A missed deadline, a standing fight, and an RPAPL 1304 lesson for servicers
A New York appeals court affirmed a $1.4 million foreclosure against a deceased borrower’s estate, rejecting every procedural challenge his widow raised.
The Appellate Division, Second Department, handed down its unanimous decision on October 14, 2026, covering lender standing, statutory notice requirements, and a missed deadline that cost the estate its last shot at challenging the referee’s report.
The borrower executed a note and mortgage on a Woodside, Queens property in March 2007, allegedly defaulted in December 2009, and died in November 2014. His widow stepped in as administrator of and heir to his estate, defending the foreclosure action that Wells Fargo’s predecessor had filed in June 2015. The mortgage was assigned to Wells Fargo in October 2016.
On standing, the court found Wells Fargo’s predecessor held the note - endorsed in blank - when the action was commenced. A document execution associate at the loan servicer submitted an affidavit confirming possession. The estate did not raise a triable issue of fact.
On notice, a process server’s affidavit showed the administrator had been served with an RPAPL 1303 notice in the required format - bold 14-point type on colored paper distinct from the summons and complaint, with the title in 20-point type. That was enough.
The estate also argued it should have received a pre-foreclosure notice under RPAPL 1304. The court shut that down: the administrator was not a borrower and could not raise the defense on the deceased borrower’s behalf.
Then came the deadline. A referee computed $1,440,895.67 due on the note in a report dated January 23, 2019. Wells Fargo moved to confirm the report on March 9, 2022 - the same date it was filed. The estate did not object until June 9, 2022, more than 30 days later. Too late under CPLR 4403 and 22 NYCRR 202.44(a).
One last argument - that the document execution associate relied on unproduced business records - came up for the first time on appeal. The court would not hear it.
For servicers and foreclosure teams working New York files, the decision doubles as a procedural checklist: endorsed-in-blank note possession at commencement, RPAPL 1303 compliance locked down by a detailed process server affidavit, and the hard 30-day window on referee report objections. The RPAPL 1304 point is a practical reminder - pre-foreclosure notice obligations run to the borrower, not to estate administrators who inherit the fight.
The slip opinion has not yet been published in the Official Reports and is subject to revision.
