Unsatisfied judgment past SOL

[Anonymous]

I have an unsatisfied judgement of about $7k from over 10 years ago, past the SOL and was not renewed prior to the 10 years.  Can this being unsatisfied still affect my mortgage chances, even if past SOL?   If it does and I try to settle or do a payment plan, will that pop back up on my report or restart a SOL?  Thanks!

[Lemmus]

...first things first ...does the judgement still show on a CR or public records search? ...if not, you should be clear as far as the mortgage process is concerned

...if it does still show even after 10 years, have you tried to get it removed based on the SoL having expired?

...if its there and you can't get it removed, afaik it has to be paid or in an agreed upon repayment plan with at least 3 months of on-time payments having been reported

...but beware of any payment plan ...the slightest wrong move on your part and the DOFD can get reset

...if you've not had a mortgage lender pull your credit yet, don't ...get the judgement removed first ...any pull can trigger the CAs that you're seeking a mortgage and put the ball in their court ...if you still need to get it removed, try offering the CA 15% for deletion based on the SoL having expired ...most will agree ...hth

[Anonymous]

@Lemmus wrote:

...first things first ...does the judgement still show on a CR or public records search? ...if not, you should be clear as far as the mortgage process is concerned

...if it does still show even after 10 years, have you tried to get it removed based on the SoL having expired?

...if its there and you can't get it removed, afaik it has to be paid or in an agreed upon repayment plan with at least 3 months of on-time payments having been reported

...but beware of any payment plan ...the slightest wrong move on your part and the DOFD can get reset

...if you've not had a mortgage lender pull your credit yet, don't ...get the judgement removed first ...any pull can trigger the CAs that you're seeking a mortgage and put the ball in their court ...if you still need to get it removed, try offering the CA 15% for deletion based on the SoL having expired ...most will agree ...hth

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Lemmus, I have a similar situation. A judgement from 2008, no longer on my CR but still on the repository for my state. Judgement was not renewed (my state has a 5 year renewal). I also plan on buying a house..would you suggest I offer 15% as well to get it settled? TIA.

[Lemmus]

...I'm not a lawyer by any means and the laws vary pretty widely by state ...generally, if the judgement is past 10 years it will be gone from your CRs ...and if not renewed by the judgement holder, is no longer enforceble ...they can't take any further collection action and any liens should be removed

...however, the FHA requirements are afaik absent on that point ...the underwriter will do a public records search ...if the judgement shows, FHA requires it be paid or be in a payment plan ...I can't find an exception to that but it doesn't make any sense to me that a lender would care about an old judgement that is no longer collectable ...but then a lot of things in the mortgage world don't make much sense ...go figure.

...the thing is, unless someone knows different, once you apply for a mortgage that info is available and the CAs can find it ...and there are CAs who do just that ...so now, even though they can't legally take any collection action against you, they can use it to beat you into paying something in order to get a mortgage.

...if the judgement is collection proof but still on the public record, you can gamble that the uw will see it as non-enforceble and let it pass ...or you can reach out before you apply and offer a PFD at say15% of original debt ...it really depends on you and your state's laws ...the worst that can happen is they say no ...which is exactly where you are now ...hth