Posts in Redemption

May 13, 2013
2013 Legislation Ends Post-Sale Redemption Discussion

Last year, the Indiana General Assembly amended Ind. Code 32-29-8-3.  For more, please read my 3-29-12 post.  But the Court of Appeals' 2011 opinion in CitiMortgage v. Barabas and 2012 statutory amendment left open the question of whether Indiana had a limited post-sheriff's sale right of redemption.   

When the Indiana Supreme Court issued its 2012 opinion on transfer in the CitiMortgage v. Barabas case, the Justices answered some important questions about Indiana mortgage law, including the role of MERS, but as I wrote on 10-12-12 the post-sale redemption question was not one of them.  Some confusion remained.  (Note:  federal tax liens give the IRS a post-sale right of redemption, which is the only such right of which I'm aware in Indiana.)

In this year's session, the General Assembly in Senate Bill 279 finally axed the statutory language that purported to grant a one-year post-sale right of redemption to certain parties.  Ind. Code 32-29-8-3 has been amended, effective July 1, 2013, as follows:  

Sec. 3. A person who:
         (1) purchases a mortgaged premises or any part of a mortgaged premises under the court's judgment or decree at a judicial sale or who claims title to the mortgaged premises under the judgment or decree; and
         (2) buys the mortgaged premises or any part of the mortgaged premises without actual notice of
             (A) an assignment that is not of record; or
             (B) the transfer of a note, the holder of which is not a party to the action;
holds the premises free and discharged of the lien. However, any assignee or transferee may redeem the premises, like any other creditor, during the period of one (1) year after the sale or during another period ordered by the court in an action brought under section 4 of this chapter, but not exceeding ninety (90) days after the date of the court's decree in the action.

For parties involved in Indiana foreclosure actions, the bottom line is this:  a foreclosure sale cuts off a the right of redemption.  Parties can redeem right up to the sheriff's sale, but the game ends there.  End of discussion.    

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Posted at 10:02 PM in Notable News , Redemption  |  Permalink

February 26, 2013
Discrimination Allegations Unavailing For Borrower In Post-Foreclosure Eviction

Today’s post follows-up on a theme from my February 15th post with respect to evictions following a sheriff’s sale.  That post dealt with eviction of tenants.  Today’s post, regarding United States of America v. Cotton, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 341 (N.D. Ind. 2012) (rtclick/save target as for .pdf), deals with mortgagors/owners. 

Backdrop.  Borrower owned real estate subject to a bank’s mortgage and a junior mortgage held by the United States Department of Agriculture (“USDA”).  Due to a failure to make payments, the bank filed a foreclosure action against the borrower and obtained a summary judgment that authorized a sheriff’s sale.  At the sale, third-party bidders purchased the real estate.  The USDA thereafter asserted its redemption rights under federal law (28 U.S.C. § 2410(c)).  In exchange for a deed, the USDA paid the purchasers an amount equal to what the purchaser’s paid at the sheriff’s sale, plus interest.  After recording the deed, the USDA sent the borrower a notice to vacate the premises within thirty days.  The borrower refused to comply. 

Procedural maneuvering.  To obtain possession of the real estate, the USDA, in a lawsuit separate from the state court foreclosure, filed a motion for judgment on the pleadings pursuant to F.R.C.P. 12(c).  The Court in Cotton noted that the USDA had to establish “that [bank’s] lien on the [subject real estate] stood in first priority, ahead of the USDA’s; that it timely exercised its redemption right in the [subject real estate]; and that it followed the proper procedures under Indiana law to perfect legal title in the [real estate].”  The Court concluded that the USDA had met its burden.

Right to possession.  The USDA’s right of redemption vested upon the sale of the real estate at the sheriff’s sale.  The USDA timely redeemed the real estate and properly recorded the subject deed.  This served to perfect the USDA’s legal title in the real estate.  In Indiana, property law grants to property owners the absolute and unconditional right “to exclude from their domain those entering without permission.”  The Court stated that:  “as the owner of an undivided fee simple interest in the [real estate], the United States is entitled to permit, or exclude, whomever it desires from the property; including [the borrower].”

Borrower’s contentions.  The borrower did not contest the action upon the legal formalities of the acquisition by the USDA, but rather upon notions of equity.  The borrower asserted that the USDA did not have “clean hands,” an equitable doctrine I discussed in a December, 2012 post.  Generally, “one who seeks relief in a court of equity must be free of wrongdoing in the matter before the court.” 

    First, the borrower argued that the USDA had an obligation to intervene on his behalf and to provide him with legal representation and advice in the state court foreclosure proceedings.  The Court noted that, while the USDA might have an obligation under federal law to assist minority and impoverished individuals in efforts to obtain affordable housing, such obligation does not extend to the requirement to provide free legal services to those persons. 

