Law School Toolbox Podcast Episode 392: Listen and Learn -- Recording Statutes (Real Property)
Bar Exam Toolbox Podcast Episode 146: Listen and Learn -- Mortgages and Priority
A foreclosure sale purchaser attempting to evict a tenant on the property can encounter pitfalls, as made clear in a series of court cases in recent years. Here is a summary, capped by an update on a recently filed opinion: ...more
Last week, the Texas Supreme Court answered the Fifth Circuit’s certified question as to whether simultaneous rescission and reacceleration can reset the limitations period under Texas Law by holding that “a rescission that...more
Obligations reduced to a promissory note are often accompanied by a written guaranty. The law treats the guaranty as an independent obligation. A case recently decided by California’s First District Court of Appeal —...more
A Baltimore Homeowner’s Saga - Baltimore Resident and single mother Deanna Woodward paid off her mortgage 18 years ago. After that, she paid her real estate taxes. So, imagine her surprise when she recently learned that...more
In a recent decision, the Colorado Supreme Court reversed the Colorado Court of Appeals and held that a discharge in bankruptcy does not trigger the statute of limitations on a claim to foreclose based on a deed of trust....more
Lenders on commercial real estate projects typically require that the general contractor subordinate its mechanics’ lien rights to the lender’s deed of trust and other financing documents in order to assure the lender that...more
Under California’s easement “merger” (merger of title) doctrine set forth in Civil Code sections 811 and 805, an easement (or servitude) is “extinguished” by “the vesting of the right of the servitude and the right to the...more
Creditors know that a bankruptcy petition automatically halts efforts to collect pre-petition debts from the debtor outside of bankruptcy. The "automatic stay" provides fundamental protection to debtors, mandating a full...more
Five years ago, the General Assembly amended the foreclosure statute to prohibit an attorney who serves as trustee or substitute trustee from representing the noteholder or the borrower during a foreclosure proceeding. ...more
In a recent decision, the Washington Court of Appeals established a new equitable exception to the American rule for attorneys’ fees, which generally denies an award of fees and costs to a prevailing party absent a...more
One of the unresolved issues over the past several years in the realm of lender liability law is whether lenders owe tort duties to borrowers in connection with loan modification applications. Until now, case law has been all...more
As we previously noted, the statute of limitations on actions to enforce a note or deed of trust can be a brutally effective sword for borrowers in Washington State. Under the six-year limitations period of RCW 7.28.300, a...more
Clete Pavone bought property in West Virginia from Patrick Russell in October of 2018. Because he did not obtain a title search before buying the property, Mr. Pavone did not know that it was encumbered by a deed of trust...more
On January 18, 2021, the Washington Court of Appeals in Copper Creek (Marysville) Homeowners Ass’n v. Kurtz reaffirmed an important rule related to real property foreclosures and the statute of limitations after a bankruptcy...more
Modifying a loan can sometimes cause a loss of lien priority. It all depends on the facts underlying the modification, and even the original loan....more
Welcome back to the Bar Exam Toolbox podcast! In today's installment of our "Listen and Learn" series, we're focusing on Real Property. In particular, we're diving into the tricky subtopic of mortgages and priorities. In...more
Everybody is familiar with the part of a wedding where the audience is given an opportunity by the person officiating to express why the couple about to be married should not proceed with the ceremony, telling all present to...more
Under California’s Quiet Title Act, a third party who acts in reliance on a quiet title judgment retains its property rights even if that quiet title judgment is later declared void as long as the third party qualifies as a...more
A deed of trust beneficiary usually feels pretty confident with the validity of the deed as long as it is signed by an owner of the property. But when the property constitutes community property of a married couple, is...more
Oscar Wilde is quoted for saying—“To expect the unexpected shows a thoroughly modern intellect.” This advice certainly holds true for a senior deed of trust lienholder contemplating foreclosure on real property security. ...more
Can a California real property owner challenge a lender’s authority to foreclose before a foreclosure sale has occurred? It’s looking less likely with each new appellate opinion....more
Flashback: Five years ago, Money and Dirt covered the Salazar v. Thomas opinion from California’s Fifth District Court of Appeal holding that a Notice of Default does not “disturb possession” sufficiently to start the...more
The Nevada Supreme Court again turned its attention to superpriority liens in the first quarter of 2020, issuing two opinions dealing with tenders, i.e. attempts or offers to pay. These decisions outline additional ways that...more
For the last several years, there has been a tremendous amount of litigation in Nevada arising from residential foreclosure sales conducted by homeowners’ associations (HOA). The main issue in those cases has been whether the...more
Everyone is familiar with the “Rock, Paper, Scissors” method of resolving disputes where scissors cut paper, paper covers rock, and rock breaks scissors. In Futuri Real Estate, Inc. v. Atlantic Trustee Services, the Virginia...more