This page explains New York law for Manhattan property and for people who live or do business in Manhattan: house and condo owners, co-op shareholders, building owners, guarantors and judgment debtors. The statewide rules are on the firm's foreclosure and real estate practice page and in the questions listed at the end. What follows is the New York County layer, drawn from the court system's own pages as read on October 4, 2026. Rooms and hours change, so confirm them before you go.
Which Manhattan offices handle foreclosures and judgments?
| Office | Where | What it handles |
|---|---|---|
| Supreme Court, New York County | 60 Centre Street | Foreclosures of Manhattan property, motions, enforcement proceedings, and foreclosure auctions on Tuesday afternoons at 2:15 p.m. (room posted outside Room 130) |
| General Clerk's Office | Room 119, 60 Centre Street; 646-386-3030 | Motions by notice, preliminary conference requests, and assignment of new cases to a Justice |
| Commercial Division Support Office | Room 119A, 60 Centre Street; 646-386-3020 | Business cases assigned to the Commercial Division |
| New York County Clerk, main office | Room 161, 60 Centre Street; Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 4:45 p.m., cashiers close 4:15 p.m.; (646) 386-5956 | Court fees, filings and the County Clerk's records |
| County Clerk, Judgments and Judgment Docket and Lien | Room 141B (Judgments) and Room 109B (Judgment Docket and Lien), 60 Centre Street | All judgments in the county, including confessions of judgment; docketing of judgments and liens on property |
| NYC Department of Finance, Land Records, New York County office | 66 John Street, 13th floor | Recorded deeds, mortgages and other property documents, searchable in ACRIS from 1966 to the present |
| Appellate Division, First Department | The court system's map places New York County in the First Department | Appeals from Supreme Court orders and judgments |
How does a Manhattan foreclosure move, in brief?
- Before the case. For a home loan, the lender must send a 90-day notice before suing (RPAPL 1304).
- Filing. The case belongs in the county where the property is (CPLR 507). New York County lists a $400 index number fee for a foreclosure, and the lender files a notice of pendency with the County Clerk (CPLR 6511).
- Answer. The time to appear is 20 or 30 days, depending on how the papers were served (CPLR 320(a)).
- Conference. For a home loan on a home the owner lives in, the court holds a settlement conference within 60 days after proof of service is filed (CPLR 3408(a)).
- Motions and judgment. Motions run through Room 119 and Room 130. The judgment directs a sale within 90 days (RPAPL 1351(1)).
- Sale. Notice is published in a daily newspaper published in New York County (RPAPL 231(2)(a)), and the auction is held on a Tuesday. The court's auction page posts a Surplus Monies Form for sales that bring in more than the judgment.
Each room and deadline is set out in what to expect at New York County Supreme Court in a foreclosure case. For Brooklyn property, see foreclosure and judgment defense for Brooklyn (Kings County) cases. Queens owners can start with foreclosure and judgment defense for Queens County cases. For the Bronx, read foreclosure and judgment defense for Bronx County cases.
What is different for Manhattan co-op and condo owners?
New York law treats co-op apartments and condominium units differently at three points.
- Notice and conference. The RPAPL 1304 definition of a home loan names one to four family dwellings and condominium units but not co-op shares, and the CPLR 3408 conference uses that definition. Banking Law 6-l(1)(e) does cover loans secured by co-op shares and a proprietary lease, up to the Federal National Mortgage Association conforming loan limit. Which protections fit your loan is the subject of commercial or residential foreclosure in New York: which protections apply to you.
- Judgment creditors. The homestead exemption covers co-op shares and condo units the debtor owns and lives in (CPLR 5206(a)). New York County is in the top tier: $150,000 in the statute, now $204,825 under the Department of Financial Services adjustment effective April 1, 2024. The details are in how the homestead exemption protects a Manhattan co-op from a judgment creditor.
- Commercial Division. Uniform Commercial Code transactions concerning individual co-op or condo units are left out of the Division (22 NYCRR 202.70(b)(2)), as are home improvement contracts for those units (202.70(c)(4)).
When does a Manhattan case go to the Commercial Division?
New York County's Commercial Division threshold is $500,000, more than any other county listed in the rule, not counting punitive damages, interest, costs, disbursements and counsel fees (22 NYCRR 202.70(a)). Kings County's is $150,000, Queens County's $100,000 and Bronx County's $75,000. Commercial real property transactions and dealings with banks can qualify (202.70(b)(3), (6)). Residential real estate disputes cannot, nor can judgment enforcement unless the judgment came from the Division (202.70(c)(3), (5)).
