Oklahoma Foreclosure Laws

Oklahoma foreclosure laws allow for both judicial and non-judicial foreclosure proceedings, although judicial foreclosures are more typical. Most foreclosures take between six and seven months to complete.

Pre-Foreclosure

If a mortgage or deed of trust has a power of sale clause, the lender can seek a non-judicial foreclosure. However, Oklahoma foreclosure laws place many restrictions on non-judicial foreclosures, so most lenders do not choose this process, even where a mortgage may allow it.

Most Oklahoma foreclosures are judicial, meaning they are administered via the court system. To start this foreclosure process, the lender must send warning letters to the debtor, as outlined in the deed of trust or mortgage. Then, the lender must file a claim in court against the debtor for the default amount. The debtor must be given a written notice of this legal action either via mail or in person. Once the debtor has been correctly notified, he or she has twenty days to reply to the court action. If the debtor decides not to reply or if the court judges in favor of the lender, a foreclosure auction of the property is scheduled.

The Foreclosure Auction in Oklahoma

Before the auction can take place, the notice of sale must be published. The notice is first recorded and then published daily in a local newspaper for four weeks. The first time the notice appears in the newspaper must be at least a month before the auction.

At the foreclosure auction, the opening bid must be at least two thirds of the fair market value of the property (as determined by appraisal). If the property has not been appraised, there is no minimum bid set before the start of the auction. The county sheriff conducts the sale. If the sale must be canceled, the foreclosure process must begin anew.

Once the winning bidder has been established at the auction, the sale must be confirmed by the court. This can take about two weeks. Until the sale is confirmed, the debtor can still redeem the property. Once the sale has been confirmed by the court, the debtor loses this right.