We Negotiate Liens and Buy Houses in LA County
A judgment, tax lien, or HOA lien recorded against your title does not mean your Los Angeles County house is stuck. Nick Hedberg is a licensed California real estate agent and short sale processor who negotiates directly with judgment creditors, lienholders, and lenders as part of the job, not as an outside referral. We handle the entire process at no cost to you, whether we buy your house directly or work the sale through your lender.
Yes, You Can Sell a House With a Judgment Against You
If a creditor has a judgment against you, you have not lost the right to sell your house. It feels that way when a lien shows up on a title report you did not know existed, but a judgment lien is a debt attached to the property, not a lock on the front door. Homeowners across Los Angeles County sell with judgments, tax liens, and HOA liens on title on a regular basis. The lien has to be paid, reduced, or released before the sale closes, but that happens through escrow as part of the transaction. You do not need to pay it off out of pocket first, and you do not need perfect credit or a clean title to start the process.
How a Judgment Lien Attaches to Your Home in Los Angeles County
A judgment lien starts when a creditor wins a lawsuit against you and records an abstract of judgment with the Los Angeles County Recorder. Once that abstract is recorded, it creates a lien on any real property you own in the county, current or future, for the amount of the judgment plus interest. Under California law, that lien lasts 10 years from the date the judgment was entered. Before that period runs out, the creditor can renew the underlying judgment through the court and record that renewal with the county, which restarts the clock for another 10 years, so a lien does not simply disappear on its own just because time has passed. This is why a preliminary title report on your house can turn up a judgment lien from years ago that you assumed was closed. It is still valid, it still has to be dealt with, and it still shows up in escrow.
What Happens to the Judgment at Closing
When you sell, the title company runs a full lien search and lists every judgment, tax lien, and HOA lien tied to the property. At closing, sale proceeds pay off recorded liens in order before you receive anything. If there is enough equity, the judgment gets paid off in full through escrow and released from title, simple as that. If there is not enough equity to cover it, someone has to negotiate directly with the judgment creditor for a reduced payoff or a release, and that negotiation is often where a deal with another buyer falls apart. We do that negotiating ourselves, working directly with the creditor or their attorney to get the lien resolved so the sale can close, typically within a normal escrow timeline.
The California Homestead Exemption and Your Equity
California law also protects a portion of your home equity from judgment creditors through the homestead exemption under Code of Civil Procedure section 704.730. The exempt amount is tied to your county's prior-year median home sale price, subject to a statewide floor and cap that both adjust for inflation each year, so the protected amount in Los Angeles County can be substantial. This exemption is one reason a judgment creditor often cannot force a sale of your home outright, and California law also protects your sale proceeds up to that same exempt amount for six months after you receive them, which limits what a creditor can reach from the payout. It does not erase the lien or make it disappear from title, but it does give you leverage, and it is part of what we factor in when we negotiate a payoff with the creditor on your behalf.
Why a Lien Negotiator Beats a Cash-Only Buyer, and What It Costs You
Most cash buyers advertise fast, simple purchases, but a judgment or lien complicates that pitch, so cash-only buyers often pass on these deals or lowball the offer to cover their own uncertainty. Nick Hedberg handles the negotiating in-house, working directly with lenders, judgment creditors, and lienholders as part of the transaction, not as an outside referral. If your mortgage balance is also close to or above what the house is worth, the same process that resolves a judgment lien can work alongside a short sale. Since 2011, CCP 580e has let each lienholder who consents in writing to a short sale, first mortgage or junior lien, release the borrower from a deficiency judgment on that note, with limited exceptions such as fraud or waste. Whether we buy the house directly or work the sale through the lender, we handle the entire process at no cost to you. There is no fee, no retainer, and no charge unless the sale closes.
Common Questions
Can I sell my house if there's a judgment against me in California?
Yes. A judgment against you personally does not stop a home sale, and a judgment lien recorded against the property does not either. It has to be addressed in escrow, either paid off in full from your sale proceeds or negotiated down with the creditor, before the sale can close. Most sellers with a judgment on title still close on a normal timeline once the lien is identified and handled early.
How do I find out if there's a judgment lien on my house in Los Angeles?
A judgment lien is created when a creditor records an abstract of judgment with the Los Angeles County Recorder. You can order a preliminary title report, which any title company will run once you're under contract, or search the recorder's public index yourself by your name. We also pull a title report early so any lien shows up before it can slow down closing.
Does a judgment lien on my house expire in California?
A judgment lien lasts 10 years from the date the underlying judgment was entered. Before it expires, the creditor can keep it alive by renewing the judgment through the court and recording that renewal with the county before the original 10 years run out, which restarts the clock for another 10-year period. So an old lien does not always fall off on its own. If a lien on your title looks old, it still needs to be checked and resolved rather than assumed to be expired.
What if the judgment against me is more than my home equity?
This comes up often. If your equity does not cover the full judgment, the lien still has to be resolved before closing, but the creditor does not have to be paid in full to release it. We negotiate directly with the creditor or their attorney for a reduced payoff based on what the sale can actually support, which is often the difference between a sale closing or falling apart.
Will I owe money after I sell my house if there's a lien on it?
It depends on the lien, your equity, and what gets negotiated before closing. In many cases a lien is paid or released in full through escrow and you owe nothing further. If a shortfall remains after negotiation, we go over exactly what that means for you before you agree to anything, in plain terms, so nothing about it catches you off guard after closing.
Can I sell my house in Los Angeles with a tax lien or HOA lien?
Yes. Property tax liens, IRS or state tax liens, and HOA assessment liens are handled the same way as a judgment lien, through the title search and escrow process. Property tax liens typically get paid first out of proceeds since they take priority. HOA liens and tax liens can often be negotiated or brought current as part of the sale, the same as a judgment.
What does it cost to work with you if I have a judgment or lien on my house?
Nothing, ever. We do not charge sellers a fee, a deposit, or a retainer at any point, and there is no cost to you for the lien negotiation itself. We only get paid as part of the transaction when it closes, whether that means we buy the house directly or the sale closes through your lender. If nothing closes, you owe us nothing.
Also see: short sale help, sell a house with code violations, sell an inherited house in Los Angeles County, sell your house as-is with no repairs needed, selling a tax-defaulted house, sell my house with HOA dues owed or call (323) 622-6021.
Short sale processing and lender negotiation involve licensed real estate activity: Nicholas Hedberg · Beverly & Company · DRE #02016456. You never pay us any fee — no upfront fees of any kind (Cal. Civ. Code §2944.7); we are only compensated through the transaction itself when it closes.
