ORS § 312.040 — Notice of proceeding; personal service; locating property owners; contents

# (1)

(a) Notice of the foreclosure proceeding shall be given by both of the following means:

(A) One publication of the foreclosure list in a newspaper of general circulation in the county, to be designated by the governing body of the county. The price charged by the newspaper shall be at the legal rate as provided by law. A copy of the newspaper notice shall be mailed by the county to each incorporated city in the county.

(B) Delivery of notice to any owners, as shown in the county deed records, of each property included on the foreclosure list at the address or addresses as reflected in the county records under ORS 93.260, 311.555 or 311.560.

(b)(A) Notwithstanding paragraph (a) of this subsection, if it is deemed expedient, notice of the institution of a foreclosure proceeding may instead be given by personal service, delivered either orally or in writing, and confirmed by an affidavit.

(B) The names of the owners that receive notification pursuant to this paragraph, and the descriptions and other matters relating to their respective properties, may be excluded from the foreclosure list.

# (2)

For all notices of foreclosure proceedings, counties shall conduct due diligence to locate property owners by means including, but not limited to, searches of land, court and other records, online databases and other resources.

# (3)

Each notice of a foreclosure proceeding shall include:

(a) The exact amount of unpaid taxes owed, including interest and fees.

(b) The following language, in capital letters, in at least 14-point type:

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WARNING: THERE ARE UNPAID TAXES AND FEES IN THE AMOUNT OF $____ ON PROPERTY AT (ADDRESS) WHICH YOU MAY OWN OR HAVE A LEGAL INTEREST IN. THE PROPERTY WILL BE DEEDED TO THE COUNTY AND YOUR INTEREST WILL BE TERMINATED UNLESS THE BACK TAXES AND FEES ARE PAID. TO MAKE PAYMENT, OR TO RECEIVE FURTHER INFORMATION ABOUT PAYMENT, CONTACT (TAX COLLECTOR) IMMEDIATELY AT (ADDRESS), (TELEPHONE NUMBER).

IF THE PROPERTY IS DEEDED TO THE COUNTY AS A WAY OF COLLECTING THE BACK TAXES AND FEES OWED, AND THE PROPERTY IS WORTH MORE THAN YOU OWE, YOU ARE ENTITLED TO A RETURN OF MONEY FROM THE COUNTY. IN ORDER TO RECEIVE A NOTICE OF A POTENTIAL SURPLUS FROM THE COUNTY, PLEASE PROVIDE THE COUNTY WITH NOTICE OF A CURRENT ADDRESS, AND UPDATE THAT ADDRESS IF YOU MOVE.

THERE ARE GOVERNMENT AGENCIES AND NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS THAT CAN GIVE YOU INFORMATION ABOUT FORECLOSURE AND HELP YOU DECIDE WHAT TO DO. FOR GENERAL INFORMATION AT NO COST TO YOU, CONTACT A CERTIFIED HOUSING COUNSELOR. YOU CAN FIND A HOUSING COUNSELOR NEAR YOU AT HTTPS://WWW.HUD.GOV/STATES/ OREGON#HOME OWNERSHIP. YOU MAY ALSO WANT TO TALK TO A LAWYER. YOU CAN REACH THE OREGON STATE BAR’S LAWYER REFERRAL SERVICE AT 800-452-7636 (TOLL-FREE IN OREGON) OR VISIT THE WEBSITE AT WWW.OSBAR.ORG. FREE LEGAL ASSISTANCE MAY ALSO BE AVAILABLE TO INDIVIDUALS WITH LOW INCOMES. FOR MORE INFORMATION AND A DIRECTORY OF LEGAL AID PROGRAMS, GO TO WWW.OREGONLAWHELP.ORG.

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(c) At a minimum, the name, requirements and application process of any existing property tax deferral program operated by this state or by any county or municipal government within this state.

(d) Information regarding local lawyer referral services, legal aid programs or foreclosure avoidance programs known by the county and operated by local state agencies, the Oregon State Bar or charitable nonprofit organizations that may be able to provide the owner with assistance in the foreclosure process.

(e) A referral, in the five most commonly spoken languages in this state other than English listed by the Secretary of State pursuant to ORS 251.167, to the website of the Unclaimed Property program of the State Treasury at https://unclaimed.oregon.gov for a translation of the notice into those languages. The translated referral shall include the statement, “This is a notice about important rights related to your property.”

# (4)

Each notice given under this section shall identify the particular property or properties that are the subject of the notice.

# (5)

All persons owning or claiming to own, or having or claiming to have, any interest in property included in the foreclosure list are required to take notice of the foreclosure proceeding and of all steps under the proceeding.