Fazzio Law Offices, LLC · Union County, NJ
Union County Foreclosure Defense Attorneys
When your home is at risk, the next step matters. We represent Union County homeowners facing mortgage default, foreclosure litigation, and sheriff’s sale concerns.
Your home. Your options.
A strategy grounded in your situation.
A loss of income, an illness, or an unexpected expense can disrupt a mortgage that once felt manageable. We help Union County homeowners make sense of lender notices and court filings while keeping their longer-term goals in view.
Our review connects the legal record with the financial facts: income, claimed arrears, other liens, and the documents a servicer may require. We explain the available paths so you can make informed decisions about keeping the property or planning an orderly transition.
Meet Fazzio Law Offices →How we can help
Legal defense and practical mortgage solutions.
Foreclosure defense
Review the plaintiff’s claims, loan records, notices, and potential defenses. Address filings and court deadlines with a plan for the case.
Explore foreclosure litigation →Loan modification
Evaluate a mortgage workout and help prepare a documented request based on your income, hardship, and the servicer’s requirements.
Explore loan modification →Sheriff’s sale response
Review the judgment, sale status, and any available adjournment or court relief. Timing and eligibility depend on the facts of the case.
Explore sheriff’s sale options →Short sale and alternatives
If keeping the property is no longer workable, assess a sale, settlement, or another transition with attention to the debt and title issues.
Explore short sales →Where are you in the process?
The stage of the case shapes the next step.
Default notices or missed payments
Review the notices, reconcile the account, and consider loss mitigation before the situation progresses.
Served with a foreclosure complaint
New Jersey’s court instructions generally give a defendant 35 days after service to answer. Review the papers promptly. Eligible homeowners generally must request foreclosure mediation within 60 days after service; a later request requires a court order.
Judgment or a scheduled sale
Bring every notice and order. We assess the current case status, deadlines, and whether any relief remains available. A pending modification request should not be assumed to stop a sale.
County court guide · Updated October 25, 2026
Who handles foreclosure matters in Union County?
Judge Richard C. Wischusen became Union County’s General Equity Presiding Judge effective March 1, 2026. That assignment appears in the Supreme Court’s December 10, 2025 order and the current General Equity directory. Older references to a different presiding judge should be checked against these updated sources.
Union County foreclosure proceedings are part of Chancery, General Equity. The statewide Office of Foreclosure processes uncontested matters, while contested proceedings and requests for judicial relief may require a county judge’s review. The judge assigned to your particular matter may differ from the presiding judge. Use the case docket and latest order to confirm where an application belongs.
For written decisions, use the official NJ Courts opinions collection. A decision posted online may be unpublished and nonprecedential. An appellate opinion reviewing a trial judge’s ruling is not an opinion authored by that trial judge. Read the actual opinion, its publication status, and its procedural setting before drawing conclusions about another case.
Protecting your equity
Documenting your home’s value in Union County
Union County covers different local housing markets. Comparable sales for an Elizabeth multifamily property may say little about a Westfield single-family home or a condominium in Union Township. A useful valuation identifies the property type, condition, occupancy, recent closed sales, and the adjustments that explain the proposed value.
Start with a written broker’s opinion of value or a realtor’s Comparative Market Analysis (CMA) that explains its comparable sales and adjustments. This gives counsel a more property-specific starting point than a Zillow or Redfin estimate alone. A CMA is not a formal appraisal, and neither a broker’s letter nor a website estimate is automatically admissible proof of market value. A disputed court application may require a qualified appraiser, a properly supported certification, testimony, or other evidence appropriate to the relief requested.
Calculate equity using current mortgage payoff statements, additional liens, taxes, and estimated selling costs. Documented equity may help evaluate a sale or refinance proposal, but equity alone does not defeat foreclosure or entitle an owner to an adjournment. See our guide to foreclosure surplus funds for the separate question of money remaining after a sale.
Sale deadlines and buyer offers
Union County sheriff’s sales and investor approaches
Use the Union County Sheriff’s sale information to check the county’s current procedures and sale listings. Confirm whether your particular sale remains scheduled. A buyer’s promise to purchase does not itself adjourn a sale.
Professional buyers may approach homeowners whose property appears to have equity. Compare a proposed cash purchase with the amount you would retain after mortgage payoffs, other liens, commissions, taxes, and closing costs. For an Elizabeth or Linden rental property, an offer may also turn on leases, security deposits, access, and property condition. An unusually short deadline or an unexplained deed transfer deserves careful review before signing.
Keep the purchase agreement, all payoff figures, and written communications together for review. Our sheriff’s sale guidance and foreclosure rescue scam guide explain issues to evaluate before committing your equity.
Financing and timing
Evaluating distressed refinancing in Union County
A Union County refinance should be evaluated against the actual payoff and the next deadline, not just the home’s estimated value. A lender may view an owner-occupied home in Cranford differently from an investment property in Elizabeth. Confirm permitted occupancy and use of funds rather than assuming an advertised investment-property program can refinance your residence.
As of this October 25, 2026 update, this page does not quote a verified county-specific distressed-loan rate or promise lender availability. Obtain a current written proposal stating the interest rate, points, fees, term, balloon payment if any, repayment requirements, appraisal conditions, and expected closing date. Compare the amount actually available at closing with every payoff and cost. Equity does not, by itself, establish eligibility or an affordable repayment plan.
Consider loan modification and a controlled sale alongside refinancing. Review the FDIC’s mortgage scam guidance before responding to a foreclosure-rescue loan offer. An application for financing is not confirmation that a sheriff’s sale has been adjourned.
For timing, use our updated 2026 foreclosure timeline discussion and stage-by-stage New Jersey foreclosure guide. An old statewide average does not tell you how much time remains in your case. Bring the complaint, latest order, sale notice, loan statements, and any proposed buyer or lender terms to a consultation.
Communities we serve
Representation throughout Union County.
We serve homeowners countywide, including the following communities. Consultations are arranged through our Hackensack office.
- Berkeley Heights
- Clark
- Cranford
- Elizabeth
- Fanwood
- Garwood
- Hillside
- Kenilworth
- Linden
- Mountainside
- New Providence
- Plainfield
- Rahway
- Roselle
- Roselle Park
- Scotch Plains
- Springfield
- Summit
- Union
- Westfield
- Winfield
Common questions
Union County foreclosure questions.
Can I seek a loan modification while a foreclosure case is pending?
A workout may be possible during a pending case, but the application requirements and available protections depend on the loan, timing, and case status. Continue to address court deadlines while any request is being reviewed.
Does a modification application automatically cancel a sheriff’s sale?
Do not assume that it does. Review the actual sale status and any applicable legal protections or court orders. If a sale is scheduled, contact counsel promptly with the sale notice and your application records.
What if I have already missed a court deadline?
Contact the office promptly. Any potential relief depends on the reason for the missed deadline, the procedural history, and the evidence. Bring the complaint, proof of service if available, and all subsequent orders.
Where is your office?
Our New Jersey office is at Court Plaza South, 21 Main Street, Ste. 255, Hackensack, NJ 07601. We represent homeowners throughout Union County and New Jersey. Call to arrange a consultation.
Take the next step
Let’s talk about your home.
Tell us what has happened and what you want to accomplish. We will start with your documents, the stage of the case, and the options worth evaluating.
This page provides general information, not legal advice. Available options and outcomes depend on your facts and applicable law. Contacting the firm does not itself create an attorney-client relationship.