I bought property at a auction- found a old lein / wrote letter to loan company/ letter came back. What to do?

Answer 1

You can file a quiet title action on the property but that is not cheap. If you closed at a title company when you bought the property, then that title company is on the hook for the lien. When selling or refinancing the property, if the lien comes up at the new title company, just give them the name of the title company used when you bought the property. That title company will right a letter of indemnity to the new title company and that will clear the way for the sale or refinance, and it's free. If the property was sold at auction and no clean title was offered then you will need to quiet title the property or research the lien yourself and try to get it cleared.

Answer 2

get a real estate attorney and file an action to quiet title. "Quiet title" means confirm your undisputed ownership -- which nullifies old liens, etc.

the lien in question may actually have been paid off long ago but the satisfaction never filed. Now that the apparent lien owner can't be found, the quiet title mechanism will either have his successor come forward, or make the lien disappear.


GL