I have a lien on a property that sold fsbo 2nd owner discovered it and doesn’t want to pay in escrow?
I placed a lien on a property in CA in 1992 for a debt (deed of trust) the man sold it for sale by owner. I sent him a bill a few years ago and the new purchaser discovered it, the debtor called me and said he sold it and laughed. I think the new owner just took over payments and never had a title search. She wants to refinance or sell and the lien came up, the title company is friends with ladys niece who is a loan officer and they told her that her aunt shouldn’t pay because it was there before she bought the property. I have a reconveyance ready to go and the title company is refusing to pay the demand. This was done when I was a bail agent and the first owners bailed someone that skipped. I have never had this problem. Title Co. said the insurance company is the beneficiary, I’m the trustee and lien holder. Shold I hire an attorney? the contract said 10% per year interest it is now about 25,000. due. The seller told her/buyer about the lien and she was aware.
I am considering selling my home FSBO. I could save Approx $11K in realtor fees. Should I?
This post has 7 comments
August 4th, 2009
I would tell them that if they don’t pay up, you’ll take an attorney and his fees will go on top. Final warning. Tell them you will foreclose on the property!
Then get an attorney who has experience with this type of case!
August 7th, 2009
I was a loan officer for a few years. This much I know, Lenders, Title Companies and Loan officers can all make mistakes. I would defiantly get an attorney. Due to the timing and someone else’s mistake, you might not be liable at all. Good luck!
August 9th, 2009
Start foreclosure proceedings.
That will cause somebody to do whatever needs to be done. The current owner cannot sell the house right now if the buyer is getting a loan or wants a title policy.
If you do end up foreclosing, you will have to pay off the first lien. Unless it’s an owner carry to the person who you filed against in the first place.
You might end up getting the house with little or no other liens on it – talk to a real estate attorney in the state the house is in.
August 9th, 2009
Your lien should block the sale and the transfer of title.
People need to be aware when purchasing property that this can occur and it means you cannot legally own the property.
Get a lawyer and demand to be paid or stop any sale/re-financing as your money is due. No bank will lend her money with a lien on the property floating around and not being paid.
Good luck.
August 9th, 2009
The lien on the property is always a lien. Liens convey with a property if not paid off. The new owner is responsible for getting the lien paid. The new owner can always sue the previous owner for payment of this lien. My recommendation is to begin foreclosure proceedings on the property. The new owner will not be able to sell or refinance with a foreclosure looming over them. And that should scare the title company into being ethical about the whole deal.
Hire an attorney to begin the foreclosure proceedings as soon as possible. Take a copy of the lien to your attorney. He/she will be able to tell you who the beneficiary and trustee is. Most often the trustee is an uninterested person, not the person who is owed. I wouldn’t trust anything that this Title Company says.
August 12th, 2009
Let me start by saying that liens run with the property, not with the individuals. So, when the original borrower sold the property they were required to pay off the deed of trust in order to present their buyer with a clear title. That being said, I’d suggest going to a real estate attorney and explaining the situation to them so that they can begin foreclosure proceedings.
I’m not clear on what exactly the title company means by saying that you are the trustee and the lien holder. In a Deed of Trust, there are three parties: the trustor (i.e. borrower), the trustee (the person or entity that holds the property in trust until the terms of the deed of trust are fulfilled), and the beneficiary (the one who loans the money). If they’re saying that you are both the beneficiary and the trustee, then you do not have a deed of trust, you basically have a mortgage, which are not permissable in some states. Perhaps this title company is using a different set of terminology than I’m used to, but this could be a problem. So I strongly recommend talking to a real estate attorney.
I hope this works out for you, Good luck!
August 12th, 2009
Ok, lots of chaff in your question.
The bottom line is the lien is on the property. It stays on the property until paid or released.
If the new owner has title insurance (which deosn’t sound like it) then he would ask them to pay b/c they missed it on the sale.
If no, the new owner is liable, or the property is liable, and you can sue to force a forclosure sale to get your due.
The new owner would then sue the person who sold the house to them.
Get a real estate lawyer.