Facing Foreclosure in Atlanta? Know Your Options Before the First-Tuesday Sale
Georgia is one of the fastest foreclosure states in the country, and there’s no buying the house back afterward. Here’s how the Atlanta process works, where to find your sale, and what you can still do before that Tuesday.
The short answer: Georgia forecloses out of court. The lender must mail you notice at least 30 days before the sale and advertise it once a week for four weeks in the county’s legal newspaper. The sale happens on the first Tuesday of the month, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., at the county courthouse — 136 Pryor Street SW for Fulton, 556 N. McDonough Street in Decatur for DeKalb. Georgia law gives no right to buy the house back after the sale, so the time to act is before it.
Atlanta homeowners are often surprised by how little time a Georgia foreclosure takes once it starts. There’s no lawsuit and no judge reviewing the sale beforehand — just a mailed notice, four weeks of newspaper ads and a first-Tuesday auction. That speed is exactly why it pays to understand the steps now, while you still have room to move.
Fulton or DeKalb: where your sale happens
Fulton County
DeKalb County
Sale location
Fulton County Courthouse, 136 Pryor St. SW, Atlanta
DeKalb County Courthouse, 556 N. McDonough St., Decatur
Sale day
First Tuesday of the month, 10 a.m.–4 p.m. (Wednesday if the Tuesday is Jan. 1 or July 4)
Legal newspaper for the ads
South Fulton Neighbor (since Jan. 1, 2024; it replaced the Daily Report)
Most of the city of Atlanta is in Fulton County, with part in DeKalb. A judge can move a county’s sale location, so always go by the place printed in your own sale ad.
The Georgia timeline, step by step
Day 1 to 120. Missed payments, late fees and servicer calls. For most home loans, federal rules generally keep the servicer from starting foreclosure until you’re more than 120 days behind (12 CFR §1024.41(f)).
At least 30 days before the sale. The lender mails you a notice of the sale. It must name the person with full authority to negotiate, amend or modify your loan, with an address and phone number (O.C.G.A. §44-14-162.2). Call that person.
Four weeks before the sale. The sale is advertised once a week for four weeks in the county’s legal newspaper (§44-14-162; §9-13-140).
The first Tuesday. The house is sold at the courthouse by public outcry between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. (§9-13-161).
After the sale. No right to buy the house back. If the lender wants a deficiency, it must get the sale confirmed by a judge within 30 days and prove the house brought true market value (§44-14-161).
Reinstate: ask the servicer for a written figure to bring the loan current, including fees.
Repayment plan, forbearance or loan modification: the person named in your 30-day notice is who to ask. Send a complete application as early as you can; it gives you the most protection.
Sell: a sale that closes before the auction pays off the loan, and the equity left after liens and costs is yours.
Short sale or deed in lieu: if you owe more than the house is worth.
An attorney: if you’re considering bankruptcy or think the notice or ads were defective.
Free Atlanta help: the Atlanta Legal Aid Society’s Home Defense Program gives advice, referrals and representation to homeowners at risk of losing their homes in Fulton, DeKalb, Cobb, Gwinnett and Clayton counties (Fulton office 404-524-5811; DeKalb office 404-377-0701). It’s also a HUD-approved housing counseling agency. HUD’s counselor line is 800-569-4287, and foreclosure counseling is always free.
Where a cash sale fits
With only weeks between the ads and the sale, a traditional listing often can’t finish in time. We buy Atlanta houses as-is for cash, pay typical closing costs, and charge no fees or commissions. When the timeline allows, we can close in as little as two weeks through a Georgia closing attorney, with your loan paid off at closing. If the sale date is too close to close, or keeping the house looks realistic, we’ll tell you honestly. For more on how selling interacts with a pending sale, read Can I Sell My House During Foreclosure in Georgia?
What happens when you reach out
You talk to an owner. Call or text (678) 926-9776 and you’ll reach William or Peter, the owners of MarKey Home Buyers. We’ve been in business for more than 10 years.
