Bail bond lien on a house?

Question

Has anyone every bought a property with a bail bond lien?  I found a property where the owner has a vacant house.  I approached her about selling and she's very interested but my title research shows a Bail Bond Lien for $66k.  I don't see a release recorded but also see that the case was dismissed.  Will the Title company be able to get this lien released?

Mario Armas · Answer

Hey , name Mario

I was in foreclosure from default payments,a trustee sale was scheduled for 7/17/19 i had a buyer I. Escrow to purchase my home for a responsible price leave me out door arot120k 7/16/19 at around 230pm get a call that escrow fall out ,wow then call wElls Fargo to see options and give institutions that if about to send a new contract with a approve and intent to postpone Letter I can get more time needed if faxed pronto well day 7/17/19 comes all paperwork faxed all morning calling bank finale get a hold of someone at 845 o’clock am auction starts at 9am get a postponement approved at 9:09 am lady call calls to remove my property then comes back on the line saying sorry my property sold at 9:00am like I’m like seriously start at 9se at 9am omg ,     So here is the question I defaulted on my 4felony  criminal case after paying my bill bonds men 25,000 out of a $30,000 deal  they do not pick up the charges until one year and a day later so first bell is exonerated but I get charged with one of the four Felonise and have to post another bell using the same bell got a bell been saying ball ball the man still helps me bells me out on a $50,000 bill for 1000 bucks and said and I told him I was still going to pay him on the Well come to find out he has a $250,000 lien on my property that was auctioned so I was just trying to figure out why home is there anyway to get my house back to resell it him to get the 200,000 from the investor who purchased it or what’s going to happen because seems to be like I’m still on title as owner but I have an investor coming to my house showing me a new deed of ownership but bell bondsman he still hasn’t got any or one dollar of any money

Account Closed · Answer

When a property bond is issued, the court secures a lien against the property for the amount of the bail. If you fail to appear in court, a foreclosure action may be brought against the property. The court may then, after the foreclosure proceeding, collect on the bail amount that is owed.

Davy Cole · Answer

Before you give the equity in your home or car as collateral against a Bail Bond take a deep breath and realize that the Bail Bondsman will take a  lien against that asset.  What does this mean for you?  If the person  you just bailed out of jail does not appear in court then the bondsman  can and will take your home, vehicle or any other collateral that you  have pledged.

Bill Gulley · Answer

Because a lien is not a mortgage, no loan was advanced, and a deed of trust is a secutrity agreement, other special trust deeds can be used for liens to perfect the secured interest arising from the lien. :)

Steve Babiak · Answer

My guess is that this will vary by geography.  I have only seen these in my area with a bail bondsman as the lien holder; the crazy thing is that in PA we are a mortgage state, but the bail bond security instrument was a deed of trust!

Belinda Lopez · Answer

Great responses and more things to think about.  But I *think* this one should be pretty straight forward now.  The bond was on a case that was eventually dismissed b/c the defendant satisfied the court's orders.  So they did not take off and the bond should have been released but it hasn't yet.  Fortunately the company is still in business so the Title company should have no problem clearing the lien from the record.  The research I did was through the county records - which fortunately are free here in Galveston County, TX and then the criminal records in Harris County, TX based on the Case # in the lien.  The property has a few minor city liens for mowing but otherwise looks like a good wholesale prospect if I can just get the owner to call me back now!

I have heard the you can sometimes buy these liens from Bonding companies on cases where the defendant did not show up or pay their bill the bonding company.  You buy the lien for pennies on the dollar but you'll need to do your research on the property and make sure there are no other liens/title issues.  This then gives you a lien you can foreclose on subject to any other liens.  If this is the only lien on the property and you're in the first position, that could be a great deal!

Bill Gulley · Answer

I wonder if Rick was suggesting to try to buy it subject to the lien carrying on as if the lien was still valid buying it 66k cheaper? If so, I can see such a buyer needing a bail bondsman themselves. There are several ways to see if that lien is still valid and if it turns out it is not and you close on or attempt to close such a transaction, (it will be known at settlement) you'll likely be looking at fraud charges or attempting to scam the seller/owner. I hope he wasn't. :)

Joel Owens · Answer

Bail bond lien on a property...... Cool I learn something new every day.

Interesting topic. Real estate keeps you on your toes!!

Rick H. · Answer

Offer to buy the equity in the property for X, subject to the $65k bail bond.  Before closing, clear up the title and you'll find that the lien has likely been satisfied.

Most frequently, bail has been satisfied and, as a matter of industry practice, bondsmen do not go out of their way to release or reconvey the security instrument.  I've never had to get a bail bond however it may be that bondsmen provide their bond debtors with a recon with minimal instruction to record, but the insured never get around to recording.

In my state, CA, bail bondsmen look up the case, see if satisfied and provide the recon or release in a matter of hours, often for no additional charge or $45 recon fee.

Looks like a big nasty lien to the outside world but unusually only evidence of an old debt.  My thoughts go along the lines that, if not satisfied, they would have started to foreclose.

Lucy Rowens · Answer

Very interesting situation. What procedure did you do that led you to find out there was a Bail Bond Lien on it? Did you go through the title company first or used some other means? If title company, how much do they charge? I'm in NE Alabama, Marshall county. Thanks in advance