junior lien holder in bank foreclosure

[tenant08]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Texas
I filed a lien on a deadbeat landlord. His rental property just went into foreclosure. If it sells for over the amount owed to the first lien holder how do I get paid? Will the courts pay me? Do I have to do anything?

Second question. If it does not sell for more than what is owed do I get nothing?
Is my lien on him and any home he tries to buy or sell or was the lien placed on one particular property?

[FlyingRon]

Whoever is handling the sale pays out (trustee or whoever).

If there's no money after satisfying the more senior liens, you get nothing.

You may have a JUDGMENT against him, but the lien is tied to the property.

The fact that the lien got extinguished doesn't negate the judgment.

[tenant08]

I thought there was a way to put a general lien on him, so that whenever he goes to buy or sell a car or home he'd have to pay off the judgment first?

Do I need to file a lien on his residence now?

[latigo]

Unfortunately, one cannot lien an individual or entity, not even a landlord.

I assume from your description “deadbeat” that your lien resulted from a money judgment that you recovered against this person and that you recorded an abstract of the judgment in the county where he owned land.

[All as provided under Texas Property Code, Title 5, Chapter 52 “Judgment Liens”.]

If so, the lien attached to any land recorded in that county in the judgment debtor’s name and any ”property acquired (in that county) after such recording and indexing” of your judgment.

Just where you stand in priority to other existing liens could only be determined by a lien search. There could be others anxiously queued in front of you.

As you know you are not limited to enforcing your judgment against land. But the pending foreclosure would seem to indicate that he is tapped out That is to say, judgment proof.

The next time you hear of him may be from the Federal Bankruptcy Court.

Before that should occur it might be well to have your attorney call the guy into court for a post judgment debtor’s examination.

Or simply assign the judgement for collection and let them hound him.

Sax