o California Civil Code Section 1542 - A general release does not extend to claims which the creditor does not know or suspect to exist in his or her favor at the time of executing the release, which if known by him or her must have materially affected his or her settlement with the debtor.I would also accept any other advice that anyone has on my current situation.

We caught up on all payments and even used some settlement money to decrease the debt.  

HML are hard - too hard for me -  When you get a great deal and you really want to hold the property - maybe a short term HML is the way to go  until you can get some "soft money".If you intend to flip the property - do not buy it..... instead  CONTROL IT with a skinny contract of sale - with all the necessary clauses in it that will benefit you and the seller.Make sure you have lots of time - use "banking days", study periods and delayed settlement terms.I think it is unproductive to use a HML for short term flips -Once you get a property under contract - start immediately to find your end user - your assignee the smart investors who can understand a bargain when one is presented. 

I purchased a property through Homesearch auction and the time for settlement is coming.

Repeated response to a previous post: Yes lots of opportunities here - you should attend some of our auctions - look it up on my profile - last week an investor netted $12,000 on one flip property - was in for $60,000 and flipped it for $72,000 - all within 3 weeks - 4 more weeks to settlement and he walks with $12,000 (no rehab, no need for a loan, no HML and no ownership, no agents, no title companies and no settlement cost).At 74 now, I have been here in Baltimore investing for 48 years - my friend Ned Carey was one of my protege.We are now going deeper into commercial development - finishing a 11,000 sf tavern on North Charles Street - (finished cost about $1.4MM) should be open in a few months.

Happy Settlements!

Jesse,You are looking for a settlement or title company.

If you compare dollars you could make representing others for a commission and representing yourself - the answer will become very clear - how many properties would you have to sell and get to settlement to make a commission $15,000 working on the standard split?

Contract price was $72,500 and mortgage amount is $58,000.CC, or "settlement charges" as my loan company calls them are right around $5500, or almost 8% of the purchase price.Seem a bit high to anyone else other than me?

I had the same thought, unfortunately no one (at least none of my close neighbors ) have a copy. ..and yes, I've tried to contact them, but as one would expect, they have not responded.They may be recorded at the courthouse , you should have recieved a copy at settlement