Monday, December 20, 2010

New law clarifies Mass. homestead protections - The Boston Globe

New law clarifies Mass. homestead protections

Protecting your home against creditors will be easier now that Governor Deval Patrick signed into law a bill that automatically provides Massachusetts homeowners with a $125,000 cushion against debt collectors... if they hold that much equity in their properties.

The legislation, signed on December 16, 2010, clarifies ambiguities in a law first enacted in 1851. The statute, amended a number of times in ensuing years, provided $500,000 in protection from creditors — but only for homeowners who file a so-called homestead declaration with a county registry of deeds, a process that can cost between $35 and $100. Under the new law, homeowners do not have to make such a filing unless they hold more than $125,000 in equity in their homes. They can still get $500,000 in protection if they file a homestead declaration.

“It is an important piece of consumer protection,’’ said Michael Goldberg, co-chairman of the legislation committee for the Real Estate Bar Association for Massachusetts. “It ensures that homeowners in the Commonwealth have the protection of a modernized, understandable homestead law.’’

Read the entire article at Boston.com

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