Alaska Foreclosure Information
When you develop a definite plan of action with well-timed, well-informed steps, you can
stop the foreclosure process and save your home. We have outlined the foreclose process
for the state of Alaska.
Judicial Foreclosure Available: Yes
Non-judicial Foreclosure Available: Yes
Alaska offers two ways to borrow money against real estate: a true mortgage, and a deed
of trust. The true mortgage may be foreclosed in Superior Court, according to the rules
of equity. The deed of trust names the trustee who will oversee the foreclosure sale by
recording and posting a notice of sale and arranging an auction to the highest bidder. Alaska
law provides a procedure to appoint a substitute trustee by recording a proper notice of
the appointment.
Preferred Method of Foreclosure: Non-judicial deed of trust sale.
Non judicial Power of Sale Foreclosure
The deed of trust must be foreclosed according to its own terms, provided those terms are
consistent with the minimum protections of Alaska’s laws.
Preliminary Notices
Recording
Not less than 30 days after the default and not less than three months before the sale,
the trust will record notice of default stating the name of the borrower and the book and
page where the trust deed is recorded. It must describe the property, the borrower’s default,
the amount the borrower owes, and the trustee’s desire to sell. It must give the date, time
and place of the sale.
Mailing
Within ten days after recording the notice of default, the trustee must mail a copy of
the same by certified mail to the last known address of (1) the borrower, and (2) any person
whose claim or lien on the property appears of record or is known to the lender or trustee
and (3) any occupant. The trustee may have the notice delivered personally instead of sending
it by certified mail.
Reinstatement Rights
Any time before the sale, the borrower may cure the default and stop the sale by paying
a sum equal to the missed payments plus attorney’s fees. The lender may not require the
borrower to pay off the entire remaining principal balance of the loan to cure the default;
just the missed payments and attorney’s fees. If the lender has recorded a notice of default
two or more times, then the Alaska statutes provide that the lender can refuse to accept
the borrower’s monies for the missed payments and attorney’s fees and proceed with the foreclosure
sale instead.
Sale Procedures
Place of Sale
The front door of the Superior Court for the judicial district where the
property is located, unless the deed of trust specifies another location.
Manner of Sale
The trustee can conduct the auction or bring in an auctioneer to call out
the sale.
Postponement
The trustee can postpone the sale by giving the person who conducts the
sale a signed and written postponement request moving the foreclosure to a different time
and place, which must be publicly announced at the time and place originally fixed for the
sale.
Terms
The trustee must sell to the highest and best bidder. The lender may bid
at auction. The trustee’s deed must give the book and page where both the original deed
of trust and the default notice were recorded. It must state the notice of default was properly
mailed. It must give the time, place and manner in which the foreclosure sale was conducted,
and the amount paid for the property at foreclosure. After the sale, the trustee must record
an affidavit that the notice of default was properly mailed.
Redemption
If the lender forecloses by means of an out-of-court foreclosure sale under
a deed of trust, then the borrower has the right to redeem the property. However, the borrower
does not have the right to redeem if the sale was the result of a lawsuit and a court order
commanding the sale.
Deficiency
Judicial foreclosure permits a deficiency suit. However, if the lender forecloses
through an out-of-court foreclosure sale under the deed of trust, then the lender may not
sue for a deficiency judgment afterward.
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