HERE THE FORECLOSURE SALE TOOK PLACE ABOUT AN HOUR BEFORE DEFENDANTS CLOSED WITH ANOTHER BUYER; THE FORECLOSURE SALE EXTINGUISHED DEFENDANTS’ RIGHT TO REDEEM THE MORTGAGE; THE SUCCESSFUL BIDDER AT THE FORECLOSURE SALE THEREFORE PREVAILED (SECOND DEPT).

The Second Department, reversing Supreme Court, determined the foreclosure sale to the successful bidder, Pekich, took place before the purported sale of the same property by defendants to Ore on the same day. Therefore defendants’ right to redeem the property was extinguished by the foreclosure sale:

“‘A mortgagor or other owner of the equity of redemption of a property subject to a judgment of foreclosure and sale may redeem the mortgage at any time prior to the foreclosure sale'” … . However, “[t]he right to redeem is extinguished as a matter of law upon the foreclosure sale, whether or not the deed has been delivered, and once the right to redeem is lost, it cannot be revived, even by court order” … .

Here, the record demonstrates that the foreclosure sale of the property at which Pekich was the successful bidder concluded at 3:15 p.m. on June 21, 2024, and that the payoff sum was wired to the plaintiff during Ore and the [defendants’] closing more than one hour later, at 4:23 p.m. on June 21, 2024. Under these circumstances, Pekich became the equitable owner of the property upon the completion of the foreclosure sale, and any right to redeem the mortgage had already been extinguished by the time Ore and the [defendants] purported to close on the property … . JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. v Gezlev, 2026 NY Slip Op 05387, Second Dept 9-23-26

Practice Point: A foreclosure sale to a successful bidder extinguishes a mortgagor’s right to redeem the mortgage. Here the foreclosure sale took place one hour before defendants attempted to redeem the mortgage with proceeds from another purported sale of the property. The successful bidder prevailed.