Surplus Funds in Washington State
If your home has been foreclosed upon in a trustee sale after going through the foreclosure process in Washington State you may be able to get surplus funds that you are entitled to. Surplus funds are the amount a third party bid for your former home above the amount you owed to your mortgage lender(s) or liens on the property. For example, if you owed $400,000 to your mortgage lender and somebody bought your former property at auction for $450,000 then you may be entitled to $50,000. Surplus funds can be significant in Washington State as property values have sky rocketed. If your property has been foreclosed on and there may be surplus funds owed to you, don’t delay in getting the assistance of a surplus funds attorney as your time is limited by 3 years to claim the funds.
Any surplus funds received by the foreclosing trustee will be placed in the Superior Court of the county in which the foreclosure sale took place per RCW 61.24.090. Notice will be sent out to any interested parties per RCW 61.24.040(1)(b), notifying them of the funds and to claim the funds if they think they may be entitled to them. If you have moved and a foreclosing trustee does not have your new address on file, you may never receive this important notice.
How Do I Get Surplus Funds after a Foreclosure Sale in Washington State?
If you think you may have surplus funds after a foreclosure sale, you should contact the Superior Court where your property was foreclosed upon or contact a surplus funds recovery attorney in Washington State who may be able to help you for a reasonable fee.
Once the Surplus Funds are deposited with the superior court, parties with an interest in those funds may claim them in a specified order. “Interests in, or liens or claims of liens against the property” at issue attach to the Surplus Funds “in the order of priority that it had attached to the property”. RCW 61.24.080(3).
Where Surplus Funds remain after payment of all junior lien holders, the owner of record at the time of the trustee’s sale may assert a claim in such Surplus Funds. See also RCW 61.12.150 (providing for disbursement of Surplus Funds following a judicial foreclosure).
A motion for disbursement of Surplus Funds may be filed within 3 years after the deposit of surplus funds in a Washington State Superior court, upon 20 days’ notice, by a written motion and a hearing in the superior court for the county in which the Surplus Funds were deposited. See RCW 61.24.080(3); RCW 61.12.150.
The costs involved whether you hire a surplus recovery attorney or not, associated with the release of Surplus funds include
(a) An Ex-Parte filing fee that ranges between $0 and $35, depending on the county
(b) The cost of mailing the motion pleadings to each party for service (Estimated $10 per party).
(c) If you require documents from the court related to the motion or trustee’s sale, there may additional costs associated with such copies. At current postage rates, and assuming between 5-20 notice parties, the total costs associated with a pro se application for the release of Surplus funds are estimated at $75 to $225.
What Complications May Arise After Requesting Surplus Funds after a Foreclosure Sale in Washington State?
If there were several owners of property or you had various liens on the property that were not paid when your home was foreclosed, they may oppose your motion to distribute the surplus funds to you. For example, if you had an ex-spouse who you owned the foreclosed property with in equal shares when it was foreclosed and you go to requested the surplus funds, your ex-spouse may oppose your motion and litigation may ensue.
Third party creditors who may have liens on the foreclosed property may also make a claim to the surplus funds. As discussed earlier, any motion filed to request the surplus funds from foreclosure, requires you to give notice to any party in interest who may have a claim to such funds, failure to put everybody on notice of your motion, may result in your motion being denied.
What If I have Surplus Funds After a Foreclosure Sale Related to Taxes Owed Due to County Taxes?
If you owned a property and it was foreclosed upon due to your failure to pay county taxes, you will likely receive a notice that you have surplus funds that were deposited in the county where the foreclosure sale took place. Many counties in Washington State such as King, Pierce and Snohomish publish a list of properties that have surplus funds available and the procedure to obtain these funds may be different that filing a motion in a superior case. For instance, in Pierce County, a simple application is all that needs to be filed. Claimants who owned the property on the date of foreclosure will have up to 3 years to claim the surplus funds.
Call Today For a Complimentary Consultation With a Surplus Funds Recovery Attorney at Symmes Law Group
If you had a home foreclosed upon in Washington State and you believe you may have funds owed and need assistance recovering the funds, give Symmes Law Group a call at 206-682-7975 or contact us to get the counsel you need.
