Resolving fraudulent Lien on home

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My ex put a fraudulent/invalid lien of $14k on my home.  She never lived there.    I have paid my child support and this was done with malice.     I am re-financing my home and need $ from equity to pay medical bills.    This will take a long time to resolve in court.    In the meantime, do you think I can just re-finance, release the $ from the lien to her and use that $14k as down payment on future child support payments?    And am hoping the judge will ok this and ask her to return the remainder of the $.    Simply put, this is extortion and hope the judge will recognize this.     And I think I need to find a precedent for this too.    Thanks

[trappeddad]

My ex put a fraudulent/invalid lien of $14k on my home.  She never lived there.    I have paid my child support and this was done with malice.     I am re-financing my home and need $ from equity to pay medical bills.    This will take a long time to resolve in court.    In the meantime, do you think I can just re-finance, release the $ from the lien to her and use that $14k as down payment on future child support payments?    And am hoping the judge will ok this and ask her to return the remainder of the $.    Simply put, this is extortion and hope the judge will recognize this.     And I think I need to find a precedent for this too.    Thanks

[40days_in_desert]

trappeddad,

It is crazy what we experience. I think one of the greatest benefits of this site that I received from this site when I joined three years ago was the ability to see that there are others that experience similar yet bizarre interactions with their pwBPD. So even though my ex didn't do exactly what yours did, I understand what you're going through.
I would first consult your L about re-financing and taking care of the lien. I'm not sure, but that could mean that you are willing to take responsibility for that lien. Also, how did she manage to get a lien on a home that she did not legally have the right to do so? I'm thinking there is a criminal act in there somewhere?
On the 14k being a possible "down payment" towards child support, I don't think that a judge would go for that because it would most likely affect your children negatively more than your ex. If your ex is anything like mine, her level of responsibility regarding finances is right around the "train wreck" level. That being true, she probably doesn't have the money to take care of their immediate needs during the period of time that it would take to satisfy the 14k. Like I said, I get it. I understand. You need to have a good L to help you with situations like this. I wish you well and that you get this resolved that doesn't burn too bad in the end.

[GaGrl]

I agree that a judge probably will not switch the line proceeds to child support. Giving your ex a payout of $14k would be seeing $14k disappear into a black hole.

It will probably slow you down, but it seems you need to sort out the false lien and let your ex handle the legal consequences. Otherwise, she'll think she got a free pass and you'll be at risk of her next wacky scheme.

[trappeddad]

Nothing less than a pure extortion scheme.   In order to pay legal fees I need the $ from refinancing.    Hope the judge sees this as such.    Will dip into my retirements savings ask she pay for "slandering my title"(legal term).     

[formflier]

Calculate the "losses" from not being able to refinance.

Add legal bills and other expenses.

Those will all be added to the suit against her for the fraudulent lien.

Honestly...that would seem to be separate from a marital issue.  Treat is just as if some random person damaged you.

Once you get the judgement from this and the lien removed..then you can figure out how to collect/deduct from what you owe her.

Hopefully you can settle with her before having to  take the lawsuit to the end.

FF

[40days_in_desert]

I signed the title of the car over to my ex that she has driven since 3 years prior to our separation. It was still in my name. I signed it over 2 years post separation per my L’s advice. I kept asking her to execute the title transfer but she didn’t until she got into an accident with no insurance with the title still in my name.
I asked her to execute the title several times, contacted the department of motor vehicles and consulted my L. I did everything I could. I even asked if I could “repo” the vehicle and sell it. My L advised against that. Because of my L’s advice I was able to avoid the legal responsibility of having to pay anything to the other driver and their insurance company. Of course that’s not the end of the story. I was contacted by the department of motor vehicles to state whether the vehicle was insured at the time of the accident and if not to pay a $500 fine and have an SR22 for 3 years. Unfortunately the only way to (possibly) get out of this is to request an administrative hearing and explain why I shouldn’t be responsible.
I wasn’t happy but I’ve come to accept that this is how life will be for a time. Not accepting her actions but that things like this will happen. Have your stuff together, continue documenting and follow your L’s advice.
As a side note, I sent a copy of the letter that I received and my ex’s response was, “so instead of paying the fine you’d rather take it to court.”  No personal responsibility nor awareness that I shouldn’t be in the situation in the first place. Assume that you won’t be able to reason nor receive anything close to what is just and fair but rather the entitled expectation that you should continue cleaning up the mess they’ve made even after the relationship has long been gone.

[GaGrl]

My DH's ex bought him out of the house they had lived in together. Title joint and mortgage in his name.  She immediately paid off the remaining small mortgage. However, she did not take the quit claim to the courthouse for over three years -- with DH getting the tax and insurance notifications each year.

He had to schedule a meeting and physically take her to the courthouse to get it done.

[ForeverDad]

I wondering whether you're too willing to take responsibility of stbEx's actions.  What's wrong with telling lawyer(s), "Hey, until that improper lien gets removed, I'm stuck and can't pay much until I'm able to refinance."

Dump it on her or the lawyers.  They want to get paid, they'll have to help it happen.  At least it will feel good to say that, I'm not sure how much it will motivate them or resolve the current dilemma.

I do agree with the others that if you pay off her debt or lien at this stage, then there's high risk that when it comes to the final accounting split of marital assets & debts that this will get ignored or skipped as too much bother.  Or is the divorce already final?  If so, then better to have the lawyer wait while the court examines the matter and deals with it.

[trappeddad]

Appreciate the advice.    Will not let her get the $14k.     

[formflier]

Also...your lawyer likely has a paralegal that can run a title search. 

I wouldn't assume there is only one "title issue" on your home.  A full search shouldn't cost that much and will clarify exactly what is there.

With that in hand, you should be able to get a good legal opinion about the title issue you know about (and hopefully won't find anything else).

Can you remind me again what kind of lien it is?  What is the justification for it being there?

FF