[§667-29]  Authorized bidder; successful
bidder.  Any person, including the foreclosing mortgagee, shall be
authorized to bid for the mortgaged property at the public sale and to purchase
the mortgaged property.  The highest bidder who meets the requirements of the
terms and conditions of the public sale shall be the successful bidder.  The
public sale shall be considered as being held when the mortgaged property is
declared by the foreclosing mortgagee as being sold to the successful bidder. 
When the public sale is held, the successful bidder at the public sale, as the
purchaser, shall make a nonrefundable downpayment to the foreclosing mortgagee
of not less than ten per cent of the highest successful bid price.  If the
successful bidder is the foreclosing mortgagee or any other mortgagee having a
recorded lien on the mortgaged property before the recordation of the notice of
default under section 667-23, the downpayment requirement may be satisfied by
offset and a credit bid up to the amount of the mortgage debt. [L 1998,
c 122, pt of §1]