The California Homeowner Bill of Rights is a set of laws that provide protections to homeowners who are facing foreclosure. It became law on January 1, 2013, with many sections renewed and modified as of January 1, 2019.

Key provisions include:

The Homeowner Bill of Rights generally applies to first-lien mortgages on owner-occupied homes that have no more than four units, and the protections above generally apply if your servicer foreclosed on more than 175 homes in the last year.

If you are having trouble making payments, contact your servicer to ask for help and keep following up with your servicer about any foreclosure-prevention application you submit. For more information about the foreclosure process, scams to watch out for, and resources that may help you, see Loan Modification Fraud and Foreclosure Rescue Scams.

If your servicer has violated the Homeowner Bill of Rights, you may want to consult a lawyer. Go to our Attorneys/Lawyers page for information on how to find a lawyer or a legal aid organization. You can also report violations to the Attorney General’s Office. The Office cannot give legal advice, but filing a consumer complaint is helpful because it alerts the Office to consumer issues and may help with the Office’s investigations. You can also report violations to the Department of Business Oversight and to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.