West Virginia Foreclosure Laws

West Virginia foreclosure laws permit both non-judicial and judicial foreclosure processes. However, non-judicial foreclosures are the most common foreclosures in the state.

Starting the Foreclosure Process in West Virginia

Before starting non-judicial foreclosure, the lender must send a letter to the debtor, alerting the debtor of the possible foreclosure proceedings. The letter gives the debtor instructions on repaying the default amount and stopping foreclosure. The debtor usually has ten days to repay the default amount and avoid foreclosure. However, if the debtor has received letters notifying him or her of default at least three times, simply paying off the default amount may not be adequate. In these cases, the lender may request the full balance of the loan to stop foreclosure. This is known as accelerating the loan. At any point before the foreclosure auction, the debtor can pay the balance on the loan as well as any incurred costs to stop the foreclosure.

The Foreclosure Auction in West Virginia

If the default is not resolve, the lender will schedule a public foreclosure sale. For a non-judicial foreclosure, the lender must publish a notice of sale in a local newspaper once weekly for two weeks. However, some mortgages or deeds of trust require four weeks of publication in a local newspaper. At least twenty days before the auction date, the notice must be mailed to lien holders and to the debtor.

The foreclosure auctions are open to the public and the opening bid is generally at least two thirds or three fourths of the fair market value of the property. The winning bidder is granted a trustee deed and ownership is transferred and recorded within thirty days of the auction. Some lenders may offer a redemption period, but West Virginia foreclosure laws make no provisions for a mandatory redemption period. The IRS may be a lien holder and has a 120 day redemption period on foreclosure property sold at auction in West Virginia.