Lien research help needed.

[Linda Weygant]

I sit on the board of the HOA of one of the properties I own and we're trying really hard to collect almost $200,000 in back dues that are owed. It's a long story as to why they weren't collected, but it's time to move forward now.

We have many liens recorded in the county and, I guess up until now, we've just let them sit, waiting for the owner to sell.  We've been going through and doing equity analysis on each property to figure out if we should foreclose or not.  We have one that's a real challenge that we're really struggling with, so I figured I would ask the folks on BP for a little guidance.

In 2003, the owners put what looks like a reverse mortgage on the property (Adjustable Rate Home Equity Conversion) which google tells me is a reverse mortgage in the amount of $177,000.  The properties have never been worth that in anybody's wildest dreams.  They are currently the top of where they've been in their entire lifecycle at about $145,000.  The term on it was for 72 years at 2.85%.

The husband passed away in 2010.

In 2011, the mortgage was assigned to HUD in consideration of $10.00

The wife passed in February 2015. HOA dues have been unpaid since December 2014. The obituaries for both spouses indicates that they were survived by two daughters, but doesn't list their names. All of their possessions are still in the condo. Utilities have been shut off and, based on the odor coming into the common areas, we suspect there is now 10 month old spoiled food in the fridge.

Colorado is a Super Lien state which is something that still confuses me a bit.  I had originally thought that meant that the lien comes first and if we foreclose, we get paid and if there isn't enough to take care of whatever mortgages come after, it's too bad for them.  Other people tell me that no, the mortgage still has to be satisfied.  

Will HUD eventually do something with this?

What should we (the HOA board) do next?

[Wayne Brooks]

@Linda Weygant Talk to aLocal RE attorney, not us yahoos.  "Super Lien" doesn't always mean Superior, there can be required conditions to be met, etc.