State Foreclosure Law Library

massachusetts

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Massachusetts — Tax & Mortgage Foreclosure

Legal information, not legal advice. Verify against the cited primary sources before acting. Last verified: 2026-06-01.

Massachusetts is structurally unusual: it does not run a true public tax-lien auction in most municipalities. Instead the municipality makes a “tax taking” (or, less commonly, a sale) under G.L. c. 60, which creates a tax title held by the city/town; the right of redemption is then foreclosed by a judicial petition in the Land Court (G.L. c. 60 §§ 65–75). A municipality may also assign its tax receivables to a private buyer (e.g., “Tallage”), who then forecloses in the Land Court in its own name. Until St. 2024, c. 140 (effective largely Nov. 1, 2024), the foreclosing holder kept the entire property regardless of surplus equity — the exact “home-equity theft” condemned in tyler-v-hennepin-county. Massachusetts has now reformed that scheme (excess-equity return + interest rate cut from 16% to 8%).

0. Identity & Classification

  • Recording unit: county (Registries of Deeds; some counties have multiple registry districts). The selling/foreclosing layer is municipal (each city or town’s treasurer/collector). Massachusetts has 14 counties / 21 registry districts and 351 cities and towns.
  • Tax sale type: redeemable tax title via municipal “taking” (a hybrid; the municipality takes title subject to a right of redemption, then forecloses judicially). True public tax-lien-certificate auctions are not the norm. — G.L. c. 60 §§ 53, 54, 61.
  • Tax foreclosure process: judicial — exclusive jurisdiction in the Land Court, G.L. c. 60 §§ 64, 65.
  • Mortgage foreclosure process: both, but predominantly non-judicial power of sale under G.L. c. 244 § 14.
  • Selling/foreclosing authority: municipal treasurer/collector (or a private assignee of the tax title); the foreclosure court is the Land Court.
  • Statutory home: Tax — Title IX, Chapter 60 (Collection of Local Taxes). Mortgage — Chapter 244 (Foreclosure and Redemption of Mortgages).
  • Tyler v. Hennepin compliance: reformed_post_Tyler — St. 2024, c. 140 added G.L. c. 60 § 64A requiring the former owner to receive excess equity after a foreclosure, and created a retroactive superior-court claim for judgments entered on/after May 25, 2021. (Mass. House press release; Nat’l Law Review summary)

1. Tax Sale Mechanics

  • What is sold / created: the collector “takes” the parcel for unpaid taxes and records an instrument of taking at the registry (G.L. c. 60 § 53), creating a tax title in the municipality. (A collector’s sale under §§ 43–45 is an alternative but is rarely used today.) The municipality may later assign the tax title/receivable to a private buyer under G.L. c. 60 § 2C/52.
  • Bidding method: not a competitive lien auction in the typical case; the taking is administrative. Where a municipality assigns receivables in bulk, pricing is by negotiated/bulk sale, not a redemption-period bid-down. — see Tallage Lincoln, LLC v. Williams, 485 Mass. 449 (2020) (assignment of tax title).
  • Interest / penalty: 8% per annum on the tax-title account, running from the date of the taking/sale, per G.L. c. 60 § 62 (rate reduced from 16% to 8% by St. 2024, c. 140). Pre-taking delinquent taxes accrue interest at 14% under G.L. c. 59 § 57 until the taking. (§ 62)
  • Minimum bid composition (redemption/payoff): unpaid tax + interest + lawful charges added to the tax-title account (subsequent-year taxes are certified to the account under G.L. c. 60 § 61).
  • Sale frequency / typical month: takings occur on the municipality’s own schedule after the demand and 14-day notice of taking are satisfied; no fixed statewide auction calendar.
  • Venue / platforms: administrative taking recorded at the registry; bulk assignments are private transactions. No standard statewide online auction platform. — needs_verification for current municipal vendors.
  • Subsequent taxes (“subs”): the municipality (or assignee) certifies later unpaid taxes to the existing tax-title account under G.L. c. 60 § 61. Per Tallage Lincoln, an assignee may not add its own post-assignment tax payments to the redemption amount in the manner the statute reserves to the municipality. (485 Mass. 449)

