Residential Mortgage Foreclosure Diversion Program

In 2008, the Court of Common Pleas adopted the Residential Mortgage Foreclosure Diversion Program, designed to prevent residential owner-occupied homes from proceeding to Sheriff’s Sale and to help homeowners stay in their homes. The Diversion Program is currently supervised by the Hon. Rosalyn K. Robinson.

When a Plaintiff files a mortgage foreclosure case and indicates that it involves a residential owner-occupied property, a conciliation conference is scheduled an Order is issued preventing Plaintiff from entering judgment until after the conciliation conferences have been concluded. If you are a homeowner in a mortgage foreclosure case you believe should have been designated this way, you may file a certification and request that a conference be scheduled.

Homeowners are instructed to contact the Save Your Home Philly Hotline prior to their conference. The Department of Housing and Community Development will provide the homeowner with a housing counselor free of charge to discuss home retention options with the homeowner and help her or him prepare any necessary paperwork.

Conciliation conferences are held every Thursday in Courtroom 676 of City Hall. The Court holds sessions at 9:00 A.M. and 1:00 P.M.

At the conciliation conferences, homeowners are able to meet face-to-face with lender attorneys to discuss potential workout options to resolve the mortgage delinquency. In addition to housing counselors, attorneys from Community Legal Services, Philadelphia Legal Assistance, SeniorLAW Center, and Philadelphia’s Volunteers for the Indigent Program are available to discuss legal issues with homeowners. If parties are having trouble coming to an agreement, they may request the assistance of a judge pro tem, an experienced attorney who can discuss the case with the parties and make recommendations to Judge Robinson.

In 2016, the Diversion Program celebrated saving 10,000 homes in Philadelphia.

Detailed information about the Diversion Program is listed below:

• 2008 PRESS RELEASE: Former President Judge C. Darnell Jones announcement regarding the adoption of Residential Mortgage Foreclosure Diversion Program
• PRESIDENT JUDGE GENERAL COURT REGULATION No. 2008-01 RE: Residential Mortgage Foreclosure Diversion Program
• Certification of Participation
• Save Your Home Philly Hotline Notice