When you have a mortgage, you technically own your home, but the lender also has a legal claim to it until the mortgage is fully paid off. Here's a breakdown of the situation: Ownership: You hold the title to the property, which means you are the owner. You can live in it, sell it, or make changes to it.
The lender owns the loan and is also called the "note holder" or "holder." Sometime later, the lender might sell the mortgage debt to another entity, which then becomes the new loan owner (holder). Loans are frequently bought and sold in the mortgage industry.
In California, you own the home, with your mortgage owner(s) having first rights to any proceeds from a sale.
Since you were not able to pay for the property outright though, who technically “owns” the home, you or your mortgage lender? The short answer is that you do. Your name will go on the title and the deed of the house. Your home serves as collateral on the loan, but you own it for most intents and purposes.
With a Mortgage, a mortgagor retains legal and equitable title to mortgaged property, as well as possession, until the mortgagee forecloses on the mortgaged property.
If your surviving spouse isn't on the mortgage, federal law provides protections allowing them to assume the mortgage and keep the home. This is assuming they (and not someone else) inherit the property. The surviving spouse must also be able to afford the mortgage payments to assume the mortgage.
Property Deeds
These deeds are also public record and can be found at the city or county recorder's office. Some recorders offices also offer online databases for searching property deeds. A deed search can help determine both current and past owners and any liens on the property.
If your name is on the mortgage, but not the deed, this means that you are not an owner of the home. Rather, you are simply a co-signer on the mortgage. Because your name is on the mortgage, you are obligated to pay the payments on the loan just as the individual who owns the home.
Closing on a house means you will take ownership of the property. Closing day is the official date on which the ownership of the house, or the title, transfers from the seller to the buyer. In a traditional home sale, closing day typically occurs four to eight weeks after the offer is accepted.
The name on the deed is the person who owns the home. The name on the mortgage is the person who borrowed money so that the owner of the home would own it.
As a homeowner, you typically cannot prevent your mortgage from being sold or transferred. The lender has the legal right to sell the mortgage to another entity, lender or investor, under federal law and under the terms of your loan contract (read the fine print).
TJC Mortgage, before it became MortgageRight, began in 2005 when three seasoned industry professionals – Joe Meadow, Tanner Allen and Chris Carter – decided to start their own mortgage company. TJC Mortgage was founded with the goal of offering a better choice for home mortgages.
Unless you have an allodial title to your property (which is practically nonexistent in the US), you don't really own your home, even if you don't have a mortgage since you have to pay property taxes.
The lender will file the document publicly and it will list your name, the lender's name, the address of the property, the legal description of the property and the original amount of the loan. The lender has the ability to sell or assign the mortgage deed to a third party.
Key Takeaways
Besides taking out a mortgage, your best bet for homeownership is to buy a house in cash. Less common mortgage alternatives include rent-to-own agreements and owner/seller financing. Both rent-to-own and seller financing come with their fair share of risks compared with a traditional mortgage.
The short answer is: You, the homeowner, typically hold the deed to your house, even when you have a mortgage.
If you are not on the mortgage for whatever reason, you are not liable for paying the mortgage loan. That said, you get your spouse's interest in the property if they die. However, if you default on mortgage payments, the mortgage lender has the power to foreclose on the home and evict you.
If solely in the deceased spouse's name
The surviving spouse can often assume the mortgage, but this process may involve credit checks and lender approval. If the surviving spouse cannot assume the mortgage, other options must be explored to prevent foreclosure.
Typically the best place to start when looking for the history of a property is with the County Assessor's office. They should be able to give a fairly good listing of who owned the property over time.
Title is everything in property law. If you hold title to property, you own it. Professionals seeking to understand our real estate system need to learn how title in property is created and transferred. Ownership signifies the legal right to possess and use property. 1.
In many cases, the spouse can inherit your house even if their name was not on the deed. This is because of how the probate process works. When someone dies intestate, their surviving spouse is the first one who gets a chance to file a petition with the court that would initiate administration of the estate.
They are on the deed, and thus have legal title rights to the property. They are not on the mortgage, however, and are technically not liable for paying the mortgage. This is a unique but all too uncommon circumstance, and seeking legal advice regarding financial protections is not a bad idea.
The right to potentially assume (take over) the mortgage.
All successors in California have a right to apply for an assumption of the loan, as long as the loan is assumable. The servicer may evaluate your creditworthiness, including your credit scores, when considering you for an assumption.