SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — GMAC Mortgage’s efforts to deal with delinquent homeowners has hit a speed bump.

GMAC Mortgage, part of Ally Financial, told brokers and agents to stop foreclosures in Connecticut, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Vermont and Wisconsin.

Recession’s over, but weakness remains

The company also told brokers and agents that it is suspending sales of already foreclosed homes; GMAC will extend the closing date on these sales by 30 days. Buyers can cancel purchases and get their deposits back.

GMAC Mortgage said it may need to take “corrective action” on some foreclosures in the 23 states, according to a memo it sent to brokers and agents.

Bloomberg News reported the memo earlier on Monday. Jim Olecki, a spokesman at Ally, said the memo was accurate.

But later in the day, the company took pains to stress that it hadn’t had instituted a moratorium on all residential foreclosures in 23 states.

“This is not true,” the company said, alluding to news reports. “In fact, all new residential foreclosures are continuing in the ordinary course of business with no interruption in our usual practice.”

GMAC Mortgage said it told some of its outsourced vendors to suspend evictions and REO closings on some foreclosures.

These foreclosures have been held up by challenges to GMAC’s internal procedures for executing judicially required forms, the company added. GMAC has been dealing with the problem for more than three months.

“We are also reviewing certain previously completed foreclosures where the same procedure may have been used,” GMAC Mortgage added.

GMAC Mortgage said it can’t comment on the challenge to its procedures because the issue is being litigated.

“Nevertheless, a new process has already been developed and implemented so that though some existing foreclosures may experience delays while corrective action is taken, there will be no interruption in new foreclosures,” the company said.

“These delays are expected to be resolved within the next few weeks and certainly before year-end, without serious consequence,” it added.