The Sheriff Sale Adjournment Playbook: How NJ Homeowners Buy Up to 60 More Days

Of everything in New Jersey foreclosure law, the adjournment right is the most underused-per-dollar-of-value. It is written into statute, it costs a small fee, it requires no lawyer and no court appearance — and a large share of homeowners facing a sale date have never heard of it. Rescue operators charge four figures for what this does for almost nothing.

What the law gives you

Under N.J.S.A. 2A:17-36, as amended, the sheriff may adjourn a foreclosure sale at the debtor's request — and New Jersey homeowners are generally entitled to two adjournments of up to 30 days each. That is up to 60 days, on request, through the sheriff's office. Beyond the statutory two, additional adjournments require a court order, which judges grant for genuine cause — a closing scheduled two weeks out being the classic example.

How to actually request one

Procedure varies by county, which is why our county directorylists each sheriff's office, its official sale listings, and its process. The common shape: contact the sheriff's civil/foreclosure division before the sale date, identify the case, request the adjournment as the property owner, and pay the fee. Do it days ahead, not the morning of — offices differ on cutoffs. Then verify the new date on the county's published list, because the listed date is the only one that counts.

What the 60 days are for

Time without a plan just accrues interest. The three plans that fit inside two adjournments:

Closing a sale. A cash purchase commonly closes in 14–30 days in New Jersey, which fits comfortably inside even one adjournment. A sale that closes before the auction pays the judgment and ends the case — and for owners with equity, protects money an auction would put at risk. The math lives in our selling-before-the-sale guide.

Finishing a loss-mitigation review. If a complete modification application is under review, the extra weeks can carry you to a decision instead of a sale date racing the underwriter.

Preparing a Chapter 13 properly. The automatic stay works the morning of a sale, but an emergency petition is the weakest kind. Sixty days lets an attorney build a plan that survives confirmation instead of one that gets dismissed and puts you right back on the list.

Three cautions

First, never pay a third party to "get your sale postponed" — the request is yours to make, and up-front fees for foreclosure rescue services are generally illegal. Second, adjournments do not stop interest, fees, or the judgment amount from growing; they buy time, not forgiveness. Third, watch the county's official list weekly — sales move for the bank's reasons too, and both directions matter to your planning. The deadline calculator keeps the whole clock in one place.