View Full Version : House lien advice
darkzerox
Dec 17, 2009, 10:48 PM
I am a son, and my Dad has placed a lien on my Mom's house. Again, she was unaware of this until she tried to take out a line of credit on her house to put in a basement suite, so she can pay the bills. We don't exactly have a lot of money to pay lawyer fees, but my Dad does.
My Mom and Dad are recently separated, but she owns the house by herself. Apparently this is no "amount" on the lien either, at least not until you agree on something before a judge?
What's the cheapest and most quick way to settle this dispute?
ScottGem
Dec 18, 2009, 06:30 AM
First its not a good idea to piggyback your question on someone else's. This can lead to confusion. You should start a new thread. So I've moved your question to its own thread.
What grounds did Dad have to place a lien? Is he anticipating that she will owe him money as part of a divorce settlement? Are you in a community property state where the house may be considered a marital asset?
A lien has to have the backing of a court order for a judgment, or be a mechanics lien from someone who did work on the property but wasn't paid.
Is it possible that what was filed is a Lis Pendens rather than a lien? This just indicates that the property is the subject of pending litigation like a divorce settlement.
My advice would be for mom to get a divorce attorney to help deal with this. If dad has an attorney then mom can't afford NOT to have one.
Fr_Chuck
Dec 19, 2009, 07:47 PM
You can not just "put a lien" on the property unless it is a construction lien by a contractor who did work on the house, without a judgement.
But agreed, if dad has an attorney mom has to get one.
This may get cleared up in divorce court, sounds like time to file