Four Layers of Required Notice
Arizona does not allow a trustee sale to happen in the dark. The law requires notice through four separate channels. Each is designed to reach different people who might have an interest in the property or the debt. The power of sale cannot be exercised without proper notice.
The trustee shall give written notice of the time and place of sale legally describing the trust property to be sold by each of the following methods: 1. Recording a notice in the office of the recorder of each county where the trust property is situated. 2. Giving notice as provided in section 33-809 to the extent applicable. 3. Posting a copy of the notice of sale, at least twenty days before the date of sale in some conspicuous place on the trust property to be sold. 4. Publication of the notice of sale in a newspaper of general circulation in each county in which the trust property to be sold is situated.
A.R.S. § 33-808(A)The newspaper publication must run at least once a week for four consecutive weeks. The final publication must be at least ten days before the sale. The property must be posted at least twenty days before the sale date. If a locked gate or similar barrier prevents access, the notice can be posted at that entrance.
What the Notice Must Include
The notice of sale is not a casual document. It must contain the date, time, and place of the sale. It must list the property address and legal description, the county assessor's tax parcel number, and the original principal balance.
The names and addresses of the beneficiary, trustee, and original trustor must also appear. The sale must occur between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. mountain standard time on a day other than a Saturday or legal holiday.
Most importantly, the notice must include a bold-faced warning. It tells the borrower that any defenses or objections must be filed with the superior court before 5:00 p.m. on the last business day before the scheduled sale. The highest bidder at the sale takes the property free of most junior claims. Missing that deadline can mean losing all defenses. Judicial foreclosures follow different notice rules, but this statute governs non-judicial trustee sales within 90 days of the notice recording.