Bulletin: IN2013002

Dear Associates:

Stewart Title Guaranty Bulletin IN2012003 issued on July 2, 2012, required you to obtain approval from a STG underwriter to delete an unreleased mortgage of record disclosed in your search. Specific approval was required due to litigation challenging the constitutionality of changes made to Indiana Code 32-28-4-1 et seq. in the 2012 legislative session. The 2013 Indiana Legislature has enacted HEA 1079 * revising the statutory expiration period for mortgage and vendor’s liens to address the issues brought up in the aforementioned litigation. The effective date is retroactive to July 1, 2012. You may now use the following guidelines to delete unreleased mortgages and vendor’s liens disclosed in your title search that have statutorily expired under Indiana Code 32-28-4-1 et seq: 

1)  A mortgage or vendor’s lien created after July 1, 2012, that has a maturity date on the face of the mortgage or vendor’s lien expires 10 years after the maturity date on the face of the mortgage or vendor’s lien unless an action to foreclose is brought within the 10 year time period. 

2)  If there is no maturity date on the face of the mortgage or vendor’s lien: 

a.  A mortgage or vendor’s lien created prior to July 1, 2012, expires 20 years from the date of execution of the mortgage unless an action to foreclose is brought within the 20 year time period. 

b.  A mortgage or vendor’s lien created after June 30, 2012, expires 10 years after the date of execution of the mortgage unless an action to foreclose is brought within the 10-year period. 

3)  If there is no maturity date on the face of the mortgage or vendor’s lien and no date of execution: 

a.  A mortgage or vendor’s lien created prior to July 1, 2012, expires 20 years after the date of recording unless an action to foreclose is filed within the 20-year period. 

b.  A mortgage or vendor’s lien created after June 30, 2012, expires 10 years after the date of recording unless an action to foreclose is filed within the 10-year period. 

The new law also provides that the owner of the mortgage or vendor’s lien may record an affidavit stating the maturity date of the mortgage or vendor’s lien if the recorded mortgage or vendor’s lien does not show a maturity date. If the mortgage or vendor’s lien without the maturity date was created prior to July 1, 2012, the holder will have 20 years from the date of execution to record an affidavit of maturity date. If there is no date of execution on the face of the mortgage or vendor’s lien, the holder will have 20 years after the date of recording to file the affidavit of maturity date. If the mortgage or vendor’s lien is created after June 30, 2012, the holder will have 10 years after the date the mortgage or vendor’s lien was executed to record an affidavit of maturity date. If there is no date of execution on the face of the mortgage or vendor’s lien, a holder will have 10 years after the date of recording to file an affidavit of maturity date. 

A mortgage or vendor’s lien on real estate described in the affidavit and created prior to July 1, 2012, expires 20 years after the designated maturity date in the affidavit. If the mortgage or vendor’s lien on real estate described in the affidavit was created after June 30, 2012, the mortgage or vendor’s lien expires 10 years from the maturity date designated in the affidavit. 

*Revisions are to Indiana Code 32-28-4-1 et seq.

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