Connecticut Foreclosure Law

Connecticut foreclosure law is only applied to mortgage contracts (not deeds of trust), and only follows the judicial process. This means that the lender always has to go to court before he or she can foreclose. The average wait time is 60 days, although this can vary from one case to another.

Judicial foreclosure in Connecticut can be carried out in two ways: strict foreclosure or a decree of sale.

Strict foreclosure
In a strict foreclosure, the lender takes the case to court and requests a court order stating that the borrower has defaulted on the loan. If the court approves, the title is simply transferred to the lender instead of an actual foreclosure sale.

However, the lender doesn’t immediately gain absolute ownership of the home. After the transfer, the borrower is given a short time frame within which he can bring the mortgage current and redeem the property. If the deadline isn’t met, the lender gains complete possession of the home and the borrower can no longer redeem it.

Once the title is transferred, the lender must file a Certificate of Foreclosure within 30 days. The certificate must include a description of the home and details on the mortgage, title and date of transfer, and the foreclosure proceedings.

Decree of sale
In a decree of sale, the court declares the time and terms of the sale and appoints a foreclosure committee to carry it out. They also assign three appraisers to evaluate the property and determine its fair market value.

The borrower can pay the balance owed at any time during the foreclosure. If he fails to cure the default, the committee will proceed with the sale. The lender can also file a deficiency suit, or make a personal claim against the borrower to pay off the balance not covered by the foreclosure sale.

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