source:
  type: guide
  id: fnma-svc-e-1.2-02
  authority: Fannie Mae Servicing Guide E-1.2-02 — Timing of the Foreclosure Referral
    for Mortgage Loans Generally
  description: Fannie Mae Servicing Guide E-1.2-02 — Timing of the Foreclosure Referral
    for Mortgage Loans Generally.
  coverage_tier: operative
obligations:
- id: fnma-svc-e-1.2-02-full
  canonical_id: fnma-svc-e-1.2-02-full
  section: Fannie Mae Servicing Guide E-1.2-02 — Timing of the Foreclosure Referral
    for Mortgage Loans Generally
  type: do
  tags:
  - regulator-direct
  - fnma
  - servicing-guide
  - corpus-expansion
  - tier-operative
  primary_source:
    tier: 1
    authority: Fannie Mae Servicing Guide E-1.2-02 — Timing of the Foreclosure Referral
      for Mortgage Loans Generally
    source_class: fnma-guide
    source_url: https://singlefamily.fanniemae.com/media/document/pdf/servicing-guide
    snapshot_id: cf63a82bbb4adfba
    fetched_at: '2026-05-22T23:53:19Z'
    content_hash: sha256:89df66c43baad07f8a8dd9d224492fff7d15e8839edba02ad0e74c7e50fe5da3
    paragraph_quote: E-1.2-02, Timing of the Foreclosure Referral for Mortgage Loans
      Generally (05/10/2023) For all mortgage loans secured by a principal residence,
      the servicer must refer the mortgage loan to foreclosure no earlier than the
      121st day of delinquency unless applicable law permits earlier referral. If
      the servicer determines, in accordance with applicable law, that the property
      securing the mortgage loan is not, or is no longer the borrower’s principal
      residence, the servicer must refer the mortgage loan to foreclosure prior to
      the 121st day of delinquency as described below. Depending on the outcome of
      the prereferral review for mortgage loans not secured by a principal residence,
      the mortgage loan must be referred to a law ﬁrm for foreclosure no later than
      the 120th day of delinquency, except in circumstances where the borrower submits
      a BRP shortly before the foreclosure referral. See E-3.2-01, Conducting Prereferral
      Review and E-3.2-04, Postponing Foreclosure Referral for Mortgage Loans Not
      Secured by a Principal Residence for additional information. Foreclosure is
      considered to have begun on the date when the servicer refers the matter to
      a law ﬁrm. The servicer must maintain a record of the date of the referral in
      the mortgage loan ﬁle. Fannie Mae requires the servicer to contact its Fannie
      Mae Servicing Representative (see F-4-02, List of Contacts) if it becomes aware
      of environmental hazards that aﬀect the security property. Regardless of whether
      Fannie Mae is named as a party in any environmental litigation, it must be considered
      non-routine and the servicer must immediately notify Fannie Mae’s Legal department
      by submitting a Non-Routine Litigation Form (Form 20). See also E-1.3-02, Reporting
      Non-Routine Litigation to Fannie Mae for additional information. The servicer
      must follow the procedures in Reporting Environmental Hazards to Fannie Mae
      in F-1-08, Managing Foreclosure Proceedings, for instructions speciﬁcally related
      to reporting environmental issues to Fannie Mae. Published May 13, 2026 406
      See the Property Preservation Matrix and Reference Guide for additional information.
      Recent Related Announcements The table below provides references to recently
      issued Announcements that are related to this topic. Announcements Issue Date
      Announcement SVC-2023-03 May 10, 2023 E-1.2-03, Timing of the Foreclosure Referral
      for Second Lien Conventional Mortgage Loans Not Secured by a Principal Residence
      (11/12/2014) Foreclosure proceedings for a second lien mortgage loan that is
      not secured by a principal residence can begin when at least two full monthly
      payments are past due. In addition, even if a second lien mortgage loan that
      is not secured by a principal residence is not two full monthly payments past
      due, as long as the servicer has complied with SCRA requirements and any applicable
      state law that restricts the right to foreclose on a second lien mortgage loan,
      foreclosure proceedings can begin if the ﬁrst lien mortgage loan is in default;
      and the second lien mortgage instrument includes a provision that the second
      lien mortgage loan will be considered in default, regardless of the status of
      its payments, if the ﬁrst lien mortgage loan is in default. After the servicer
      sends the required breach letter as prescribed in D2-2-06, Sending a Breach
      or Acceleration Letter, its next action depends on whether the second lien mortgage
      loan has conventional MI. When the mortgage loan has MI, the servicer must determine
      if both the ﬁrst and second lien mortgage loans are in default; and Fannie Mae
      has an interest in only one mortgage loan, or both the ﬁrst and second lien
      mortgage loans. The terms of the recourse or credit enhancement arrangement
      under which Fannie Mae purchased or securitized an uninsured second lien mortgage
      loan will determine whether foreclosure proceedings will be initiated and the
      type(s) of actions the servicer must take. The servicer must contact its Fannie
      Mae Servicing Representative (see F-4-02, List of Contacts) by submitting a
      case through Fannie Mae’s servicing solutions system before making a decision
      to foreclose on any conventional second lien mortgage loan and/or to advance
      the funds to bring the ﬁrst lien mortgage loan current. The servicer must refer
      the case to a law ﬁrm to begin foreclosure proceedings on a second lien mortgage
      loan Published May 13, 2026 407 that is not secured by a principal residence
      no later than 30 days after the date it issued the breach letter once a ﬁnal
      determination is made to initiate foreclosure on such a mortgage loan. Recent
      Related Announcements There are no recently issued Announcements related to
      this topic.
  judgment: false
