Short answer: Pennsylvania law gives most homeowners a notice and a protected window before a lender can foreclose, plus a state loan programme that can bring a mortgage current. Those come first and they are free to explore. FastCashAnyHome buys Pennsylvania houses for cash if a sale turns out to be the right answer — 267-388-0347.
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This page sets out what the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency publishes about the process, with the official numbers to call. It is general information, not legal advice, and nothing here predicts how any case ends.
The Act 91 Notice, and the 33 days that come with it
Pennsylvania’s Act 91 of 1983 created the Homeowner’s Emergency Mortgage Assistance Program (HEMAP). PHFA’s fact sheet states: “Under Act 91, lenders are required to send an Act 91 Notice, which contains information about HEMAP, to homeowners facing foreclosure.”
What that notice starts:
“After receiving the Act 91 Notice, you have 30 days (plus three days for postal delivery) from the date printed on the Act 91 Notice or the postmark date on the envelope, if later, to meet with an approved counseling agency, whether in person or remotely.” “During this 33-day time period, your lender is not able to foreclose on your home.”
And how to use it:
“Meeting with a counselor is free to you and is the only way to apply for HEMAP.”
(PHFA, HEMAP Fact Sheet, read 2026-08-25. PHFA’s toll-free line is 800-342-2397; the programme page is phfa.org/hemap.)
The practical point: an Act 91 Notice is not the end of anything. It starts a protected window, and the meeting that uses that window costs nothing. Anyone who tells you to skip it and sell immediately is telling you something about themselves.
What HEMAP is — and is not
PHFA is blunt about it: “HEMAP is a loan program to prevent foreclosure. It is not a grant. Funds loaned must be repaid.”
The criteria PHFA lists as ones that must be met:
- “You must live in the home.”
- “Your mortgage can’t be more than 24/36 months or $60,000 delinquent, whichever comes first” — the number of months depends on the current unemployment rate.
- Hardship “due to circumstances beyond your control such as job loss, reductions in pay or serious medical problems.”
- “You must have a reasonable prospect of resuming full mortgage payments within 36 months.”
- “Your counselor must submit your HEMAP application within 30 days of your face-to-face meeting.”
If approved, “HEMAP will pay the amount required to bring your mortgage current.” Repayment carries a mandatory minimum of at least $25 per month per mortgage assisted, or more depending on income.
What happens after an application
- “PHFA has 60 days to make a decision from the date that it receives your application.”
- “During these time frames, your lender may not pursue a foreclosure action against your home if your application to HEMAP is timely.”
- “If you choose not to apply for HEMAP, you must cure the default within 30 days” of the Act 91 Notice date or postmark, “otherwise your lender may pursue foreclosure.”
- “If your application is denied by HEMAP, your lender may begin the foreclosure process, although you do have the right to appeal the denial.” And plainly: “An appeal of the HEMAP denial to PHFA, however, will not stop the foreclosure from proceeding.”
That last line is the one to plan around. A denial is the point at which the timeline changes character, and it is worth knowing what the alternatives are before it arrives rather than after.
Where selling honestly fits
A fast sale may help some homeowners avoid a completed foreclosure, but timing matters; if a sale date is already scheduled, contact your lender, attorney, or housing counselor right away.
What a sale does is turn a payoff problem into a closing with a date, where the mortgage and any liens are paid from the proceeds and whatever remains goes to the owner. When there is equity in the house, that difference — between a sale that pays the loan off and a foreclosure that ends the ownership — is the whole question.
What a sale cannot do: beat a clock that has already run, undo a judgment, or replace advice from a lawyer or a counselor.
And the trade-off, said plainly: a cash-as-is offer is below what a repaired, marketed, financeable house would fetch given sixty to ninety days. If that time exists, use it. If it does not, a sale with fewer moving parts has value.
Free Pennsylvania help, before anyone selling anything
- PHFA / HEMAP — 800-342-2397, phfa.org/hemap. The counselling meeting is free and is the only route into HEMAP.
- Approved consumer credit counselling agencies — listed inside your Act 91 Notice.
- Your county bar association — PHFA’s fact sheet notes it “may be able to provide information about the availability of free legal services for which you may qualify.”
- Your own lender. PHFA’s sheet points out you can explore options with the lender while a HEMAP application is pending.
Questions
Can you buy a house that already has a foreclosure case filed?
Often, yes — a filed case is not a completed sheriff’s sale, and the payoff is handled at closing through the title company. Where the case stands and what is owed decide it, so earlier is better.
Will you tell me not to sell?
When that is the honest answer, yes. If HEMAP, a modification or a listing looks better, we will say so, and the numbers above exist whether or not we ever speak.
What does it cost to talk to you?
Nothing. No fees or commissions charged to you, and nothing up front. Mortgages and liens are paid from the proceeds at closing, as in any sale.
How quickly could a sale close?
Typically 30 days or less, with flexible dates. If a sheriff’s sale is already scheduled, the real answer depends on that date and the payoff — a conversation for your lender, attorney or counselor as well as for us.
Where in Pennsylvania do you buy?
Across the state, along with New Jersey and New York.
FastCashAnyHome · 267-388-0347 · Buying in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York · General information, not legal advice. No obligation. Your information stays private.