To foreclose, the party suing you must prove they have legal standing — meaning they hold the note and mortgage. When the chain of title is broken, defective, or fraudulent, you can challenge the foreclosure and potentially have it dismissed. Learn how to identify and exploit chain of title defects.
The chain of title is the documented history of who owns your mortgage note and who has the right to enforce it. When your loan was sold — possibly multiple times — each transfer must be properly documented. A chain of title challenge questions whether the party foreclosing on you actually has the legal right to do so. If they can't prove standing, the foreclosure must be dismissed.
Mass-produced assignment documents signed by "vice presidents" who signed thousands per day without reviewing them. Robo-signers admitted in depositions that they didn't verify the information in the documents they signed. A robo-signed assignment is legally defective.
MERS (Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems) was designed to track mortgage ownership without recording assignments. But courts in many states have held that MERS alone lacks standing to foreclose because it doesn't hold the note. MERS-as-nominee assignments are a frequent source of title defects.
If the assignment of mortgage was executed after the foreclosure was initiated or after the sale, the foreclosing party lacked standing at the critical moment. Some servicers create assignments after the fact to "fix" their standing — this is generally ineffective under the law.
If Loan A was sold to Bank B, then Bank B sold to Trust C, but only the assignment from Bank A directly to Trust C is recorded — there's a gap. The missing interim assignment breaks the chain of title and raises questions about whether Trust C actually owns the note.
If your loan was supposed to be transferred into a securitization trust by a specific closing date (common in RMBS trusts), but the assignment occurred after that date, the transfer may be void. This is a powerful but complex defense requiring detailed securitization analysis.
Demand the original note. In judicial foreclosure states, the foreclosing party must produce the original note or explain why it can't. If they can't produce it, move to dismiss.
Audit the recorded assignments. Review every assignment of mortgage recorded in county records. Look for gaps, robo-signers, wrong dates, notary defects, and missing recording.
Trace the securitization. If your loan was securitized, review the PSA (Pooling and Servicing Agreement) for the trust. Check whether your loan was transferred by the closing date. Late transfers may be void.
File a motion to dismiss. Raise standing as an affirmative defense in your answer to the foreclosure complaint, then move to dismiss for lack of standing. Many foreclosures are dismissed at this stage.
We audit your loan documents for standing defects, robo-signing, and assignment gaps. Most reviews find actionable issues.