of redemption?
- The right of redemption is a homeowner's legal ability to pay off the full foreclosure debt and stop the sale before a judgment or foreclosure auction occurs; New York generally does not allow post-sale redemption.