Equity of Redemption

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EQUITY OF REDEMPTION

The right of a mortgagor, that is, a borrower who obtains a loan secured by a pledge of his or her real property, to prevent foreclosure proceedings by paying the amount due on the loan, a mortgage, plus interest and other expenses after having failed to pay within the time and according to the terms specified therein.

This right is based upon the equitable principle that it is only fair that a borrower have a final opportunity to keep his or her property even if he or she has failed to make payments on the mortgage, since the property is to be sold in foreclosure proceedings.

The equity of redemption must be exercised by a mortgagor within a certain time after having defaulted on an obligation. It exists only from the time of default to the time that fore-closure proceedings are commenced.

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