International Foreclosure

Australia and New Zealand: Foreclosures are generally referred to as Mortgagee sales or Mortgagee auctions. In those cases, the bank or lender ("Mortgagee") forces the borrower ("Mortgagor") to sell under the terms of the loan contract. In both of these countries statutory reform has altered the manner in which real property dealings are conducted. Common law mortgages, in which the mortgagor hands the property title documents to the mortgagee, do not exist and what is termed a "mortgage" is a charge that is registered against the title of the property. Since in both countries, the Torrens title system of land registration is used, being registered as proprietor or as a mortgagee creates an indefeasible interest (unless the acquisition of the registration was by fraud). The mortgagee therefore never holds any title documents, has no equity of redemption to worry about and there is a statutory process for initiating and conducting a mortgagee sale in the event that the mortgagor defaults. In New Zealand, the land title database in now electronic so there are no "title documents."

United Kingdom: Foreclosure is a little used remedy which vests the property in the mortgagee with the mortgagor having no right to any surplus from the sale. Because this remedy can be harsh, courts almost never allow it. Instead, they will usually grant an order for possession and an order for sale, which mitigates some of the harshness of the repossession by allowing the sale.

Switzerland: Foreclosure takes place as a form of debt enforcement proceedings under Swiss insolvency law.
People's Republic of China: Foreclosure takes place as a form of debt enforcement proceedings under strict judicial foreclosure, which is only allowed by law of guarantee and law of property right.

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Brian Serpone can be reached in the Harwich office of Today Real Estate at 508-568-8104.