Serving Detroit, Michigan and homeowners across OhioWritten cash offers · No repairs · No commissions

Behind on taxes or payments? You have options.

If keeping the house is realistic, we'll point you to the free help that can make it happen. If it isn't, selling before the auction lets you keep your equity instead of losing it.

  • Written offer, no obligation
  • No repairs, no commissions
  • Closed by a licensed title company
Get an offer on your house
  1. 1Property
  2. 2Contact
  3. 3The house
  4. 4Situation

Check your house's cash value

Start with the address. Four quick steps, about two minutes.

Free and no obligation. We never sell your information. Prefer to talk? (954) 854-0549

FastClose on the date you pick, not a buyer's lender's schedule.
SafeA licensed title company handles the paperwork and the money.
FairA written offer with the math shown, so you can check it.
$0Agent commissions
0Repairs or cleaning
1Walk-through, that's it
100%Written offer, math shown

Can I sell my house if it's in foreclosure?

Usually yes, as long as you still own it. In Michigan you can sell until the tax foreclosure redemption deadline, or before a mortgage sheriff's sale and during the redemption period after it. In Ohio you can generally sell until the court confirms the sheriff sale. The sale pays off what you owe through the title company, and anything left over is yours. At an auction, that equity is often lost.

Two-story red brick house in Detroit after a snowfall
Hands holding a stack of hundred-dollar bills
Sound familiar?

Where people usually are when they call

  • A Wayne County tax notice

    Two or three years of unpaid property taxes, and a deadline circled on the letter.

  • Missed mortgage payments

    A lost job, a medical bill or a divorce, and now the lender's letters are certified mail.

  • A sheriff sale date

    The auction is scheduled, and it feels too late to do anything.

  • Too embarrassed to ask

    You haven't told family. You want someone who'll just explain the options.

  • Repairs on top of it all

    Even if you catch up, the house needs work you can't afford.

What we do

What we do, in order

  • First, we ask if you want to keep it

    If you do, we'll point you to the payment plans, programs and counselors below before we talk about buying.

  • We check what's owed

    Taxes, mortgage and liens, pulled from the title, so the offer reflects real numbers and leaves you with your equity.

  • We move at the speed of your deadline

    When a redemption date or auction is close, we work with the title company to close before it if the title allows.

  • Everything in writing

    You see exactly what gets paid off at closing and what comes to you.

Before you sell

What to know first

Free help to try first in Detroit

If you want to keep the house, call these before you sell to anyone:

  • Behind on taxes specifically? See selling with back property taxes. Behind on the mortgage? See what happens at 30 to 120 days late.
  • Wayne County Treasurer: payment plans for delinquent property taxes, and the current redemption deadline.
  • Pay As You Stay (PAYS): can reduce delinquent taxes for Detroit homeowners who qualify for the city's poverty tax exemption.
  • HOPE exemption: Detroit's property tax poverty exemption, which can lower or eliminate current taxes for qualifying owners.
  • United Community Housing Coalition (UCHC): a Detroit nonprofit that helps homeowners facing tax foreclosure.
  • A HUD-approved housing counselor: free help with mortgage delinquency, in Michigan and Ohio.

If none of those work, or you'd rather move on, a sale before the deadline is how you keep what the house is worth above what's owed.

How the timelines work

Michigan property taxes: unpaid taxes are turned over to the county, and after a set period the county forecloses. Wayne County has generally set March 31 as the final day to redeem, but confirm the current date with the Treasurer.

Michigan mortgages: most foreclose without going to court, by advertisement and a sheriff's sale. A redemption period follows the sale, commonly six months for a typical home, and you can still sell during it.

Ohio mortgages: foreclosure goes through the courts, and you can generally sell until the court confirms the sheriff sale. More on Ohio sheriff sales.

What if I owe more than the house is worth?

Then a cash sale alone can't pay everything off, and we'll tell you so up front. The usual paths are a short sale, where the lender agrees to accept less than the full balance, or a deed in lieu of foreclosure. Both need the lender's approval and can have tax and credit consequences.

A HUD-approved counselor or a foreclosure attorney can walk you through which fits your situation.

Sell, wait for the auction, or catch up?

Sell before auctionLet it go to auctionCatch up and keep it
Your equityPaid to you at closingOften little or none leftYou keep the house
Control of timingYou pick the dateSet by the county or courtDepends on the plan
Credit impactAvoids a completed foreclosureA completed foreclosureDepends on missed payments
Repairs neededNoneNoneStill yours to fix
Best whenYou can't or don't want to keep itNever the best option if you have equityYou can afford it going forward
Two people shaking hands outdoors
A straight deal

Everything in writing. Nothing hidden.

You see the offer, the math behind it and every line on the closing statement before you sign. If something doesn't make sense, we walk you through it.

How it works

Four steps, and you decide at every one

  1. Tell us about the house

    Fill in the short form or call. It takes two minutes, and we'll ask what's going on with the property.

  2. One walk-through

    We see the house once, as it is. Don't clean it, and don't fix anything first.

  3. Written offer

    You get the offer in writing, with the math behind it. Take your time, and ask anyone you trust to look it over.

  4. Close on your date

    We close through a licensed title company. You pick the day, and you leave behind whatever you don't want.

Keep reading

Other situations

Where we buy

Before you decide

Questions about foreclosure

Can I sell my house if it's in tax foreclosure in Wayne County?

Yes, as long as you still own it and the redemption deadline hasn't passed. Back taxes are paid from the sale at closing.

Is it too late if a sheriff sale is scheduled?

Often not. In Michigan you can sell before the sale or during the redemption period after it. In Ohio you can generally sell until the court confirms the sale. Call as early as you can.

Will selling stop the foreclosure?

Yes. When the sale closes, the title company pays off the debt behind the foreclosure, and the case ends.

Should I try to keep the house first?

If you want to keep it, yes. Call the Wayne County Treasurer, a HUD-approved counselor or, in Detroit, the United Community Housing Coalition before you sell.

What if I owe more than it's worth?

A cash sale alone won't cover it. A short sale or deed in lieu needs your lender's approval, and a counselor or attorney can help you choose.

Reviewed by the House Rescue Capital team. Last updated .

Let's find the easiest way forward.

Start with your address. A written cash offer, no repairs, no pressure, and you decide at every step.

Check my cash offer