My landlord just died. Her husband is not going to pay the mortgage any longer. How long do I have before bank seizes the property?

When an owner defaults under a mortgage, the lender has to file a lawsuit, a foreclosure action to get them out.  In Ohio, the homeowner has 28 days to answer the foreclosure complaint.  If no answer is filed, the lender can move for default judgment after that 28-day period.  If an answer is filed, then the court can't award a default judgment, but the lender is likely to file a Motion for a Summary Judgment, because there is no dispute that the loan is in default.  The borrower can either file a brief in opposition to the Motion or do nothing.  If nothing is done, the court can then grant judgment in favor of the lender, then order the property sold at Sheriff's Sale. All of this takes time.  The amount of time that it takes will vary depending on the county where the property is located, how soon the lender files the foreclosure action, how vigorously they pursue the case and what action, if any, is taken to defend the lawsuit.  The foreclosure docket in some counties is very busy and backed up and so take a long time.  Other courts are not as congested and the case will move more quickly.  I saw a case where the owner lived in the property throughout the entire lawsuit, through the foreclosure sale, then continued to live there after the bank bought it at the sale.  The bank just let him live there for another year until they found a buyer.  THAT buyer finally made him move out.  The bank was happy to have him there because someone was living in the house, paying to heat it, etc., keeping pipes from freezing and reducing the likelihood that someone would break in and vandalize the property or steal the fixtures, pipes, wiring, siding or anything else that was able to be stolen and sold. It is unlikely that the bank could get the property sold at foreclosure by December 24.  What you might consider is asking the bank if they will rent to you, assuming that they buy it at foreclosure, even on a month to month basis until they sell it (banks frequently buy their own properties at the foreclosure sales). Other alternatives:  You might also find out if the bank is willing to let you cure the default (it isn't just as easy as that because you would have to involve the owner in that deal, too.  Maybe the owner (widow) would be happy to give you the house, or sell it to you on a short sale, if you had the means to pay for the new mortgage.  Often lenders don't want to take properties into their portfolio, so are willing to compromise some of the debt.  They know that if they go to foreclosure, often the sale price if 2/3 or the appraised value, which may even be less than the mortgage, so you might have some negotiating power.  If you want to try to buy the house in this way, you should hire an attorney who is versed in this kind of law.  They are likely to be able to negotiate a deal better than you could have on your own.