Renville County Sheriff's Office

105 S. 5th St., Suite 210, Olivia, MN 56277
Emergency: 911
Non-Emergency: 320-523-1161
Jail: 320-523-3600

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Civil Process - Mortgage Foreclosures

Mortgage Foreclosures are legal actions taken to foreclose upon real estate, as opposed to personal property. These are covered by Minnesota Statutes Chapters 580 – 582.

All sales may be cancelled prior to the time of the sale. 

Property being foreclosed upon is still in the hands of the property owners until it is sold. Therefore, you will not have the opportunity to inspect the property prior to the sale. The buyer acts at their own risk and is charged with determining for their self what liens or encumbrances, if any, will exist on the property; the property is sold as is.

Foreclosure Sale Procedure
In both types of Mortgage Foreclosure sales (outlined below), the sale is conducted by the Sheriff, or his designee, in an open bidding process. Sales are conducted Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays at 10:00 AM, in the Main Lobby of the Renville County Sheriff’s Office – 105 5th Street East, Suite 210, Olivia, MN  56277.  At the sale, the mortgage company’s or plaintiff’s attorney will open the bidding with the exact amount due at the time of the sale. (To find out how much a property will be selling for, you should contact the attorney for the mortgage company.)  Following this initial bid, other bidders are given an opportunity to bid on the property. The winning bid must be at least $1 more than the mortgage company's opening bid.  The property will be sold to the highest bidder. If you are planning to bid on a property, you will need to have cash or certified funds (certified check from a bank, money order or cashier's check), payable to the Renville County Sheriff, for the entire amount at the sale.  Personal checks will not be accepted.  If the certified funds are written out for more than the property is sold for, the Sheriff's Office will return the additional funds to you in a timely manner.

The successful bidder will receive a Sheriff’s Certificate of Sale, which lists the name of the purchaser and the amount of the purchase. The Certificate of Sale is prepared by the attorney and includes documentation proving that all statutory requirements have been met.

All mortgage foreclosure sales are subject to a redemption period, usually 6 or 12 months. The length of the redemption period is noted in the sale notice.

The Minnesota Housing Finance Agency offers information about mortgage foreclosures.

 Mortgage Postponement Affidavit   
 

Mortgage Foreclosure by Advertisement
This is the most common type of foreclosure action. It is usually based upon some default in the terms of the mortgage.

The attorney hired to conduct the foreclosure will prepare the appropriate Notice of Mortgage Foreclosure Sale, arrange for service and publication of the notice and have the Sheriff’s Office conduct the sale.

Some attorneys utilize the Sheriff’s Office to serve the notices while others only notify the Sheriff’s Office of the sale. Since attorneys often do not involve the Sheriff’s Office until the day of the sale, information may not be available if you call.

Any questions regarding a sale or arrangements to reinstate a mortgage should be directed to the attorney preparing the sale. Their telephone number is usually published with the Notice of Sale.

Mortgage Foreclosure by Action  These sales are conducted pursuant to a direct Order from a District Court Judge for the Sheriff to sell a specific parcel of real property.

The notices are prepared by the plaintiff’s attorney, similar to the Mortgage Foreclosure by Advertisement, or may be prepared by the Sheriff. However, the Sheriff or a Deputy will sign the Notice of Sale. Service of the Notice of Sale is usually done by the Sheriff’s Office. A posting in three public places, as well as publication in the county’s legal newspapers is required by law.