In 2019, Governor Phil Murphy signed nine new laws that affect New Jersey foreclosures. The laws aim to help homeowners and reduce foreclosures. This article describes the law that relates to vacant and abandoned residential property.

If a property is vacant and abandoned (meaning no one lives there and no one is coming back), the lender can request a faster foreclosure process to take back ownership of the property.

For more information about other important sections of the laws, click on one of the topics below.

• Sheriff’s Sale Delays (N.J.S.A. 2A:50-64)
• Statute of Limitations (N.J.S.A. 2A:50-56.1)
• Foreclosure Mediation (N.J.S.A. 2A:50-56, N.J.S.A. 2A:50-74, and NJ Court Rule 4:64-1B)
• Reinstatement (“Restart”) of a Foreclosure Action (N.J.S.A. 2A:50-56.3 and NJ Court Rule 4:64-8)
• Creditor Contact Information (N.J.S.A. 46:10B-51)
• Condominium and Homeowner Association Lien Super-Priority (N.J.S.A. 46:8B-21 and N.J.S.A. 45:22A-44.1)
• Mortgage Servicers Licensing Act (N.J.S.A. 17:16F-27 and N.J.S.A. 17:1C-34)
• Licensing Requirements for Residential Mortgage Lending (N.J.S.A. 2A:50-56 and N.J.S.A. 17:11C-1)​

The “citations” (letters and numbers next to each section title) are codes used to find laws online or in a law library. ​

This information last reviewed: Dec 10, 2019