By Steven A. Jacobs, Esq. and Laura M. Hawley, Esq.
Schneiderman & Sherman, P.C.
USFN Member (MI)

On January 12, 2023, the Michigan Court of Appeals issued a published opinion in the case of Kessler v. Longview Agricultural Asset Management, LLC, No. 360375, concerning the recording of a sheriff’s deed outside of the statutory 20-day period listed in MCL 600.3232. The court ruled that the redemption period after a mortgage foreclosure by advertisement runs from the date of the sheriff’s sale, regardless of when the sheriff’s deed is recorded.  This is true even if the sheriff’s deed is not recorded until more than 20 days after the date of the sale. The statute at issue provided in part:

“[S]uch deed or deeds shall, as soon as practicable, and within 20 days after such sale, be deposited with the register of deeds of the county in which the land therein described is situated, and the register shall endorse thereon the time the same was received, ..[.]”

In Kessler, plaintiffs’ farm was foreclosed by advertisement and sold at sheriff’s sale on August 21, 2020. The sheriff’s deed was not recorded until September 24, 2020, 34 days after the sale. The Kesslers argued that since the purchaser failed to record the sheriff’s deed within 20 days of the date of the sale, the statutory redemption period did not begin to run until the date of recording the sheriff’s deed.

The trial court rejected plaintiffs’ argument and granted summary disposition in favor of the defendant. The Court of Appeals affirmed the ruling and held the statute requiring recording of the deed within 20 days after the sale merely “delineates the procedural obligations on the sheriff and the clerk” at the Register of Deeds and that “there are no penalties for noncompliance contained within the statute.”

Prior to the ruling, it was implied that the recording of a sheriff’s deed beyond the 20-day period meant the redemption period started to run from the date of recording, not the date of the sale. This would result in redemption periods being extended longer than the specific period set forth under statute because of deeds being rejected or not recorded by the county Register of Deeds within the 20-day time frame. The Court, however, arrived at a different conclusion by analyzing the specific language found in the redemption statute, MCL 600.3240, and contrasting it with the language referenced above under MCL 600.3232. The Court held that failure to timely record a deed from a sheriff’s sale does not extend the date to redeem the property. The Court went on to declare that “only MCL 600.3240 delineates the commencement for the [redemption] period and states that it runs ‘from the date of the sale.’” Therefore, the date the deed is recorded is irrelevant to the calculation of the redemption period and does not extend the deadline.

The ruling in Kessler v. Longview Agricultural Asset Management, LLC provides clarification that a delay in recording the sheriff’s deed beyond the 20 days following a sale will not extend the redemption period.

Copyright @2023

USFN April e-Update