2. Right of Redemption → see right-of-redemption

  • Pre-foreclosure right (broad): any person with an interest in the land (or heirs/assigns) may redeem at any time before a petition to foreclose is filed by paying the tax-title account + 8% interest + lawful charges — G.L. c. 60 § 62. (§ 62)
  • Post-petition redemption: even after the foreclosure petition is filed, the owner may redeem on terms set by the Land Court until judgment of foreclosure enters — G.L. c. 60 § 76 (Land Court jurisdiction; petition for redemption). (cited in Land Court FAQ)
  • Who may redeem: the owner, mortgagee, lienholder, heir, or assign — any “person having an interest in” the land. — G.L. c. 60 § 62.
  • Amount formula: tax-title account balance (taxes + certified subs) + 8% interest from date of taking + lawful charges (and, if redeeming from a private purchaser/assignee, that party’s costs and recording/examination fees as capped by statute). — G.L. c. 60 § 62.
  • Premium to certificate holder: N/A — Massachusetts does not pay a bid-down premium to a certificate holder; the holder’s return is the 8% statutory interest on the account.
  • Procedure / extinguishment: redemption is made to the treasurer, who issues a certificate of redemption; recording it at the registry ends the municipality’s interest. The right of redemption is extinguished only by the Land Court’s judgment of foreclosure — G.L. c. 60 §§ 64, 69; thereafter title is absolute (subject to the post-judgment vacatur window). (§ 64 via Justia)
  • Special tolling: post-judgment, a petition/motion to vacate the foreclosure may be filed within one year for “extraordinary circumstances” (Land Court FAQ); the one-year bar may be excused where due-process notice was defective — Town of Andover v. State Financial Services, Inc., 48 Mass. App. Ct. 536 (2000). Standard SCRA / minority / incapacity tolling — needs_verification for the precise c. 60 cross-reference.

3. Surplus / Excess Proceeds → see surplus-funds, third-party-recovery-rules

  • Belongs to: the former owner (post-reform). Before St. 2024, c. 140, the foreclosing municipality/assignee kept the entire property/equity — the practice struck down in tyler-v-hennepin-county and, as applied, in Mills v. City of Springfield (Hampden Sup. Ct. 2024). (Boston Globe coverage)
  • Mechanism (G.L. c. 60 § 64A, eff. ~Nov. 1, 2024): after a final Land Court judgment of foreclosure, the municipality must elect either to (a) retain the property for municipal use, or (b) list it for sale; in either case the excess equity must be accounted for and returned to the former owner on written request. “Excess equity” = surplus above the tax-title account balance as of the judgment date plus the reasonable costs of selling/appraising the property under § 64A. (D’Ambrosio LLP summary quoting § 64A; Nat’l Law Review)
  • Claim waterfall: tax-title account (taxes + interest + charges) → reasonable sale/appraisal/holding costs → former owner (subject to other recorded liens per the title report). — G.L. c. 60 § 64A.
  • Filing venue: written request to the municipality (or to the purchaser of tax receivables) under § 64A; disputes are resolved in court. Retroactive claims (judgments entered on/after May 25, 2021 but before the Act) are filed by complaint in the Superior Court. (Nat’l Law Review)
  • Claim deadline: retroactive Superior Court claims must be filed within 12 months of the Act’s effective date (commentators note ambiguity whether that is July 1, 2025 or Nov. 1, 2025). The prospective § 64A claim deadline (post-judgment window) — needs_verification for exact statutory text. (Nat’l Law Review)
  • Escheat: disposition of unclaimed excess equity (whether it routes to the state Treasurer’s unclaimed-property under G.L. c. 200A) — needs_verification; the § 64A text retrieved does not pin the escheat destination.
  • Documentation required: written request identifying the former owner and property; proof of identity/interest; title evidence of any senior liens — per § 64A process. — needs_verification for the standardized form.
  • Third-party recovery (recovery agents):
    • No tax-surplus-specific recovery-agent statute governs c. 60 § 64A excess- equity claims as of this verification. The closest analog is the unclaimed- property “finder” rule, G.L. c. 200A § 13, which (for property reported to the state Treasurer) makes finder agreements unenforceable if signed within 24 months of the property’s delivery to the Division; agreements after 24 months are valid only if in writing, signed by the owner, disclosing the nature and value of the property and the holder’s name/address, with the fee capped at 10%, and an owner may always challenge “excessive or unjust” compensation. Implementing reg: 960 CMR 4.06. (c. 200A § 13 / 960 CMR 4.06, summarized)
    • fee_cap_pct: 10% for c. 200A unclaimed-property finders; no statutory cap confirmed for direct c. 60 § 64A excess-equity claims against a municipality. needs_verification whether c. 200A § 13 reaches § 64A funds.
    • licensing_required: no general license; debt-collection-style conduct is constrained by G.L. c. 93 § 49 and Ch. 93A consumer-protection law.
    • assignment_of_claim_allowed: needs_verification.
    • cooling_off_period: the c. 200A 24-month unenforceability window functions as one for unclaimed-property finders. — G.L. c. 200A § 13.
    • prohibited_practices: unfair/deceptive collection conduct under G.L. c. 93 § 49; unfair/deceptive acts under G.L. c. 93A. (c. 93 § 49)
  • Notice to former owner required? Yes — § 64A is triggered by/contemplates notice and a written request from the former owner; the reform’s purpose is to return equity to the former owner.

