California Foreclosures Legal Questions

To avoid a deficiency judgment with a deed in lieu of foreclosure, the agreement between the lender and the borrower must expressly state that the transaction is in full satisfaction of the debt. If the deed in lieu of foreclosure agreement does not contain this provision, the lender may file a subsequent lawsuit to obtain a deficiency judgment. The terms of the agreement are negotiable, meaning you do not have to accept the agreement the way the bank drafts it. If it does not contain an express waiver of deficiency, you can demand to have it added, refuse to sign if it isn't, or negotiate to have it included, depending on your bargaining leverage. It might be money well spent to pay a lawyer to review the agreement to ensure that it includes a waiver.... Read More

Apparently, the plaintiff in the lawsuit obtained a judgment against one or more defendants; possibly by default, meaning the defendant did not file a timely answer to the complaint. That defendant then filed a written motion asking the court to set aside or vacate the default judgment. The court granted the motion. So now instead of having a default judgment, the plaintiff must try to get a judgment by winning the case at trial, which the court set for 2/27/14.... Read More

It is difficult to answer your question without seeing the agreement you signed with your agent. Is your obligation to sell with an assumption of mortgage contingent on bank approval? Has the bank approved the assumption? I doubt that the listing agreement requires you to accept any offer presented regardless of its terms. And even if the agreement does say that, a court would probably void it as being illegal or unconscionable. If you refuse to pay the commission, the agent may sue you. So your questions ultimately might only be able to be answered in court. Most county bar associations have a Lawyer Referral Service that will arrange an appointment at a nominal cost with an attorney specializing in the subject on which you need help, in this case real estate law. I urge you to consult with an attorney as soon as possible. At least then you will understand your options.... Read More

As long as you are on the title you are responsible for the continuing hoa dues. The bankruptcy by itself does not transfer the title unless the trustee administered and sold the property. So you would still be on the hook for association fees even if you move out until the bank forecloses or there is a short sale. Renting to a third party might be a temporary solution.... Read More

If the landlord is in lawful possession of the property she can still collect the rent. However, if your occupancy will be disrupted by the foreclosure you may have a right to terminate any lease you might have signed. It depends on how the bank treats the tenants and of course whether you wish to stay there.... Read More

That's a close question. It may constitute a fixture, in which case it should remain. But it may constitute personal property if it is not affixed to the land or connected by pipes or electrical wires. If you do remove it and the come after you, your exposure is limited to the difference in the fair market value of the property with and without the shed.... Read More

Not sure why this is in the Foreclosure Defense section. But your attorney is entitled to keep, at most, the amount of money that represents fair compensation for what the work he actually did. If you think you have been treated unfairly by an attorney, you can file a complaint with the State Bar of California.... Read More

I don't understand why this is posted on the Foreclosure Defense page. But, what you claim to have is called an appurtenant easement. If your mother, or a previous owner of the property, duly conveyed and recorded a deed granting the easement to you, then all subsequent purchasers take the property "subject to" the easement, meaning they have to honor it. The only possible problem I see is that the "letter" filed in the registrar's office might not meet the legal requirements of a valid deed. You should have the document reviewed by an attorney experienced in real estate law. If everything is in order, then you should make sure your new neighbors are aware of the easement so they don't inadvertently do something to interfere with it. When they bought the property, they no doubt did a title search, which should have turned up your easement. One purpose of recording deeds is to give notice of this sort of thing to potential buyers so they can take it into consideration in deciding whether to buy.... Read More

It's hard to understand from the facts provided exactly what happened. Even if a responsive pleading (answer or demurrer) was due January 15, if it was filed January 16, the court should not have thereafter entered a default. The Request to Enter Default would have to have been filed after the last day to respond but before the answer was filed. Was this an unlawful detainer case? If so, the time to appeal is either 30 or 60 days (depending on the amount of damages claimed) so, in any case, the time to appeal is long expired. Anyway, it is highly unlikely that you have any grounds for appeal, unless the clerk mistakenly entered your default after you had an answer on file. Your attorney may have committed malpractice. However, in order to prevail in a malpractice action, you have to prove you would have obtained a better result in the unlawful detainer case but for your attorney's negligence. You have not stated any facts indicating that the plaintiff did not have the right to evict you. Therefore, even if your attorney did everything correctly, you probably would have been evicted eventually anyway. You should explore this issue with your new attorney so that a decision can be made based on all of the facts.... Read More