How does place a lien on your home? Do they not have to notify you?
Where do I start to clean up my credit---absolutely devastated after a divorce
I need to refi or do an assumption to get my ex off the house, but my credit is only 540!
Help

How does someone place a lien on your home? Do they not have to notify you? My attorney that I fired has threatened to put a lien on my home for non payment of his bill. Where can I find that out? Is there not a free public records site for me to go to so I am not embarrassed by having to go into the courthouse to check? I live in a very small town!
Where do I start to clean up my credit---absolutely devastated after a divorce
I need to refi or do an assumption to get my ex off the house, but my credit is only 540!
Help

How do you find out if there is a lien on your property without going to the courthouse? I live in a small town. I have websites but they all seem to have a charge. I thought this was public record, should it not be free?

Also, how do you find out if there are any judgements against you without having to go into the courthouse?

A lien is placed by filing with the local Registrar of Deeds. This is is generally done at the county level in the US and is usually in a County Clerk's office. There is no requirement for notification usually. Of course the rules vary by area.

Even with a low credit score, getting a refi shouldn't be too difficult as long as you aren't upside down on the mortgage (which means owning more than the property is worth). Bringing that score up means getting your debt down and making ontime payments.

Wow! I thought placing a lien meant u had to be notified and go to court!
No I'm not upside down in the loan... only owe $128 on a property valued at $290. I just didn't want to have to get a ridiculous interest rate
how would that work if I refinance with my husband and he has excellent credit?

If you have remarried and you want to refi taking your ex off and adding your husband, this will help. But yes, a low score does usually mean a higher rate.

However, with interest rates at all time lows, you shouldn't be hit too hard, especially with the amount of equity you have and if you do a straight refi, not taking much out of the equity, it shouldn't be too bad. And you can look to refi again when your score is up.

As long as the creditor has the legal right to place the lien, they may not have to inform you. Remember all a lien does is prevent you from selling the property without satisfying the lien.

Well if there is a lien would that prevent me from refinancing?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ScottGem

If you have remarried and you want to refi taking your ex off and adding your husband, this will help. But yes, a low score does usually mean a higher rate.

However, with interest rates at all time lows, you shouldn't be hit too hard, especially with the amount of equity you have and if you do a straight refi, not taking much out of the equity, it shouldn't be too bad. And you can look to refi again when your score is up.

As long as the creditor has the legal right to place the lien, they may not have to inform you. Remember all a lien does is prevent you from selling the property without satisfying the lien.

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Not prevent, but it would mean you would have to take enough out of the refi to pay the lien.

So if you owe $20K, then refi for $150K At the closing you will need to have the lender make out a check to the creditor.

I just saw your other posts and merged them, please don't post several threads over the same issue. Your attorney would have to sue you first and win the suit before he could place a lien unless you put up your home as collateral.

Some counties do put up websites with this info, but its up to the county so there is no one site you can go to. Just because it's a public record doesn't mean they can't charge a fee for processing. But if the sites you are looking at is NOT the official county site, then don't pay. If your town is not the county seat, then you would have to go there to check the records. And even if you have to do it through the town, I suspect, if it is as small as you say, everyone knows about your divorce already so there shouldn't be any further embarrassment to check your deed records.

OK good
Nope didn't put my home up as collateral
Thanks