Real Property – Mortgage Satisfaction – Pennsylvania
Assignments Generally: Lenders, or holders of mortgages or deeds of trust, often assign mortgages or deeds of trust to other lenders, or third parties. When this is done the assignee (person who received the assignment) steps into the place of the original lender or assignor. To effectuate an assignment, the general rules is that the assignment must be in proper written format and recorded to provide notice of the assignment.
Satisfactions Generally: Once a mortgage or deed of trust is paid, the holder of the mortgage is required to satisfy the mortgage or deed of trust of record to show that the mortgage or deed of trust is no longer a lien on the property. The general rule is that the satisfaction must be in proper written format and recorded to provide notice of the satisfaction. If the lender fails to record a satisfaction within set time limits, the lender may be responsible for damages set by statute for failure to timely cancel the lien. Depending on your state, a satisfaction may be called a Satisfaction, Cancellation, or Reconveyance. Some states still recognize marginal satisfaction but this is slowly being phased out. A marginal satisfaction is where the holder of the mortgage physically goes to the recording office and enters a satisfaction on the face of the the recorded mortgage, which is attested by the clerk.
Pennsylvania Law Assignment: An assignment must be in writing and recorded.
Demand to Satisfy: The mortgagor, upon full payoff, must make request upon the mortgagee to satisfy the mortgage of record, and pay the mortgagee’s reasonable expenses thereof.
Recording Satisfaction: Any mortgagee of any real or personal estates in the Commonwealth, having received full satisfaction and payment of all such sum and sums of money as are really due to him by such mortgage, shall, at the request of the mortgagor, enter satisfaction either upon the margin of the record of such mortgage recorded in the said office or by means of a satisfaction piece.
Marginal Satisfaction: Allowed. A mortgage may be satisfied on the margin or by satisfaction piece.
Penalty: Upon full payoff, and within forty-five days after mortgagor’s request and tender made for mortgagee’s reasonable charges, mortgagee must return to the recording office, and there make satisfaction of the mortgage, and failing to do so shall for every such offence pay unto the party or parties aggrieved, any sum not exceeding the mortgage-money.
Acknowledgment: An assignment or satisfaction must contain a proper Pennsylvania acknowledgment, or other acknowledgment approved by Statute.
Pennsylvania Statutes
21 P. S. § 623. Assignments and Letters of Attorney.
21 PA Stat. 623 Repealed. 1998, Jan. 29, P.L. 45, No. 12, Effective
21 P.S. § 623, PA ST 21 P.S. § 623
Current through 2015 Regular Session Acts 1 to 66, 68 to 70
21 P. S. § 623-1. Assignments to be in writing
Hereafter no assignment of any mortgage shall be entered of record in any county of the second class, unless such assignment shall be in writing, and acknowledged by the assignor or assignors before an officer or person duly authorized to take such acknowledgments.
21 P. S. § 624. Assignments to be entered on margin of record of mortgage
From and after the passage of this act, it shall be the duty of the recorders of deeds, of the several counties of this commonwealth, to enter upon the margin of the record of any mortgages, the book and page wherein any assignment or assignments of the same are recorded, together with the date of such assignment, for which service the recorders aforesaid shall charge and be entitled to receive such fee as is provided by law unless the recorder of deeds microfilms the mortgages in which case the assignment shall be recorded without a marginal notation.
21 P. S. § 625. Certificate of residence of mortgagee or assignee
For the purpose of obtaining with accuracy the precise residence of all mortgagees, assignees, and persons to whom interest is payable on articles of agreement, it shall be the duty of the recorder of deeds in each county, whenever a mortgage, assignment, or agreement given to secure the payment of money, shall be presented to him for record, to refuse the same, unless the said mortgage, assignment, or agreement has attached thereto, and made part of said mortgage, assignment, or agreement, a certificate signed by said mortgagee, assignee, or person entitled to interest, or his, her or their duly authorized attorney or agent, setting forth the precise residence of such mortgagee, assignee, or person entitled to interest; said certificate to be recorded with said mortgage, assignment, or agreement; and therefrom the said recorder shall prepare and deliver, at stated intervals, to the proper Board of Revision of Taxes, or other officials charged with the assessment of State tax, a list of said mortgages, assignments, and agreements, with the names and residences of said mortgagees, assignees, or persons entitled to interest, with the amount and date of said mortgages, assignments, and articles of agreement, with the date of recording and the properties upon which the debts are secured.
21 P. S. § 681. Satisfaction of mortgage on margin of record or by satisfaction piece
Any mortgagee of any real or personal estates in the Commonwealth, having received full satisfaction and payment of all such sum and sums of money as are really due to him by such mortgage, shall, at the request of the mortgagor, enter satisfaction either upon the margin of the record of such mortgage recorded in the said office or by means of a satisfaction piece, which shall forever thereafter discharge, defeat and release the same; and shall likewise bar all actions brought, or to be brought thereupon.
21 P. S. § 682. Fine for neglect
And if such mortgagee, by himself or his attorney, shall not, within forty-five days after request and tender made for his reasonable charges, RETURN to the said office, and there make such acknowledgment 1 as aforesaid, he, she or they, neglecting so to do, shall for every such OFFENCE, 2 forfeit and pay, unto the party or parties aggrieved, any sum not exceeding the mortgage-money, to be recovered in any Court of Record within this Commonwealth, by bill, complaint or information.
21 P. S. § 705. Notice requirement
A bank, savings bank, savings and loan association or other lending institution holding a residential mortgage shall send written notification by first class mail to the mortgagor when the mortgage has been fully paid. Any moneys remaining in any escrow account established for the payment of taxes or insurance premiums shall be returned within 30 days to the mortgagor.