    Second, the borrower asserted that “because the USDA previously defended against allegations of race discrimination in a class action lawsuit, this alleged misconduct should either be imputed or presumed into the context of the instant case.”  The cases upon which the borrower relied involved alleged racial discrimination in applying for mortgage loans.  In Cotton, the borrower received a mortgage from the USDA without any complications.  The borrower invited the Court “to entertain a presumption that because the USDA discriminated against similarly situated persons in the past, it necessarily follows that he too was a victim of discrimination.  Because the evidence in the pleadings [did] not substantiate this allegation, the Court [was] not inclined to leap to such a conclusion.”

The Court in Cotton held that the actions of the USDA did not make it inequitable for the Court to order the requested relief.  The Court granted the USDA’s motion for judgment on the pleadings and found that the borrower was in wrongful possession of the subject real estate.  The Court ordered him to vacate the premises accordingly.  One point Cotton illustrates is that, in Indiana, a sheriff’s sale terminates the borrower’s (former owner’s) rights to the mortgaged real estate.

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Posted at 09:48 PM in Procedure/Trial Rules , Redemption , Sheriff's Sales  |  Permalink

October 12, 2012
Post-Sale Redemption Mystery Unsolved

Last week, the Indiana Supreme Court said much about Mortgage Electronic Registrations Systems, Inc. (“MERS”) in Citimortgage v. Barabas, 2012 Ind. LEXIS 802 (Ind. 2012).  The Court also said a lot about who should receive notice of a foreclosure proceeding.  I hope to discuss those matters next week. 

No comment.  Just as important was what Citimortgage didn’t say.  I’m referring to the issue of the enigmatic post-sheriff’s sale statutory right of redemption found at Ind. Code § 32-29-8-3 entitled “Good faith purchaser at judicial sale; right to redeem of assignee or transferee not made a party.”  For background, please click on my August 2 and November 1, 2011 posts regarding Citimortgage.  Subsequently, the Indiana General Assembly amended portions of Section 3, but as I wrote in March of this year the obscure one-year redemption language remained untouched by the legislature.  Here is the statute, and the key language is underlined: 

     Sec. 3. A person who:
        (1) purchases a mortgaged premises or any part of a mortgaged premises under the court's judgment or decree at a judicial sale or who claims title to the mortgaged premises under the judgment or decree; and
        (2) buys the mortgaged premises or any part of the mortgaged premises without actual notice of:
            (A) an assignment that is not of record; or
            (B) the transfer of a note, the holder of which is not a party to the action;
holds the premises free and discharged of the lien. However, any assignee or transferee may redeem the premises, like any other creditor, during the period of one (1) year after the sale or during another period ordered by the court in an action brought under section 4 of this chapter, but not exceeding ninety (90) days after the date of the court's decree in the action.

When the Supreme Court accepted transfer in Citimortgage, many thought the Court would interpret the redemption language in Section 3.  No such luck.  The Court  expressed “no opinion as to whether Citimortgage had the right to redeem the property under [Section 3].”   This is because the Court decided the case on other grounds.  The opinion provided no help with the confusion and uncertainty created by the analysis of the Court of Appeals in Citimortgage, which precedent has now been vacated.

Status.  It’s my understanding Indiana’s legislature may consider clearing up I.C. § 32-29-8-3 in the 2013 session.  For now, while Indiana law is well settled that a sheriff’s sale terminates the right of redemption for borrowers/mortgagors, the law remains unclear as to whether there exists some kind of post-sheriff’s sale right of redemption for mortgage assignees whose assignments were not recorded before the filing of the foreclosure complaint.  As I often say, foreclosing lenders should invest in a foreclosure (title) commitment, and purchasers at sheriff’s sales should buy title insurance. 

NOTE:  In the 2013 session, Indiana's General Assembly deleted much of Section 3(2)(B) so as to resolve the matter once and for all.  My post. 

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Posted at 04:38 PM in Mortgages , Procedure/Trial Rules , Redemption , Sheriff's Sales  |  Permalink

October 05, 2012
Indiana Supreme Court Reverses Trial Court In Landmark Case Involving MERS

Yesterday, the Indiana Supreme Court issued its opinion in Citimortgage v. Barabas.  Click here to read the case.  I plan on writing about the decision next week and following-up on my 2011 posts regarding the Indiana Court of Appeals' rulings in the dispute:  August 2/time bar, August 10/straw man and November 1/redemption. 

By rule, the two Court of Appeals' Citimortgage opinions have been vacated in their entirety.  In other words, they are no longer binding precedent in Indiana.  Thus yesterday's decision to a large extent mooted my 2011 posts, particularly because the Supreme Court did not adopt the Court of Appeals conclusions or rationale. 

By way of a preview, MERS appears to be alive and well in Indiana.  The Section 3 post-judgment redemption right, however, may not be.  The Court expressed "no opinion as to whether Citimortage had the right to redeem the property under that statute."  More to come....  

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Posted at 03:37 PM in Mortgages , Procedure/Trial Rules , Redemption  |  Permalink