Legal Question in Consumer Law in California

Our landlord is defaulting on her mortgage and will be foreclosed upon. We have paid our rent ontime for four years. Do we contact the bank or do we continue to pay her the rent even if she is foreclosed on and has not been paying her mortgage.. Do we have any rights? Please advise.


Asked on 4/24/10, 3:07 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys

Anthony Roach Law Office of Anthony A. Roach

You have to keep paying her the rent until she has been foreclosed on. This occurs when her "equity of redemption" is terminated. If the bank forecloses nonjudicially through a trustee's sale, then that will happen at the trustee's sale. I would certainly make sure the bank knows you are renters. If the bank purchases the property at the trustee's sale, the bank will become the owner of the property, and is entitled to rent from you. (This is commonly referred to as REO property.) The bank may want to keep you in if you are paying rent on time.

If the bank files a lawsuit, they may have a receiver appointed. In that situation, you would pay rent to the receiver, and not to the owner. If no receiver is appointed, and an action to foreclose is filed, your owner's right of redemption will depend on whether or not the bank is entitled to a deficiency judgment, which depends on other factors.

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Answered on 4/29/10, 4:51 pm


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