Two-year limit on collecting a home deficiency judgment
Ohio Rev. Code § 2329.08
In plain words
For a mortgage on a one- or two-family home or farm dwelling, a deficiency judgment becomes unenforceable two years after the court confirms the foreclosure sale. Collection efforts started within those two years are not affected.
Who is protected
Ohio borrowers with a deficiency judgment on a mortgage on a 1–2 family home or farm dwelling.
When it applies
- Only in Ohio.
- Only after the foreclosure sale.
What you can do
Put the deadline on your calendar
Enter the date on your notice so Techoclaro can count the days and remind you.
Open the toolAnswer a collector after two years
If someone tries to enforce the deficiency after two years, send a letter citing § 2329.08.
Open the toolRead your state guide and find free help
Open the state page for the process, deadlines and legal-aid contacts in your state.
Open the tool
Honest limits
- Actions begun inside the two years can continue.
- This is general education, not legal advice. Laws change and details matter — check the current official text or talk to a legal aid lawyer or HUD-approved housing counselor.
The law
- State lawLimit on deficiency enforcement
Ohio Rev. Code § 2329.08
What it says: A deficiency on a home mortgage is unenforceable two years after confirmation of the sale.
Read the official texthttps://codes.ohio.gov/ohio-revised-code/section-2329.08
Court cases
- Homeowner wonSame topicJerman v. Carlisle, McNellie, Rini, Kramer & Ulrich, L.P.A.
Jerman v. Carlisle, McNellie, Rini, Kramer & Ulrich, L.P.A., 559 U.S. 573 (2010)
the FDCPA's bona fide error defense does not excuse a debt collector's incorrect interpretation of what the Act requires
- Homeowner wonSame topicKaltenbach v. Richards
Kaltenbach v. Richards, 464 F.3d 524 (5th Cir. 2006)
a person who meets the FDCPA's general definition of debt collector is subject to the whole Act even while enforcing a security interest
- Homeowner wonSame topicHeintz v. Jenkins
Heintz v. Jenkins, 514 U.S. 291 (1995)
the FDCPA applies to lawyers who regularly collect consumer debts, even through litigation
- Homeowner lostSame topicObduskey v. McCarthy & Holthus LLP
Obduskey v. McCarthy & Holthus LLP, 586 U.S. 466 (2019)
a business engaged only in non-judicial foreclosure is not a debt collector under the FDCPA, apart from the provision barring threats to take property without a present right
- Homeowner lostSame topicMidland Funding, LLC v. Johnson
Midland Funding, LLC v. Johnson, 581 U.S. 224 (2017)
filing an obviously time-barred proof of claim in bankruptcy does not violate the FDCPA
- Homeowner lostSame topicMartins v. BAC Home Loans Servicing, L.P.
Martins v. BAC Home Loans Servicing, L.P., 722 F.3d 249 (5th Cir. 2013)
a mortgage servicer acting for a properly assigned mortgagee may foreclose in Texas without possessing the original note, and an oral promise to modify a large loan is not enforceable
Related rights
Right to the money left over after a sheriff’s sale
Ohio Rev. Code § 2329.44(A)
If the sheriff’s sale brings in more than needed to pay the judgment, interest and costs, the balance goes to the clerk of court within 45 days after confirmation. The clerk must then handle it under the statute so that the person entitled — often the former owner — can claim it.
Read this rightAfter a discharge, creditors cannot collect the wiped-out debt from you
11 U.S.C. § 524(a)(2)
A bankruptcy discharge wipes out your personal liability for most debts in the case. After that, the law forbids creditors from suing, calling or otherwise trying to collect a discharged debt from you personally. A court can hold a creditor in contempt if there was no fair doubt that its conduct was barred.
Read this rightThe government cannot keep your home equity beyond the tax debt
U.S. Const. amend. VTakings Clause
If your home is taken or sold to pay property taxes, the government may collect what you owe, but it may not keep the extra value. Keeping the surplus is a "taking" of your property without just compensation, which the Fifth Amendment forbids (Tyler v. Hennepin County, 2023). You may be able to claim the surplus, but you usually must follow your state's claim process and deadlines.
Read this rightA collection or charge-off must carry its real delinquency date
15 U.S.C. § 1681s-2(a)(5)(A)
A company that reports an account placed for collection or charged off must tell the credit bureau the month and year the delinquency began, within 90 days. That date sets when the item must come off your report, and it does not change when the debt is sold.
Read this rightMake the company that reported the error investigate it
15 U.S.C. § 1681s-2(b)(1)
The company that reported the information — such as your servicer — must investigate when a credit bureau passes along your dispute, and fix what is wrong with every bureau. In many cases you can also dispute directly with that company, which must then investigate and report back to you.
Read this rightMost negative items must come off after 7 years
15 U.S.C. § 1681c(a)(a)(1), (4), (5)
Credit bureaus may not report collection accounts, charge-offs and most other negative items that are more than 7 years old. For a collection or charge-off, the 7 years start 180 days after the delinquency that led to it began — so, about 7½ years from the first missed payment that was never brought current. Paying, settling or re-selling the debt does not restart this clock. Bankruptcies can be reported for 10 years.
Read this right