In Manhattan, a party seeking the Division files a commercial request for judicial intervention with the UCS 840C addendum through the Support Office in Room 119A, within 90 days after the complaint is served, and the clerk checks the pleadings against the threshold. Commercial cases go on the court's complex track, with a 15-month target for the note of issue instead of the standard 12 months. The full test is in whether your business dispute belongs in the New York Commercial Division.
How are judgments enforced against a Manhattan debtor?
The County Clerk dockets a money judgment once the judgment-roll is filed (CPLR 5018(a)), and it then binds the debtor's Manhattan real property for ten years (CPLR 5203(a)). A judgment from another county reaches Manhattan property when a transcript is filed here; the fee list shows $25 to file a transcript and $15 to issue one. The firm's post-judgment defense practice handles the collection steps that follow a judgment.
An enforcement proceeding on a Supreme Court judgment goes to a county where the debtor lives, works or regularly does business in person (CPLR 5221(a)(4)), so a turnover petition against a Manhattan resident can be filed at 60 Centre Street. Property executions in the city are carried out by the New York City Sheriff, part of the Department of Finance. Appeals in Civil Court cases from Manhattan go to the Appellate Term, First Department, which covers New York and Bronx counties.
What changes the answer for a Manhattan owner or debtor?
- Who borrowed. The 90-day notice and the conference apply to a home loan made to a natural person for personal, family or household purposes (RPAPL 1304(6)(a)(1); CPLR 3408(a)), not to an LLC.
- Whether you live there. The homestead protection reaches only a home the debtor owns and occupies as a principal residence (CPLR 5206(a)).
- The amount and kind of dispute. Below $500,000, or in a residential real estate dispute, the Commercial Division is out (22 NYCRR 202.70(a), (c)(3)).
- Where the judgment was docketed. The lien on real property attaches in the county where the judgment is docketed (CPLR 5018(a), 5203(a)).
- Where you live or work. That decides which county hears enforcement proceedings (CPLR 5221(a)(4)).
For example: a Harlem building, a guaranty and an Upper West Side co-op
For example, imagine a woman who owns a four-story mixed-use building in Harlem through an LLC and personally guaranteed the $1.2 million loan on it. She lives in a co-op apartment on the Upper West Side. (This is a made-up illustration, not a real client or result.) After a default, the lender files a foreclosure of the building in the Supreme Court, New York County, and separately moves against her on the guaranty by a motion for summary judgment in lieu of complaint. Because the borrower is an LLC, the 90-day notice and the mandatory conference do not apply.
New York County's motion page notes that a CPLR 3213 motion starts a case, so it carries an index number fee rather than a motion fee, and it is made returnable in Room 130 like other motions on notice. With more than $500,000 at stake, either side may ask for the Commercial Division. If a money judgment were later entered on the guaranty, the creditor could look to her co-op shares, and because she lives there, the New York County homestead amount of $204,825 would apply to her equity. The two cases have separate deadlines and must be tracked side by side.
Common mistakes Manhattan owners and debtors make
- Searching only ACRIS. ACRIS holds recorded documents; docketed judgments are on the County Clerk's Judgment and Lien Docket, searchable by name or block and lot.
- Assuming every home gets a conference. The statutory conference follows the RPAPL 1304 definition, which names houses and condominium units, not co-op shares.
- Missing the Commercial Division window. A request to send a case there is due within 90 days after the complaint is served.
- Arriving late to pay. The County Clerk's cashiers close at 4:15 p.m., half an hour before the office itself.
- Forgetting judgments from other counties. Once a transcript is filed in New York County, a judgment entered elsewhere becomes a lien on Manhattan real property.
- Reading the auction list as final. The court notes that some listed properties are not sold, for example because of a stay or a forbearance agreement.
What to do this week
- Find the index number on every court paper and note which court issued it.
- Count the deadline to answer or respond from the date and method of service.
- Look up the property in ACRIS and your name on the County Clerk's Judgment and Lien Docket.
- If a sale date has been set, check the court's auction list for that Tuesday.
- Gather the loan, guaranty and co-op papers listed in what to bring to a foreclosure defense consultation.
- Speak with a lawyer about every open case before the next deadline.
Frequently asked questions
Is every Manhattan foreclosure heard at 60 Centre Street?
Yes: a foreclosure is tried in the county where the property is (CPLR 507), and the court lists its clerk's offices, motion courtroom and auctions at 60 Centre Street.
