The "Secret Mortgage": Can the Bank Foreclose if Your Deceased Spouse Took Out a Loan Without You Knowing?
Imagine finding out after your spouse dies that they took out a secret mortgage on your family home, and now the bank is foreclosing. Can they do that? If you owned the home together as a married couple in New York, the powerful doctrine of "Tenancy by the Entirety" may stop the bank cold. This post explains how your Right of Survivorship can trump a lender's lien.