By: Douglas L. Waldorf, Jr.
In prior posts we analyzed the main components of HB 87, the bill introduced in the Florida legislature which proposed significant changes to certain aspects of Florida’s mortgage foreclosure process. The bill was signed into law by Governor Scott and was effective as of June 7, 2013. In this and future posts we will review the key aspects of the new law.
The new law limits the time within which an action to enforce a deficiency claim can be brought in cases involving a note secured by a mortgage against a one to four family residential dwelling. The new statute of limitations for those cases filed after July 1, 2013 is one year from the day after certificate of title is issued in a mortgage foreclosure case or the day after a deed in lieu of foreclosure is “accepted” by the mortgagee. What constitutes acceptance by the mortgagee is not clarified in the law so the conservative approach, absent any case law on the issue, would be to treat the date of the deed as the date of acceptance. For a lender simply suing on the note or guarantees without pursuing foreclosure, the statute of limitations remains five years. This change in the law is not applicable to commercial loans.