Facing Foreclosure · Allentown, PA

Selling a House Facing Foreclosure in Allentown

A foreclosure notice on an Allentown rowhome can feel like a countdown, and the first step is to read what the lender sent. In Pennsylvania, the Act 91 notice tells you about help from the state housing agency and starts a 33-day window to apply. Lehigh County then runs sheriff sales out of the courthouse on West Hamilton Street. You may have more room to act than the paperwork suggests.

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Modest New Jersey split-level during a mortgage foreclosure

Our cash offer is for the house as it stands: no repairs and no agent commission. An offer arrives within 24 hours, and closing can take 14 to 30 days or happen on your date. If you owe less than the house is worth, selling before the auction may protect your equity. Call a housing counselor or attorney first and keep every deadline in view.

What’s different in Allentown

How a Lehigh County sale runs

The county says sheriff sales are usually held on the fourth Friday of the month at 10:00 a.m. in the Lehigh County Courthouse, 455 West Hamilton Street. Sales are advertised in the Morning Call and the Lehigh Law Journal on three consecutive Fridays beforehand. The winning bidder must put down 10 percent of the bid right away. Look for your address on the monthly list and write down the date, the docket number and the plaintiff's attorney. Look for your address on the monthly list as soon as it is published. If you are on it, call the plaintiff's attorney the same day and ask whether a postponement is possible, then confirm anything agreed in a letter from that office.

Act 91 and free counseling

PHFA says a borrower who applies within 33 days of the Act 91 notice date stops the lender from further action while the application is handled. The house must be owner-occupied, and the delinquency must come from circumstances beyond your control. Free counseling is available to Pennsylvania residents at 1.855.827.3466. After the counseling meeting you have 30 days to submit the application, and PHFA then has up to 60 days to decide. Do not wait until the end of the 33 days to call a counselor. The 30-day submission window starts only after you meet, so each week of delay shortens the time you have to put the application together and get PHFA's decision.

A court program that may pause the case

PHFA also describes a Residential Mortgage Diversion Program that can stay foreclosure on an owner-occupied home while borrower and lender try to reinstate the loan. Its page does not say which counties take part now, so ask your attorney whether Lehigh County does. PHFA lists 1-800-635-4747 for questions. Pennsylvania Legal Aid Network also publishes a foreclosure prevention guide for homeowners. Ask a legal aid office or attorney about the diversion program before you assume it is closed to you. A page that does not name counties is not saying that yours is excluded, and the answer may change what you do next.

Checklist before you sell

  • The Act 91 notice, complaint and every letter from the lender or its attorney
  • The docket number, the plaintiff's name and attorney, and the sale date if one is set
  • A written payoff figure with a line-by-line breakdown
  • Your last two or three mortgage statements
  • Tax and utility bills for the property
  • Proof of who owns the house and who lives in it
  • Contact details for a housing counselor or foreclosure attorney

How Kaizen can help

Send us the address and the date on the sale notice. We review the house as it stands and quote cash with no repairs on your side. Then you can set that number against your payoff and decide whether a sale or a workout leaves you better off. Selling beats an auction only when the numbers work, so see them first.

A signed contract does not stop a sheriff sale. Only the plaintiff's attorney or the court can postpone or cancel it, and you should get that in writing. If the title work allows, we can pick a closing date that leaves room before the sale. Call or text Kaizen Home Buyers at 267-329-0084.

Facing Foreclosure in Allentown: questions

Can I sell my house after the foreclosure starts?

Often yes, if the sale closes and the lender is paid before the sheriff sale happens. Ask your attorney and the title company how the payoff is requested and how to document it.

What does 10 percent down at the sale mean for me?

The county says the high bidder deposits 10 percent immediately. That describes the buyer's duty, not yours, but it shows how quickly a sale moves once the gavel falls.

Is Act 91 help a grant?

PHFA describes it as the Homeowner's Emergency Mortgage Assistance Program, and you apply for it through a counselor. Ask the counselor how repayment works before you rely on it.

Who can stop the sale?

The plaintiff's attorney or the court, not a buyer and not the sheriff on their own. If you reach a deal with the lender, ask that attorney to confirm it in writing.

Keep reading

We buy houses in AllentownFacing Foreclosure: full guideHow to Sell an Inherited House in Lehigh County (Probate Guide)Facing Foreclosure in Lehigh County, PA: Options Before a Sheriff SaleSelling an Inherited House in AllentownSelling a Tired Rental Property in AllentownSelling a House in Probate in AllentownFacing Foreclosure on a Philadelphia Home: Your OptionsFacing Foreclosure in Upper Darby: Your OptionsFacing Foreclosure in Chester, PA: Your OptionsFacing Foreclosure in Norristown: Your OptionsFacing Foreclosure in Abington Township: Your OptionsFacing Foreclosure in Plymouth Meeting: Your Options

Sources

General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm details with the office or a professional.

  1. Foreclosure: Act 91 Notice and HEMAP (Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency, undated page)
  2. Explanation of Real Estate Sales in Lehigh County (Lehigh County, PA, current page, not dated)
  3. Kaizen process steps (Kaizen Home Buyers, 2026-10-23)
  4. For many struggling mortgage borrowers with home equity, selling their home could be an alternative to foreclosure (Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, undated)
  5. Residential Mortgage Diversion Program (Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency, 2026-10)
  6. Preventing Mortgage Foreclosure (Pennsylvania Legal Aid Network (PALawHELP), reviewed 2026-08-26)

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