Bidding & Post Sale Process

Office Closure Policy

If the Public Trustee's Office is closed on a regularly-scheduled Wednesday sale date because of a County-wide office closure (due to weather conditions, etc.) the sales scheduled for that day will be CANCELLED. Any sales cancelled because the office is closed will be CONTINUED to the next regularly-scheduled Wednesday sale date and NEW BIDS will be required.  If the County offices have a "delayed opening time" due to unanticipated conditions, the regularly-scheduled Wednesday sale may also be delayed and not start at 10:00 am.  If you suspect that our office may be closed or opening on a delayed schedule due to weather conditions, etc. PLEASE ATTEMPT TO CALL OUR OFFICE Wednesday morning at 720.523.6250 for further information.

PLEASE NOTE: The Colorado foreclosure laws may be changed from time to time by the Colorado General Assembly through legislation signed by the Governor. The laws have CHANGED several times over the past few years. Please check Title 38, Article 38 of the Colorado Revised Statutes for CURRENT laws relating to foreclosures. Due to the change in laws, the Public Trustee's office will be simultaneously processing foreclosures under the NEW and the OLD laws, depending on the date the foreclosure is "started".

The Public Trustee is NOT legally authorized to stop a foreclosure and can continue a foreclosure sale only under very limited circumstances defined in the law. If a written bid from the lender is not TIMELY RECEIVED as set forth in the law before a foreclosure is set to go to sale, the foreclosure is continued for at least one week. If the Public Trustee has not timely received an Order Authorizing Sale from the District Court (out of a Rule 120 civil proceeding), then the sale is continued for at least one week.

NOTICE:  If the sale date is continued to a later date, the deadline to file a Notice of Intent to Cure by those parties entitled to cure may also be extended.

A Notice or Combined Notice of Sale and Rights to Cure and Redeem is mailed to all parties with a recorded interest in the property and is published for five consecutive weeks in general circulation newspapers within the county. The Combined Notice sets out the time and date of the foreclosure sale. The originally-scheduled sale date may be continued (postponed) at the request of the lender or its attorney.  When a sale date is continued the homeowner/borrower does NOT receive additional Notices of the new sale date.  Homeowners/borrowers can monitor "currently scheduled sale dates" for their foreclosures on the Public Trustee's website.

Filing of a bankruptcy by the owner of the property stays (or delays) the foreclosure until the automatic stay is lifted or the bankruptcy court abandons the property or the bankruptcy case is dismissed or closed. The foreclosure sale is "stayed" week to week until the United States Bankruptcy Court takes action.

A listing of all foreclosures going to sale each Wednesday is available for viewing in the office of the Adams County Public Trustee Wednesday morning after 8:00 A.M. or on our website Tuesday night by approximately 4:30 P.M. A "tentative" sale list is posted to our website on Monday evening by approximately 4:30 P.M. -- the Monday listing does not contain any amended bids received on Tuesday morning. The listing may be updated continuously right up to the sale time, as sales are continued, withdrawn, stayed by bankruptcy etc. After the foreclosure sale on Wednesday morning, the website will be updated as well to show all properties sold at the sale.

Parties interested in overbidding must be personally in attendance at the sale (or must have a representative in attendance to bid in their name and on their behalf). Bidding may begin at $1.00 over the lender's submitted bid, which is read aloud at the time of sale. The bidding is competitive and done orally and the highest bidder tendering sufficient, collectible funds wins. See our document entitled "How to Bid at the Public Trustee Foreclosure Sale" on our "Forms & Policies" page.

Cash or certified funds for the FULL amount of the successful bid must be tendered to the Public Trustee's Office at the time of sale. The funds must be payable to the "Adams County Public Trustee". The Public Trustee, by law, CANNOT accept personal checks, any kind of money orders or third-party endorsed checks. Many overbidders will bring in a Cashier's Check for the highest amount that they would be willing to bid, and a refund, if necessary, is sent to them within seven (7) days of the sale. Successful bidders at the auction sale should go to the Public Trustee's office immediately after conclusion of the entire sale to obtain a RECEIPT for the funds paid.

After the Public Trustee is assured that funds are collected by it, a Certificate of Purchase (CP) will be issued by the Public Trustee and recorded. The recorded CP will be retained in the Public Trustee's office. After all redemption periods have expired the Confirmation Deed will be automatically issued to the Holder or Assignee of the Certificate of Purchase, or in the case of a redemption, to the Holder of the Certificate of Redemption, no later than 15 business days after both the title vests and the Public Trustee has received all statutory fees and costs.

For information on foreclosure cases started prior to 1/1/08, please contact the Public Trustee's office because the CP process is different for those older cases.

Laws are subject to change. Please refer to the Colorado Revised Statutes, Title 38, Article 38 for the changes and their effective dates.

Please consult your legal advisor for clarification of your rights, the rights of the homeowner and other lienholder's rights during the redemption period.

The interest under the Certificate of Purchase is fully assignable in writing, once the Certificate of Purchase has been issued by the Public Trustee. Written Assignments of the CP MUST be dated and signed OR recorded OR provided to the Public Trustee's office on or before the 8th business day after date of sale because title vests statutorily in the CP holder thereafter.  Once title has vested in the CP holder, the CP cannot be assigned by the CP holder to someone else. Assignments of the CP should be provided to the Public Trustee's office at the time the deed is requested and paid for so that an accurate Public Trustee's Deed or Confirmation Deed may be issued.