Time Between Foreclosure & Eviction in Illinois

When a home gets foreclosed on in Illinois, the original homeowners are not immediately booted out of their house once the property changes owners. If the original homeowners do not leave the home, the bank or the new owners may pursue an eviction proceeding against them. The eviction process takes some time, and the original homeowners may try to delay the eviction.

Illinois banks can file foreclosure whenever a mortgage falls into default. However, lenders probably won't pursue a foreclosure procedure unless the mortgage is several months behind and the borrower is not working to bring the mortgage current. Illinois has judicial foreclosures only, which means that all foreclosure proceedings must be filed through the court. The foreclosure process starts with a 30-day notice of default. The average length of an Illinois foreclosure is about 300 days to a year, and the homeowners have 90 days to redeem the property after judgment.

Once the home has been foreclosed upon, the previous homeowners are treated as tenants as far as the eviction process goes. The lender has to follow Illinois state law concerning eviction. If the lender attempts a self-help eviction--where they attempt to force the homeowners out of the home through harassment or denial of service without a court order of eviction--the previous homeowners can sue the lender in court.

An Illinois eviction after foreclosure starts with a notice to quit the property. This notice gives the homeowners 30 days to leave the property before the eviction is filed. If the homeowners leave the property in this time frame, the eviction court filing is not necessary. Otherwise, the lender goes to the local civil or justice court for that jurisdiction once the 30 days are up. An eviction complaint is filed and a hearing date is set. The homeowners are summoned to appear on that date.

If the homeowners do not show up, a default eviction judgment is granted. Otherwise, both sides may present arguments. In a foreclosure eviction, the homeowners do not have any right to live on the property, so the judgment is almost always against the homeowners. The only exceptions are if the lender attempts self-help eviction or does not file the eviction suit properly.

The physical eviction takes place after the eviction judgment is entered. The Illinois court provides a specific amount of time for the homeowner to leave, usually one to two weeks. If the homeowners remain at the property, the lender files for a Writ of Possession. This Writ is sent to the sheriff's office, and the sheriff has the authorization to remove the homeowners and their possessions from the property.