4. Mortgage Foreclosure

  • Process: both available; non-judicial power of sale under G.L. c. 244 § 14 is the dominant method (most mortgages contain a statutory power of sale). A separate “Servicemembers case” is filed to confirm the borrower is not entitled to SCRA protection before sale. (Mass. mortgage-foreclosure law overview)
  • Pre-acceleration cure / loss mitigation:
    • G.L. c. 244 § 35A — 90-day right to cure a payment default before acceleration (once per 5-year period). (§ 35A)
    • G.L. c. 244 § 35B — for “certain mortgage loans,” creditor must send a loan-modification notice; the modification-review process runs up to 150 days. (§ 35B)
  • Timeline (days): notice of default/right to cure 90 days (§ 35A); § 35B review up to 150 days; notice of sale by publication + mailing per § 14; sale; no confirmation hearing for a power-of-sale foreclosure.
  • Reinstatement right: yes via the § 35A 90-day cure before acceleration.
  • Redemption after sale: none for a non-judicial power-of-sale foreclosure — the borrower’s equity of redemption ends at the sale; redemption rights exist only before sale (equity of redemption). (Mass. mortgage-foreclosure overview)
  • Deficiency judgment: allowed, but the lender must mail a statutory “Notice of Intent to Foreclose and of Deficiency” at least 21 days before the sale and sue within 2 years of the sale — G.L. c. 244 § 17B. (Mass. mortgage-foreclosure overview)
  • Surplus distribution: after the mortgage and foreclosure costs are paid, surplus from a power-of-sale foreclosure is held for junior lienholders then the former owner; the foreclosing mortgagee holds proceeds as trustee. — G.L. c. 244 § 14. needs_verification for the exact distribution-priority subsection.
  • Sale officer: the mortgagee/trustee conducts the power-of-sale auction (not a sheriff).

5. Sale Procedure Playbooks

  • Municipal tax taking & Land Court foreclosure — ordered steps → see treasurer-sale:
    1. Collector issues demand for unpaid tax (G.L. c. 60 § 16).
    2. Collector publishes/posts and gives 14-day notice of taking (G.L. c. 60 § 53).
    3. Collector records the instrument of taking at the registry → municipal tax title (§ 53); subsequent unpaid taxes certified to the account (§ 61).
    4. Optional: municipality assigns the tax title/receivable to a private buyer (§ 2C/52).
    5. After the statutory waiting period (generally 6 months from the taking; immediate where parcel is low-value/abandoned per §§ 65, 81A/81B), holder files a petition to foreclose all rights of redemption in the Land Court (§ 65). (§ 65)
    6. Land Court orders title examination, issues citation/notice to all interested parties (sometimes by publication); answer; hearing; finding.
    7. Owner may redeem on court-set terms until judgment (§ 76).
    8. Judgment of foreclosure → absolute title in the holder (§ 64), now subject to § 64A excess-equity accounting.
  • Sheriff sale: N/A for tax foreclosure (judicial Land Court process, not a sheriff sale). Sheriff/levy sales arise in execution on money judgments, not c. 60 tax foreclosure.
  • Notice requirements: demand + 14-day notice of taking (§ 53); Land Court citation to all parties of record, with publication where required, and actual mailed notice to known parties as a constitutional floor (Andover; mullane-v-central-hanover). (Land Court FAQ)
  • Upset bid / confirmation: none — the Land Court judgment, not a bid auction, transfers title.
  • Payment terms: redemption/payoff to the treasurer; assignment purchase per the municipality’s bulk-sale terms.
  • Deed issued: the instrument of taking (or collector’s deed) plus the Land Court judgment; title is statutorily absolute post-judgment (§ 64), not a warranty deed.