We ask a few questions. The address, roughly what you owe, the condition of the house, and your sale date if you have one. Your latest mortgage statement and any notice you’ve received help.
You get an honest read. We tell you whether there’s realistically time for a sale to close before your sale date, and whether selling makes sense for you at all.
If it fits, you get a written offer after a quick walkthrough, in person or by video. No fees, no obligation.
You decide. Compare it with your other options and talk it over with family, your servicer, a housing counselor or an attorney first.
How we figure an offer: we start from what the house would sell for after repairs, then subtract the repairs it needs, our costs to buy, hold and resell it, and a margin for our risk. That’s why a cash offer is lower than a full retail price. In return you skip repairs, showings and commissions, and you pick the closing date. We’ll walk you through the numbers on your house.
What we’ll never do
Promise we can stop your foreclosure. No honest buyer can promise that.
Charge you a fee, ask for money up front, or ask you to make payments to us.
Ask you to sign over your deed before closing. The house stays yours until a closing attorney or title company closes the sale.
Tell you to stop talking to your lender, a housing counselor or an attorney.
Rush you. Every term is in writing before you agree to anything.
Hide how we buy. We may buy your house ourselves or assign our purchase contract to another buyer, and we tell you which in writing before you sign.
MarKey Home Buyers is a real estate investment company that buys houses. We are not a lender, law firm, government agency or housing counselor, and we’re not affiliated with your lender or servicer. A sale to us is a sale: at closing, ownership transfers and you move out on the date we agree.
When a cash sale probably isn’t your best move
You can afford the payment again and your servicer offers a reinstatement, repayment plan or modification that works.
The house is in good shape, you have real equity, and there’s enough time before the sale to list it with an agent. That will usually net you more.
You qualify for an assistance program that can catch you up.
If any of those fit, we’ll tell you, even if it means we don’t buy your house.
Got a notice or a sale date?
Send us the address and the sale date. We’ll tell you honestly whether there’s time for a sale to close, and what you’d walk away with.
When and where are foreclosure sales held in Atlanta?
On the first Tuesday of the month between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. (O.C.G.A. §9-13-161). For Fulton County that’s at the Fulton County Courthouse, 136 Pryor Street SW; for DeKalb County it’s the DeKalb County Courthouse, 556 N. McDonough Street, Decatur. If the first Tuesday is New Year’s Day or July 4, the sale moves to Wednesday. Your sale ad names the exact spot.
How much notice do I get before a Georgia foreclosure sale?
At least 30 days. The lender must send written notice by certified or registered mail or overnight delivery, and it has to name the person with authority to negotiate or modify your loan (O.C.G.A. §44-14-162.2). The sale is also advertised once a week for four weeks in the county’s legal organ.
Can I get my house back after a Georgia foreclosure sale?
Generally no. Georgia gives no right of redemption after a non-judicial foreclosure sale. Before the sale, you can bring the loan current, work out an agreement with the lender, or sell and pay the loan off. Once the sale happens, the house is gone.
Can the lender come after me for the rest of the loan?
Only if it follows an extra step. To pursue a deficiency, the lender must report the sale to a superior court judge within 30 days and get it confirmed, and the court has to find the house sold for its true market value (O.C.G.A. §44-14-161). You get notice of that hearing. If you receive one, talk to an attorney.
Can I sell my house if it’s already advertised for foreclosure?
Yes. You own the house until the sale, and a sale that closes before the first Tuesday pays off the loan at closing, with any equity left after liens and costs going to you. Georgia closings run through an attorney and need a title search and payoff, so the sooner you start, the better.
Last reviewed . General information, not legal advice. Laws and county procedures change; confirm dates with your notice, your servicer, or an attorney.
Facing Foreclosure? See Your Options
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Have a first-Tuesday sale date?
Tell us the address and your sale date. We’ll give you a no-obligation cash offer and an honest read on your timeline.
