Sheriff's Foreclosure Sale

Pending judicial review any constable's sale where the Community Wealth Preservation Program is being utilized will be adjourned until the final outcome of court case (MER-C-94-24).

BEGINNING JANUARY 10, 2024, SHERIFF'S SALES IN MERCER COUNTY WILL BE HELD

EVERY TWO WEEKS

NOTICE Regarding the Community Wealth Preservation Program

On January 12, 2024, Governor Phil Murphy signed legislation into State law developing a Community Wealth Preservation Program to promote equity and fairness in foreclosure sales by providing brand-new and greater opportunities for foreclosed-upon residents and their near relative, renters, and other potential owner-occupants - in addition to nonprofit community development corporations - to purchase and finance a foreclosed-upon home.

NOTE: THIS PROGRAM EXCLUDES THOSE PURCHASING PROPERTIES FOR INVESTMENT PURPOSES.

For additional info, see P.L. 2023, c. 255, https://pub.njleg.state.nj.us/Bills/2022/A6000/5664_R3.PDF

Sheriff Sales will be held at the Mercer County Civil Courthouse, 175 South Broad Street, Trenton, every other Wednesday.

Sheriff Sales will start without delay at 2:00 pm.

( Please keep in mind that the Sheriff's Sale List is upgraded on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays)

One of the functions of the Sheriff's Office is to carry out the sale of genuine residential or commercial property after foreclosure procedures have been completed.

Foreclosure sales are genuine residential or commercial property only; the Sheriff's Office does not understand if any structures are on the residential or commercial property. Further, we can not allow for potential bidders to enter and inspect any structure that may be found on the residential or commercial property to be offered.

All residential or commercial properties sold at auction at the Sheriff's Office are marketed Tuesday in the Trenton Times and the Trentonian. Advertisements appear as soon as a week for four successive weeks prior to the preliminary date of sale.

In addition to paper ads, notifications of sale are posted for public viewing here on the WEB website (click here) or outside the Sheriff's Office, on the very first flooring, 175 South Broad Street, Trenton, New Jersey.

The Sheriff's Office does not have a list, for general distribution, of the residential or commercial properties to be sold. Persons thinking about residential or commercial properties can make their own lists from newspaper legal advertisements.

Sales of residential or commercial property are "open-type" auction sales (no sealed bids). An opening quote of $100 is bid on the preliminary by the plaintiff. All subsequent bids must begin at $100 over the upset and continue at $1,000.00 increments. The residential or commercial property is offered to the greatest bidder.

The successful bidder, upon complete payment of the quote, will receive a Sheriff's Deed. This deed does not provide clear title to the residential or commercial property. In order to obtain clear title, one must please all outstanding liens and encumbrances. If a buyer does not finish the sale he can be held liable for his deposit.

If you are interested in a specific piece of residential or commercial property, we recommend a title search before you actually bid. Title searches are carried out by private companies. Their phone number may be found in the yellow pages of the phone book. A charge is charged. You may also do your own title search.

If you are the successful bidder on a piece of residential or commercial property, you are needed to post a deposit of 20% on the total bid price. It must be paid by accredited check, treasurer's check, or cash. It should be paid immediately following the finalizing of the Conditions of Sale.

The balance of the quote is payable and due on the 30th day from the date of sale. Lawful interest is charged on the balance due from the 11th to the 30th day.

If the residential or commercial property you purchased is inhabited, it is your responsibility to have the occupants got rid of.

Deed recording charges must be paid by the purchaser to the County Clerk's office when the deed is recorded.

Rights of Defendants

For the most part, the residential or commercial property, even after the sale, can be redeemed by the owner for a period of 10 calendar days from the date of sale.

The Sheriff has the discretionary right to make 2 adjournments of the sale, and no more, not exceeding twenty-eight days for each adjournment. In order to ask for an adjournment a defendant must: be called on the Writ of Execution, show ID confirming identity and send a letter asking for the adjournment with a charge of $28 in money, cash order or licensed look for EACH of his two adjournments. When it comes to an offender's lawyer we need your letter to state that you represent the defendant's in addition to the factor for adjournment. We will also accept an attorney check.

All fees and commissions that are collected by the Sheriff's Office are turned over to the General Treasury of the County of Mercer.

To speed your inquiry on a particular piece of residential or commercial property, it is useful if you refer to the residential or commercial property by its address or docket number, which appears in the legal advertisement. Please feel free to contact the Sheriff's Sales Office at (609) 989-6102, 847-3965, or 281-7212.

Sales are conducted Wednesday at 2 p.m.