6. Due Process & Notice → see due-process-notice

  • Standard: notice “reasonably calculated, under all the circumstances, to apprise interested parties” — mullane-v-central-hanover (339 U.S. 306 (1950)), expressly applied to Massachusetts tax foreclosure in Town of Andover v. State Financial Services, Inc., 48 Mass. App. Ct. 536 (2000).
  • Required attempts: Land Court citation to all parties named in the title examination; actual mailed notice to parties whose identity and address are known; publication for unknown/unlocatable parties.
  • Consequence of defective notice: voidable — the foreclosure judgment may be vacated (the one-year statutory bar is excused where due process was denied), but title is not automatically void. — Andover, 48 Mass. App. Ct. 536.
  • Leading cases: tyler-v-hennepin-county, town-of-andover-v-state-financial-services, tallage-lincoln-v-williams, mills-v-city-of-springfield, mullane-v-central-hanover.

7. Title & Marketability

  • Deed warranty level: none — title passes by instrument of taking + Land Court judgment (statutorily “absolute,” not warranted). — G.L. c. 60 § 64.
  • Marketable immediately? Practically no until the one-year vacatur window has run and any § 64A excess-equity obligation is resolved; many purchasers quiet title or wait out the vacatur period.
  • Quiet title required? Often advisable; the § 64 judgment is intended to be conclusive but is subject to the vacatur/due-process exceptions.
  • SOL to challenge deed: generally 1 year to move to vacate the foreclosure judgment (Land Court FAQ), extendable where due process was denied (Andover). needs_verification for the exact c. 60 § 69A text.
  • Title insurance availability: generally available after the vacatur window / quiet title; underwriters scrutinize notice compliance and § 64A. — needs_verification for current underwriter standards.
  • Common defects: defective/absent mailed notice to known parties; certified- mail returned-unclaimed (cf. jones-v-flowers); assignee over-stating the redemption amount (Tallage); pre-reform foreclosures that retained surplus equity (Tyler/§ 64A exposure).

8. Case Law (real, verified)

CaseYearTopicHolding (plain English)Source
tyler-v-hennepin-county2023surplusKeeping surplus equity beyond the tax debt is an unconstitutional taking (5th Am.); 598 U.S. 631.https://www.mbmllc.com/chapter-60-foreclosure-massachusetts.html
tallage-lincoln-v-williams2020redemption / surplusSJC: a private assignee of a municipal tax title may not add its own subsequent tax payments to the redemption amount under G.L. c. 60 § 52; 485 Mass. 449.https://law.justia.com/cases/massachusetts/supreme-court/2020/sjc-12847.html
town-of-andover-v-state-financial-services2000due_process / sale_procedureApp. Ct.: where the owner’s identity and address are known, actual notice is constitutionally required; foreclosure decree vacated despite the one-year bar; 48 Mass. App. Ct. 536, citing Mullane.https://law.justia.com/cases/massachusetts/court-of-appeals/volumes/48/48massappct536.html
mills-v-city-of-springfield2024surplusHampden Superior Court (Callan, J.): G.L. c. 60 is unconstitutional as applied where it lets a municipality keep equity far exceeding the tax debt (~145k–$230k property); statute “requires legislative correction.” (trial-level; persuasive, not binding)https://www.bostonglobe.com/2024/04/21/business/massachusetts-court-property-unpaid-taxes-equity-theft/
mullane-v-central-hanover1950due_processNotice must be “reasonably calculated, under all the circumstances, to apprise interested parties”; 339 U.S. 306.https://caselaw.findlaw.com/court/us-supreme-court/339/306.html

9. Edge Cases (state-specific notes)

  • bankruptcy-automatic-stay — a Chapter 13 filing can halt a Land Court tax foreclosure and treat the tax-title account through the plan; the redemption right is property of the estate if the petition precedes judgment. — needs_verification for MA-specific Land Court bankruptcy interplay.
  • federal-tax-lien-redemption — an IRS lien junior to the municipal tax title carries a 120-day federal right of redemption (26 U.S.C. § 7425) after the foreclosure. — needs_verification for MA application.
  • heirs-property — co-tenant heirs each hold an “interest” that can redeem under § 62; defective notice to one heir supports vacatur (Andover logic).
  • tyler-v-hennepin-county — Massachusetts reformed via St. 2024, c. 140 (§ 64A excess equity; retroactive Superior Court claims for judgments on/after May 25, 2021).
  • HOA super-priority — N/A in Massachusetts (no Nevada-style HOA super-lien for the foreclosure context). — needs_verification.
  • Manufactured homes / SCRA / life estates — needs_verification for MA-specific c. 60 treatment; SCRA is enforced via the Servicemembers case in the mortgage context (G.L. c. 244 § 14).
  • Assignee abuse — Tallage Lincoln limits what an assignee may charge the redeeming owner, a recurring edge case where municipalities sell receivables.

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