Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California

Only if the residence structure sits partially on both parcels. A house and yard on one parcel, with an adjacent "back 40" cannot be joined any more than if the "back 40" was in the next county.

A homestead declaration is sometimes useful to protect your residence from foreclosure, as is the so-called "automatic" homestead which requires no pre-filing. However, only the residence and the parcel upon which it is built qualify, not adjoining lots.

I disagree with Mr. Whipple, with respect to his claim that a homestaed declaration is useful to protect your home from foreclosure.

The homestead declaration does not restrict or limit any right to encumber the declared homestead. �A homestead declaration does not restrict or limit any right to convey or encumber the declared homestead.� (Code Civ. Proc., � 704.940.)

The homestead statutes are designed to protect the value of the homestead from judgment liens, but they do not impair the right of a declared homestead owner to encumber the homestead with consensual liens, such as a deed of trust securing a promissory note executed by the declarant of the homestead.

If a declared homestead owner defaults on a debt secured by a consensual lien, the homestead is not protected from a nonjudicial foreclosure, that is, the homestead laws cannot be used to prevent a private sale pursuant to a power of sale conferred by the trust deed or mortgage securing the debt, as distinguished from preventing an execution of judgment sale. (Code Civ. Proc., � 703.010 subd. (b).)