Sheriff Sale Procedures

- All foreclosures undergo special conditions. The Sheriff's conditions are as follows:
- The highest bidder to be the purchaser.
- The buyer must pay 20% of the purchase price in cash, licensed check, cashier's check, or treasurer's check, sometimes of purchase with balance due in thirty days.
- If the buyer fails to abide by any of the conditions of sale, the residential or commercial property will be offered a 2nd time, the former buyer being held responsible for all losses and expenses, and deposit to be kept by the Sheriff to be paid out by court order.
- Sold subject to limitations of record which are unidentified to me and unsettled taxes or assessments and such state of truths as a precise survey would divulge.
- A deed to be delivered to the purchaser within 14 days from date of sale, with legal interest determined on the balance due, from the 11th day after sale, until balance is paid.
- Immediately upon the conclusion of sale, should the effective bidder stop working to sign the conditions of sale and pay the 20% deposit as required herein, the Sheriff will instantly resell the residential or commercial property without further public ad.
- Sheriff's cost and commissions are drawn from the struck off purchase cost. All Sheriff's Sales are sold subject to a first and second mortgage, if any, and any Municipal, State or Federal liens, if any.

The lawyer representing the Plaintiff will have his own conditions of sale.

We strongly urge anyone who is not familiar with Sheriff's Sale Procedures to look for legal recommendations and to have a Title Search operated on the residential or commercial property before bidding on any residential or commercial property. The search will expose if there are impressive liens, which the bidder would assume if he is the highest bidder.

Sheriff's Sales are held as an open auction. The Attorney for the Plaintiff will start the bidding at $100.00. The bidding will continue up until the highest quote is reached, and the highest bidder will be the buyer. The Plaintiff's attorney generally does not allow the bid to choose less than the Judgment amount due his customer. He will bid till he has reached his Upset Price. A Distressed Price is the overall of the Judgment due, interest, attorney's costs, Sheriff's charges, advertising expenses and commissions. Once the lawyer has actually reached his Upset Price he may stop bidding and the highest bidder, afterwards, will be the effective bidder.

The Sheriff's Sales are held on Wednesdays at 2 p.m. at:

Mercer County Sheriff's Office,
175 South Broad Street,
Trenton, New Jersey

Download the Sheriff's Real Estate Sales Information Bulletin

The Sheriff's Sales are marketed for four weeks every Tuesday in the Trenton Times and the Trentonian prior to sale. On the 4th and final week of marketing, the residential or commercial property is sold on that Wednesday if the sale has not been adjourned. The Plaintiff's lawyer might adjourn as often times as is needed for any factor.

If you are planning to participate in a Constable's Sale, you should check the Sales Notices published on the internet site (click on this link) before or on sale date, to be sure the sale has not been adjourned, placed in Bankruptcy stay or cancelled.

This office will post a notice of sale on the residential or commercial property during the week of the first marketing. Our workplace does not enter the premises being offered for any other factor. Until the sale is last, the accused (owner) has all rights and opportunities of privacy to his residential or commercial property. A bidder wishing to approach the owner to see the residential or commercial property before the sale, is recommended that he is on his own.

The owner of the residential or commercial property may at anytime, prior to sale, attempt to conserve his home or residential or commercial property in several methods. He might try to renew his delinquent amount owed, pay the judgment completely, get another loan, etc. He might likewise try to offer the residential or commercial property in order to pay the Judgment and at the very same time profit from the profits. The offender has a 10 day Redemption Period after the sale during which time he might challenge the sale through the courts or redeem the residential or commercial property. The bidder, in this case, would get his 20 percent deposit back.

The Sheriff's sale deed will be prepared and ready in roughly 2 week after the sale. The balance due on the sale should be paid no behind 30 days after sale, in accordance with the conditions of sale. It's the duty of the buyer to record the deed in the Registrar of Deeds workplace. It is the sole obligation of the purchaser to inform the owner he has bought the residential or commercial property and now holds the deed to the residential or commercial property. If the defendant does not willingly leave the residential or commercial property, the purchaser needs to use to the court for a Writ of Possession. Our workplace will serve the Writ upon the accused which will encourage him to abandon the facilities within a particular period of time. If the offender has actually not vacated by the mentioned tentative date, the Sheriff's Office will set a last date to have a moving van sent to the residential or commercial property and have the accused's individual possessions eliminated and kept in a place of safe keeping. The costs of the moving and storage is the duty of the purchaser. A Writ of Possession is not needed if the residential or commercial property is vacant before, during or after the sale.

Surplus Funds

Surplus Funds are defined as the quantity of funds collected over the judgment amount, costs, expenses and commissions that are because of the complainant and Sheriff. Surplus funds are generated when a 3rd celebration purchaser buys the residential or commercial property for more than the upset amount. The main function of surplus funds is to pay any junior lien holders. Any funds left over after these lien holders are paid would be available to the offender.

This can be ascertained by inspecting if the quantity the residential or commercial property was cost is more than the amount of the judgment. An example of this would be - Cost is $150,000 & judgment is $120,000, there would be a possibility that there is a surplus.

The Sheriff's Office sends any surplus funds to the New Jersey State Superior Court, c/o Trust Fund Unit, after the purchaser has actually paid the balance of the purchase price, fees are subtracted, and all financial deals are finalized. This indicates that the funds are not easily available instantly following the sale, as there are circumstances when the Trust Fund Unit might not receive these funds for up to 2 months after the sale.

If you are the property owner with a foreclosure case in our office and you believe there was a surplus from the sale of your home, you can call our workplace or you can call the Trust Fund Unit directly at 609-292-4012.

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