California property record checklist

What documents should you gather when foreclosure is approaching?

A good review begins with the actual notices, transaction records, title documents, and property facts—not a general story assembled from memory.

Written and reviewed by Lucy Boyd · Founder and Director · Updated September 13, 2026

Core loan records

• Promissory note, deed of trust, riders, modification agreements, and assumption documents
• Complete payment and escrow histories
• Current statement, delinquency breakdown, reinstatement quote, and payoff demand
• All loss-mitigation applications, supporting documents, acknowledgments, decisions, and appeals

Foreclosure and title records

• Notice of Default and Notice of Trustee’s Sale
• Recorded assignments and substitutions of trustee
• Preliminary title report and copies of other liens, judgments, HOA claims, or tax claims
• Successor, probate, divorce, entity, or transfer documents when ownership or authority is disputed

Property and legal context

• Recent appraisal or valuation evidence, photographs, repair estimates, leases, and rent roll
• Bankruptcy petitions, schedules, court orders, lawsuits, and settlement communications
• A one-page chronology listing dates, events, people, and the document supporting each entry

Reverse-mortgage-specific records

• HECM case information or proprietary reverse-mortgage agreement, plus the identity of each borrower, co-borrower, and named non-borrowing spouse
• Annual occupancy certifications, healthcare-facility absence records, inspection notices, and repair correspondence
• Tax, insurance, HOA, property-charge, set-aside, and servicer-advance records
• Death certificate, marriage record, trust, probate, successor, heir, and personal-representative documents
• Due-and-payable notice, extension requests and responses, appraisal, payoff statement, sale evidence, and all foreclosure communications