Where are Manhattan property records kept?
Recorded deeds, mortgages and satisfactions are kept by the Department of Finance, whose New York County office is at 66 John Street, 13th floor, and can be searched in ACRIS. Docketed judgments are a separate County Clerk record.
When is the New York County Clerk open?
The Clerk lists its main office, Room 161 at 60 Centre Street, as open Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 4:45 p.m., with cashiers closing at 4:15 p.m. Check before you go.
How do I find an old Manhattan court file?
Paper files are in the Records Room, Room 103B at 60 Centre Street. Files stored off-site are at the Archives Department, 31 Chambers Street, 7th floor, and can take longer to retrieve.
Where do appeals from Manhattan Supreme Court cases go?
To the Appellate Division, First Department, which covers New York and Bronx counties. Deadlines and stays are covered in whether you can appeal or reargue a foreclosure judgment in New York.
Does KOR Law LLP have a Manhattan office?
Yes. The firm's office is at One World Trade Center, 85th Floor, New York, NY 10007.
What questions do Manhattan owners and debtors ask?
Foreclosure
- Served this week: what happens after you are served with a foreclosure summons in New York.
- Counting the days: how long you have to answer a foreclosure complaint, and what goes in the answer.
- No answer was filed: what if you missed the deadline to answer a foreclosure.
- A letter before the lawsuit: the 90-day foreclosure notice and what happens if the lender got it wrong.
- House, condo, co-op or building: commercial or residential foreclosure, and which protections apply.
- A conference date: what happens at a New York foreclosure settlement conference.
- An application still pending: getting a loan modification after the case starts.
- Gaps in the paperwork: dismissal because the lender lacked standing.
- A default from years ago: how long a lender has to foreclose, and what the Foreclosure Abuse Prevention Act changed.
- Disputed figures: the referee's report and how to challenge the amount owed.
- After a ruling: appealing or rearguing a foreclosure judgment.
- A Tuesday sale date: where and when New York City foreclosure auctions are held.
- Money left over: who gets the surplus money after a foreclosure sale.
- Getting ready for a meeting: what to bring to a foreclosure defense consultation.
- A paid-off loan still of record: a mortgage satisfaction that was never recorded.
- Competing claims to a property: when owners need a quiet title action.
Judgments
- The starting point: what happens after a money judgment is entered against you.
- Age and interest: how long a New York judgment lasts and how much interest it adds.
- A frozen account: what you can do about a restraining notice on your bank account.
- Written questions: whether you have to answer an information subpoena.
- Paycheck deductions: how much of your wages a creditor can take.
- What stays yours: property a judgment creditor cannot take.
- Your apartment: whether the homestead exemption protects a co-op apartment.
- Owned with a spouse: whether a creditor of one spouse can force the sale of an entirety home.
- A sheriff's levy: what a sheriff can seize under a property execution.
- A petition for your assets: what a turnover proceeding is and how to respond.
- Rents or a business targeted: when a court can appoint a receiver to collect a judgment.
- A lien in the way of a closing: selling or refinancing with a judgment lien on the property.
- A case you never knew about: undoing a default judgment.
- Collection that goes too far: asking a court to limit a creditor's collection efforts.
- A judgment from elsewhere: enforcing an out-of-state or federal judgment in New York.
- Before a first meeting: what to gather when a creditor starts enforcing a judgment.
Loans, guaranties and deficiencies
- A default notice on a business loan: what happens after a lender declares a commercial loan in default.
- From the lender's side: how a lender enforces a defaulted commercial loan, step by step.
- You signed personally: the defenses a personal guarantor has.
- A motion instead of a complaint: what a CPLR 3213 motion is and why guarantors face it.
- Two cases over one loan: whether a lender can sue on the note and foreclose at the same time.
- An old debt: how long a lender has to sue on a note or guaranty.
- More time, at a price: what you give up in a forbearance agreement.
- A rate that looks unlawful: whether a commercial loan is usurious.
- A judgment signed in advance: whether a confession of judgment is enforceable after the 2019 change.
- Rents going to someone else: rent receivers during a foreclosure.
- Your company's equity up for sale: UCC foreclosure sales of ownership interests.
- A balance after the auction: whether a lender can get a deficiency judgment.
- A valuation that looks low: challenging the appraisal behind a deficiency judgment.
- A transfer under attack: voidable (fraudulent) transfers.
- A first meeting about a loan: what a borrower or guarantor should bring.