In North Dakota the sale is not the end: 60 days to buy it back.
A lender must sue in district court, and before it can it must serve a notice giving you 30 days to catch up. After judgment the sheriff sells, and then you keep the home for a 60-day redemption period during which you can buy it back for the amount bid plus interest. On a home you occupy as a homestead the lender cannot get a deficiency judgment.
Not sure what date to put in? Tell us which paper you were sent and we will work the timeline out backwards from it.
Each is a different statute.
When you first fell behind.
Local pace is the variable.
Past steps fade out.
FHA and VA add steps.
A tenant gets 90 days under federal law.
Five dates decide a North Dakota case. Thirty days from the notice before foreclosure, the chance to reinstate. Twenty-one days after you are served, the deadline to answer. The sheriff’s sale, advertised three weeks. Sixty days after the sale, the last day to redeem. And the sheriff’s deed, which cannot come until those 60 days run out.
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Make the call.
Call your mortgage servicer (the number is on your statement) before the next payment is due, or today if you are already behind. Servicers have programs for people who lose a job, get sick or hit a rough patch, but they only start when you ask. A foreclosure costs them money too.
“I’ve had a hardship and I want to keep my home. Please send me a loss mitigation application and tell me every option for my loan.” If your loan is FHA, VA or USDA, ask about that program’s options by name.
Your latest mortgage statement, recent pay stubs or unemployment letter, two months of bank statements, last year’s tax return, and a short hardship letter. Expect a lot of paperwork. Send all of it, because a complete application is what protects you.
Date, time, who you spoke to and what they said. Keep copies and proof of when you sent your papers. A complete application more than 37 days before a sale stops that sale while they decide.
Don’t want to call alone? A free HUD-approved counselor will help: 1-800-569-4287. And if the home is ever sold at auction, ask about surplus funds: money left over after the debt is paid can belong to you, but you usually have to claim it.
What North Dakota gives you
Rights that exist because the property is in North Dakota, whatever a servicer tells you on the phone.
Where to get real help, free
Regional legal aid programs take foreclosure cases at no cost if you qualify by income. Start at LawHelp.org, which lists free legal aid programs state by state.
HUD-approved housing counselors are free in every state — 1-800-569-4287. Some states, courts and counties run foreclosure mediation or counseling programs; ask your servicer or a HUD-approved counselor whether yours does.
Anyone who contacts you first, guarantees they can stop the sale for a fee paid up front, or asks you to sign the deed over is running a scam. Never sign a deed to someone promising to save your home.
Checked against the statutes cited beside each step. Every legal claim on this page is registered with its citation and was checked against official sources and then reviewed again by an independent checker. Dates marked as estimates are estimates. Appellate case law was not independently verified, and laws change, so have a North Dakota foreclosure attorney confirm anything that matters before you act.
Questions people ask about North Dakota foreclosure
Short answers, each one sourced to the statute cited on this page.
How long does foreclosure take in North Dakota?
With no delays or disputes, a North Dakota foreclosure runs roughly 246 days from the first missed payment to the sheriff sale. The lender must serve a notice before foreclosure at least 30 and not more than 90 days before the case starts (N.D.C.C. 32-19-20), and the sheriff's sale is advertised once a week for three successive weeks, the last notice at least 10 days before the sale (N.D.C.C. 28-23-04, 32-19-08).
Can I catch up on my mortgage in North Dakota?
Yes. If you perform the conditions on which the default occurred within 30 days from service of the notice before foreclosure, the mortgage is reinstated as though no default had occurred. N.D.C.C. 32-19-28.
How long is the North Dakota redemption period?
60 days after the sheriff sale for a home, by paying the amount bid plus interest at the mortgage rate. Agricultural land gets 365 days after the summons and complaint are filed with the clerk. N.D.C.C. 32-19-18.
Can a North Dakota lender come after me for the shortfall?
Not on your home. A deficiency judgment is barred on a residential property of four units or fewer that you occupy. N.D.C.C. 32-19-03 and 32-19-06.
How long before North Dakota can take my home for unpaid property taxes?
Once two or more years have passed since a tax came due, the county auditor serves a notice of foreclosure of tax lien by June 1, and you can redeem by paying the taxes, penalties, interest and costs before October 1. After that the auditor issues a tax deed to the county. N.D.C.C. 57-28-01 and 57-28-09.
Last verified: October 18, 2026. Every deadline and citation on this page was checked against North Dakota law and the federal rules it cites. Laws change during the year, so if something here looks out of date or wrong, tell us and we will check it against the law.