Your situation
You're behind on the mortgage, and the letters have started.
You're not alone, and there's more time and more free help than the letters make it feel like.
Call a free housing counselor before you talk to any buyer. The HOPE Hotline is open 24 hours a day at 888-995-4673. We are not a foreclosure-prevention service and cannot stop a foreclosure.
HOPE Hotline 888-995-4673What's going on
The lender has to give you time to cure
For a principal residence of 1 to 4 units, the lender must give written notice and wait at least 90 days before accelerating the loan or enforcing the mortgage. The right to cure does not apply to investment properties or second homes.
The notice itself says you may sell
That notice tells you that you may sell the property before the foreclosure sale and use the proceeds to pay off the mortgage. If there is equity, selling lets you set the price and the timing instead of leaving both to an auction.
An auction has its own notice rules
The notice of sale is published once a week for 3 successive weeks, the first at least 21 days before the sale, and sent to the owner by registered mail at least 14 days before the sale. Write down every date on every letter.
Free things to do first
- Call the HOPE Hotline, 888-995-4673, any hour. Counselors are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
- Ask your servicer for a written payoff letter. It includes late fees, interest and legal costs, so it is more than your loan balance.
- Never pay an upfront fee to anyone who promises to stop a foreclosure, and never sign over your deed. Check with a counselor or an attorney first.
- If you are thinking about selling, compare a cash offer, an agent's opinion and what your counselor says. See the numbers before you decide.
A free tool for this
Net proceeds calculator
Put in a price and see what is left after commission, closing costs and the payoff.
Also usefulWhat is the house worth?
A free public-record estimate, so you know roughly how much equity is there before you talk to anyone.
Also usefulHow to compare cash offers
What to check in an offer so the closing date fits your real deadlines.
Want the long version with every step and source? The long version: the Massachusetts foreclosure timeline and free help.
Common questions
Can you stop my foreclosure?
No. We do not stop foreclosures, negotiate with lenders or give legal advice. A HUD-approved counselor and an attorney can tell you your real options, and counseling is often free.
Do you charge me anything?
No. We never charge homeowners and never ask for upfront money or your deed.
Sources and notes
Updated November 8, 2026. General information, not legal, tax or financial advice. No pressure and nothing to sign.
- MGL c.244 s.35A: 90-day right to cure “shall not accelerate maturity of the unpaid balance of such mortgage obligation ... until at least 90 days after the date a written notice is given by the mortgagee to the mortgagor”
- MGL c.244 s.35A: notice says you may sell before the sale “that the mortgagor may sell the property prior to the foreclosure sale and use the proceeds to pay off the mortgage”
- MGL c.244 s.14: notice of sale “notice of the sale has been published once in each of 3 successive weeks ... at least 14 days prior to the date of sale”
- Mass.gov Division of Banks: HOPE Hotline hours “Counselors on the HOPE Hotline are available 24 hours a day ... 7 days a week”
Other situations
You inherited a house, and you can't keep up with itThe city sent a code violation notice, and you don't know where to startYou're tired of being a landlord: the calls, the repairs, the turnoverThe house needs too much work to list, and you can't face fixing itYou're divorcing and need to sell the house, fast and fair
Want a number for your house?
When you're ready, put in the address. You get a ballpark right away, and an offer only if you ask for one. You can stop at any point.
We are not a real estate broker or agent. Home Options MA is an advertising and lead-generation service: the independent buyers and agents we connect you with may pay us flat advertising fees to be featured or to receive inquiries, and any listing of a business here is advertising, not a recommendation. We never take a share of a commission and are never paid based on whether a home sells. No obligation.